HBO chief calls his attempt to attack critics a ‘very, very stupid idea’
Casey Bloys, the chairman of HBO, has a reputation in the entertainment industry as an effective programmer and an easy-going manager who stays above the fray.
All this appeared quite strikingly at a press conference on Thursday, where he discussed his role at the center of a media storm.
Mr. Bloys acknowledged his involvement in an effort to create fake Twitter accounts to respond to television critics who had unfavorable views of HBO’s programming. And yes, he said, it was “a very, very stupid idea to vent my frustration.”
The comments, made at an event focused on the network’s upcoming shows, came a day later Rolling Stone reports this about the efforts of Mr. Bloys to resist the critics on Twitter. The article caught the attention of much of the entertainment industry, with several rival executives privately musing how the HBO executive could be so thin-skinned. New York Magazine described it as a “mini-scandal” that “might be the funniest thing to happen in the media in years.”
In its article, Rolling Stone said that Mr. Bloys and Kathleen McCaffrey, another HBO executive, began discussing the Twitter plan starting in June 2020. (Twitter has since been renamed X.)
“Who can go on a mission,” Mr Bloys wrote to his colleague, the report said. He asked to find a “mole” who would be within “arm’s length” of HBO executives. “We just need some random guy to drive home the point and make her feel bad,” he wrote, referring to a critic.
A former HBO employee created a fake Twitter profile and began responding to critics, the article said.
Rolling Stone came across the text messages while reporting on a wrongful termination lawsuit from a former employee, Sully Temori, who is suing the network along with two senior executives and several producers of the now-canceled show “The Idol,” where he worked.
Rolling Stone reported that the messages to critics – as well as anonymous comments on the entertainment publication Deadline – dated from June 2020 to April 2021.
“Remember 2020 and 2021, I work from home and spend an unhealthy amount of time scrolling through Twitter,” Mr Bloys said on Thursday.
“I apologize to the people mentioned in the leaked emails and text messages,” he continued. “It’s clear that no one wants to be part of the story they have nothing to do with.”
Executives at HBO, like other networks that specialize in prestige television, consider critical response as a benchmark for deciding whether to renew a show or not. The network has historically populated critics’ favorite lists and been a dominant player at television awards shows.
“I want people to love them,” Mr. Bloys said Thursday, referring to the network’s offering. “I want you all to love them. It is very important to me what you all think of the shows.”
Mr Bloys then suggested he had switched from the tactic of fake Twitter accounts, instead contacting critics directly via the direct message button.
“As many of you know, I have evolved to using DMs over the past few years,” Mr. Bloys said. “So now when I challenge something in a review, or contradict something I see, I DM many of you, and many of you are kind enough to engage in a back and forth conversation with me. And I think this is probably a much healthier way to go about it.