Heard or seen something on the pop culture landscape that appalled/delighted/enlightened you? Of course you have. That's what Station Break with Paul Farhi is here for. Local stations, cable, radio shows, commercials, pop culture -- they're all fair game.

Today, we'll start off discussing "Borat." The movie's a certified hit, ranking number one in its opening week and this past weekend it stayed on top and earned another $28,2 million, bringing its total U.S. box office to $67.1 and worldwide to $110. But there's controversy and now, lawsuits. Complaints are cropping up from people in the film who say they were duped by the filmmakers into signing release forms for their appearance (they didn't know it was going to be THAT kind of film). Kind of an art-meets-reality-meets-legal issue moment. Read this: The Real Stories Behind 'Borat' (USA Today).

Farhi will be online Tuesday, Nov. 14, at 1 p.m. ET.

Submit your questions and comments before or during today's discussion.

Farhi is a reporter in the Post's Style section, writing about media and popular culture. He's been watching TV and listening to the radio since "The Monkees" were in first run and Adam West was a star. Born in Brooklyn and raised in Los Angeles, Farhi had brief stints in the movie business (as an usher at the Picwood Theater), and in the auto industry (rental-car lot guy) before devoting himself full time to word processing. His car has 15 radio pre-sets and his cable system has 75 channels. He vows to use all of them for good instead of evil.

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Paul Farhi: Greetings all, and welcome back again. So, we've had our little election, haven't we? Now we can focus on more important things--the "Borat" movie, for example. I enjoyed the movie greatly (saw it twice) and am now quite intrigued by all the lawsuits and complaints that are cropping up from people who say they were duped by the production company into signing release forms for their appearance in the film (they claim they didn't know it was going to be THAT kind of film). This is kind of an art-meets-reality-meets-legal-issue moment. And the complaints take on larger relevance now that the movie is on its way to being a huge hit (No. 1 at the box office two weeks running) Anyway, as always, would love to hear your thoughts. Let's go to the phones...

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Lake Ridge, Va.: Hey Paul -- Any thoughts on Don and Mike walking off their show two days in a row because of technical difficulties?

Paul Farhi: It's a stunt, of sorts. The technical difficulties were legit (problems with hearing callers on the air, I guess), but c'mon. Do you walk off your job when your computer's down?

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Diebold-land: Just for the record, I saw the HBO doc on the voting machines and thought it terrifically scary. The point wasn't that the machines have been broken (so far as we know), but how easy it would be to manipulate the results.

I think they made that point well. Perhaps we weren't looking for the same thing in the show, as your review showed.

Paul Farhi: Oh, we saw the same documentary, all right. You are just more credulous than I am. I don't mean to minimize the seriousness of the issue, but the documentary was scattershot, incoherent, and suggested more than it really knew. The "hacking" demonstration, while interesting, just raised more questions in my mind than it answered. Such as, could this be done under actual election conditions, with all safeguards in place? (Diebold, for the record, says no).

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Lovettsville, Va.: Hello,

What part of the serial formula do you think "Heroes" has gotten right that "The Nine" and "Six Degrees" has not?

Babylon5fan

Paul Farhi: Well, apples and Buicks are being compared here, no? "Heroes" is comic-book superhero stuff, and plays as a fantasy escapism drama. "The Nine" and "Six Degrees" are more realistic (and sometimes gritty) serial dramas. I guess they didn't get the drama (or the occasional grittiness) right.

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Greenbelt, Md.: How ironic is it that Dan Snyder is scrambling to play catchup with WTEM on Redskins programming content? The team's players and coaches are wholly-owned subsidiaries of his radio empire, but he only has four hours of local 'Skins programming on weekdays, while the other station can go "live and local" with football talk from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.? Any news on how the Danny is going to make a trio of fringe signals into at least one that can be heard in downtown D.C. after dusk?

Paul Farhi: I agree with your implied comment; WTEM can claim that it is "independent" of the team, unlike the Snyder-owned Triple X. But, for the record, WTEM has been in bed with Snyder before; it had contracts with the team to do the Joe Gibbs weekly interview show as recently as last year, for example. And, to further muddy the waters here, John Riggins (Triple X's local talk host) can be a pretty harsh critic of the Redskins...Snyder, by the way, is trying to get FCC approval to boost his stations' signal power. Wait till next season...

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Cube La, ND:"... but c'mon. Do you walk off your job when your computer's down?"

No, I just don't work when it's UP. (rim shot)

Paul Farhi: Thank you. You'll be here all week?

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Gaithersburg, Md.: What's going on with Mark/Kris from Hot99.5? Are they going to be able to find another local slot?

Paul Farhi: Not with 99.5, and maybe not in this market. They're the first major casualties of the bloodletting to come at Clear Channel's locally owned stations (eight of 'em), as Clear Channel cuts costs while its management seeks to take it private. Easy prediction: This is not going to be good for the CC stations...

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Washington, D.C.: Are you aware of any studies regarding the number of satellite subscribers who have canceled their accounts and gone back to commercial radio?

Paul Farhi: I am not. But there is plenty of "churn" in satellite radio, just as there is in cable TV. Subscribers come and go all the time, either because they get tired of it or (more likely) because they haven't paid their bill.

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Washington, D.C.: I haven't listened to commercial radio in over a year. What monetary impact has satellite radio had on non-satellite radio. Is revenue down?

Paul Farhi: Hey, do you know the last poster?...Overall listening to terrestrial radio has declined over the past ten years by a significant percentage (10 percent? I don't know exactly). But many factors are at work--satellite radio, iPods, CDs, the sometimes crappiness of terrestrial radio. Revenue, by the way, continues to rise slowly as stations charge more to reach declining audiences (same way in newspapers and TV, too).

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Georgetown, Washington, D.C.: I haven't read that article on Borat yet, but there was also a letter to the magazine in Newsweek by a radio exec who got fired after booking what she thought was a legit guest, fell into depression, and is unemployed.

Regardless, I hate cringe humor. I don't understand why this movie is doing so well.

Paul Farhi: Yes, the woman who booked Borat on a Birmingham, Ala. TV station got fired after Borat cut up while the station was on the air (it's in the film). The woman thought Borat was who he pretended to be. She, above anyone, really deserves at least an apology from Sacha Baron Cohen, if not a couple of profit points from the movie.

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Columbia, Md.: Did you see the followup to Geico's "Cavemen at the Airport" ad? In this one, the CM is battling out on a cable TV shoutfest titled "Caveman Ads -- Insulting?". The look on his face when his foil says "Sounds like someone got up on the wrong side of the rock" is classic.

Paul Farhi: Yes. Another winner. I love the Caveman series, but I am also troubled by it. Isn't it ultimately making fun of people who complain that the media and/or society disrespects them? I know that the ads are satirizing political correctness, but being P.C. isn't all bad.

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Re: Heroes: Aside from the strong storyline, I would say the success has to do with Ali Larter and Hayden, the blonde cheerleader. I mean, you can't go wrong with two beautiful blondes can you?

Paul Farhi: Yeah, but show me a show on TV that DOESN'T have that element? Shows without beautiful blondes are hard to find.

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Washington, D.C.: I was working in London for a few months at the start of the year and really enjoyed a BBC drama called "Life on Mars." So, I was very happy when I saw that BBC America was going to be airing it here ... told all my friends to watch, talked up the show, blah blah blah. The show received great press from L.A. papers, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Trib, NYT, so I have a feeling my friends weren't the only ones looking forward to it.

But they didn't enjoy it.

Why? They couldn't follow the story. Turns out that BBCA had cut about 15 minutes out of every episode to allow for commercials. Which totally ruined the continuity, not to mention the plot. Some scenes were chopped so much they didn't even make sense.

These BBC shows are usually 58 minutes in length, and originally run without breaks. Why does BBCA ruin so many of their import programs this way? (I sent a letter to the network, but received no response. They also deleted a bunch of posts on the subject from their Web site forum. )

Paul Farhi: I hate that, too, but whatya gonna do? BBCA, unlike the BBC, lives in a capitalist economy. It isn't in it for the charity.

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Mark and Kris -- Boo on clear channel: What on earth is going on at Clear Channel? They are getting rid of people left and right! I am forced to listen to Hot 99.5 b/c the people I carpool with are in their mid-twenties. But I really actually liked M and K. The new morning team is terrible! Really terrible. The afternoon guy is pretty bad too -- I liked Albie Dee. Who else are they going to get rid of next? Elliot? (who I listen to when I have control)

Paul Farhi: Elliot is, I think, untouchable. But he's probably got a big contract, so you never know...

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Silver Spring, Md.: Borat and law suits. I guess I'm not quite understanding these. These people are the victims of their own stupidity. Wouldn't it be analogous to claiming I didn't know what I was doing because I was drunk say, for example, a DUI?

People can encourage others to act stupidly. But it's up to that person to decide to actually do so.

Paul Farhi: I sort of felt that way at first. But back up a second. If you misrepresent yourself going in--if, for example, you tell me that I will be appearing in an obscure Eastern European documentary, instead of a Hollywood blockbuster that everyone I know might see--I might change my behavior (let's not even get into the charge that the producers liquored-up the frat boys before filming). In any case, you've misrepresented yourself to me. Seems like a violation of our contract.

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Anywhere, USA: I also saw "Borat" twice, and I think that the "wrestling" scene may go down as one of the funniest things I've ever seen on film (even above Jonathan Winters wrecking the gas station in "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad World").

Paul Farhi: I totally, absolutely, unequivocally agree with you! I laughed so hard, twice, that my stomach ("sto-match," as Borat would say) hurt. And say what you will about the grossness of that scene (my wife had LOTS to say about it, in fact), you've got to hand it to Cohen and his co-star for their deep commitment to their "art."

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Fairfax, Va.: It seems to me that the quality of BBC news radio is much better than what we get in the States (i.e., NPR or local talk shows).

Do you agree?

Paul Farhi: No, disagree. I think you're being snowed by those clipped and aristocratic Beeb voices. Much of the BBC reporting I hear seems a little dreary, even pedantic. Gimme good ol' NPR any day.

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Severna Park, Md.: I think some enterprising soul needs to do a "reverse Borat" and film the exploits of a comically exaggerated Ugly American traipsing across Europe.

Of course it might just result [in] 90 minutes of humorless lectures about the evils of American foreign policy, but you never know ...

Paul Farhi: Hahaha. Great idea! But don't be too harsh on Borat's take on Americans. A few racists, sure. But many of the people in the film were kind, welcoming, friendly and indulgent of a foreigner, who frankly was a complete moron and jackass.

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RE: Geico Ads are "Troubling". ..: Let yourself be not troubled, my friend. Just enjoy the funny sometimes a caveman is just a caveman.

Paul Farhi: Gosh, sorry. I just can't turn off my brain...

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RE: Borat: I agree with the previous poster about cringe humor -- there is a mean-spiritedness about the basis for this move that is a little unsettling. The one clip I've seen (haven't seen the flick) that looked great was the bit with the Maryland driving instructor -- he seemed like a decent, well-meaning guy who finds himself dealing with a dim-witted, booze swilling student.

Paul Farhi: Exactly. The joke is more often on Borat than it is on the unsuspecting folk.

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99.5: So spill! What inside gossip do you have concerning the firing of the 99.5 morning team? Were their demands outrageous? Was the station cheap? Do tell!

Paul Farhi: They wanted a raise. They thought they deserved a raise, based on improved ratings. They negotiated for several months, without success. Managemen brought in another guy. That's really all I know.

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Anonymous:"I think some enterprising soul needs to do a 'reverse Borat' and film the exploits of a comically exaggerated Ugly American traipsing across Europe."

It's called "The Amazing Race."

Paul Farhi: Hahaha. Had that exact reaction while watching AR the other night. What must the people in all those countries think of those pushy, dim Americans? I think this is doing our image abroad (not all that great these days, I admit) a major disservice.

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Washington, D.C.: To follow up on my BBCA question: I realize they need to make a profit, but they also pay out big bucks for the program rights. And in some cases, they do extend the shows into a 70-minute or 90-minute block.

This was one of the Beeb's most acclaimed series of the year, btw.

Other networks, such as bravo and A and E, purchase BBC shows like Hustle and Spooks (Or MI 5 as it's called here), and seem to find a way to run them without such massive cuts and with a full commercial load. Perhaps BBCA should just stick to home improvement programs.

Paul Farhi: Fair enough.

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Silver Spring, Md.: I agree about Borat -- just about all points. But I think the morning-show person who ultimately got fired is responsible in that she (or anyone with the station) did no background checking on Borat at all. Why would you ever put a guest on your show without checking out his story? It would have been pretty simple to verify his employment as a TV reporter, after all.

Paul Farhi: That's reasonable. But I'm sure the Borat folk did everything they could to cover their tracks. Frankly, I'm surprised that this sort of scam doesn't happen more often. I mean, given the amount of time these radio and TV shows have to fill, it just seems ripe for people to pose as someone they're not to get on the air.

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My theory on "Lost": Paul:

I don't know if you agree with me that "Lost" has, well, lost it, but I think I can explain why. It's because the writers and producers never watched professional wrestling. Stay with me, I can explain. In wrassling, in the ongoing rivalries, the bad guys win most of the time, usually by cheating. But in the end, usually at the big pay-per-view event, the good guy finally overcomes all and wins. The key is not waiting too long for the good guy to win or the audience drifts away, or doing it too early, so you don't get the big payoff. Three seasons of watching the good guys get beat on "Lost" is too long. At some point, they've got to deal with the Others, and either beat them or partner with them and start figuring out how to get off the island. I think they need to hire either Hulk Hogan or me to write that show.

Paul Farhi: Interesting theory. Yes, it would be a satisfying, as a viewer, to see something or someone "succeed" on Lost once in a while. Instead, things just keeps going downhill or keep circling around without any hint of resolution. At least on Gilligan's Island they had frequent celebrity guest stars...

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Foggy Bottom, Washington, D.C.: Actually A and E cut a significant portion of MI-5(15 min/episode). Only solution is to watch it on DVD.

Paul Farhi: So true.

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Takoma Park, Md.: Okay, I'm on my second day of my three-day free trial period of XM online and I must say that I LOVE it. I find myself listening mostly to The Loft and Fred. Heard Simple Minds, Peter Gabriel's Games without Frontiers, and Los Lobos' Kiko and the Lavender Moon. Reminds me of the old, old, HFS. Not sure if it is worth $8.00 a month to listen to it through my bad computer speakers. It is great at work though. I listened to Bob Dylan's program last night. Does he write his own script? It just sounded a bit odd.

Paul Farhi: Was there a time when Dylan didn't sound odd?

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Arlington, Va.: The Borat movie is both terrifically hysterical AND terrifically unfair to its subjects. It's not a given that it has to be one or the other.

I think all this pointy-headed rumination on how the film exposes the ugly underbelly of the American heartland is a bunch of justificational hoo-hah to make folks feel better about laughing AT (not with) people for an hour or so.

Paul Farhi: Yeah. And, speaking of underbelly, I thought the fight scene showed a bit too much of it.

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Arlington, Va.: Maybe the machines weren't hacked (maybe they were), but I am sure you heard about the 18,000 lost votes in Sarasota county in last week's House election decided by fewer than 500 votes. If that one example alone doesn't cry out for reforms I don't know what does.

Paul Farhi: See, you've just unwittingly put your finger on what was wrong with that documentary. First, lost votes does not equal "hacking" into electronic vote machines. Lost votes doesn't necessarily equal fraud or stealing the election (it could mean gross incompetence). The documentary wrapped all of these loose ends together and tried to present them as one big sinister package. Is it? I don't know. More important, the documentary didn't know, either.

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Borat: A lot of this sounds like people who when they don't like what they see in the mirror blame the glass.

Paul Farhi: But what I'm saying is, I like the mirror, and the glass. Many of those people were decent and kind and patient. That's America, too.

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Spooks/mi5: Sorry to burst the previous poster's bubble, but there are 15-20 minutes cut out of the episodes A and E shows as well -- it's just done a little more smoothly than BBCA sometimes does. The only place the episodes are intact is on DVD.

Paul Farhi: Well, let's stop the madness once and for all. Just wait for the DVD!

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Beltsville, Md.: I've seen the Borat character on the Tonight Show, the Today show, and Saturday Night Live. At least one of those had a clip from the movie. I did not laugh. It wasn't offensive, it just wasn't funny. Based on this, I have no interest in seeing the movie.

Paul Farhi: Thank you. This, as you may have heard, is your right as an American.

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Boston, Mass.: This is probably a techie kind of thing. But it is a real bother that the sound level and quality varies so much from network to network. Are there any quality controls in place or is it entirely determined randomly by the network?

Paul Farhi: I believe--and help me out here, tech people--that the sound levels may be "set", or at least fed to your TV, at the local level. So the network passes the signal to the local affiliate station, and the local affil sends it out over the air (if you've got an antenna) or via the cable company.

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Washington, D.C.: Aside from Borat, have you seen any other good movies lately? What made them good?

Paul Farhi: I saw "Jesus Camp," a documentary about evangelicals and kids. It was great. Revealing, somewhat scary, occasionally sympathetic. Filled with interesting people, including a cameo by the Rev. Ted Haggard, who just 'fessed up to buying meth and soliciting a male prostitute (for a massage, damn it!).

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Ceylon-occupied Caprica: When is the hot sex-scene episode of Battlestar Galactica, which has been hinted at mercilessly by the producers, going to air?

Paul Farhi: I don't know what "Battlestar Galactica" is exactly (or "Ceylon-occupied Caprica"--a kind of baby stroller made in the Third World?), but the scene you mentioned sounds interesting.

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Silver Spring, Md.:"Yes, it would be a satisfying, as a viewer, to see something or someone "succeed" on "Lost" once in a while. Instead, things just keep going downhill or keep circling around without any hint of resolution."

They seem to be promising this in the "Spring" season. Something about "hope setting them free."

Paul Farhi: Yeah, I'm eagerly awaiting that. Or as Borat would say, "Pause....NOT!"

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Arlington, Va.: If you were in a locked room with no windows and you were forced to watch a 30-minute sports segment from our D.C.-area reporters who would you choose:

Tim Brant

George Michael

Dave Feldman

Brett Haber?

Paul Farhi: Feldman. By default.

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Washington, D.C.: Hey Paul,

Al Jazeera English is finally launching tomorrow. The channel may be controversial, but I always think it's important to be exposed to different points of view, especially from other cultures and countries. That said, will any local cable systems be carrying it? Do you know if they are syndicating their content in any way for over-the-air broadcasters to use?

Thanks.

Paul Farhi: No, but thanks for the set up. Check tomorrow's Style section for more on this.

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Paul Farhi: And on that joyous note, we close. Let's all rejoin the real world, as depressing as that sounds. Great to be in the bubble with y'all for a few minutes again. What say we have another go at it in two weeks? Capital suggestion, as Thurston Howell III might say. Until then, regards to all...Paul.

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