As other poster notes, the Reagan smear was a trashy attempted character assassination of an honorable man on death's door, and this covers the run-up to a very serious war that is controversial (wish it weren't). Those of us grassroots people who acted against it targeted the advertisers, who I assume made their concerns kinown to the network. Here we have a National Socialist Rat leadership threatening ABC. Top down this time. We need to have these issues exposed for the good of the country.
I think you have it! There IS a difference between people threatening to boycott advertisers AND government officials citing the FCC regulations in the context of demanding the non-showing of a program. People have the right to address advertisers to make their feelings known....congressmen do NOT have the right to threaten, even if subtly, a network in order to prevent a film from being shown.