Unfortunately, you just can’t believe what you see
on TV these days. Amazingly enough, CBS producers of the 4^th of July
fireworks show in Boston decided they needed to add some Hollywood magic to
give the fireworks extra flair.

By the less-observant viewer, it appeared that
fireworks exploded behind the State House, Quincy Market, Fenway Park’s home
plate, and other beloved Boston landmarks, in a spectacular show that compares
well to any other major city. There were then viewers that realized the shots
were geographically impossible since the fireworks were launched from a barge
in the Charles River, in a direction away from those landmarks.

“According to CBS, you can see the fireworks from
the right side of Quincy Market, even though Beacon Hill is in the way,’’ wrote
“Kaz,’’ whose real name is Karl Clodfelter, a commenter on the
Boston blog UniversalHub.com. “Also, they come up behind the State
House when you’re standing across the road . . . which means the barge must
have been parked on the Zakim this year,’’ wrote Clodfelter, a research scientist
from Brighton.

The Boston Globe did an
article entitled “Boston gets a non-reality show” which reported that
executive producer David Mugar, the Boston-area businessman and philanthropist who  worked on the show for nine years, confirmed
yesterday that the footage was altered. He said this was the first year such
alterations were made.

Mugar said the added images were above board
because the show was entertainment and not news. He said it was no different
than TV drama producer David E. Kelley using scenes from his native Boston in
his show “Boston Legal’’ but shooting the bulk of each episode on a studio set
in Hollywood.

I suppose giving the show some cosmetic surgery is
the LA thing to do, right?

Many Boston natives were outraged but such actions.

T.J. Jeffers, decked out in a Celtics T-shirt and
Red Sox cap, stood outside the JFK/UMass T stop yesterday and,
with a toothy grin, declared his love for Boston and the Independence Day
celebrations.

“It’s one of the biggest times of year here,’’ an
animated Jeffers said. “Man, it’s huge. The fireworks, the crowds. It takes you
back to your childhood. . . . But I’m shocked they changed stuff on TV, because
they didn’t need to. The fireworks don’t need dressing up. They’re fireworks.’’

The fact that this show was considered
entertainment and not news doesn’t change the fact that viewers were misled. By
the way, isn’t broadcasting an event—whether it is an annual strawberry
festival, an air show, or a Labor Day parade, something REAL that is going on within
the community—meaning news? Hmm, an interesting issue, isn’t it? Apparently
television producers get more of a say on what can be considered entertainment
since they have the power to alter the media in ways they see fit.

What do you think? Is the fireworks show considered
entertainment and not news? Is it wrong to spruce up the show with camera
tricks?

You better watch out, the next pumpkin [or insert
other food here] festival that takes place in your town could be altered on
TV—perhaps to makes the pumpkins appear larger, etc.