Television standards have come a long way since William F. Buckley shocked the nation when he said “goddamn” on ABC. It was a peculiar phrase that über Catholic Buckley, father of the modern conservative movement, apparently favored since he says it more than once in the documentary “Best of Enemies.”
And he never meant it more than when he cursed at Gore Vidal as the pair faced off for ten days in 1968 during ABC’s coverage of the Republican and Democratic National Conventions.
People of a certain age will recall the tumultuous time and perhaps even the broadcasts. The GOP nominated Richard Nixon over Ronald Reagan in Miami, Democrats picked Hubert Humphrey over George McGovern, as police and protestors clashed in Mayor Daley’s Chicago.
