Commercial TV: For Profits Not Prophets

Here's another excerpt from a leaked memo in the fictional "The Gravedigger File: Papers on The Subversion of the Modern Church" by OS Guinness.

"At first sight the commercial system seems the freest. But its hidden snags lie in the remorseless logic of its economics, since first and foremost it is a marketing medium. It requires vast capital, sure results and quick returns, so it has a built-in bias against the small, the risky, the innovative and the controversial. Yes, almost anything can be said on commercial TV, but only if someone can afford to say it and if one can say it profitably. In other words, not everything can be said on commercial television. What, for instance, would be the ratings appeal of a Jeremiah or an Amos or of 'the offense of the cross'? Commercial television is for profits, not prophets, and the tele-evangelists have been quick to learn the difference."