Network move Reagan series after protests

Following protests from Republicans, the CBS network has decided not to air its controversial mini-series The Reagans and will move the project to its pay cable arm, Showtime, according to television sources.

CBS chairman Leslie Moonves has reportedly decided that the mini-series, which stars Barbra Streisand’s husband James Brolin as the former president, was not appropriate for a mainstream network.

The decision is likely to spark a new round of controversy, with media critics and left-leaning politicians accusing CBS of bowing to pressure from the conservative right.

Critics are particularly concerned about a scene in which Reagan says about Aids patients: “They that live in sin shall die in sin.”

Reagan, 92, never made such a public remark and while Aids activists contend such a quote symbolises Reagan’s slow response to the crisis, opponents of the project say it personifies liberal bias against him.