Cancellation of Darwin film creates uproar DEBATE: Alliance claims it was censorship science center says no.

Byline: Troy Anderson, Staff Writer

As the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin's landmark book on evolution approaches, a brouhaha has erupted in Los Angeles County over a planned series of events exploring the conflict between his theories and "intelligent design" advocates.

A group that favors "intelligent design" had planned to premier a new documentary film at the California Science Center in Los Angeles later this month, but the center later canceled the event.

The group claims the cancellation was an act of censorship, made after the center was pressured by the Smithsonian Institution, but the center chalked it up to a contract issue, without elaborating.

Coined "The Darwin Debates: A Forum for Dialogue," the nonprofit American Freedom Alliance had planned to premier a new Illustra Media documentary, "Darwin's Dilemma: The Mystery of the Cambrian Explosion," at the California Science Center on Oct. 25.

The Los Angeles-based alliance describes itself as a "nonpolitical, nonpartisan, movement of concerned Americans which identifies threats to western civilization." Those threats, according to the group include "the Islamic penetration of Europe" and "the growth of radical environmentalism."

California Science Center president Jeff Rudolph said Thursday the premiere was canceled "because of issues related to the contract." Rudolph declined to elaborate on those issues.

"We don't discuss contract issues in public," Rudolph said.

Alliance president Avi Davis said the cancellation had nothing to do with contract issues, but rather a press release touting the film issued a few days ago by the Discovery Institute, a Seattle-based "intelligent design" think tank.

The institute's release announced that some of its fellows were featured in the film to be screened at a location they described as the "Smithsonian Institution's west coast affiliate."

John West, a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute, said he understands officials at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History pressured the CSC to cancel the film.

"I think this is an outrageous example of censorship and ideological discrimination," West said. "The thing about a contractual dispute is just a pretext and it's bogus. This really should be disturbing to anyone who believes in free speech."

But Smithsonian spokesman Randal Kremer denied that his organization pressured the CSC to cancel the film.

"It's nothing we would get involved in," Kremer said.

However, Kremer said he saw the press release a few days ago and was concerned by its reference to the Smithsonian. He pointed out the CSC is just one of more than 160 Smithsonian affiliates nationwide, adding the CSC is not a branch of the Smithsonian, but "they work with us occasionally on their programs."

"The only reason I spoke with anyone at the California Science Center is I was concerned by the inference (in the press release that) there was a showing of the film at a Smithsonian branch, which is how the California Science Center was portrayed in the news release," Kremer said. "Of course, that is not the case. They are independent and any decisions they make on this are on their own."

As a result of the dust-up, Davis said he's considering showing the film at another venue. But he said the rest of the events are scheduled to go forward as planned.

Those include a debate on Nov. 30 at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills between Discovery Institute official Stephen Meyer and Biologic Institute investigator Richard Sternberg and The Skeptics Society President Michael Shermer and paleontologist Don Prothero.

Darwin's book "On the Origin of Species," a foundation of the scientific theory of evolution, was first published in November 1859.

"Intelligent design" is a more modern, controversial theory that proposes to add a role for religion in evolution by attributing diversity in nature to divine causes.

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