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Hockey Mom Scores (Even More) for 'SNL'

Milo Ventimiglia and Hayden Panettiere in
Milo Ventimiglia and Hayden Panettiere in "Heroes," which is hooking far fewer viewers this season than in its first two. (By Chris Haston -- Nbc Via Associated Press)
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Looking for a viewing alternative to the endless blah, blah, blahing and Mega-Pixel Giant Touch Map massaging on the cable news networks this Election Day?

"The Oprah Winfrey Show" will host cast members from "Saturday Night Live," Whoopi Goldberg and Elisabeth Hasselbeck from "The View," Mary Matalin and James Carville, and "American Idol" season whatev runner-up Chris Daughtry, all talking presidential politics. I know -- too good to be true.

Maury Povich plans a very special Election Day November ratings sweeps episode of his syndicated show: "Time to Vote! Born Man or Woman?"

This special episode "features some transgender candidates, as well as others who were born as women, strutting their stuff in front of the show's live studio audience." Viewers at home can vote on whether the candidates are "really women or men in disguise."

Grievously, your viewing options today won't include C-SPAN's coverage of the oral arguments in the on-air profanity case of FCC v. Fox over its broadcast of Cher and Nicole Richie using the same naughty word during the Billboard Music Awards in 2002 and '03. The U.S. Supreme Court, which does not allow TV cameras or live audio coverage, turned down C-SPAN's request for the tapes from today's session, which the cable network had hoped to get on the air lickety-split.

C-SPAN had successfully argued it should be able to televise Fox's oral arguments in the hearing before the U.S Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit of this fleeting-profanity case. Fox won that round when the appeals court said the Federal Communications Commission had been arbitrary and capricious in smacking down Fox stations over the fleeting naughty bits. The FCC appealed to the Supreme Court, which is where the story continues today.

* * *

And, just in time for the November ratings sweeps, "Grey's Anatomy" is dumping its Dr. Erica Hahn character. The actress, Brooke Smith, said it's because the network was uncomfortable with the Callie-Erica lovers storyline, Entertainment Weekly says.

A couple of weeks ago, you'll recall, Callie and Erica's date night didn't go so well when Callie had trouble vacationing south of the border.

"I was very excited when they told me that Erica and Callie were going to have this relationship," the actress told the mag. "I really hoped we were going to show what happens when two women fall in love and that they were going to treat it like any heterosexual couple on TV," Smith said. "And so I was surprised and disappointed when they just suddenly told me that they couldn't write for my character any more."


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