COBRA Protests This Week’s Episode of ‘CSI:NY’

CSI Files

Captain
Last week the <font color=blue>Carts of Brooklyn Racing Association</font> (COBRA) held a press conference outside <font color=blue>CBS</font> headquarters in New York City. The group, which is responsible for organizing the Idiotarod shopping cart race, is protesting the <CSI:NY[/I] episode “Obsession,” which features their race in one it’s storylines.

COBRA objects, among other things, to CBS’ use of the name “Idiotarod” without permission in their marketing materials. In the show, the race is referred to as the “Idiot Run.”

COBRA member <font color=yellow>“Number Six”</font> expressed disappointment with the CSI:NY episode on a number of levels. First, the organization is disappointed because they offered to work with the show to help them “create a ground breaking hour of television.” Second, COBRA is upset by the way the media continues to portray shopping cart racing in a negative light. Third, according to Number Six, “CSI:NY is just not a good show. I used to like Gary Sinise. I even liked him in Ransom. What happened to him? You know when you’d rather watch David Caruso something has gone seriously seriously wrong.”

COBRA’s <font color=yellow>Oscar Owens</font> has this to say: “This is yet another example of the lack of respect with which the media treats the ‘craft of the speeding trolley.’ For years shopping cart racers have faced uninformed and distorted images of themselves. Now they want to paint us as thieves and murders? It would be one thing if CSI:NY weren’t so bad, but this Gary Sinise-led monstrosity is beyond the pale. Do you hear us, Les Moonves? We demand satisfaction.”

For a highly entertaining read, head over to <A class="link" HREF=http://www.gothamist.com/archives/2007/01/10/cobra_to_protes.php>Gothamist</a>.<center></center>
 
Being upset about media portrayal of racing, I can see, blah blah blah--but why in the heck are they insulting Gary Sinise? Hello, it's GARY-FRICKING-SINISE. :rolleyes: That's not going to make fans, or people involved in the show, take them more seriously. If anything, it makes me dismiss whatever else they say--it sounds so childish.

However, I'm not sure I could look at shopping cart racing as anything other than stupid. More power to the people who like it, but I'm not going to be one of them.

And I love my Gary. ;)
 
The phrase 'publicity stunt' comes to mind.
That whole piece reads like a bit of attention seeking by a group who wouldn't otherwise get their names in the headlines or pictures in the media.

Of course, big cynical me is thinking that not only do the idiots...er racers get their publicity, but so does CSI NY.
 
i laughed so hard reading this. shopping cart racing? are they 12? cbs doesnt owe these people anything, they take events from real life and put them in the show. these people dont own shopping cart racing (im laughing ever time i type shopping cart racing!) oh sorry, the craft of speeding trolley.
guess what, its csi, there are thieves and murderers and criminals in every episode. its not specifically a stab against you.
 
:lol: Do these people seriously expect to be taken seriously? :lol:
This isn't the first time they've taken events or organizations to use for their show. No one else has complained, that I'm aware of. The fans of the show know that it's fiction. We know that just because one of them is a murderer or a theif or whatever in the show, doesn't mean that they are in real life. Think of how many people will be aware you exist now. It's like free publicity.
(Having said all that, I can also understand them not wanting to be shown in a negative way)

Oh, and way to insult both Gary Sinise and David Caruso. That'll get people on your side :rolleyes:
 
I'm sorry, but anyone who races shopping carts around the streets of New York City is an idiot. Ceindreadh, I agree with you: I smell a publicity stunt.
 
When I first saw the title, I thought it was the Cobra people angry with the way snakes were portrayed in Sweet Sixteen :lol:

Big ol' WORD to Fay. You don't go after the Sinise, he's Lt. Dan for crying outloud. I love Gary, and Im sorry but comparing Sinise to Caruso is like comparing apples to pineapples.

This has got to be a joke. These people can't be serious :rolleyes:
 
I've never heard of COBRA before this and probably will never think of them again. Unless you're talking about Cobra and ment GI Joe rather than CSI:NY. Then I've heard of it. But that's a whole other story.
 
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