‘ET,’ ‘Insider’ and ‘Access Hollywood’ steer clear of Polanski

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An Oscar-winning director on the lam gets arrested and may be sent back to Los Angeles to finally face sentencing in a 32-year-old sexual assault case. His case has become a cause celebre for Hollywood movers and shakers, and debates are raging around the world about what should happen to him.

But anyone looking to learn about the fate of Roman Polanski by tuning in to ‘Access Hollywood,’ Entertainment Tonight’ or ‘The Insider’ will be sadly disappointed. While cable news, particularly CNN, has been micro-analyzing the arrest and the entertainment industry’s reaction, the three shows that claim to be the insider’s guide to all things Hollywood have for the most part steered clear of the controversy. Only ‘Entertainment Tonight’ has addressed the case at all, and that was in a small segment on Monday’s show. ‘Access Hollywood’ said it was doing something on the case on its Thursday show, but it then told us yesterday that it would be doing something on it today. Even that lover of all things tabloid, CNN’s Larry King, hasn’t done a segment on Polanski. He’s going to have Jon Gosselin on later this week, so we know it’s not because his show is busy with weightier issues.

Though one might argue that these shows are more fluff than news, certainly a story that has caused debate around the globe about a director who’s worked with Hollywood’s biggest stars is worth some sort of cursory coverage. With few in Hollywood willing to come out against Polanski and in favor of the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office, perhaps ‘Entertainment Tonight,’ ‘Access Hollywood’ and ‘The Insider’ aren’t up for risking their place on the red carpet.

-- Joe Flint