Inside Live PD's cancelation: "All involved bristled at the notion of Live PD being lumped in with Cops"

Variety

Insiders at the cable network felt they ultimately had no option but to cancel Live PD at this moment of time, reports Michael Schneider, noting that cop reality show was a juggernaut for A&E that spawned multiple spinoffs. But Live PD could still come back in a different form. “We hope to one day be able to do a show that bridges community and policing in the vein of the justice genre that we’ve done so successfully for 35 years,” an A+E Networks spokesperson tells him. Schneider adds: "Ultimately, after Paramount Network canceled Cops and controversy swirled over the death of Javier Ambler in Austin, which was captured (and later erased) by the A&E show, network execs felt they had no choice but to pull Live PD off the air completely....All involved bristled at the notion of Live PD being lumped in with Cops, which they argued was a very different show. And the Austin situation also came with nuance, they said, as it was utilized as part of a contentious political campaign. But it was a perfect storm that they knew wouldn’t go away." Still, Schneider notes that A&E is partly owned by Disney, which has dealt with shows like Roseanne and Duck Dynasty coming back from controversy, albeit in different forms.

ALSO:

• Live PD host Dan Abrams calls cancelation an "overreaction" to recent protests: "I think that it's very troubling that we're suddenly in a culture where all police officers have to suffer for the sins of a few," said Abrams on The Dan Abrams Show on SiriusXM. "And I say that for every group, it's not just police officers. It's just so interesting to me that many on the left have criticized this sense of collective justice, right? That it has to be individual justice. You can't sort of impugn a community of people. And yet when it comes to this, the left seems very willing, ready, and able to impugn all police officers. Now let me say again, that doesn't mean we don't have to have a discussion about the inequities in our society. And not just a discussion — action. There should be changes. There's real positive change in many ways going on in this country. But there's also an overreaction going on. And I think that that's what Live PD suffered from."
• Live PD was a massive hit for A&E, topping out at 2.4 million viewers last year
• Abrams spars with CNN's Brianna Keilar over the destroyed footage of Javier Ambler's death
• Sean Penn slams "used car salesman" Abrams in praising Keilar's interview: "Great to see you challenge that used car salesman, selling everything and saying nothing about what's going on in the country right now," Penn told the CNN anchor.