Andy Didorosi was seething.
So, he didn't mince words on Facebook after seeing that he and his business, the Detroit Bus Company were briefly included in a Detroit documentary by Comcast called Detroit: Another Chance. It aired Sunday on WXYZ.
Lee Divito of the Metro Times writes that the Bus Company was in the video for four seconds on a documentary championing Dan Gilbert's contributions to the city. Comcast produced the TV special in association with Yellow Flag Productions. It first aired on Comcast Channel 900 before being shown on WXYZ.
Didorosi wrote on Facebook:
Just a minute ago, I started getting phone calls and texts that I was on TV. Having no idea what it was about, I searched the title, "Detroit Another Chance" and found the production company uploaded a copy of it to YouTube a month ago. Without my permission, I now appear in a bullshit Comcast-powered shitfest of fake sunshine Detroit boosterism that claims our existence as a company is due to the generosity and genius of Quicken Loans et cetera rather than hard work and investment in our own city. I did not choose to endorse a shitty, evil, manipulative company like Comcast that actively works to take our information rights away and I won't abide by them lifting our image for their gain. I'm mad as hell and pursuing this to the furthest extent the law will take me.
The video was posted on YouTube, but has been disabled.
The Metro Times contacted him, and wrote:
We called up Didorosi for an elaboration, who described the video as "one big wank-fest for Comcast." He says it appears the production company "lifted" footage from a variety of sources, including a piece on the Detroit Bus Co. shot for Whole Foods' online magazine Dark Rye nearly two-and-a-half years ago.
A promo for the documentary included this:
Few other cities have experienced the stark contrast between triumphant peaks of success and devastating depths of collapse. Detroit Another Chance is a documentary that tells the story of Detroit’s infamous highs and lows and the current revival of their residential, cultural and economic state.
This hour long special narrated by Matt Shepard highlights the rise of Detroit from the fur trade, the rise of the automobile industry and the “Motown Sound”, while exploring the hardships the city endured during the race riots, mayoral corruption and filing for bankruptcy. But despite the city’s rocky past, Director Jeff Burley uncovers the unbreakable spirit of Detroit that has sparked a resurgence of renewed ideas, businesses and vision.
