Media Briefing for Tuesday, July 31, 2007
About a decade ago, Mikhail Gorbachev starred in a television ad for Pizza Hut, praising America for delivering the benefits of capitalism to his country. Now he is trading in fast food for fine leather, appearing in an international print ad campaign for Louis Vuitton. The International Herald Tribune reports.
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has promised that a pivotal airwaves auction early next year will allow people to buy the cellphones they want, not just those their service providers offer. But the promise of consumer benefits in the proposed rules for the airwaves auction - set for a vote today by the Federal Communications Commission - may not be so bold after all, says Associated Press.
Media magnate Rupert Murdoch is pressing the owners of Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal to sell to him. The media magnate, inserting himself into 11th-hour deliberations with the family that controls Dow Jones, sent the company's stock price tumbling 5.3 percent yesterday by casting doubt on whether his $5 billion takeover bid will go forward. The Boston Globe reports. Murdoch seems tantalizingly close, says the New York Times. Doubts are starting to arise about whether the sale will close, says the Los Angeles Times.
EMusic, the nation?s second-largest online music seller after iTunes, plans to announce a deal with AT&T today that will allow people to buy songs from independent labels through their cellphones, without the need to go through a personal computer. The New York Times reports.
Internet aerial map services are a boon for businesses such as one roofer who was able to forgo a 350-mile round trip to see roofs in person. Instead of nine hours, he spent 10 minutes on the computer. Many small businesspeople are turning to Google Earth and other mapping services with aerial imagery such as Microsoft's Live Search Maps and Zillow.com to find new clients, estimate job costs and inspect properties, saving time they would have spent driving around. The Wall Street Journal. reports.
Software tools can cut costs and time for linking information sources on the Internet. So-called mashups sew data together to give a full picture, reports the Wall Street Journal.
Apple?s announcement last week that it sold 270,000 iPhones in the product?s first 30 hours of availability popped the bubble of several excessively exuberant analyst reports. Many publications reported that Wall Street was disappointed because analysts had expected sales as high as 700,000. But did Apple miss analysts? forecasts, or did the forecasts miss reality? The Wall Street Journal. reports.
A researcher has found increasing acceptance of cell phone ads, says Media Daily News.
The green teen is receptive to appropriate online ads, says Media Daily News.
The New York Times and NBC will be sharing coverage on the presidential campaign, reports the New York Times.
When it debuts today on the Web, My Damn Channel will become the latest attempt by Hollywood professionals to cash in on the huge popularity of online video, says Associated Press.
Blockbuster is shifting its strategy, moving away from stores with massive selections of movies, and operating smaller stores offering hit movies, with customers invited to order lesser known movies online, according to a Dow Jones and Associated Pressreport.
The Tomorrow show which was broadcast after the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson at 1 a.m., and was hosted by Tom Snyder, had a unique place in television broadcasting history, says the New York Times. At one point Tom Snyder was being considered to be the anchor for NBC Nightly News, says the New York Times. He was a major figure in Philadelphia in the 1960s, says the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Washington Post examines his career. He never forgot his Wisconsin roots as a news reporter at Milwaukee's WRIT-AM 1340, says the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Without reruns, Tom Snyder will be the latest TV celebrity to fade from memory, like Arthur Godfrey, Jack Paar, Steve Allen and others, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
TV Marti, the anti-Fidel Castro television station operated by the U.S. government and aimed at Cuba, is still difficult to see in Cuba, despite a recent additional expenditure of $10 million by the federal government, says Associated Press.
Ball State University in Indiana is naming its new communications building after David Letterman, says the Indianapolis Star.
Variety takes a look at the past year for Katie Couric at the CBS Evening News.
The question of why CNN is bringing in Campbell Brown from NBC to host the 8 p.m. hour against Bill O'Reilly of Fox News Channel and Keith Olbermann of MSNBC is examined by the Saint Petersburg Times.
Radio Saigon Houston KREH-AM 900 has become a major force in the Vietnamese community in the Houston area, says the Houston Chronicle.
Newspapers are beating local TV stations in postings of videos of local news stories on the Internet, says Lost Remote.
The Long Island newspaper Newsday is revamping its Web news site, with reporters now covering stories specifically for the Web, and more postings of videos with news stories. Media Daily News reports.
WNBC channel 4 New York is dropping its 5 p.m. local newscast because of changing work schedules, and the New York Daily News looks at the trend in other markets.
The Young group of TV stations is still being hobbled by its ill-advised purchase of KRON channel 4 San Francisco, former decades-long NBC affiliate and now an MNT affiliate, in the early part of the decade, reports TV Newsday.
About a decade ago, Mikhail Gorbachev starred in a television ad for Pizza Hut, praising America for delivering the benefits of capitalism to his country. Now he is trading in fast food for fine leather, appearing in an international print ad campaign for Louis Vuitton. The International Herald Tribune reports.
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has promised that a pivotal airwaves auction early next year will allow people to buy the cellphones they want, not just those their service providers offer. But the promise of consumer benefits in the proposed rules for the airwaves auction - set for a vote today by the Federal Communications Commission - may not be so bold after all, says Associated Press.
Media magnate Rupert Murdoch is pressing the owners of Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal to sell to him. The media magnate, inserting himself into 11th-hour deliberations with the family that controls Dow Jones, sent the company's stock price tumbling 5.3 percent yesterday by casting doubt on whether his $5 billion takeover bid will go forward. The Boston Globe reports. Murdoch seems tantalizingly close, says the New York Times. Doubts are starting to arise about whether the sale will close, says the Los Angeles Times.
EMusic, the nation?s second-largest online music seller after iTunes, plans to announce a deal with AT&T today that will allow people to buy songs from independent labels through their cellphones, without the need to go through a personal computer. The New York Times reports.
Internet aerial map services are a boon for businesses such as one roofer who was able to forgo a 350-mile round trip to see roofs in person. Instead of nine hours, he spent 10 minutes on the computer. Many small businesspeople are turning to Google Earth and other mapping services with aerial imagery such as Microsoft's Live Search Maps and Zillow.com to find new clients, estimate job costs and inspect properties, saving time they would have spent driving around. The Wall Street Journal. reports.
Software tools can cut costs and time for linking information sources on the Internet. So-called mashups sew data together to give a full picture, reports the Wall Street Journal.
Apple?s announcement last week that it sold 270,000 iPhones in the product?s first 30 hours of availability popped the bubble of several excessively exuberant analyst reports. Many publications reported that Wall Street was disappointed because analysts had expected sales as high as 700,000. But did Apple miss analysts? forecasts, or did the forecasts miss reality? The Wall Street Journal. reports.
A researcher has found increasing acceptance of cell phone ads, says Media Daily News.
The green teen is receptive to appropriate online ads, says Media Daily News.
The New York Times and NBC will be sharing coverage on the presidential campaign, reports the New York Times.
When it debuts today on the Web, My Damn Channel will become the latest attempt by Hollywood professionals to cash in on the huge popularity of online video, says Associated Press.
Blockbuster is shifting its strategy, moving away from stores with massive selections of movies, and operating smaller stores offering hit movies, with customers invited to order lesser known movies online, according to a Dow Jones and Associated Pressreport.
The Tomorrow show which was broadcast after the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson at 1 a.m., and was hosted by Tom Snyder, had a unique place in television broadcasting history, says the New York Times. At one point Tom Snyder was being considered to be the anchor for NBC Nightly News, says the New York Times. He was a major figure in Philadelphia in the 1960s, says the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Washington Post examines his career. He never forgot his Wisconsin roots as a news reporter at Milwaukee's WRIT-AM 1340, says the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Without reruns, Tom Snyder will be the latest TV celebrity to fade from memory, like Arthur Godfrey, Jack Paar, Steve Allen and others, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
TV Marti, the anti-Fidel Castro television station operated by the U.S. government and aimed at Cuba, is still difficult to see in Cuba, despite a recent additional expenditure of $10 million by the federal government, says Associated Press.
Ball State University in Indiana is naming its new communications building after David Letterman, says the Indianapolis Star.
Variety takes a look at the past year for Katie Couric at the CBS Evening News.
The question of why CNN is bringing in Campbell Brown from NBC to host the 8 p.m. hour against Bill O'Reilly of Fox News Channel and Keith Olbermann of MSNBC is examined by the Saint Petersburg Times.
Radio Saigon Houston KREH-AM 900 has become a major force in the Vietnamese community in the Houston area, says the Houston Chronicle.
Newspapers are beating local TV stations in postings of videos of local news stories on the Internet, says Lost Remote.
The Long Island newspaper Newsday is revamping its Web news site, with reporters now covering stories specifically for the Web, and more postings of videos with news stories. Media Daily News reports.
WNBC channel 4 New York is dropping its 5 p.m. local newscast because of changing work schedules, and the New York Daily News looks at the trend in other markets.
The Young group of TV stations is still being hobbled by its ill-advised purchase of KRON channel 4 San Francisco, former decades-long NBC affiliate and now an MNT affiliate, in the early part of the decade, reports TV Newsday.
Media Briefing for Monday, July 30, 2007
Liberal activists are stepping up their campaign against the Fox News Channel by pressuring advertisers not to patronize the network. MoveOn.org, the Campaign for America's Future and liberal blogs like Daily Kos are asking thousands of supporters to monitor who is advertising on the network. Once a database is gathered, an organized phone-calling campaign will begin, said Jim Gilliam, vice president of media strategy for Brave New Films, a company that has made anti-Fox videos. Associated Press reports.
Despite pressure from environmentalists, Home Depot is continuing to advertise on the Fox News Channel, reports the New York Times.
Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney will not join the YouTube-CNN Republican presidential debate September 17 in Florida, reports Newsday.
Five Democratic presidential hopefuls are heading to Chicago for Friday's annual convention of the liberal blog Daily Kos, while conservative commentators continue their blistering comments against the blog. The San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Disney has backed out of a plan to market wine after critics expressed concern that using a cartoon rat in the promotion might encourage underage drinking, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Publishers in South Africa have decided to cancel an Afrikaans language version of a racist cartoon called Tintin in the Congo, reports Associated Press. Borders bookstores in the U.S. and U.K. have also removed the book, reports Reuters. AP says the book depicts the white hero's adventures in the Congo against the backdrop of an idiotic, chimpanzee-like native population that eventually comes to worship Tintin and his dog as gods.
The nations of Georgia and Kazakhstan are among countries cited as imposing heavy restrictions on the Internet in their countries, hampering freedom of speech, reports Associated Press.
One of the most popular TV shows in the Arab world is one featuring a Muslim sex therapist, says the Los Angeles Times.
There are reported shifts in the Bancroft family that hold the key to the sale of Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal to Rupert Murdoch, and this is clouding prospects for the vote on whether to sell, reports the New York Times.
With people arriving home later and later from work, WNBC channel 4 New York is eliminating its 5 to 5:30 p.m. local newscast, and introducing a local newscast from 7 to 7:30 p.m., says the New York Times. In Miami, NBC's WTVJ channel 6 is making a similar move. In Miami, back in November, the Post Newsweek-owned ABC affiliate WPLG channel 10 dropped its 5 p.m. newscast and replaced it with Doctor Phil, but did not add a 7 p.m. newscast, reports the Miami Herald.
As former NBC newscaster Campbell Brown moves to CNN to host a talk show, the challenges facing women anchors on cable TV news networks are examined by the Washington Post.
In Phoenix, Arizona, two television news helicopters crashed in midair Friday while covering a police chase near downtown, killing all four people aboard. The two copters were covering the chase for independent station KTVK channel 3 and ABC affiliate KNXV channel 15. The helicopters exploded in the air, then crashed in a grassy area, with at least one helicopter exploding again as it hit the ground, witnesses said. No one on the ground was injured, New York Times. Covering themselves as a news story was difficult for the two stations, says the Phoenix Gazette. Reporters covering the story were wiping away their tears, says Associated Press. Those watching the stations did not see the crash, says Associated Press.
Though two passenger planes collided in mid-air over New York City in 1960, this is the first time two television news helicopters have collided, says Associated Press. Investigators are combing the debris, reports Associated Press.
In Dallas, Texas, a news helicopter for Fox TV station KDFW channel 4 crash landed after experiencing engine failure. Everyone walked away without serious injuries, reports Associated Press.
In Detroit, advertisers on local TV news are paying more and getting less, according to Crain's Detroit Business.
The San Jose Mercury News asks whether Internet radio stations will be able to avoid huge increases in music royalty fees.
A full power FM station serving the Washington, D.C. market is being sold, and even though it is a noncommercial educational station, it reportedly may sell for more than $20 million. The suitors for the station, WGTS 91.9, include Minnesota Public Radio, which would give that broadcaster a voice in the Washington area. The Washington Post reports. Meanwhile, the sale appears almost certain, according to the Web site of Columbia Union College which owns WGTS.
The 104.l FM station in the Washington, D.C. market, which earlier this year was occupied by classical WGMS, is now a black gospel music station, WPRSand in its very first ratings, is ranked 14th, which is considered very respectable for a station with a new format, says the Washington Post.
The FCC will set the rules tomorrow governing the auction of $15 billion of public airwaves, a decision with stakes so high that the major U.S. cellular carriers and Google have spent millions of dollars on a lobbying campaign in an attempt to influence the outcome. The decision could dramatically alter the nation's cellphone industry. Google, the giant Internet search company, wants to extend its popular tools, which include e-mail and video, to the rapidly expanding mobile phone market. To do so, it may spend billions to build a new, open network it says will loosen the grip telecom operators have over how consumers use their cellphones. The Washington Post reports.
As New York City considers rule changes that would require a permit to photograph and film in public places, a coalition of filmmakers and photographers is mobilizing a campaign against the rules by using the very medium they believe the regulations would constrict. Members of a newly formed advocacy group called Picture New York gathered recently at a gallery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to harness their creative skills to express their opposition to the rules by planning demonstrations, including one that was set to take place yesterday in Manhattan's Union Square. The public comment period ends Friday. The New York Times reports.
The Web addresses that businesses and people online call home have spawned the equivalent of a real estate boom in the real world with speculators, appraisers, developers, investors, and brokers turning the names typed on navigation bars into hefty profits. It is a global, multibillion-dollar industry, says Peter Lamson, senior vice president and general manager of NameMedia's domain name company. In the 1990s, speculators registered Internet domain names on the cheap, often hoping to make a lucrative flip selling them to someone else. When the tech bubble burst, many were left with little more than words, but now everything has changed. This report is from the Boston Globe.
Getting lost is less of a problem with a sharp increase in the availability of maps on the Internet, cell phones, and other technology spots, reports Associated Press.
Baby boomers are using technology to deal with the problems of aging, says the Boston Globe.
Pownce is a new social networking Internet site with a difference: the only participants are those invited to the site. The New York Times reports.
Online snooping is being made easy. "Profile stalking" is the latest craze in the world of social networking, says the Los Angeles Times.
A teenaged student describes social networking and what it's like conducting your social life online, on My Space, in the Washington Post.
In the past interns came to companies to gain real work world experience and learn from experienced staffers. Now, it is the interns who are teaching the staffers - about how to perform Internet functions and about new technologies, says Newsday.
Pre teenaged children want more than pencils and paper as they head back to school. A new survey shows 70% want a computer, reports Media Post.com.
Google hopes technology will be in place in September to stop the posting of copyright-infringing videos on its YouTube site, a company lawyer told a judge presiding over copyright lawsuits yesterday. The lawyer, Philip S. Beck, told U.S. District Judge Louis L. Stanton in Manhattan that YouTube is working "very intensely and cooperating" with major content companies on video recognition technology as sophisticated as the fingerprint technology used by the FBI. The Associated Press reports.
AT&T is offering an appealing, imperfect prelude to the video telephone, says Associated Press.
Action Engine of Washington state plans to capitalize on the craze over Apple's new iPhone. Action Engine is announcing today it has secured $20 million in venture capital to ramp up sales and spread the word that it has a software alternative to the sleek-looking iPhone, reports the Seattle Times.
A device has been created to allow listeners to hear Sirius satellite radio on Mac computers, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
In California, citizen journalists with blogs on the Internet are holding politicians' feet to the fire, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In Connecticut, state level politicians are still neophytes in the world of blogging, reports the Stamford Advocate. Meanwhile, politicians in Connecticut are wrestling with going anonymous on Internet blogs, says the Stamford Advocate.
Microsoft's Bill Gates is still planning a leave next year, despite this being a period of great change, reports the New York Times.
It's a question of priorities. Faced with clogged networks, companies and college campuses are getting more sophisticated about which online material gets in first. The Wall Street Journal reports.
A Providence, Rhode Island ex-mayor who has just been released from prison, Vincent "Buddy" Cianci, who spent several years as a talk show host on WHJJ-AM 920 Providence, is looking to resume his career as a radio talk show host, says Associated Press.
Al McIntosh saw his weekly newspaper column in this prairie town as nothing more than a fleeting record of history, a view reflected in its name: "More or Less Personal Chaff." Yet nearly 30 years after the publisher's death, his writings have been revived as part of the narrative backbone of "The War," a new World War II documentary by the celebrated filmmaker Ken Burns that airs on Thirteen/WNET and PBS in September. Read by the actor Tom Hanks, they reflect one American town's solemn determination. Burns called "Personal Chaff" perhaps "the single greatest archival discovery we have ever made." Associated Press reports. Documentarian Burns describes some decisions made when creating this documentary series, in the Chicago Tribune.
To Market To Market To Buy A Fat Pig is a one hour special focusing on farmers markets across the nation, including visits to ones in Baltimore, Maryland, in North Carolina, Georgia and Hawaii, and it airs Wednesday evening at 8 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations across the nation. The show is reviewed by the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
A cable channel is focusing on pregnancy in its reality programming, reports the Boston Globe.
A plan by the nation's two satellite radio companies to let consumers pick the channels they want to pay for could reignite a debate about consumer choice in the cable television industry. ?I think it will raise the profile on the issue again and people should legitimately ask if XM and Sirius can do this with radio in order to get their deal done, why can't the cable companies do this, too?" said Bob Williams, director of Hear Us Now.org, a website focusing on telecommunications issues that's run by Consumers Union. It's a group pushing for so-called a la carte pricing in cable, says the Boston Globe.
Anyone interested in broadcasting history and old equipment will want to know about the reopening of the Vintage Radio and Communications Museum of Connecticut. There will be a soft opening at the end of August and a grand opening October 27 at 11 a.m. Its goal is to be open 20 hours a week Thursdays through Sundays, at its new home off Route 159 in Windsor, a suburb north of Hartford, reports the Hartford Courant.
A newspaper column killed in the Los Angeles Times has found a new life on the Internet, reports the New York Times.
Former NBC television host Tom Snyder, who interviewed guests ranging from John Lennon to Charles Manson on the early morning Tomorrow show in the 1970s, which followed the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, airing at 1 a.m., has died, reports Associated Press.
The bond between Viacom-CBS head Sumner Redstone and his daughter has been shattered, says the Los Angeles Times.
Commercial messages are being blended in the content of video games, says Los Angeles Times.
George K. Otis Sr., who founded High Adventure Ministries, a Simi Valley, California-based Christian organization best known for operating what was probably the first radio station in the Middle East to preach the Gospel and play country music, has died. He was 90. The first radio station that broadcast under the ministry's Voice of Hope banner was established in 1979 on a battlefield in southern Lebanon. Several hours of religious programming were kicked off by a few minutes of twangy bluegrass ? an Otis touch. The Los Angeles Times reports.
Wayne Pratt, an antiques dealer who appeared on public TV's Antiques Roadshow and briefly figured in the corruption scandal that toppled former Connecticut Governor John Rowland, has died of complications following heart surgery, according to a business associate. The Hartford Courant reports.
Chinese state television has begun sacking contract staffers after a bogus news report about toxic dumplings that drew international alarm and angered propaganda chiefs, reports Reuters.
A poll shows 69% of Canadians think former newspaper magnate Conrad Black should be jailed after his recent conviction. Black's newspapers included the Vancouver Sun, Chicago Sun Times, London Daily Telegraph, Jerusalem Post, and others. This report is from the Globe and Mail.
Liberal activists are stepping up their campaign against the Fox News Channel by pressuring advertisers not to patronize the network. MoveOn.org, the Campaign for America's Future and liberal blogs like Daily Kos are asking thousands of supporters to monitor who is advertising on the network. Once a database is gathered, an organized phone-calling campaign will begin, said Jim Gilliam, vice president of media strategy for Brave New Films, a company that has made anti-Fox videos. Associated Press reports.
Despite pressure from environmentalists, Home Depot is continuing to advertise on the Fox News Channel, reports the New York Times.
Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney will not join the YouTube-CNN Republican presidential debate September 17 in Florida, reports Newsday.
Five Democratic presidential hopefuls are heading to Chicago for Friday's annual convention of the liberal blog Daily Kos, while conservative commentators continue their blistering comments against the blog. The San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Disney has backed out of a plan to market wine after critics expressed concern that using a cartoon rat in the promotion might encourage underage drinking, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Publishers in South Africa have decided to cancel an Afrikaans language version of a racist cartoon called Tintin in the Congo, reports Associated Press. Borders bookstores in the U.S. and U.K. have also removed the book, reports Reuters. AP says the book depicts the white hero's adventures in the Congo against the backdrop of an idiotic, chimpanzee-like native population that eventually comes to worship Tintin and his dog as gods.
The nations of Georgia and Kazakhstan are among countries cited as imposing heavy restrictions on the Internet in their countries, hampering freedom of speech, reports Associated Press.
One of the most popular TV shows in the Arab world is one featuring a Muslim sex therapist, says the Los Angeles Times.
There are reported shifts in the Bancroft family that hold the key to the sale of Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal to Rupert Murdoch, and this is clouding prospects for the vote on whether to sell, reports the New York Times.
With people arriving home later and later from work, WNBC channel 4 New York is eliminating its 5 to 5:30 p.m. local newscast, and introducing a local newscast from 7 to 7:30 p.m., says the New York Times. In Miami, NBC's WTVJ channel 6 is making a similar move. In Miami, back in November, the Post Newsweek-owned ABC affiliate WPLG channel 10 dropped its 5 p.m. newscast and replaced it with Doctor Phil, but did not add a 7 p.m. newscast, reports the Miami Herald.
As former NBC newscaster Campbell Brown moves to CNN to host a talk show, the challenges facing women anchors on cable TV news networks are examined by the Washington Post.
In Phoenix, Arizona, two television news helicopters crashed in midair Friday while covering a police chase near downtown, killing all four people aboard. The two copters were covering the chase for independent station KTVK channel 3 and ABC affiliate KNXV channel 15. The helicopters exploded in the air, then crashed in a grassy area, with at least one helicopter exploding again as it hit the ground, witnesses said. No one on the ground was injured, New York Times. Covering themselves as a news story was difficult for the two stations, says the Phoenix Gazette. Reporters covering the story were wiping away their tears, says Associated Press. Those watching the stations did not see the crash, says Associated Press.
Though two passenger planes collided in mid-air over New York City in 1960, this is the first time two television news helicopters have collided, says Associated Press. Investigators are combing the debris, reports Associated Press.
In Dallas, Texas, a news helicopter for Fox TV station KDFW channel 4 crash landed after experiencing engine failure. Everyone walked away without serious injuries, reports Associated Press.
In Detroit, advertisers on local TV news are paying more and getting less, according to Crain's Detroit Business.
The San Jose Mercury News asks whether Internet radio stations will be able to avoid huge increases in music royalty fees.
A full power FM station serving the Washington, D.C. market is being sold, and even though it is a noncommercial educational station, it reportedly may sell for more than $20 million. The suitors for the station, WGTS 91.9, include Minnesota Public Radio, which would give that broadcaster a voice in the Washington area. The Washington Post reports. Meanwhile, the sale appears almost certain, according to the Web site of Columbia Union College which owns WGTS.
The 104.l FM station in the Washington, D.C. market, which earlier this year was occupied by classical WGMS, is now a black gospel music station, WPRSand in its very first ratings, is ranked 14th, which is considered very respectable for a station with a new format, says the Washington Post.
The FCC will set the rules tomorrow governing the auction of $15 billion of public airwaves, a decision with stakes so high that the major U.S. cellular carriers and Google have spent millions of dollars on a lobbying campaign in an attempt to influence the outcome. The decision could dramatically alter the nation's cellphone industry. Google, the giant Internet search company, wants to extend its popular tools, which include e-mail and video, to the rapidly expanding mobile phone market. To do so, it may spend billions to build a new, open network it says will loosen the grip telecom operators have over how consumers use their cellphones. The Washington Post reports.
As New York City considers rule changes that would require a permit to photograph and film in public places, a coalition of filmmakers and photographers is mobilizing a campaign against the rules by using the very medium they believe the regulations would constrict. Members of a newly formed advocacy group called Picture New York gathered recently at a gallery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to harness their creative skills to express their opposition to the rules by planning demonstrations, including one that was set to take place yesterday in Manhattan's Union Square. The public comment period ends Friday. The New York Times reports.
The Web addresses that businesses and people online call home have spawned the equivalent of a real estate boom in the real world with speculators, appraisers, developers, investors, and brokers turning the names typed on navigation bars into hefty profits. It is a global, multibillion-dollar industry, says Peter Lamson, senior vice president and general manager of NameMedia's domain name company. In the 1990s, speculators registered Internet domain names on the cheap, often hoping to make a lucrative flip selling them to someone else. When the tech bubble burst, many were left with little more than words, but now everything has changed. This report is from the Boston Globe.
Getting lost is less of a problem with a sharp increase in the availability of maps on the Internet, cell phones, and other technology spots, reports Associated Press.
Baby boomers are using technology to deal with the problems of aging, says the Boston Globe.
Pownce is a new social networking Internet site with a difference: the only participants are those invited to the site. The New York Times reports.
Online snooping is being made easy. "Profile stalking" is the latest craze in the world of social networking, says the Los Angeles Times.
A teenaged student describes social networking and what it's like conducting your social life online, on My Space, in the Washington Post.
In the past interns came to companies to gain real work world experience and learn from experienced staffers. Now, it is the interns who are teaching the staffers - about how to perform Internet functions and about new technologies, says Newsday.
Pre teenaged children want more than pencils and paper as they head back to school. A new survey shows 70% want a computer, reports Media Post.com.
Google hopes technology will be in place in September to stop the posting of copyright-infringing videos on its YouTube site, a company lawyer told a judge presiding over copyright lawsuits yesterday. The lawyer, Philip S. Beck, told U.S. District Judge Louis L. Stanton in Manhattan that YouTube is working "very intensely and cooperating" with major content companies on video recognition technology as sophisticated as the fingerprint technology used by the FBI. The Associated Press reports.
AT&T is offering an appealing, imperfect prelude to the video telephone, says Associated Press.
Action Engine of Washington state plans to capitalize on the craze over Apple's new iPhone. Action Engine is announcing today it has secured $20 million in venture capital to ramp up sales and spread the word that it has a software alternative to the sleek-looking iPhone, reports the Seattle Times.
A device has been created to allow listeners to hear Sirius satellite radio on Mac computers, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
In California, citizen journalists with blogs on the Internet are holding politicians' feet to the fire, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In Connecticut, state level politicians are still neophytes in the world of blogging, reports the Stamford Advocate. Meanwhile, politicians in Connecticut are wrestling with going anonymous on Internet blogs, says the Stamford Advocate.
Microsoft's Bill Gates is still planning a leave next year, despite this being a period of great change, reports the New York Times.
It's a question of priorities. Faced with clogged networks, companies and college campuses are getting more sophisticated about which online material gets in first. The Wall Street Journal reports.
A Providence, Rhode Island ex-mayor who has just been released from prison, Vincent "Buddy" Cianci, who spent several years as a talk show host on WHJJ-AM 920 Providence, is looking to resume his career as a radio talk show host, says Associated Press.
Al McIntosh saw his weekly newspaper column in this prairie town as nothing more than a fleeting record of history, a view reflected in its name: "More or Less Personal Chaff." Yet nearly 30 years after the publisher's death, his writings have been revived as part of the narrative backbone of "The War," a new World War II documentary by the celebrated filmmaker Ken Burns that airs on Thirteen/WNET and PBS in September. Read by the actor Tom Hanks, they reflect one American town's solemn determination. Burns called "Personal Chaff" perhaps "the single greatest archival discovery we have ever made." Associated Press reports. Documentarian Burns describes some decisions made when creating this documentary series, in the Chicago Tribune.
To Market To Market To Buy A Fat Pig is a one hour special focusing on farmers markets across the nation, including visits to ones in Baltimore, Maryland, in North Carolina, Georgia and Hawaii, and it airs Wednesday evening at 8 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations across the nation. The show is reviewed by the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
A cable channel is focusing on pregnancy in its reality programming, reports the Boston Globe.
A plan by the nation's two satellite radio companies to let consumers pick the channels they want to pay for could reignite a debate about consumer choice in the cable television industry. ?I think it will raise the profile on the issue again and people should legitimately ask if XM and Sirius can do this with radio in order to get their deal done, why can't the cable companies do this, too?" said Bob Williams, director of Hear Us Now.org, a website focusing on telecommunications issues that's run by Consumers Union. It's a group pushing for so-called a la carte pricing in cable, says the Boston Globe.
Anyone interested in broadcasting history and old equipment will want to know about the reopening of the Vintage Radio and Communications Museum of Connecticut. There will be a soft opening at the end of August and a grand opening October 27 at 11 a.m. Its goal is to be open 20 hours a week Thursdays through Sundays, at its new home off Route 159 in Windsor, a suburb north of Hartford, reports the Hartford Courant.
A newspaper column killed in the Los Angeles Times has found a new life on the Internet, reports the New York Times.
Former NBC television host Tom Snyder, who interviewed guests ranging from John Lennon to Charles Manson on the early morning Tomorrow show in the 1970s, which followed the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, airing at 1 a.m., has died, reports Associated Press.
The bond between Viacom-CBS head Sumner Redstone and his daughter has been shattered, says the Los Angeles Times.
Commercial messages are being blended in the content of video games, says Los Angeles Times.
George K. Otis Sr., who founded High Adventure Ministries, a Simi Valley, California-based Christian organization best known for operating what was probably the first radio station in the Middle East to preach the Gospel and play country music, has died. He was 90. The first radio station that broadcast under the ministry's Voice of Hope banner was established in 1979 on a battlefield in southern Lebanon. Several hours of religious programming were kicked off by a few minutes of twangy bluegrass ? an Otis touch. The Los Angeles Times reports.
Wayne Pratt, an antiques dealer who appeared on public TV's Antiques Roadshow and briefly figured in the corruption scandal that toppled former Connecticut Governor John Rowland, has died of complications following heart surgery, according to a business associate. The Hartford Courant reports.
Chinese state television has begun sacking contract staffers after a bogus news report about toxic dumplings that drew international alarm and angered propaganda chiefs, reports Reuters.
A poll shows 69% of Canadians think former newspaper magnate Conrad Black should be jailed after his recent conviction. Black's newspapers included the Vancouver Sun, Chicago Sun Times, London Daily Telegraph, Jerusalem Post, and others. This report is from the Globe and Mail.
Media Briefing for Friday, July 27, 2007
Only two Republican presidential hopefuls, John McCain and Ron Paul, have agreed to take part in the CNN-YouTube debate scheduled for September, reports the Washington Post.
The Washington Post is looking to the Internet for its survival, says Fortune magazine.
The New Republic's anonymous Baghdad Diarist has identified himself as Scott Thomas Beauchamp, an Army private in Iraq, and he disputes as "maddening" accusations that he invented his accounts of cruelty by American soldiers. The New Republic?s editor, Franklin Foer, disclosed in an interview that Beauchamp is married to a New Republic staffer, which is "part of the reason why we found him to be a credible writer." Foer also says Beauchamp "has put himself in significant jeopardy" and "lost his lifeline to the rest of the world" because military officials have taken away his laptop, cellphone and e-mail privileges. This report is from the Washington Post.
Republican FCC chairman Kevin Martin has written a letter to Congress saying that the Fairness Doctrine is not needed, reports Associated Press. The Fairness Doctrine once required broadcast radio and TV stations to present both sides of controversial issues, and its elimination 20 years ago led to the modern talk radio landscape.
The Chicago Tribune's Clarence Page predicts the Fairness Doctrine will not return.
Blacks must support the black media, says the African American weekly Amsterdam News.
The Hallmark cable TV channel is following Disney's lead, eliminating cigarette smoking in its original movies, says Broadcasting & Cable.
ABC.com has quietly kicked off a test of its "high-definition" Internet-TV channel with the recently aired season finales of its top-rated primetime shows, Desperate Housewives, Grey?s Anatomy, Lost and Ugly Betty. But whether you see an upgrade in picture quality depends on your hardware, reports MultiChannel News.
With the help of the Internet, amateurs are remaking map making, reports the New York Times.
Sprint Nextel, the third-biggest U.S. mobile-phone company, is adding Google search and mapping services to a planned high-speed wireless network. Google will help Sprint develop ways for consumers and businesses to use mobile-location technology, offering customized searches or messaging services that take into account the users' whereabouts. Bloomberg News reports. Google and Sprint Nextel are teaming up to develop a portal to let consumers search the Internet and mingle on social networks using mobile devices that work on a new, ultra-fast WiMaxnetwork, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
Microsoft has acquired AdECN, a self-described stock market for buyers and sellers of Web advertising, marking Microsoft's latest push into a sector led by rivals Google and Yahoo. Reuters reports.
Microsoft also intends to respond to the growing threat to its software posed by rivals like Google that offer Web-based versions of its applications. Microsoft will be adding similar Internet services to its own well-known desktop applications like Office and Excel, says the New York Times. Microsoft's CEO is defending the expansion into new areas, reports USA Today.
Some in the U.S. Senate are concerned about a "train wreck" when broadcast TV stations stop broadcasting in analog and go all-digital on February 17, 2009, reports Associated Press. Those using rabbit ears or an outdoor antenna to receive signals directly will be affected, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.There is concern that the old analog-only TV sets could become giant paperweights, says Reuters. Some Senators say the notification efforts to the public so far are inadequate, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The FCC has approved a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) seeking comment on various proposals to hold the broadcast and cable industries to benchmarks for HDTV education campaigns. The TV industry has pledged to mount a campaign to make sure that viewers know the analog-to-HDTV switch is being thrown on February 17, 2009, and what their viewing options are after the transition, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
The Philadelphia Inquirer has moved longtime TV columnist Gail Shister to the metro desk, but she will be contributing to the news media information Web site TV Newser, says Los Remote.
YouTube is the top site for streaming video viewing, says Media Post.com.
WNBC channel 4 New York and WTVJ channel 6 Miami are introducing 7 p.m. local newscasts starting Monday, September 10, says TV Newsday.
Broadcasters have told the federal government that allowing portable unlicensed devices to operate in the DTV band, as computer companies like Google and Microsoft are pushing for, would be a "monumental mistake" that would have a dramatic negative impact on the transition to digital TV. That message came in a joint letter from the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and Maximum Service Television Association to the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, which is charged with overseeing the distribution of digital-to-analog converters for analog-only TV sets. The NAB warns that those boxes are likely to be susceptible to the interference the devices could cause. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
The National Association of Broadcasters has thrown its unequivocal support behind a measure in Congress to help save Internet radio stations in their dispute over music royalty fees, reports Radio Ink.
The Rev. Al Sharpton's daily talk show on Radio One stations including WOL 1450 Washington, D.C, will be broadcast nationally on XM satellite radio, reports the Redding, California News Review.
In the latest wrinkle on the reported affair between Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Telemundo Los Angeles newscaster Mirthala Salinas, the mayor is likely to play a major role in determining whether the Spanish language network's parent company, NBC Universal, receives city approval for a $3 billion development project. The mayor pledged to "act in a way that is separate and apart" from the aftermath of the affair, for which Salinas has been suspended, pending an internal review. The Los Angeles Times reports.
E-Marketer offers a two-part examination of issues involved with using video to advertise online. Here?s part one and part two.
Marketers are pulling out all the stops to engage students, using television and new media, reports Media Post.com.
Only two Republican presidential hopefuls, John McCain and Ron Paul, have agreed to take part in the CNN-YouTube debate scheduled for September, reports the Washington Post.
The Washington Post is looking to the Internet for its survival, says Fortune magazine.
The New Republic's anonymous Baghdad Diarist has identified himself as Scott Thomas Beauchamp, an Army private in Iraq, and he disputes as "maddening" accusations that he invented his accounts of cruelty by American soldiers. The New Republic?s editor, Franklin Foer, disclosed in an interview that Beauchamp is married to a New Republic staffer, which is "part of the reason why we found him to be a credible writer." Foer also says Beauchamp "has put himself in significant jeopardy" and "lost his lifeline to the rest of the world" because military officials have taken away his laptop, cellphone and e-mail privileges. This report is from the Washington Post.
Republican FCC chairman Kevin Martin has written a letter to Congress saying that the Fairness Doctrine is not needed, reports Associated Press. The Fairness Doctrine once required broadcast radio and TV stations to present both sides of controversial issues, and its elimination 20 years ago led to the modern talk radio landscape.
The Chicago Tribune's Clarence Page predicts the Fairness Doctrine will not return.
Blacks must support the black media, says the African American weekly Amsterdam News.
The Hallmark cable TV channel is following Disney's lead, eliminating cigarette smoking in its original movies, says Broadcasting & Cable.
ABC.com has quietly kicked off a test of its "high-definition" Internet-TV channel with the recently aired season finales of its top-rated primetime shows, Desperate Housewives, Grey?s Anatomy, Lost and Ugly Betty. But whether you see an upgrade in picture quality depends on your hardware, reports MultiChannel News.
With the help of the Internet, amateurs are remaking map making, reports the New York Times.
Sprint Nextel, the third-biggest U.S. mobile-phone company, is adding Google search and mapping services to a planned high-speed wireless network. Google will help Sprint develop ways for consumers and businesses to use mobile-location technology, offering customized searches or messaging services that take into account the users' whereabouts. Bloomberg News reports. Google and Sprint Nextel are teaming up to develop a portal to let consumers search the Internet and mingle on social networks using mobile devices that work on a new, ultra-fast WiMaxnetwork, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
Microsoft has acquired AdECN, a self-described stock market for buyers and sellers of Web advertising, marking Microsoft's latest push into a sector led by rivals Google and Yahoo. Reuters reports.
Microsoft also intends to respond to the growing threat to its software posed by rivals like Google that offer Web-based versions of its applications. Microsoft will be adding similar Internet services to its own well-known desktop applications like Office and Excel, says the New York Times. Microsoft's CEO is defending the expansion into new areas, reports USA Today.
Some in the U.S. Senate are concerned about a "train wreck" when broadcast TV stations stop broadcasting in analog and go all-digital on February 17, 2009, reports Associated Press. Those using rabbit ears or an outdoor antenna to receive signals directly will be affected, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.There is concern that the old analog-only TV sets could become giant paperweights, says Reuters. Some Senators say the notification efforts to the public so far are inadequate, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The FCC has approved a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) seeking comment on various proposals to hold the broadcast and cable industries to benchmarks for HDTV education campaigns. The TV industry has pledged to mount a campaign to make sure that viewers know the analog-to-HDTV switch is being thrown on February 17, 2009, and what their viewing options are after the transition, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
The Philadelphia Inquirer has moved longtime TV columnist Gail Shister to the metro desk, but she will be contributing to the news media information Web site TV Newser, says Los Remote.
YouTube is the top site for streaming video viewing, says Media Post.com.
WNBC channel 4 New York and WTVJ channel 6 Miami are introducing 7 p.m. local newscasts starting Monday, September 10, says TV Newsday.
Broadcasters have told the federal government that allowing portable unlicensed devices to operate in the DTV band, as computer companies like Google and Microsoft are pushing for, would be a "monumental mistake" that would have a dramatic negative impact on the transition to digital TV. That message came in a joint letter from the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and Maximum Service Television Association to the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, which is charged with overseeing the distribution of digital-to-analog converters for analog-only TV sets. The NAB warns that those boxes are likely to be susceptible to the interference the devices could cause. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
The National Association of Broadcasters has thrown its unequivocal support behind a measure in Congress to help save Internet radio stations in their dispute over music royalty fees, reports Radio Ink.
The Rev. Al Sharpton's daily talk show on Radio One stations including WOL 1450 Washington, D.C, will be broadcast nationally on XM satellite radio, reports the Redding, California News Review.
In the latest wrinkle on the reported affair between Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Telemundo Los Angeles newscaster Mirthala Salinas, the mayor is likely to play a major role in determining whether the Spanish language network's parent company, NBC Universal, receives city approval for a $3 billion development project. The mayor pledged to "act in a way that is separate and apart" from the aftermath of the affair, for which Salinas has been suspended, pending an internal review. The Los Angeles Times reports.
E-Marketer offers a two-part examination of issues involved with using video to advertise online. Here?s part one and part two.
Marketers are pulling out all the stops to engage students, using television and new media, reports Media Post.com.
Media Briefing for Thursday, July 26, 2007
Is the PBS station in San Francisco, KQED channel 9, the station of the future? TV Newsday explores.
Great news for those seeking to mine African American history: the Baltimore Afro American newspaper is digitizing its archives, which go back to the 1890s, the height of the Jim Crow era. Nearly 115 years of African-American history has been chronicled within its pages. Articles, photos and correspondence tell the story of African American history in a way that's authentic and firsthand, says the Afro American. To search past editions, readers may click a special icon on the Baltimore Afro American site.
The Chicago Defender has become the first black newspaper, in fact the first black news source, in the U.S. to offer a video podcast.
One in five Americans who go online view video over the Internet on any given day, thanks to speedier Internet connections and a wider selection of clips, according to a study. Young adults watch in greater numbers and often turn to humorous clips, while all other age groups use video predominantly for news, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project. On a typical day, 19 percent of adult U.S. Internet users watch some form of video. News ranked first and comedy second overall, reports Associated Press.
The archetype of the Internet-bred billionaire has declared, "The Internet?s dead. It?s over." That?s from Mark Cuban, who sold Broadcast.com to Internet portal Yahoo in 1999 for $5.7 billion. Cuban currently owns the NBA?s Dallas Mavericks and HDTV programmer HDNet, which features Dan Rather. Cuban is also considering buying Major League Baseball?s Chicago Cubs for about $1 billion. MultiChannel News reports.
The producers of ABC's new series Cavemen say the comedy is much more than the insurance company commercials that inspired it, but isn't designed to be an ambitious allegory about race, according to Associated Press. ?Geico's TV spots show highly evolved but shaggy-looking cavemen chafing at misconceptions about their sophistication and intelligence. The series, debuting October 2, follows another trio of Cro-Magnons facing prejudice as they try to fit in contemporary society. ?If the show works, it will work because people care about these three guys under a lot of makeup and ... can relate to their problems and find them charming,? says producer Mike Schiff.?.
In a letter to the editor, a reader of the Los Angeles Times takes issue with the paper?s stance that no Fairness Doctrine is needed for broadcast radio and TV because people can express themselves on the Internet. That?s ?merely a variation of the old argument that the rich and the poor are equally free to sleep under a bridge,? says the writer.
The U.S. needs a much better communications system to deal with catastrophes, whether natural disasters or enemy attacks, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Responding to concerns expressed in Congress about Hollywood depicting tobacco use in films, Disney will ban cigarette smoking in some of its movies, says Bloomberg News. The move is a no-lose position for the studios, says the Los Angeles Times.
In an attempt to reach younger viewers, ABC is moving 20/20 from 10 p.m. to an 8 p.m. time slot, reports Reuters.
It?s not just employees of the Wall Street Journal who are concerned about Rupert Murdoch's attempted takeover of Dow Jones. Employees of Dow Jones publications like the Cape Cod Times, the New Bedford Standard Times and the Portsmouth, New Hampshire Herald are also concerned, as are advertisers who are casting a wary eye. The Boston Globe reports.
Oprah Winfrey is the highest paid television star in the U.S. Number 2 is Simon Cowell, the British judge on American Idol. Judge Judy ranks number 3, with 4th place going to Katie Couric of the CBS Evening News, reports Reuters.
Oprah's Oxygen Network is facing a $100 million lawsuit from the American Youth Symphony, reports TV Week.
In recent years, political advertising has primarily focused on the medium of TV, and to some degree the Internet, but political ads in newspapers are making a comeback, says the Wall Street Journal.
Even with problems that may have surfaced, the Monday night YouTube debate on CNN has forever changed political campaigning, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
The New York Times Co. experienced weak second-quarter advertising revenues. The Tribune Co. also had falling ad revenues, reports the Washington Post.
The San Francisco Chronicle examines the lawsuit filed against Facebook by men who claim the company stole their idea for an Internet social networking site.
It's the online search that never ends. A former judge pretends to be an al Qaeda operative to entrap people who really are involved with the terrorist organization. Shannon Rossmiller, the former Montana judge who hunts terrorists online, is profiled by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Digg, the Internet site where users vote for which news articles to display, has itself voted on a new advertising provider. It has replaced Google with Microsoft to sell text ads on its site. Microsoft will also sell graphical ads as well on the site, which claims 17 million visitors a month. Microsoft has been trying to enter the advertising network business, competing with Google, the leader, as well as Yahoo! and, increasingly, AOL. The New York Times reports.
When Portuguese television viewers recently voted the former right wing dictator Ant?nio de Oliveira Salazar "the greatest Portuguese who ever lived" ? passing over the most celebrated kings, poets and explorers in the nation?s thousand-year history ? the broadcaster RTP braced itself for a strong reaction. But what ensued resembled a national identity crisis. Progressives howled in protest, demanding to know how a man who had sent his enemies to concentration camps in Africa could be revered by a modern European nation. The New York Times reports.
Earlier this month a computer was introduced in Alberta, Canada which plays checkers and can never be defeated by humans. But in poker, humans retain the upper hand in their ability to defeat computers, though computers are catching up, says the New York Times.
While many televangelists are virulently anti-gay, Tammy Faye Baker, who passed away last Friday, is being remembered for her gay-friendly stands, reports the Washington Blade.
PBS came to Florida International University Tuesday night with a free screening of Money For Nothing, a half-hour documentary on the Miami Herald's Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into mismanagement at the Miami-Dade Housing Agency. The documentary is part of Expos?, a weekly show that highlights investigative reporting across the country, reports the Miami Herald.
As a voice on Maryland AM station WBIS 1190 Annapolis, Brian J. Kelly dispensed investment advice, took calls from listeners and shared his views on stocks and the markets. But as a broker at several prominent Maryland investment firms, Kelly has been the target of a number of client complaints, many of which were settled, and this month he was barred from the profession for life by the NASD, which regulates the industry. A NASD panel concluded that Kelly took advantage of an "unsophisticated" investor by using his account to make more than 540 trades in little more than a year, generating tens of thousands of dollars in commissions for himself in an illegal practice known as "churning." The day after the panel's July 12 decision, Kelly canceled his radio program on WBIS 1190, whose slogan is "Your Business and Information Station," reports the Baltimore Sun.
One of Maryland's top radio personalities, Chip Franklin, is leaving WBAL 1090 Baltimore, to go to KOGO 600 San Diego, says the Baltimore Sun.
The two satellite radio providers, XM and Sirius, are not major companies, and the only thing really big about them is their losses, says the Washington Post.
YouTube now has its own Howard Stern in No Good TV, a bawdy and popular contributor of content to the online video sharing site, reports Associated Press.
The BET series originally called Hot Ghetto Mess was really nothing to fuss about, despite all the controversy about its name, says Associated Press.
Even with efforts by its new ownership, Telemundo has been unable to increase its audience, says the Los Angeles Times. In New York the Telemundo station is WNJU channel 47.
A major part of American cultural history in the 1950s was American Bandstand, originating at WFIL-TV channel 6 Philadelphia and seen every afternoon on ABC TV stations nationwide. The show presented rock and roll and African American music, making them more acceptable to middle America. Now, a plaque memorializing the show will be dedicated in Philadelphia on Thursday, August 2. The Philadelphia Daily News says the dedication will be seen nationally on ABC's Good Morning America.
Conservative morning talk show host Jerry Kristafer of Clear Channel's New Haven AM station WELI 960 has drawn criticism for taking part in an anti-immigration rally that included participation by the John Birch Society, says the New Haven Independent.
Is the PBS station in San Francisco, KQED channel 9, the station of the future? TV Newsday explores.
Great news for those seeking to mine African American history: the Baltimore Afro American newspaper is digitizing its archives, which go back to the 1890s, the height of the Jim Crow era. Nearly 115 years of African-American history has been chronicled within its pages. Articles, photos and correspondence tell the story of African American history in a way that's authentic and firsthand, says the Afro American. To search past editions, readers may click a special icon on the Baltimore Afro American site.
The Chicago Defender has become the first black newspaper, in fact the first black news source, in the U.S. to offer a video podcast.
One in five Americans who go online view video over the Internet on any given day, thanks to speedier Internet connections and a wider selection of clips, according to a study. Young adults watch in greater numbers and often turn to humorous clips, while all other age groups use video predominantly for news, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project. On a typical day, 19 percent of adult U.S. Internet users watch some form of video. News ranked first and comedy second overall, reports Associated Press.
The archetype of the Internet-bred billionaire has declared, "The Internet?s dead. It?s over." That?s from Mark Cuban, who sold Broadcast.com to Internet portal Yahoo in 1999 for $5.7 billion. Cuban currently owns the NBA?s Dallas Mavericks and HDTV programmer HDNet, which features Dan Rather. Cuban is also considering buying Major League Baseball?s Chicago Cubs for about $1 billion. MultiChannel News reports.
The producers of ABC's new series Cavemen say the comedy is much more than the insurance company commercials that inspired it, but isn't designed to be an ambitious allegory about race, according to Associated Press. ?Geico's TV spots show highly evolved but shaggy-looking cavemen chafing at misconceptions about their sophistication and intelligence. The series, debuting October 2, follows another trio of Cro-Magnons facing prejudice as they try to fit in contemporary society. ?If the show works, it will work because people care about these three guys under a lot of makeup and ... can relate to their problems and find them charming,? says producer Mike Schiff.?.
In a letter to the editor, a reader of the Los Angeles Times takes issue with the paper?s stance that no Fairness Doctrine is needed for broadcast radio and TV because people can express themselves on the Internet. That?s ?merely a variation of the old argument that the rich and the poor are equally free to sleep under a bridge,? says the writer.
The U.S. needs a much better communications system to deal with catastrophes, whether natural disasters or enemy attacks, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Responding to concerns expressed in Congress about Hollywood depicting tobacco use in films, Disney will ban cigarette smoking in some of its movies, says Bloomberg News. The move is a no-lose position for the studios, says the Los Angeles Times.
In an attempt to reach younger viewers, ABC is moving 20/20 from 10 p.m. to an 8 p.m. time slot, reports Reuters.
It?s not just employees of the Wall Street Journal who are concerned about Rupert Murdoch's attempted takeover of Dow Jones. Employees of Dow Jones publications like the Cape Cod Times, the New Bedford Standard Times and the Portsmouth, New Hampshire Herald are also concerned, as are advertisers who are casting a wary eye. The Boston Globe reports.
Oprah Winfrey is the highest paid television star in the U.S. Number 2 is Simon Cowell, the British judge on American Idol. Judge Judy ranks number 3, with 4th place going to Katie Couric of the CBS Evening News, reports Reuters.
Oprah's Oxygen Network is facing a $100 million lawsuit from the American Youth Symphony, reports TV Week.
In recent years, political advertising has primarily focused on the medium of TV, and to some degree the Internet, but political ads in newspapers are making a comeback, says the Wall Street Journal.
Even with problems that may have surfaced, the Monday night YouTube debate on CNN has forever changed political campaigning, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
The New York Times Co. experienced weak second-quarter advertising revenues. The Tribune Co. also had falling ad revenues, reports the Washington Post.
The San Francisco Chronicle examines the lawsuit filed against Facebook by men who claim the company stole their idea for an Internet social networking site.
It's the online search that never ends. A former judge pretends to be an al Qaeda operative to entrap people who really are involved with the terrorist organization. Shannon Rossmiller, the former Montana judge who hunts terrorists online, is profiled by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Digg, the Internet site where users vote for which news articles to display, has itself voted on a new advertising provider. It has replaced Google with Microsoft to sell text ads on its site. Microsoft will also sell graphical ads as well on the site, which claims 17 million visitors a month. Microsoft has been trying to enter the advertising network business, competing with Google, the leader, as well as Yahoo! and, increasingly, AOL. The New York Times reports.
When Portuguese television viewers recently voted the former right wing dictator Ant?nio de Oliveira Salazar "the greatest Portuguese who ever lived" ? passing over the most celebrated kings, poets and explorers in the nation?s thousand-year history ? the broadcaster RTP braced itself for a strong reaction. But what ensued resembled a national identity crisis. Progressives howled in protest, demanding to know how a man who had sent his enemies to concentration camps in Africa could be revered by a modern European nation. The New York Times reports.
Earlier this month a computer was introduced in Alberta, Canada which plays checkers and can never be defeated by humans. But in poker, humans retain the upper hand in their ability to defeat computers, though computers are catching up, says the New York Times.
While many televangelists are virulently anti-gay, Tammy Faye Baker, who passed away last Friday, is being remembered for her gay-friendly stands, reports the Washington Blade.
PBS came to Florida International University Tuesday night with a free screening of Money For Nothing, a half-hour documentary on the Miami Herald's Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into mismanagement at the Miami-Dade Housing Agency. The documentary is part of Expos?, a weekly show that highlights investigative reporting across the country, reports the Miami Herald.
As a voice on Maryland AM station WBIS 1190 Annapolis, Brian J. Kelly dispensed investment advice, took calls from listeners and shared his views on stocks and the markets. But as a broker at several prominent Maryland investment firms, Kelly has been the target of a number of client complaints, many of which were settled, and this month he was barred from the profession for life by the NASD, which regulates the industry. A NASD panel concluded that Kelly took advantage of an "unsophisticated" investor by using his account to make more than 540 trades in little more than a year, generating tens of thousands of dollars in commissions for himself in an illegal practice known as "churning." The day after the panel's July 12 decision, Kelly canceled his radio program on WBIS 1190, whose slogan is "Your Business and Information Station," reports the Baltimore Sun.
One of Maryland's top radio personalities, Chip Franklin, is leaving WBAL 1090 Baltimore, to go to KOGO 600 San Diego, says the Baltimore Sun.
The two satellite radio providers, XM and Sirius, are not major companies, and the only thing really big about them is their losses, says the Washington Post.
YouTube now has its own Howard Stern in No Good TV, a bawdy and popular contributor of content to the online video sharing site, reports Associated Press.
The BET series originally called Hot Ghetto Mess was really nothing to fuss about, despite all the controversy about its name, says Associated Press.
Even with efforts by its new ownership, Telemundo has been unable to increase its audience, says the Los Angeles Times. In New York the Telemundo station is WNJU channel 47.
A major part of American cultural history in the 1950s was American Bandstand, originating at WFIL-TV channel 6 Philadelphia and seen every afternoon on ABC TV stations nationwide. The show presented rock and roll and African American music, making them more acceptable to middle America. Now, a plaque memorializing the show will be dedicated in Philadelphia on Thursday, August 2. The Philadelphia Daily News says the dedication will be seen nationally on ABC's Good Morning America.
Conservative morning talk show host Jerry Kristafer of Clear Channel's New Haven AM station WELI 960 has drawn criticism for taking part in an anti-immigration rally that included participation by the John Birch Society, says the New Haven Independent.
Media Briefing for Wednesday, June 25, 2007
Regarding Monday night's CNN-YouTube debate among Democratic aspirants for the White House, the New York Times says, "if only the candidates were as interesting as the questioners." The Boston Globe, meanwhile, says that eight presidential hopefuls speaking can be a recipe for dullness but YouTube made the presidential debate interesting.
Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama has launched radio ads on three dozen stations in South Carolina with predominantly black listenership, reports Associated Press.
An African American preacher, the Rev. Frederick K.C. Price, is suing ABC's 20/20 for defamation, reports the Los Angeles Times. In the New York area his program Ever Increasing Faith is seen Friday evenings at 9:30 p.m. on WTBY channel 54 Poughkeepsie, and on the conservative religious TBN cable network.
Michael Smerconish, host of The Big Talker morning show on WPHT-AM 1210 Philadelphia, briefly filled in on MSNBC for Don Imus after Imus was fired. Smerconish said Imus?s comment "was boneheaded, but he should not have been fired for it. The public 'flogging' he received was punishment enough." Now Smerconish is surprised to find himself on a list of talk show hosts whom Media Matters regards as practitioners of hate speech, reports the Philadelphia Daily News. Smerconish is accused of being a homophobe for using the word ?sissy? in reference to how the U.S. is dealing with the war on terror; a racist because of comments about Muslims praying at a football game attended by President Bush; and a sexist for implying that women shouldn?t join the work force. But Smerconish believes that ?a very dangerous climate has been created? since the Imus affair. WPHT 1210, a 50,000-watt clear channel station owned by CBS, has the strongest signal of any Philadelphia AM or FM station ? it is audible 24/7 on the Fairfield County, Connecticut shoreline, for example.
A majority of FCC commissioners told a House of Representatives subcommittee that they support an "open access" requirement on one swath of airwaves that will be auctioned early next year. The provision, put forth by FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, would allow cell phone customers to use any device they would like on a new network encompassing about one-third of the 60 megahertz of spectrum to be auctioned by the FCC. "Consumers would be able to use the wireless device of their choice and download whatever software they want," Martin told the panel. Associated Press and the Washington Post report. Chairman Martin is wary of Google's proposals for this spectrum space, says Bloomberg News.
Black Entertainment Television (BET) still has a "mess" even though it has changed the name of its show Hot Ghetto Mess, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Renamed We Got To Do Better, the show debuts tonight at 10:30 on BET, says the Washington Post.
New York radio has Mr. G, a meteorologist on WCBS-FM 101.1. Now Connecticut radio has Dr. G, a toxicologist. ?On a radio dial filled with thumping dance music, shock jocks and opinionated bloviators, it's safe to call Gary Ginsberg's show, Greener Living With Dr. G a low-key alternative,? says the Hartford Courant. Ginsberg, a toxicologist with the state Department of Public Health, has hosted the Saturday afternoon show for two months. The show focuses on environmental issues and is still finding its audience while Ginsberg finds his way around the studio. It airs on four AM stations - WDRC (1360) Hartford, WMMW (1470) Meriden, WSNG (610) Torrington and WWCO (1240) Waterbury - from 12 noon to 1 p.m. And starting Aug. 3, his show will be broadcast over the Internet on Worldtalkradio.com.
Wall Street is disappointed by the initial consumer response to Apple's iPhone, according to the New York Times. Activations of iPhones are far less than some early estimates and predictions, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.
Apple's Steve Jobs and his distaste for buttons on technological products are discussed by the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal also examines how parents can keep tabs on their children's telephone use.
Yesterday, Newsblues (registration required) reported that ABC News let go of veteran reporters Dean Reynolds, Bill Redeker and Mike Litke. Now added to the list is Bob Jamieson, a 35-year veteran correspondent. Jamieson joined ABC in 1990 after nearly 20 years at NBC News. ABC World News has now virtually stripped its ranks of veteran foreign correspondents, and last night had three sports-related stories and no international news, says Newsblues.
Kermit the Frog and all the retired Muppets are moving to Atlanta?s Center For Puppetry Arts, reports the New York Times.
The city of Leland, Mississippi (population 5,500) was home to Muppets creator Jim Henson from 1936 to 1948. A permanent exhibit about Kermit called "Birthplace of the Frog: An Exhibit of Jim Henson's Delta Boyhood" was created in Leland after Henson's death in 1990. Kermit, the original Muppet, sprang from Henson's childhood and memories of playing along nearby Deer Creek with childhood friend Theodore Kermit Scott, who is believed to be the inspiration for the frog's name. Scott said that as children he and Henson used to play at Deer Creek and catch frogs, reports Associated Press.
In New Orleans, a judge acquitted two police officers charged with beating an African American man whom they were caught on tape arresting, reports Associated Press.
John James Audubon is profiled on American Masters tonight at 9 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations nationwide (check local listings). His name has been used by a huge conservation movement, yet Audubon probably killed more birds than anybody else in history ? for his art. The documentary follows the life of the naturalist, son of a French sea captain and Haitian mother, who went bankrupt trying to complete his masterwork, The Birds of America. The Hartford Courant reviews.
CNN's Paula Zahn, whose evening broadcast included special segments on racism and being gay in America, is leaving the cable channel and will be replaced by Campbell Brown from NBC. The New York Times opines on this development. Zahn's last show on CNN will be Thursday, August 2, reports Associated Press.
The Washington Post takes issue with some cable news channels' overuse of such phrases as "breaking news" and "this just in."
Fox has two new shows about TV news, says Associated Press.
NBC, which has been experiencing ratings woes in recent years, is atop the ratings again, but it's during the summer when too few in the industry take note, says Associated Press.
McDonald's is the latest corporation to try to cash in on the YouTube phenomenon, and the two moonlighting comedians who produced a chicken McNuggets video and slapped it on the Internet for fun are lovin' it. The video was created by Fernando Sosa, a 26-year-old who does data entry by day, and Matt Malinsky, a 35-year-old IT manager, both of whom hustle jokes in their spare time at Chicago comedy spots. It?s being used in a commercial for McDonald's in New York. The grainy clip is a year-and-a-half old, says the Boston Globe.
Many older people are clueless about the upcoming February 17, 2009 switch to digital-only TV broadcast, according to a new study by the Association of Public Television Stations. magazine reports.
MySpace has found 29,000 sex offenders with profiles on its social networking site, says Associated Press.
A lawsuit seeking to shut down the social networking site FaceBook has been filed by rivals at ConnectU, reports Associated Press.
CNN news and talk show host Glenn Beck is doing on-air advertisements for a sponsor, which critics say is crossing a line, says Reuters.
A look at China's Internet market is provided by E Marketer.com.
A major alternative weekly newspaper in Washington, D.C., City Paper, has a new owner but its editor will remain, reports the Washington Post.
There will soon be one less weekly tabloid to look at while you're checking out and paying for your food at the supermarket. Publisher American Media says it will stop printing the Weekly World News, which for 28 years gleefully chronicled the exploits of alien babies, animal-human hybrids and dead celebrities. The company said in a brief statement it is ending the print version of the tabloid newspaper next month but is maintaining the online version, Weekly World News.com. Reuters reports.
Trevor Pettiford, an openly gay news anchor at Fox's WAGA channel 5 Atlanta, has quit his job after 18 months, according to Newsblues (registration required). Southern Voice profiled Pettiford in 2003.
Regarding Monday night's CNN-YouTube debate among Democratic aspirants for the White House, the New York Times says, "if only the candidates were as interesting as the questioners." The Boston Globe, meanwhile, says that eight presidential hopefuls speaking can be a recipe for dullness but YouTube made the presidential debate interesting.
Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama has launched radio ads on three dozen stations in South Carolina with predominantly black listenership, reports Associated Press.
An African American preacher, the Rev. Frederick K.C. Price, is suing ABC's 20/20 for defamation, reports the Los Angeles Times. In the New York area his program Ever Increasing Faith is seen Friday evenings at 9:30 p.m. on WTBY channel 54 Poughkeepsie, and on the conservative religious TBN cable network.
Michael Smerconish, host of The Big Talker morning show on WPHT-AM 1210 Philadelphia, briefly filled in on MSNBC for Don Imus after Imus was fired. Smerconish said Imus?s comment "was boneheaded, but he should not have been fired for it. The public 'flogging' he received was punishment enough." Now Smerconish is surprised to find himself on a list of talk show hosts whom Media Matters regards as practitioners of hate speech, reports the Philadelphia Daily News. Smerconish is accused of being a homophobe for using the word ?sissy? in reference to how the U.S. is dealing with the war on terror; a racist because of comments about Muslims praying at a football game attended by President Bush; and a sexist for implying that women shouldn?t join the work force. But Smerconish believes that ?a very dangerous climate has been created? since the Imus affair. WPHT 1210, a 50,000-watt clear channel station owned by CBS, has the strongest signal of any Philadelphia AM or FM station ? it is audible 24/7 on the Fairfield County, Connecticut shoreline, for example.
A majority of FCC commissioners told a House of Representatives subcommittee that they support an "open access" requirement on one swath of airwaves that will be auctioned early next year. The provision, put forth by FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, would allow cell phone customers to use any device they would like on a new network encompassing about one-third of the 60 megahertz of spectrum to be auctioned by the FCC. "Consumers would be able to use the wireless device of their choice and download whatever software they want," Martin told the panel. Associated Press and the Washington Post report. Chairman Martin is wary of Google's proposals for this spectrum space, says Bloomberg News.
Black Entertainment Television (BET) still has a "mess" even though it has changed the name of its show Hot Ghetto Mess, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Renamed We Got To Do Better, the show debuts tonight at 10:30 on BET, says the Washington Post.
New York radio has Mr. G, a meteorologist on WCBS-FM 101.1. Now Connecticut radio has Dr. G, a toxicologist. ?On a radio dial filled with thumping dance music, shock jocks and opinionated bloviators, it's safe to call Gary Ginsberg's show, Greener Living With Dr. G a low-key alternative,? says the Hartford Courant. Ginsberg, a toxicologist with the state Department of Public Health, has hosted the Saturday afternoon show for two months. The show focuses on environmental issues and is still finding its audience while Ginsberg finds his way around the studio. It airs on four AM stations - WDRC (1360) Hartford, WMMW (1470) Meriden, WSNG (610) Torrington and WWCO (1240) Waterbury - from 12 noon to 1 p.m. And starting Aug. 3, his show will be broadcast over the Internet on Worldtalkradio.com.
Wall Street is disappointed by the initial consumer response to Apple's iPhone, according to the New York Times. Activations of iPhones are far less than some early estimates and predictions, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.
Apple's Steve Jobs and his distaste for buttons on technological products are discussed by the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal also examines how parents can keep tabs on their children's telephone use.
Yesterday, Newsblues (registration required) reported that ABC News let go of veteran reporters Dean Reynolds, Bill Redeker and Mike Litke. Now added to the list is Bob Jamieson, a 35-year veteran correspondent. Jamieson joined ABC in 1990 after nearly 20 years at NBC News. ABC World News has now virtually stripped its ranks of veteran foreign correspondents, and last night had three sports-related stories and no international news, says Newsblues.
Kermit the Frog and all the retired Muppets are moving to Atlanta?s Center For Puppetry Arts, reports the New York Times.
The city of Leland, Mississippi (population 5,500) was home to Muppets creator Jim Henson from 1936 to 1948. A permanent exhibit about Kermit called "Birthplace of the Frog: An Exhibit of Jim Henson's Delta Boyhood" was created in Leland after Henson's death in 1990. Kermit, the original Muppet, sprang from Henson's childhood and memories of playing along nearby Deer Creek with childhood friend Theodore Kermit Scott, who is believed to be the inspiration for the frog's name. Scott said that as children he and Henson used to play at Deer Creek and catch frogs, reports Associated Press.
In New Orleans, a judge acquitted two police officers charged with beating an African American man whom they were caught on tape arresting, reports Associated Press.
John James Audubon is profiled on American Masters tonight at 9 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations nationwide (check local listings). His name has been used by a huge conservation movement, yet Audubon probably killed more birds than anybody else in history ? for his art. The documentary follows the life of the naturalist, son of a French sea captain and Haitian mother, who went bankrupt trying to complete his masterwork, The Birds of America. The Hartford Courant reviews.
CNN's Paula Zahn, whose evening broadcast included special segments on racism and being gay in America, is leaving the cable channel and will be replaced by Campbell Brown from NBC. The New York Times opines on this development. Zahn's last show on CNN will be Thursday, August 2, reports Associated Press.
The Washington Post takes issue with some cable news channels' overuse of such phrases as "breaking news" and "this just in."
Fox has two new shows about TV news, says Associated Press.
NBC, which has been experiencing ratings woes in recent years, is atop the ratings again, but it's during the summer when too few in the industry take note, says Associated Press.
McDonald's is the latest corporation to try to cash in on the YouTube phenomenon, and the two moonlighting comedians who produced a chicken McNuggets video and slapped it on the Internet for fun are lovin' it. The video was created by Fernando Sosa, a 26-year-old who does data entry by day, and Matt Malinsky, a 35-year-old IT manager, both of whom hustle jokes in their spare time at Chicago comedy spots. It?s being used in a commercial for McDonald's in New York. The grainy clip is a year-and-a-half old, says the Boston Globe.
Many older people are clueless about the upcoming February 17, 2009 switch to digital-only TV broadcast, according to a new study by the Association of Public Television Stations. magazine reports.
MySpace has found 29,000 sex offenders with profiles on its social networking site, says Associated Press.
A lawsuit seeking to shut down the social networking site FaceBook has been filed by rivals at ConnectU, reports Associated Press.
CNN news and talk show host Glenn Beck is doing on-air advertisements for a sponsor, which critics say is crossing a line, says Reuters.
A look at China's Internet market is provided by E Marketer.com.
A major alternative weekly newspaper in Washington, D.C., City Paper, has a new owner but its editor will remain, reports the Washington Post.
There will soon be one less weekly tabloid to look at while you're checking out and paying for your food at the supermarket. Publisher American Media says it will stop printing the Weekly World News, which for 28 years gleefully chronicled the exploits of alien babies, animal-human hybrids and dead celebrities. The company said in a brief statement it is ending the print version of the tabloid newspaper next month but is maintaining the online version, Weekly World News.com. Reuters reports.
Trevor Pettiford, an openly gay news anchor at Fox's WAGA channel 5 Atlanta, has quit his job after 18 months, according to Newsblues (registration required). Southern Voice profiled Pettiford in 2003.
Media Briefing for Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Last night on CNN, the Democratic party presidential hopefuls were pelted with scores of questions from the people who will decide which of them becomes the Democratic nominee. Ordinary American voters posed unapologetically blunt queries about race, gender, Iraq, and gay marriage. The debate ? a first-of-its-kind forum that had voters framing questions through the Internet video site YouTube ? featured often anguished questions for the contenders, who for the first time spent two hours together dealing with the frustrations and worries of ordinary voters. The Boston Globe reports. It was a novel debate format but featured the same old candidates, says the New York Times. There were a number of technical mistakes, says the Washington Post. Embracing the Internet in all its brashness and irreverence, the eight Democratic presidential hopefuls differed over Iraq, Darfur, same-sex marriage and more offbeat issues in a lively last-night debate driven by dozens of amateur inquisitors, says the Los Angeles Times. The medium and the questions are called the message, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
The gay cable channel Logo is presenting a new animated series called Rick and Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World. ?It is like an old salt whose filthy mouth belies a gentle spirit. It speaks raunchily, but it behaves judiciously. The publicity surrounding it billed the show as a gay South Park, but the comparison obtains superficially, and even there you might quibble,? says the New York Times.
After sharp criticism that the show Hot Ghetto Mess featured negative stereotypes of African-Americans, the BET cable channel has "cleaned" up its mess, says Associated Press.
Seeking federal government approval of their merger, the two satellite radio companies, XM and Sirius yesterday released specific details of their plan to offer a la carte selection of channels by customers once the merger is in place, reports Associated Press. The a la carte proposal is an effort to convince the FCC that the merger is in the public interest, says the New York Times.
Newsblues (registration required) is reporting job cuts at ABC News, even though the network?s World News has had very strong ratings in recent months, handily beating NBC and CBS week after week. Newsblues says the cuts involve veteran national and international correspondents:
Dean Reynolds, a national correspondent for 23 years and based in ABC?s Chicago bureau, is moving to CBS News, reports the Chicago Tribune. Reynolds is the son of the late ABC News anchor Frank Reynolds, predecessor to Peter Jennings. Bill Redeker, who traveled extensively covering international as well as domestic news, was told yesterday his contract wouldn't be renewed. Redeker joined the network in 1975 and worked as a Far East correspondent based in Tokyo and Middle East correspondent based in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. And Mark Litke, a 27-year veteran of ABC News and chief Asia correspondent, also was not renewed. He won five Emmy awards as ABC's main correspondent in China, and also covered Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
A Fox News computer server has been found to be insecure, with a gaping security hole in the network?s Web site revealing file directories and sensitive content, according to PC World.
The audience for the online sites of newspapers is up 8% from last year, says Online Media Daily.
At the same time, there is more bad news for print editions of newspapers, says Media Daily News.
Dan Rather says there may be a time when the major networks back away from their evening news broadcasts, says TV Week.
Even with the low ratings, the CBS Evening News With Katie Couric continues to draw advertisers, reports Media Week.
The House Telecommunications & Internet Subcommittee will hold an FCC oversight hearing today, with all the commissioners scheduled to attend. Saying he appreciated FCC Chairman Kevin Martin's participation given recent eye surgery that made it tough for him to read, Congressman John Dingell (D-MI), chairman of the parent Energy & Commerce Committee, still has a lot of questions he wants Martin to bone up on for the hearing., reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Not only Republican FCC commissioners favor the crackdown on indecency on radio and television, but so does Democratic commissioner Michael Copps, in a posting on the FCC.gov Web site.
Some hip hop and rap lyrics have included anti-woman and anti-gay lyrics. The Reverend Al Sharpton, who has challenged the entertainment industry on such denigrating lyrics, is supporting a New York state senator's idea to pull public investments from companies that won't clean up their acts, reports Associated Press.
U.K. human rights activist Peter Thatchell says reggae superstar Buju Banton, whose hit tune from the 1990s ?Boom Bye Bye? was viciously homophobic, has become the latest top Jamaican reggae artist to renounce homophobia and condemn violence against lesbians and gay men.
The sister of a Texas man who was suspected of being a sexual predator and who killed himself as the cameras of NBC Dateline's To Catch A Predator closed in on him sued NBC Universal yesterday for $105 million. Associated Press reports.
A study of the reading, viewing and listening habits of Latinos in the Dallas market by Rincon & Associatesprovides a roadmap for marketing to Hispanics, according to Media Post.com.
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama will address the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) August 10 at the group?s 32nd annual convention in Las Vegas, says NABJ.
At their annual convention in Miami, Florida August 1-4, members of Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) will be addressed by ABC News vice president Kate O'Brian, Survivor winner Yul Kwon, McClatchy vice president for news Howard Weaver, CNN Correspondent Kyung Lah, former Wall Street Journal managing editor Paul Steiger, comedienne Tina Kim, film director Justin Lin and Leading Edge Associates president Larry Olmstead.
ABC has been in talks with the Newseum in Washington, D.C. about moving production of This Week With George Stephanopoulos to the Newseum's new digs near the Capitol, a Newseum executive confirms. Senior VP Jack Hurley says that no final decision has been made, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
News anchor Campbell Brown has left NBC for CNN, reports Associated Press. CNN is not yet revealing which hour she will take over or who she will replace, reports the New York Times. Journalist Richard Prince analyzes the move at the Maynard Institute web site.
The New York Times reviews tonight?s P.O.V. documentary Prison Town, USA, calling it ?smartly constructed.? It airs tonight at 10 on Thirteen/WNET.
Entrepreneur Marc Andreessen, the boy wonder behind the first widely used Web browser, the Netscape Navigator, has had his ups and downs in the technology industry. Monday, he was up again. The prototypical college kid-turned-Internet entrepreneur sold his software company Opsware to Hewlett-Packard for more than $1.6 billion in cash, netting himself a cool $138 million in the transaction. The San Jose Mercury News reports.
How green is your PC? The San Jose Mercury News examines the issue.
A decade-old telephone tax intended to help bring affordable service to rural areas has instead turned into something quite different: a bottomless and politically protected well of cash for cell phone companies that do big business in rural America. Over the past four years, there's been nearly a tenfold increase in government subsidies paid to a handful of so-called "competitive" providers, cell phone companies paid by the fund to offer service in rural areas where an existing carrier already receives a subsidy. Associated Press reports.
PBS's Sesame Street is going primetime ? and commercial (or rather, commercial television) ? at least for a one-time special this upcoming holiday season on ABC, reports the Hollywood Reporter.
TiVo is now offering HD DVRs, retail price $300, reports Associated Press.
Last night on CNN, the Democratic party presidential hopefuls were pelted with scores of questions from the people who will decide which of them becomes the Democratic nominee. Ordinary American voters posed unapologetically blunt queries about race, gender, Iraq, and gay marriage. The debate ? a first-of-its-kind forum that had voters framing questions through the Internet video site YouTube ? featured often anguished questions for the contenders, who for the first time spent two hours together dealing with the frustrations and worries of ordinary voters. The Boston Globe reports. It was a novel debate format but featured the same old candidates, says the New York Times. There were a number of technical mistakes, says the Washington Post. Embracing the Internet in all its brashness and irreverence, the eight Democratic presidential hopefuls differed over Iraq, Darfur, same-sex marriage and more offbeat issues in a lively last-night debate driven by dozens of amateur inquisitors, says the Los Angeles Times. The medium and the questions are called the message, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
The gay cable channel Logo is presenting a new animated series called Rick and Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World. ?It is like an old salt whose filthy mouth belies a gentle spirit. It speaks raunchily, but it behaves judiciously. The publicity surrounding it billed the show as a gay South Park, but the comparison obtains superficially, and even there you might quibble,? says the New York Times.
After sharp criticism that the show Hot Ghetto Mess featured negative stereotypes of African-Americans, the BET cable channel has "cleaned" up its mess, says Associated Press.
Seeking federal government approval of their merger, the two satellite radio companies, XM and Sirius yesterday released specific details of their plan to offer a la carte selection of channels by customers once the merger is in place, reports Associated Press. The a la carte proposal is an effort to convince the FCC that the merger is in the public interest, says the New York Times.
Newsblues (registration required) is reporting job cuts at ABC News, even though the network?s World News has had very strong ratings in recent months, handily beating NBC and CBS week after week. Newsblues says the cuts involve veteran national and international correspondents:
Dean Reynolds, a national correspondent for 23 years and based in ABC?s Chicago bureau, is moving to CBS News, reports the Chicago Tribune. Reynolds is the son of the late ABC News anchor Frank Reynolds, predecessor to Peter Jennings. Bill Redeker, who traveled extensively covering international as well as domestic news, was told yesterday his contract wouldn't be renewed. Redeker joined the network in 1975 and worked as a Far East correspondent based in Tokyo and Middle East correspondent based in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. And Mark Litke, a 27-year veteran of ABC News and chief Asia correspondent, also was not renewed. He won five Emmy awards as ABC's main correspondent in China, and also covered Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
A Fox News computer server has been found to be insecure, with a gaping security hole in the network?s Web site revealing file directories and sensitive content, according to PC World.
The audience for the online sites of newspapers is up 8% from last year, says Online Media Daily.
At the same time, there is more bad news for print editions of newspapers, says Media Daily News.
Dan Rather says there may be a time when the major networks back away from their evening news broadcasts, says TV Week.
Even with the low ratings, the CBS Evening News With Katie Couric continues to draw advertisers, reports Media Week.
The House Telecommunications & Internet Subcommittee will hold an FCC oversight hearing today, with all the commissioners scheduled to attend. Saying he appreciated FCC Chairman Kevin Martin's participation given recent eye surgery that made it tough for him to read, Congressman John Dingell (D-MI), chairman of the parent Energy & Commerce Committee, still has a lot of questions he wants Martin to bone up on for the hearing., reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Not only Republican FCC commissioners favor the crackdown on indecency on radio and television, but so does Democratic commissioner Michael Copps, in a posting on the FCC.gov Web site.
Some hip hop and rap lyrics have included anti-woman and anti-gay lyrics. The Reverend Al Sharpton, who has challenged the entertainment industry on such denigrating lyrics, is supporting a New York state senator's idea to pull public investments from companies that won't clean up their acts, reports Associated Press.
U.K. human rights activist Peter Thatchell says reggae superstar Buju Banton, whose hit tune from the 1990s ?Boom Bye Bye? was viciously homophobic, has become the latest top Jamaican reggae artist to renounce homophobia and condemn violence against lesbians and gay men.
The sister of a Texas man who was suspected of being a sexual predator and who killed himself as the cameras of NBC Dateline's To Catch A Predator closed in on him sued NBC Universal yesterday for $105 million. Associated Press reports.
A study of the reading, viewing and listening habits of Latinos in the Dallas market by Rincon & Associatesprovides a roadmap for marketing to Hispanics, according to Media Post.com.
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama will address the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) August 10 at the group?s 32nd annual convention in Las Vegas, says NABJ.
At their annual convention in Miami, Florida August 1-4, members of Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) will be addressed by ABC News vice president Kate O'Brian, Survivor winner Yul Kwon, McClatchy vice president for news Howard Weaver, CNN Correspondent Kyung Lah, former Wall Street Journal managing editor Paul Steiger, comedienne Tina Kim, film director Justin Lin and Leading Edge Associates president Larry Olmstead.
ABC has been in talks with the Newseum in Washington, D.C. about moving production of This Week With George Stephanopoulos to the Newseum's new digs near the Capitol, a Newseum executive confirms. Senior VP Jack Hurley says that no final decision has been made, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
News anchor Campbell Brown has left NBC for CNN, reports Associated Press. CNN is not yet revealing which hour she will take over or who she will replace, reports the New York Times. Journalist Richard Prince analyzes the move at the Maynard Institute web site.
The New York Times reviews tonight?s P.O.V. documentary Prison Town, USA, calling it ?smartly constructed.? It airs tonight at 10 on Thirteen/WNET.
Entrepreneur Marc Andreessen, the boy wonder behind the first widely used Web browser, the Netscape Navigator, has had his ups and downs in the technology industry. Monday, he was up again. The prototypical college kid-turned-Internet entrepreneur sold his software company Opsware to Hewlett-Packard for more than $1.6 billion in cash, netting himself a cool $138 million in the transaction. The San Jose Mercury News reports.
How green is your PC? The San Jose Mercury News examines the issue.
A decade-old telephone tax intended to help bring affordable service to rural areas has instead turned into something quite different: a bottomless and politically protected well of cash for cell phone companies that do big business in rural America. Over the past four years, there's been nearly a tenfold increase in government subsidies paid to a handful of so-called "competitive" providers, cell phone companies paid by the fund to offer service in rural areas where an existing carrier already receives a subsidy. Associated Press reports.
PBS's Sesame Street is going primetime ? and commercial (or rather, commercial television) ? at least for a one-time special this upcoming holiday season on ABC, reports the Hollywood Reporter.
TiVo is now offering HD DVRs, retail price $300, reports Associated Press.
Media Briefing for Monday, July 23, 2007
Tonight at 7 p.m., CNN will televise the first of its kind U.S. presidential debate, in which the Democratic presidential hopefuls will answer questions submitted via video by YouTube users. The GOP candidates will get their turn in September. The CNN-YouTube debate is being heralded for turning a new page in presidential politics, beginning to transform staid debates into an endeavor taken in the spirit of YouTube: technology-driven, a little offbeat and with voters at the controls. More than 2,000 video questions have been submitted, representing a cross-section of issues and coming from as far away as Spain, Panama and Chad. The San Jose Mercury News reports.
The social networking site My Space briefly filtered out the letter ?i? from blog entries on Saturday, says Lost Remote. ?Now all they have to do is to filter out the letters ?m? and ?e? and the folks on MySpace will have run out of things to talk about,? quips a commenter at Digg.com.
NBC has launched a new Internet site called Politalk.com, reports Lost Remote.
A column in the liberal magazine New Republic, described as being penned by a U.S. soldier in Iraq, is filled with tales of petty, stomach-churning behavior. The Baghdad Diarist, writing under the pseudonym Scott Thomas, says he was "shocked by my own cruelty.? He recounts soldiers getting their kicks by running over dogs with Bradley Fighting Vehicles and playing with Iraqi children's skulls taken from a mass grave. But now the magazine, responding to questions raised online by the Weekly Standard and other conservative Web sites, is looking into whether the soldier's account in this and two earlier columns can be substantiated. "The Standard raises some important questions about the piece, and we're investigating them," New Republic editor Franklin Foer said. The Washington Post reports.
The new iPhone is vulnerable to hackers. A team of computer security consultants says it has found a flaw that allows them to take control of the device. The researchers, working for Independent Security Evaluators, a company that tests its clients' computer security by hacking it, said that they could take control of iPhones through a WiFi connection or by tricking users into going to a website that contains malicious code. The hack, the first reported, allowed them to tap the wealth of personal information the iPhones contain. The New York Times reports.
In a nondescript storage room in California, tucked deep behind layers of security doors, a handful of computer experts have just wrapped up an intense two months of hacking or otherwise manipulating electronic voting systems. The rigorous testing for vulnerabilities in touch-screen voting machines are part of an unprecedented "top-to-bottom" review ordered by California Secretary of State Debra Bowen to ensure that the state's voting systems are secure - and whether they should be certified for use. She is expected to report August 3rd - six months before the February 5th presidential primaries, a timeline that is making California election officials nervous, reports Media News.
Some in Congress want to reinstate the FCC?s Fairness Doctrine, which was eliminated 20 years ago and which required radio and TV stations to broadcast both sides of controversial issues. The Los Angeles Times reports. The elimination of the Fairness Doctrine paved the way for opinionated talk shows like ones hosted by Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage.
The Cumulus radio group is going private in a $1.3 billion deal in which Cumulus chief Lew Dickey and an affiliate of Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity will buy out stockholders for $11.75 per share. The price represents a 40.4% premium over the closing price on Friday. The company's board has already approved the merger agreement. Dickey will continue as chairman, president and CEO of the company after the merger. The Cumulus group includes WFAS 1230 and WFAS-FM 103.9 White Plains, WFAF 106.3 Mount Kisco, and WPDH 101.5 Poughkeepsie. WFAF is the former WVIP-FM, which offered community coverage in Northern Westchester, but now simply simulcasts WPDH from Dutchess County. In Fairfield County, CT, Cumulus owns the only AM station with a signal strong enough to cover the entire county ? WICC 600 Bridgeport. Cumulus also owns two of Fairfield County's three 50,000-watt FM stations, WEBE 107.9 Westport and WRKI 95.1 Brookfield.
The Cumulus radio group was part of a national controversy several years ago when a corporate-level directive advised its stations not to play the Dixie Chicks after their lead singer had criticized George W. Bush onstage in London. CEO Dickey appeared in 2003 before a U.S. Senate committee investigating radio station consolidation and was closely questioned by Senator John McCain about the directive. Ad Age.com reported that Senator McCain said that while individual stations have the right to pull songs, the decision by Cumulus to pull songs chain-wide from its stations was a ?total contradiction? of statements made by media executives that they are serving local markets. Senator Barbara Boxer of California suggested Dickey's decision "smacked of Nazism and McCarthyism rather than of free speech."
Another example that, with conglomerate ownership of radio stations, programming decisions are not being made at the local level: Clear Channel Communications, which owns 1,200 of the most powerful and strong signal FM and AM stations nationwide, issued a lengthy list of songs it deemed inappropriate for its stations to play in the wake of 9/11. Wikipedia has the list of songs.
In an effort to gain federal approval for a merger, satellite radio giants XM and Sirius say the merged company would offer a la carte programming, according to Sirius.
Scenes of campus violence in a new Fox television network drama based on The Terminator movies were filmed before the Virginia Tech shootings and will be revised. The Sarah Connor Chronicles, scheduled for midseason, follows Connor (Lena Headey) as she tries to safeguard her 15-year-old son, John (Thomas Dekker), who may be destined to save mankind from technology gone amok. Associated Press reports.
The United States will have a female president next year ? on the Fox TV series 24. Tony Award-winning actress Cherry Jones will play President Allison Taylor when the show about the exploits of counterterrorism agent Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) returns in January for season seven. Jones' term will coincide with Democratic Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential bid, but Fox Entertainment Chairman Peter Liguori said there will be no intersection between fiction and real-world politics. Associated Press reports.
C-SPAN's Brian Lamb is not what you think, says Marketplace.
Reporters often look for conflicts of interest when they report on public officials. Likewise, readers deserve to know how the Washington Post deals with conflicts of interest for reporters and editors, especially in the Washington area, where government, politics, special interests and the news media can be in the closest of quarters ? next door or in the bedroom. The Washington Post reports.
Petey Greene, local talk show host on Washington's WOL radio, is the subject of the hit movie Talk To Me. The Washington Post examines why there are no Petey Greenes on the radio today. The movie is a story of friendship and tragedy, says the Seattle Times.
Will ABC Boston affiliate WCVB channel 5 survive in the local news ratings now that icon Natalie Jacobson is gone from the anchor desk there? The Boston Globe reports.
Fans of The Beatles are offended that the Fab Four?s hit song All You Need Is Love is now being used to sell Luvs diapers in TV ads, says Associated Press.
Four decades ago, the Beatles' performance of ?All You Need Is Love? for the world's first-ever, live satellite transmission drew condemnation from viewers who said the performance had dragged Britain's good name through the mud. The criticism of the Our World broadcast, for which the Beatles specially wrote a song and put together a backing group that included members of the Rolling Stones and Marianne Faithful, based on the impression that group was less impressive than figures who represented other countries, including the singer Maria Callas and the artist Pablo Picasso. The United Kingdom's Sunday Telegraph reports. The broadcast was and is considered a defining moment for Great Britain, says the Associated Press.
Critics are saying the Animal Planet channel?s reality series Animal Precinct, which has been on the air for six years, overrates the effectiveness of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, according to the New York Times.
Ask.com has become the first major search engine to promise users it won't store data on their queries, giving the privacy-conscious the option of conducting research on the Internet in relative anonymity, reports Associated Press.
The United States is the #1 source for e-mail spam, followed by China, South Korea and the Poland, reports eMarketerDaily.com.
Los Angeles is gaining on California's Silicon Valley as ground zero for the current Internet boom, says the Los Angeles Times.
Google is aiming to boost wireless competition. The company fears it will be frozen out of the wireless markets and is seeking a deal with the FCC, reports the Boston Globe. Google will be bidding at least $4.6 billion for wireless spectrum space at the upcoming FCC auction, says Associated Press. It envisions a high-speed freeway across the United States, says the Los Angeles Times. Google also wants the FCC to set down certain rules regarding use of the spectrum, reports PC World. With the spectrum, Google could compete directly with AT&T or Comcast, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
Microsoft is announcing changes to its privacy policy today that set a time limit on how long the company will retain data about customer queries through its search engine. The policy, seen as an attempt to distinguish itself from Google, also allows people to opt out of targeted ads by third-party advertisers using Microsoft's Windows Live, reports the Seattle Times.
Internet video sites are being mined by talent scouts, says Associated Press.
After years of hearing it repeated in almost every media outlet, ?convergence? seems to have disappeared from our vocabulary. We used to use it to talk about how computing, networking and media (especially TV) were getting closer and overlapping. We no longer have to dream about convergence because it has hit almost all of us. If we don't have a Web-enabled phone that plays YouTube videos, we have a digital video recorder (DVR) such as TiVo or a game console such as X-Box with a built-in DVD player, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Ailing former televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker appeared on CNN's Larry King last week and shocked viewers by saying this would be her last TV appearance because of her severe bout with cancer, which had left her weighing only 65 pounds, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. She then passed away Friday, reports the Los Angeles Times. CNN sat on the story of her death a day-and-a-half before reporting it, says NBC's Access Hollywood. She battled cancer for 11 years, says Associated Press. Rather than being tightly disciplined, she was not afraid to show emotion on TV, says the New York Times.
Tammy Faye was a pop culture icon, says the Los Angeles Times.
Tammy Faye's son has posted a tribune on the Internet site Revolution NYC, says the Charlotte Observer.
San Francisco radio and TV journalist Pete Wilson has died at age 62, reports Associated Press. He anchored 12 years at KRON-TV channel 4 and the past five and a half years at KGO-TV channel 7, where his last telecast was Wednesday. He also was a host on KGO-AM 810, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. He was well liked, says the Chronicle.
Springfield, Vermont rolled out the yellow carpet on Saturday for the premiere of The Simpsons Movie. Creator Matt Groening was among thousands who turned out to toast the debut. Streets were closed off, costumed Simpsons look-alikes walked through the crowds and blue-haired fans vied for tickets to one of four showings of the movie at the 212-seat Springfield Theater, the first of which was by invitation only. Associated Press reports. The San Francisco Chronicle re-publishes its original 1990 review of The Simpsons, which called it ?the most intelligent new series of the season.?
CNN's Wolf Blitzer was involved in an on-air confrontation with documentarian Michael Moore over Moore's movie about the health care industry, Sicko, reports Associated Press.
In Iran, critics are questioning the decision to put two American detainees on Iranian television, reports Associated Press.
Jesus de Polanco, a media giant credited with helping restore Spain's independent press after the death of fascist dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, has passed away. De Polanco, the billionaire chairman of the powerful Spanish media conglomerate Grupo PRISA and one of Spain's most influential people, died of an unspecified rheumatic disease, reported El Pais. De Polanco co-founded El Pais and founded Grupo PRISA, which also owns radio and TV stations and publishing companies, and he was very close to the ruling Socialist Party. Grupo PRISA is the largest media company in the Spanish-speaking world. El Pais, which launched in 1976 following Franco's death, quickly became Spain's most-read newspaper as the country returned to democracy, according to Associated Press. De Polanco helped revive free speech in Spain after more than three decades of the fascist Franco dictatorship, says the New York Times.
NBC is moving 1,000 employees from 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan to suburban New Jersey, reports the New York Post.
Reminiscent of the old 1950s set-top converter boxes that allowed viewers with VHF-only TV sets to receive UHF channels, some new electronic gadgetry is expected to sell millions of units when it hits the market next year: the digital converter boxes that will enable analog TV sets to receive and display digital TV signals. By federal law, conventional analog television will cease transmission on February 17, 2009, making digital signals the only broadcast TV available. The Chicago Tribune reports.
The San Francisco Chronicle discusses whether receiving live TV signals in cars is ?the next big thing.?
Tonight at 7 p.m., CNN will televise the first of its kind U.S. presidential debate, in which the Democratic presidential hopefuls will answer questions submitted via video by YouTube users. The GOP candidates will get their turn in September. The CNN-YouTube debate is being heralded for turning a new page in presidential politics, beginning to transform staid debates into an endeavor taken in the spirit of YouTube: technology-driven, a little offbeat and with voters at the controls. More than 2,000 video questions have been submitted, representing a cross-section of issues and coming from as far away as Spain, Panama and Chad. The San Jose Mercury News reports.
The social networking site My Space briefly filtered out the letter ?i? from blog entries on Saturday, says Lost Remote. ?Now all they have to do is to filter out the letters ?m? and ?e? and the folks on MySpace will have run out of things to talk about,? quips a commenter at Digg.com.
NBC has launched a new Internet site called Politalk.com, reports Lost Remote.
A column in the liberal magazine New Republic, described as being penned by a U.S. soldier in Iraq, is filled with tales of petty, stomach-churning behavior. The Baghdad Diarist, writing under the pseudonym Scott Thomas, says he was "shocked by my own cruelty.? He recounts soldiers getting their kicks by running over dogs with Bradley Fighting Vehicles and playing with Iraqi children's skulls taken from a mass grave. But now the magazine, responding to questions raised online by the Weekly Standard and other conservative Web sites, is looking into whether the soldier's account in this and two earlier columns can be substantiated. "The Standard raises some important questions about the piece, and we're investigating them," New Republic editor Franklin Foer said. The Washington Post reports.
The new iPhone is vulnerable to hackers. A team of computer security consultants says it has found a flaw that allows them to take control of the device. The researchers, working for Independent Security Evaluators, a company that tests its clients' computer security by hacking it, said that they could take control of iPhones through a WiFi connection or by tricking users into going to a website that contains malicious code. The hack, the first reported, allowed them to tap the wealth of personal information the iPhones contain. The New York Times reports.
In a nondescript storage room in California, tucked deep behind layers of security doors, a handful of computer experts have just wrapped up an intense two months of hacking or otherwise manipulating electronic voting systems. The rigorous testing for vulnerabilities in touch-screen voting machines are part of an unprecedented "top-to-bottom" review ordered by California Secretary of State Debra Bowen to ensure that the state's voting systems are secure - and whether they should be certified for use. She is expected to report August 3rd - six months before the February 5th presidential primaries, a timeline that is making California election officials nervous, reports Media News.
Some in Congress want to reinstate the FCC?s Fairness Doctrine, which was eliminated 20 years ago and which required radio and TV stations to broadcast both sides of controversial issues. The Los Angeles Times reports. The elimination of the Fairness Doctrine paved the way for opinionated talk shows like ones hosted by Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage.
The Cumulus radio group is going private in a $1.3 billion deal in which Cumulus chief Lew Dickey and an affiliate of Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity will buy out stockholders for $11.75 per share. The price represents a 40.4% premium over the closing price on Friday. The company's board has already approved the merger agreement. Dickey will continue as chairman, president and CEO of the company after the merger. The Cumulus group includes WFAS 1230 and WFAS-FM 103.9 White Plains, WFAF 106.3 Mount Kisco, and WPDH 101.5 Poughkeepsie. WFAF is the former WVIP-FM, which offered community coverage in Northern Westchester, but now simply simulcasts WPDH from Dutchess County. In Fairfield County, CT, Cumulus owns the only AM station with a signal strong enough to cover the entire county ? WICC 600 Bridgeport. Cumulus also owns two of Fairfield County's three 50,000-watt FM stations, WEBE 107.9 Westport and WRKI 95.1 Brookfield.
The Cumulus radio group was part of a national controversy several years ago when a corporate-level directive advised its stations not to play the Dixie Chicks after their lead singer had criticized George W. Bush onstage in London. CEO Dickey appeared in 2003 before a U.S. Senate committee investigating radio station consolidation and was closely questioned by Senator John McCain about the directive. Ad Age.com reported that Senator McCain said that while individual stations have the right to pull songs, the decision by Cumulus to pull songs chain-wide from its stations was a ?total contradiction? of statements made by media executives that they are serving local markets. Senator Barbara Boxer of California suggested Dickey's decision "smacked of Nazism and McCarthyism rather than of free speech."
Another example that, with conglomerate ownership of radio stations, programming decisions are not being made at the local level: Clear Channel Communications, which owns 1,200 of the most powerful and strong signal FM and AM stations nationwide, issued a lengthy list of songs it deemed inappropriate for its stations to play in the wake of 9/11. Wikipedia has the list of songs.
In an effort to gain federal approval for a merger, satellite radio giants XM and Sirius say the merged company would offer a la carte programming, according to Sirius.
Scenes of campus violence in a new Fox television network drama based on The Terminator movies were filmed before the Virginia Tech shootings and will be revised. The Sarah Connor Chronicles, scheduled for midseason, follows Connor (Lena Headey) as she tries to safeguard her 15-year-old son, John (Thomas Dekker), who may be destined to save mankind from technology gone amok. Associated Press reports.
The United States will have a female president next year ? on the Fox TV series 24. Tony Award-winning actress Cherry Jones will play President Allison Taylor when the show about the exploits of counterterrorism agent Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) returns in January for season seven. Jones' term will coincide with Democratic Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential bid, but Fox Entertainment Chairman Peter Liguori said there will be no intersection between fiction and real-world politics. Associated Press reports.
C-SPAN's Brian Lamb is not what you think, says Marketplace.
Reporters often look for conflicts of interest when they report on public officials. Likewise, readers deserve to know how the Washington Post deals with conflicts of interest for reporters and editors, especially in the Washington area, where government, politics, special interests and the news media can be in the closest of quarters ? next door or in the bedroom. The Washington Post reports.
Petey Greene, local talk show host on Washington's WOL radio, is the subject of the hit movie Talk To Me. The Washington Post examines why there are no Petey Greenes on the radio today. The movie is a story of friendship and tragedy, says the Seattle Times.
Will ABC Boston affiliate WCVB channel 5 survive in the local news ratings now that icon Natalie Jacobson is gone from the anchor desk there? The Boston Globe reports.
Fans of The Beatles are offended that the Fab Four?s hit song All You Need Is Love is now being used to sell Luvs diapers in TV ads, says Associated Press.
Four decades ago, the Beatles' performance of ?All You Need Is Love? for the world's first-ever, live satellite transmission drew condemnation from viewers who said the performance had dragged Britain's good name through the mud. The criticism of the Our World broadcast, for which the Beatles specially wrote a song and put together a backing group that included members of the Rolling Stones and Marianne Faithful, based on the impression that group was less impressive than figures who represented other countries, including the singer Maria Callas and the artist Pablo Picasso. The United Kingdom's Sunday Telegraph reports. The broadcast was and is considered a defining moment for Great Britain, says the Associated Press.
Critics are saying the Animal Planet channel?s reality series Animal Precinct, which has been on the air for six years, overrates the effectiveness of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, according to the New York Times.
Ask.com has become the first major search engine to promise users it won't store data on their queries, giving the privacy-conscious the option of conducting research on the Internet in relative anonymity, reports Associated Press.
The United States is the #1 source for e-mail spam, followed by China, South Korea and the Poland, reports eMarketerDaily.com.
Los Angeles is gaining on California's Silicon Valley as ground zero for the current Internet boom, says the Los Angeles Times.
Google is aiming to boost wireless competition. The company fears it will be frozen out of the wireless markets and is seeking a deal with the FCC, reports the Boston Globe. Google will be bidding at least $4.6 billion for wireless spectrum space at the upcoming FCC auction, says Associated Press. It envisions a high-speed freeway across the United States, says the Los Angeles Times. Google also wants the FCC to set down certain rules regarding use of the spectrum, reports PC World. With the spectrum, Google could compete directly with AT&T or Comcast, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
Microsoft is announcing changes to its privacy policy today that set a time limit on how long the company will retain data about customer queries through its search engine. The policy, seen as an attempt to distinguish itself from Google, also allows people to opt out of targeted ads by third-party advertisers using Microsoft's Windows Live, reports the Seattle Times.
Internet video sites are being mined by talent scouts, says Associated Press.
After years of hearing it repeated in almost every media outlet, ?convergence? seems to have disappeared from our vocabulary. We used to use it to talk about how computing, networking and media (especially TV) were getting closer and overlapping. We no longer have to dream about convergence because it has hit almost all of us. If we don't have a Web-enabled phone that plays YouTube videos, we have a digital video recorder (DVR) such as TiVo or a game console such as X-Box with a built-in DVD player, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Ailing former televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker appeared on CNN's Larry King last week and shocked viewers by saying this would be her last TV appearance because of her severe bout with cancer, which had left her weighing only 65 pounds, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. She then passed away Friday, reports the Los Angeles Times. CNN sat on the story of her death a day-and-a-half before reporting it, says NBC's Access Hollywood. She battled cancer for 11 years, says Associated Press. Rather than being tightly disciplined, she was not afraid to show emotion on TV, says the New York Times.
Tammy Faye was a pop culture icon, says the Los Angeles Times.
Tammy Faye's son has posted a tribune on the Internet site Revolution NYC, says the Charlotte Observer.
San Francisco radio and TV journalist Pete Wilson has died at age 62, reports Associated Press. He anchored 12 years at KRON-TV channel 4 and the past five and a half years at KGO-TV channel 7, where his last telecast was Wednesday. He also was a host on KGO-AM 810, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. He was well liked, says the Chronicle.
Springfield, Vermont rolled out the yellow carpet on Saturday for the premiere of The Simpsons Movie. Creator Matt Groening was among thousands who turned out to toast the debut. Streets were closed off, costumed Simpsons look-alikes walked through the crowds and blue-haired fans vied for tickets to one of four showings of the movie at the 212-seat Springfield Theater, the first of which was by invitation only. Associated Press reports. The San Francisco Chronicle re-publishes its original 1990 review of The Simpsons, which called it ?the most intelligent new series of the season.?
CNN's Wolf Blitzer was involved in an on-air confrontation with documentarian Michael Moore over Moore's movie about the health care industry, Sicko, reports Associated Press.
In Iran, critics are questioning the decision to put two American detainees on Iranian television, reports Associated Press.
Jesus de Polanco, a media giant credited with helping restore Spain's independent press after the death of fascist dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, has passed away. De Polanco, the billionaire chairman of the powerful Spanish media conglomerate Grupo PRISA and one of Spain's most influential people, died of an unspecified rheumatic disease, reported El Pais. De Polanco co-founded El Pais and founded Grupo PRISA, which also owns radio and TV stations and publishing companies, and he was very close to the ruling Socialist Party. Grupo PRISA is the largest media company in the Spanish-speaking world. El Pais, which launched in 1976 following Franco's death, quickly became Spain's most-read newspaper as the country returned to democracy, according to Associated Press. De Polanco helped revive free speech in Spain after more than three decades of the fascist Franco dictatorship, says the New York Times.
NBC is moving 1,000 employees from 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan to suburban New Jersey, reports the New York Post.
Reminiscent of the old 1950s set-top converter boxes that allowed viewers with VHF-only TV sets to receive UHF channels, some new electronic gadgetry is expected to sell millions of units when it hits the market next year: the digital converter boxes that will enable analog TV sets to receive and display digital TV signals. By federal law, conventional analog television will cease transmission on February 17, 2009, making digital signals the only broadcast TV available. The Chicago Tribune reports.
The San Francisco Chronicle discusses whether receiving live TV signals in cars is ?the next big thing.?
Media Briefing for Friday, July 20, 2007
CBS television content will be available through 400 Web sites by the fall, according to an executive with the network. "CBS is all about open, nonexclusive partnerships," says CBS Interactive president Quincy Smith. "Just CBS.com is not the answer" to reaching viewers, he adds, so the network is devoted to going out where the viewers are, not forcing them to CBS.com, reports MultiChannel News.
As part of its bid to measure video-based programming anytime and anywhere consumers watch it, Nielsen this month will go mobile, deploying 100 new metering devices designed to plug into iPods, video cell phones and other portable video devices. The devices, dubbed "solo meters," are about the size of a lipstick case, says Media Daily News.
In an editorial, the Hartford Courant says the new cable law in Connecticut is a good thing for consumers. Connecticut's governor has signed a bill that allows alternative video service companies to compete with the cable TV industry for customers. The new law effectively undercuts cable's decades-old monopoly on television viewing, under which one company is the sole provider of service in a given franchise area in Connecticut, says the editorial.
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has asked the FCC to release information about alleged violation by XM and Sirius satellite radio of FCC rules governing FM modulators and terrestrial repeaters. The group wants these transgressions on the public record to help its case against the proposed merger. "The information at issue here is inextricably linked to the pending application of XM and Sirius to merge and become the nation's sole satellite radio provider," the NAB filing stated. This report is from All Access.com.
The FCC is holding its fifth public hearing on media ownership issues in Chicago on Thursday, September 20, 2007. The hearing will provide an opportunity for those in the Chicago area to discuss media ownership, including specific issues facing the local market. The commission said that further details will be released at a later date. Previous FCC public hearings in the current review of media ownership issues were held in Los Angeles on October 3, 2006; Nashville, Tennessee, on December 11, 2006; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on February 23; and Tampa Bay-St. Petersburg, Florida on April 30, and most recently in Portland, Maine. This notice is on the official Web site of the FCC. The FCC has proposed relaxing even further the rules on consolidation of ownership of broadcast radio and TV stations, so conglomerates can acquire more stations. Critics say that consolidation and the lack of local ownership has destroyed much of the local news and community service on stations.
The U.S. Senate is continuing its efforts to reinstate the FCC's authority to fine stations up to $325,000 for incidents of indecency over the airwaves, even unanticipated, fleeting ones. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee approved a bill that would undo an appeals court ruling that invalidated the FCC?s new profanity policy. For years the FCC punished broadcasters for airing profanities only if they referred to a sexual or excretory activity. In the George W. Bush years, the FCC changed course, contending that use of such common profanities and two words beginning with "s" and "f" are inherently indecent. The Associated Press reports. Republican FCC chairman Kevin Martin issued a statement praising the Senate committee action. One observer says that if this becomes law, it will mean more litigation. The Los Angeles Times reports. The Senate committee vote to restore the FCC powers was unanimous, reports MultiChannel News.
Teenage African American journalists react to the symbolic burial of the "n" word by the NAACP, in the black weekly newspaper the New Amsterdam News.
Is Viacom for sale? Stock shares of Viacom rose the most in 11 months on speculation that a rift between Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone and daughter Shari Redstone may lead to a sale of the company. Shari Redstone, who has been viewed as her 84-year-old father's successor, may leave Viacom's board after a falling out, according to the Wall Street Journal. Bloomberg News reports. There is a family feud at CBS and Viacom, says the New York Times.
German publishing executive Dieter von Holtzbrinck has resigned as a director of Dow Jones to protest the board's endorsement of a deal to sell the company, which publishes the Wall Street Journal, to Rupert Murdoch. In a letter to Dow Jones' board members, von Holtzbrinck said he is "very worried" that Dow Jones' "unique journalistic values will long-term strongly suffer after the proposed sale. Associated Press reports. A little-known Boston lawyer is key in Rupert Murdoch's attempt to acquire Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal, reports the Boston Globe.
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are refusing to participate in any presidential debates being televised on the conservative Fox News Channel, but Congressional Black Caucus chairman Elijah Cummings vows to win over one candidate in order to get the other. "We?re going to get them," he says, and is trying to convince them to change their minds, reports the Chicago Defender.
The U.S. House of Representatives? decision to reject the Bush administration?s plan to slash funds for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is examined by NewsMax.com.
The complicated issues involved in the sex stings staged by NBC Dateline's To Catch A Predator series are examined by WFAA-TV Channel 8, the ABC station in Dallas. It was in the Dallas area where a sting went awry and a prosecutor committed suicide at the scene.
Cutbacks at newspapers nationwide have included TV critics, with papers in Philadelphia, Denver and Dallas as some examples, says Variety.
It?s old news by now, but newspapers? advertising revenues are down, according to Associated Press. McClatchy and Dow Jones papers are among those with ad declines, says the New York Times.
In suburban Chicago, the Daily Herald is imposing pay cuts on its staff, says the Chicago Tribune.
Front-page newspaper ads are here to stay ? Tribune Co. newspapers the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Newsday of Long Island and the Hartford Courant all have announced they are running them, reports Newsday.
Many people are concerned about the proliferation of cameras everywhere, on Manhattan streets, on interstate highways, malls, and other places. There can be benefits as well. In southern Connecticut there are 100 cameras on Interstate 95, and they will now be used to assist first responders to get to accident scenes more quickly, says the New Haven Register.
According to TiVo, the least fast-forwarded television advertising campaigns in April were direct-response ads that run in the daytime. That?s just one finding from TiVo's first "Top Commercial Rankings" report that tracks viewing behavior on a second-by-second basis in both live and time-shifted viewing contexts. DM News reports.
The New York Daily News examines TV coverage of Wednesday's steam pipe break in Manhattan on WCBS channel 2, WNBC channel 4, WNYW channel 5, WABC-TV channel 7 and WPIX channel 11.
It was a bad day recently for free speech in the West African nation of Senegal. Sixty armed Senegalese government security agents raided the headquarters of Premiere FM, a new radio station, seizing transmitters and other equipment of the all-news station as it was about to go on their air. The radio station's owner, Madiambal Diagne, is also the executive director of Le Quotidien, a Senegalese daily known for its criticism of president Abdoulaye Wade. The New Amsterdam News reports.
Independent and unsigned artists are no longer required to waive digital rights to gain airplay on Clear Channel radio stations, thanks to a quiet move by the company. As part of a payola-related settlement, Clear Channel and a number of other U.S.-based conglomerates agreed to allocate portions of airplay time for traditionally underrepresented talent. But Clear Channel was soon targeted for asking interesting artists to forgo their online royalties, particularly as they related to online station simulcasts and on-demand offerings. The requirement drew protest from groups like the D.C.-based Future of Music Coalition, an organization that recently filed a formal complaint with the FCC, according to Digital Music News.
As negotiations about steep increases in music royalty fees continue, Internet radio stations continue to broadcast, reports the Boston Globe. The Radio And Internet Newsletter says negotiations may be faltering.
CBS television content will be available through 400 Web sites by the fall, according to an executive with the network. "CBS is all about open, nonexclusive partnerships," says CBS Interactive president Quincy Smith. "Just CBS.com is not the answer" to reaching viewers, he adds, so the network is devoted to going out where the viewers are, not forcing them to CBS.com, reports MultiChannel News.
As part of its bid to measure video-based programming anytime and anywhere consumers watch it, Nielsen this month will go mobile, deploying 100 new metering devices designed to plug into iPods, video cell phones and other portable video devices. The devices, dubbed "solo meters," are about the size of a lipstick case, says Media Daily News.
In an editorial, the Hartford Courant says the new cable law in Connecticut is a good thing for consumers. Connecticut's governor has signed a bill that allows alternative video service companies to compete with the cable TV industry for customers. The new law effectively undercuts cable's decades-old monopoly on television viewing, under which one company is the sole provider of service in a given franchise area in Connecticut, says the editorial.
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has asked the FCC to release information about alleged violation by XM and Sirius satellite radio of FCC rules governing FM modulators and terrestrial repeaters. The group wants these transgressions on the public record to help its case against the proposed merger. "The information at issue here is inextricably linked to the pending application of XM and Sirius to merge and become the nation's sole satellite radio provider," the NAB filing stated. This report is from All Access.com.
The FCC is holding its fifth public hearing on media ownership issues in Chicago on Thursday, September 20, 2007. The hearing will provide an opportunity for those in the Chicago area to discuss media ownership, including specific issues facing the local market. The commission said that further details will be released at a later date. Previous FCC public hearings in the current review of media ownership issues were held in Los Angeles on October 3, 2006; Nashville, Tennessee, on December 11, 2006; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on February 23; and Tampa Bay-St. Petersburg, Florida on April 30, and most recently in Portland, Maine. This notice is on the official Web site of the FCC. The FCC has proposed relaxing even further the rules on consolidation of ownership of broadcast radio and TV stations, so conglomerates can acquire more stations. Critics say that consolidation and the lack of local ownership has destroyed much of the local news and community service on stations.
The U.S. Senate is continuing its efforts to reinstate the FCC's authority to fine stations up to $325,000 for incidents of indecency over the airwaves, even unanticipated, fleeting ones. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee approved a bill that would undo an appeals court ruling that invalidated the FCC?s new profanity policy. For years the FCC punished broadcasters for airing profanities only if they referred to a sexual or excretory activity. In the George W. Bush years, the FCC changed course, contending that use of such common profanities and two words beginning with "s" and "f" are inherently indecent. The Associated Press reports. Republican FCC chairman Kevin Martin issued a statement praising the Senate committee action. One observer says that if this becomes law, it will mean more litigation. The Los Angeles Times reports. The Senate committee vote to restore the FCC powers was unanimous, reports MultiChannel News.
Teenage African American journalists react to the symbolic burial of the "n" word by the NAACP, in the black weekly newspaper the New Amsterdam News.
Is Viacom for sale? Stock shares of Viacom rose the most in 11 months on speculation that a rift between Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone and daughter Shari Redstone may lead to a sale of the company. Shari Redstone, who has been viewed as her 84-year-old father's successor, may leave Viacom's board after a falling out, according to the Wall Street Journal. Bloomberg News reports. There is a family feud at CBS and Viacom, says the New York Times.
German publishing executive Dieter von Holtzbrinck has resigned as a director of Dow Jones to protest the board's endorsement of a deal to sell the company, which publishes the Wall Street Journal, to Rupert Murdoch. In a letter to Dow Jones' board members, von Holtzbrinck said he is "very worried" that Dow Jones' "unique journalistic values will long-term strongly suffer after the proposed sale. Associated Press reports. A little-known Boston lawyer is key in Rupert Murdoch's attempt to acquire Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal, reports the Boston Globe.
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are refusing to participate in any presidential debates being televised on the conservative Fox News Channel, but Congressional Black Caucus chairman Elijah Cummings vows to win over one candidate in order to get the other. "We?re going to get them," he says, and is trying to convince them to change their minds, reports the Chicago Defender.
The U.S. House of Representatives? decision to reject the Bush administration?s plan to slash funds for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is examined by NewsMax.com.
The complicated issues involved in the sex stings staged by NBC Dateline's To Catch A Predator series are examined by WFAA-TV Channel 8, the ABC station in Dallas. It was in the Dallas area where a sting went awry and a prosecutor committed suicide at the scene.
Cutbacks at newspapers nationwide have included TV critics, with papers in Philadelphia, Denver and Dallas as some examples, says Variety.
It?s old news by now, but newspapers? advertising revenues are down, according to Associated Press. McClatchy and Dow Jones papers are among those with ad declines, says the New York Times.
In suburban Chicago, the Daily Herald is imposing pay cuts on its staff, says the Chicago Tribune.
Front-page newspaper ads are here to stay ? Tribune Co. newspapers the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Newsday of Long Island and the Hartford Courant all have announced they are running them, reports Newsday.
Many people are concerned about the proliferation of cameras everywhere, on Manhattan streets, on interstate highways, malls, and other places. There can be benefits as well. In southern Connecticut there are 100 cameras on Interstate 95, and they will now be used to assist first responders to get to accident scenes more quickly, says the New Haven Register.
According to TiVo, the least fast-forwarded television advertising campaigns in April were direct-response ads that run in the daytime. That?s just one finding from TiVo's first "Top Commercial Rankings" report that tracks viewing behavior on a second-by-second basis in both live and time-shifted viewing contexts. DM News reports.
The New York Daily News examines TV coverage of Wednesday's steam pipe break in Manhattan on WCBS channel 2, WNBC channel 4, WNYW channel 5, WABC-TV channel 7 and WPIX channel 11.
It was a bad day recently for free speech in the West African nation of Senegal. Sixty armed Senegalese government security agents raided the headquarters of Premiere FM, a new radio station, seizing transmitters and other equipment of the all-news station as it was about to go on their air. The radio station's owner, Madiambal Diagne, is also the executive director of Le Quotidien, a Senegalese daily known for its criticism of president Abdoulaye Wade. The New Amsterdam News reports.
Independent and unsigned artists are no longer required to waive digital rights to gain airplay on Clear Channel radio stations, thanks to a quiet move by the company. As part of a payola-related settlement, Clear Channel and a number of other U.S.-based conglomerates agreed to allocate portions of airplay time for traditionally underrepresented talent. But Clear Channel was soon targeted for asking interesting artists to forgo their online royalties, particularly as they related to online station simulcasts and on-demand offerings. The requirement drew protest from groups like the D.C.-based Future of Music Coalition, an organization that recently filed a formal complaint with the FCC, according to Digital Music News.
As negotiations about steep increases in music royalty fees continue, Internet radio stations continue to broadcast, reports the Boston Globe. The Radio And Internet Newsletter says negotiations may be faltering.
Media Briefing for Thursday, July 19, 2007
Since ABC News aired some of its most graphic footage of the Iraq War on "World News" Monday, nearly 300,000 people have viewed the tape or read about the story online. It has attracted more than 500 comments ? including one from the mother of an American soldier whose death was depicted. The footage shows U.S. troops called in to help after a Bradley fighting vehicle was blown up. ABC showed the upside-down vehicle in flames, noting that six American soldiers had died there, says Associated Press.
The chance that Yahoo will put itself up for sale has increased, and Microsoft is considered a possible serious suitor, reports Bloomberg News.
Wall Street Journal employees are facing two great uncertainties: a takeover by Rupert Murdoch and an extremely harsh newspaper advertising market that may lead to deep job cuts, says the New York Times.
In Boston, legendary broadcast journalist Natalie Jacobson is signing off to well-deserved accolades after 35 years as a respected reporter and successful anchor. Jacobson has gravitas. But, for all the credibility, awards and scoops she brought to WCVB Channel 5, her last contract was for one year only. That's as much job security as her employers were willing to extend to a 60-something woman who anchored almost every major news event in New England over the past three decades. At the same time male anchors of similar age have been granted longer contracts, says the Boston Globe. The 35-year career of Natalie Jacobson, veteran anchor on Boston ABC station WCVB channel 5, is profiled by the Boston Herald.
When former broadcast journalist Renee Rentmeester told people she wanted to create a cooking show geared toward blind people, she ran into some hurdles. '"The question I kept getting was `Why would I do a TV show for blind people?' But halfway through the second season of Cooking Without Looking, producer Rentmeester has seen many of those confused looks replaced by expressions of awe and interest. The show, which airs Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. on WXEL-TV channel 42, PBS in Palm Beach, Florida to an estimated audience of 1.7 million, is the first of its kind, Rentmeester said. Three hosts, all of whom are blind or visually impaired, teach an audience how they prepare their favorite meals, demonstrating cooking techniques to help visually challenged people stay safe in the kitchen. The Miami Herald reports.
The U.S. House of Representatives last night overwhelmingly rejected George W. Bush's plan to eliminate the $420 million federal subsidy for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The 357-72 vote demonstrated the enduring political strength of public broadcasting. The outcome of the bill to kill the subsidy, sponsored by Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn of Colorado, was never in doubt, unlike a fight two years ago when Republicans tried but failed to slash public broadcasting subsidies, says Associated Press.
A television producer is defending reality shows that put children alone in a town. "Kid Nation," a CBS reality series that gives 40 children free rein in an uninhabited town, protected the children physically and emotionally during filming, according to the show's producer. The series, in which children age 8 to 15 spend more than a month without parents, and with total responsibility for their daily lives, is scheduled to premiere September 19, says Associated Press.
The made-for-TV movie Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee, depicting the decimation of the Native Americans as the "West was won," telecast on HBO earlier this year, has received 17 Emmy nominations, more than any other TV program, reports Associated Press.
The battle over dirty words shifts back to Congress today. A U.S. Senate committee is expected to support legislation that would authorize regulators to enforce a nearly zero-tolerance policy on the broadcast of certain expletives that was struck down last month. The bill would give the Federal Communications Commission explicit authority to make "a single word or image" indecent, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Eleven of the nation's biggest food and beverage companies are junking ads for junk food on children's TV shows. Products include candy bars, soda pop and sugar-laden cereals, including such brands as Trix ? famously advertised for decades with the slogan "Trix are for kids." The voluntary pledge was announced at a Federal Trade Commission forum yesterday in Washington. The companies are aiming to placate legislators who may crack down on food marketing amid rampant childhood obesity, according to Los Angeles Times. Republican FCC commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate is commending the companies in a statement on the website of the FCC.
Senators in the U.S. Virgin Islands government are squirming because of a radio talk show host, Roger W. Morgan, who offers up daily brickbats and controversy, and the senators are asking the FCC to deny his application to purchase the FM station on which he broadcasts, WYAC 93.5, reports the Wall Street Journal. He is a former top Nebraska radio personality on the old KOIL 1290 Omaha.
While there has been disappointing news for classical music fans this summer with the demise of classical FM stations in Milwaukee and in Amsterdam, N.Y., there is some good news from Chicago. The Lyric Opera of Chicago will be continuing its radio broadcasts for another three years, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Minnesota Public Radio explains its move into the nation's capital with its proposed purchase of noncommercial WGTS-FM 91.9 Washington.
Internet radio hangs on, while negotiations about steep music royalty fee increases continue, says a Seattle Times editorial, criticizing the proposed fee hike.
In an editorial, the Muncie, Indiana Star Press opposes the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine, which was thrown out 20 years ago, and which required both sides of controversial issues be presented on AM, FM and TV broadcast stations. Its demise led to the rise of radio talk show hosts such as the popular Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Michael Savage.
The eccentric and fascinating story of Richard Ogust, a writer-turned-turtle conservationist, is told in the documentary, "The Chances of the World Changing," airing as part of PBS's P.O.V. series early Monday morning at 1:30 on Thirteen/WNET. In the film, Richard Ogust, 51, is near manic in his mission to save the world's turtles - including some nearly extinct species - from Southeast Asian food markets. His dream is to build a first-of-its kind turtle institute in the New Jersey countryside, reports the Seattle Times.
A project to digitize 900 "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" episodes dating to 1967, thousands of pages of print material, 35 years worth of viewer mail, and audio recordings of Fred Rogers' music is under way at Saint Vincent College in Pennsylvania. Digitization is one way to preserve archival material because it eliminates the need to handle the originals, says Brother David Kelly, archivist for the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children's Media. The Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports.
The line between online and offline advertising is blurring, says E-Marketer Daily.
Google is shortening the life span of its "cookie" data-tracking file - but it's not clear whether the move would do much to enhance privacy. Under the new policy, the cookies would expire automatically after two years, instead of in 2038 as is currently the case. However, the two-year period could get automatically extended when users revisit Google's search engine, so one might have to avoid Google for a full two years to see the cookie automatically expire. Associated Press reports.
Global positioning cellphones allow you to locate concerts and to keep track of children?s whereabouts at all times, says the New York Times.
Pay $400 once for a special Ooma device, and forever have unlimited free-of-charge domestic U.S. telephone calls. That is the offer of the new California startup, reports Associated Press. Domestic calls will be free for life, but international calls will be subject to charge, reports Wired.
Still holding your cellphone during calls? "How 2004 of you!" says the Chicago Tribune which reports on the new hands-free cellphones.
On the Internet, hackers can now deliver viruses via Web ads, reports the Wall Street Journal.
The United States is seeking consultations with China over rules on music downloading and cinema rights that appear to discriminate against foreign sound recordings and films. Hollywood studios and U.S. Internet music providers such as Apple's iTunes store could be among the groups that suffer from "less favorable distribution opportunities" for imported films and foreign suppliers of music recordings in China, says Associated Press.
The weak advertising market has hit Gannett, but the one bright spot is that Gannett's online ad revenue is immune, reports Online Media Daily.
Congress is examining the Google - Double Click deal, says the New York Times.
In the release of the new Harry Potter book, carefully plotted logistics
to deliver the final book have failed to dispel a rash of leaks, says the Wall Street Journal.
Who is watching TV ads? Tivo knows. The Globe and Mail of Toronto reports.
The BBC says it is suspending all phone-in contests and interactive quizzes after an investigation exposed several rigged competitions. The BBC, which has been battered by revelations about bogus contests and doctored footage, said an internal inquiry found that production staffers have passed themselves off as viewers and listeners, says Associated Press.
The Fresno Bee is outsourcing some advertising production and design jobs to India, reports the Associated Press.
In an effort to increase and enhance its Internet presence, Seattle-based station operator Fisher Communications acquired hyper-local online media outlet Pegasus News, reports Broadcasting & Cable. In Seattle Fisher owns KOMO-AM 1000 and KOMO-TV channel 4.
The publisher of the magazines FHM and Heat is selling its radio stations in Ireland for $276 million, reports Associated Press.
Since ABC News aired some of its most graphic footage of the Iraq War on "World News" Monday, nearly 300,000 people have viewed the tape or read about the story online. It has attracted more than 500 comments ? including one from the mother of an American soldier whose death was depicted. The footage shows U.S. troops called in to help after a Bradley fighting vehicle was blown up. ABC showed the upside-down vehicle in flames, noting that six American soldiers had died there, says Associated Press.
The chance that Yahoo will put itself up for sale has increased, and Microsoft is considered a possible serious suitor, reports Bloomberg News.
Wall Street Journal employees are facing two great uncertainties: a takeover by Rupert Murdoch and an extremely harsh newspaper advertising market that may lead to deep job cuts, says the New York Times.
In Boston, legendary broadcast journalist Natalie Jacobson is signing off to well-deserved accolades after 35 years as a respected reporter and successful anchor. Jacobson has gravitas. But, for all the credibility, awards and scoops she brought to WCVB Channel 5, her last contract was for one year only. That's as much job security as her employers were willing to extend to a 60-something woman who anchored almost every major news event in New England over the past three decades. At the same time male anchors of similar age have been granted longer contracts, says the Boston Globe. The 35-year career of Natalie Jacobson, veteran anchor on Boston ABC station WCVB channel 5, is profiled by the Boston Herald.
When former broadcast journalist Renee Rentmeester told people she wanted to create a cooking show geared toward blind people, she ran into some hurdles. '"The question I kept getting was `Why would I do a TV show for blind people?' But halfway through the second season of Cooking Without Looking, producer Rentmeester has seen many of those confused looks replaced by expressions of awe and interest. The show, which airs Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. on WXEL-TV channel 42, PBS in Palm Beach, Florida to an estimated audience of 1.7 million, is the first of its kind, Rentmeester said. Three hosts, all of whom are blind or visually impaired, teach an audience how they prepare their favorite meals, demonstrating cooking techniques to help visually challenged people stay safe in the kitchen. The Miami Herald reports.
The U.S. House of Representatives last night overwhelmingly rejected George W. Bush's plan to eliminate the $420 million federal subsidy for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The 357-72 vote demonstrated the enduring political strength of public broadcasting. The outcome of the bill to kill the subsidy, sponsored by Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn of Colorado, was never in doubt, unlike a fight two years ago when Republicans tried but failed to slash public broadcasting subsidies, says Associated Press.
A television producer is defending reality shows that put children alone in a town. "Kid Nation," a CBS reality series that gives 40 children free rein in an uninhabited town, protected the children physically and emotionally during filming, according to the show's producer. The series, in which children age 8 to 15 spend more than a month without parents, and with total responsibility for their daily lives, is scheduled to premiere September 19, says Associated Press.
The made-for-TV movie Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee, depicting the decimation of the Native Americans as the "West was won," telecast on HBO earlier this year, has received 17 Emmy nominations, more than any other TV program, reports Associated Press.
The battle over dirty words shifts back to Congress today. A U.S. Senate committee is expected to support legislation that would authorize regulators to enforce a nearly zero-tolerance policy on the broadcast of certain expletives that was struck down last month. The bill would give the Federal Communications Commission explicit authority to make "a single word or image" indecent, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Eleven of the nation's biggest food and beverage companies are junking ads for junk food on children's TV shows. Products include candy bars, soda pop and sugar-laden cereals, including such brands as Trix ? famously advertised for decades with the slogan "Trix are for kids." The voluntary pledge was announced at a Federal Trade Commission forum yesterday in Washington. The companies are aiming to placate legislators who may crack down on food marketing amid rampant childhood obesity, according to Los Angeles Times. Republican FCC commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate is commending the companies in a statement on the website of the FCC.
Senators in the U.S. Virgin Islands government are squirming because of a radio talk show host, Roger W. Morgan, who offers up daily brickbats and controversy, and the senators are asking the FCC to deny his application to purchase the FM station on which he broadcasts, WYAC 93.5, reports the Wall Street Journal. He is a former top Nebraska radio personality on the old KOIL 1290 Omaha.
While there has been disappointing news for classical music fans this summer with the demise of classical FM stations in Milwaukee and in Amsterdam, N.Y., there is some good news from Chicago. The Lyric Opera of Chicago will be continuing its radio broadcasts for another three years, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Minnesota Public Radio explains its move into the nation's capital with its proposed purchase of noncommercial WGTS-FM 91.9 Washington.
Internet radio hangs on, while negotiations about steep music royalty fee increases continue, says a Seattle Times editorial, criticizing the proposed fee hike.
In an editorial, the Muncie, Indiana Star Press opposes the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine, which was thrown out 20 years ago, and which required both sides of controversial issues be presented on AM, FM and TV broadcast stations. Its demise led to the rise of radio talk show hosts such as the popular Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Michael Savage.
The eccentric and fascinating story of Richard Ogust, a writer-turned-turtle conservationist, is told in the documentary, "The Chances of the World Changing," airing as part of PBS's P.O.V. series early Monday morning at 1:30 on Thirteen/WNET. In the film, Richard Ogust, 51, is near manic in his mission to save the world's turtles - including some nearly extinct species - from Southeast Asian food markets. His dream is to build a first-of-its kind turtle institute in the New Jersey countryside, reports the Seattle Times.
A project to digitize 900 "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" episodes dating to 1967, thousands of pages of print material, 35 years worth of viewer mail, and audio recordings of Fred Rogers' music is under way at Saint Vincent College in Pennsylvania. Digitization is one way to preserve archival material because it eliminates the need to handle the originals, says Brother David Kelly, archivist for the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children's Media. The Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports.
The line between online and offline advertising is blurring, says E-Marketer Daily.
Google is shortening the life span of its "cookie" data-tracking file - but it's not clear whether the move would do much to enhance privacy. Under the new policy, the cookies would expire automatically after two years, instead of in 2038 as is currently the case. However, the two-year period could get automatically extended when users revisit Google's search engine, so one might have to avoid Google for a full two years to see the cookie automatically expire. Associated Press reports.
Global positioning cellphones allow you to locate concerts and to keep track of children?s whereabouts at all times, says the New York Times.
Pay $400 once for a special Ooma device, and forever have unlimited free-of-charge domestic U.S. telephone calls. That is the offer of the new California startup, reports Associated Press. Domestic calls will be free for life, but international calls will be subject to charge, reports Wired.
Still holding your cellphone during calls? "How 2004 of you!" says the Chicago Tribune which reports on the new hands-free cellphones.
On the Internet, hackers can now deliver viruses via Web ads, reports the Wall Street Journal.
The United States is seeking consultations with China over rules on music downloading and cinema rights that appear to discriminate against foreign sound recordings and films. Hollywood studios and U.S. Internet music providers such as Apple's iTunes store could be among the groups that suffer from "less favorable distribution opportunities" for imported films and foreign suppliers of music recordings in China, says Associated Press.
The weak advertising market has hit Gannett, but the one bright spot is that Gannett's online ad revenue is immune, reports Online Media Daily.
Congress is examining the Google - Double Click deal, says the New York Times.
In the release of the new Harry Potter book, carefully plotted logistics
to deliver the final book have failed to dispel a rash of leaks, says the Wall Street Journal.
Who is watching TV ads? Tivo knows. The Globe and Mail of Toronto reports.
The BBC says it is suspending all phone-in contests and interactive quizzes after an investigation exposed several rigged competitions. The BBC, which has been battered by revelations about bogus contests and doctored footage, said an internal inquiry found that production staffers have passed themselves off as viewers and listeners, says Associated Press.
The Fresno Bee is outsourcing some advertising production and design jobs to India, reports the Associated Press.
In an effort to increase and enhance its Internet presence, Seattle-based station operator Fisher Communications acquired hyper-local online media outlet Pegasus News, reports Broadcasting & Cable. In Seattle Fisher owns KOMO-AM 1000 and KOMO-TV channel 4.
The publisher of the magazines FHM and Heat is selling its radio stations in Ireland for $276 million, reports Associated Press.
Media Briefing for Wednesday, July 18, 2007
The Rev. Al Sharpton would not oppose the return of Don Imus to the airwaves, reports Radar Online. Imus is heading back to the airwaves and the Rev. Sharpton will not stand in his way, says Newsmax.
After using an anti-gay slur word publicly twice and losing his co-starring role on ABC's Grey's Anatomy, actor Isaiah Washington gets another chance on a new series, reports the Washington Post. He says he is grateful for an unexpected second chance, reports Associated Press. The New York Daily News comments on why Washington was given a second chance.
Consolidation of ownership of broadcast stations, together with elimination of local community service to cut expenses, has resulted in a loss of listeners. And now a new report shows radio is poised for its 7th year of no advertising growth, reports Reuters.
Trix are no longer for kids - at least not on children's television shows. But Cocoa Puffs are another matter. Trying to persuade critics the industry does not need government regulation, 11 big food companies have agreed to stop advertising to children under 12 products that do not meet certain nutritional standards. The New York Times reports. The move restricts ads for products such as McDonald's Happy Meals and the use of popular cartoon characters, says Associated Press.
What ever happened to Shari Lewis' sidekick Lamb Chop? Lewis died in 1998, and her daughter started receiving letters from children asking if Lamb Chop, who co-starred on series on NBC and PBS, had also died. Mallory Lewis then revived the puppet and six years later, her revival continues, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Members of Congress this summer plan to take up the first of two content-control measures that seek to force Hollywood to tone down its products for TV and the movies. The bill the Senate Commerce Committee plans to consider first is the Protecting Children from Indecent Programming Act. It would reinstate the FCC policy making broadcasters liable for a $325,000 fine for a slip of the tongue. A committee vote on the indecency measure is expected tomorrow, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Facing declining circulation and declining advertising revenues, the Hartford Courant is joining its sister newspapers, the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune, in accepting and running front page advertisements. The Hartford Courant reports.
Newspapers reeling from major losses of advertising revenue to the Internet are getting a lift from the company that helped lure advertisers away: Google. Google plans to announce today a significant expansion of its Print Ads program, in which advertisers purchase ads in newspapers through the Web, reports the New York Times. This project, Ad Words, serves 225 newspapers, reports Media Daily News.
An independent body that audits newspaper circulation says it will begin providing combined print and on line readership data, a change that could help publishers negotiate with advertisers as readers increasingly move to the Internet. The Audit Bureau of Circulations plans to begin incorporating the additional data for participating newspapers during the current six-month reporting period. Under the new initiative, newspapers will be able to report print, on line and combined readership figures, reports Associated Press.
The sale of Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal may come down to one family, the Bancroft family, says the New York Times. The Dow Jones board has given its go-ahead and it is now down to the Bancrofts, says the New York Times. Because of that, the final fate of the Murdoch deal is still uncertain, says the Los Angeles Times.
An estimated 18 million people are watching TV and movies on the Internet, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
The Baltimore Sun is partnering with the ABC affiliate in Baltimore, WMAR channel 2, and with Maryland Public Television, sharing resources, reports the Baltimore Sun.
Minnesota Public Radio, which originates the popular NPR show Prairie Home Companion, is buying a full power FM station in Washington, WGTS 91.9, which would give Minnesota Public Radio a major voice in the nation's capital, reports the Washington Times. The price might be as much as $25 million, says dcrtv.com. Meanwhile, those wanting to retain the current Christian format have established a Web site, Save WGTS.
The ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox networks ran TV ads for condoms, but the local affiliates for the four networks in Pittsburgh declined to run the ads. The Pittsburgh Post Gazette examines their decision.
Everett, Washington has a "little TV station that could," a public access station covering a wide range of public activities and public interest issues, reports the Seattle Times.
The MAC cable channel has a new series about an advertising agency on Manhattan's Madison Avenue, Mad Men, which premieres tomorrow night at 10 p.m.
Democrats have been opposing the administration's war in Iraq. But now a Pittsburgh newspaper, the Tribune Review, owned by ultra-conservative Richard Mellon Scaife, who has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to conservative causes, has editorialized against the war, saying it agrees with Democratic congressman John Murtha on this issue, according to Editor and Publisher.
Oprah Winfrey is raising money for Barack Obama in his presidential bid, reports Associated Press.
While Massachusetts is known as a high-tech state for its high-tech firms, wide areas, especially in the west, are in the Third World as far as broadband Internet service, reports the Boston Globe.
CEO Jerry Yang struck a humble tone in his first report to investors as Yahoo's new chief executive, turning a routine earnings call into an unusual corporate confession. "I'm very well aware of the challenges we face," Yang said, as Yahoo's financial performance disappointed investors for the sixth quarter in a row. "There's a significant gap between where Yahoo is and where it needs to be." The San Jose Mercury News reports.
Broadband and household income go hand-in-hand, says Media Post.com.
Despite high security, the new Harry Potter book has been posted on the Internet. Lawyers for Scholastic, the Harry Potter series' U.S. publisher, have subpoenaed a file-sharing site called Gasoline.com, asking for the name of the person who had posted the text on that site, according to Bloomberg News. The Boston Globe reports. The posting frustrates perhaps the most elaborately orchestrated marketing machine ever mobilized for a book, says the New York Times. The Wall Street Journal has a Harry Potter notebook, with news and analysis about the book and the craze. Pirated copies of Harry Potter are thickening the plot, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
Telephone service could be lost for more than 200,000 customers of Sun Rocket, an Internet telephone company that says it has gone out of business, according to a person involved in its liquidation. The customers also could lose money paid in advance to Sun Rocket, which offered unlimited telephone service for a year for an upfront payment of $199. This report is from the New York Times. The shutdown raises questions about the viability of other standalone Internet phone providers, says Associated Press.
Internet entrepreneur Laurel Toby turned her popular cocktail parties into a high-traffic Web site for job-seeking media and creative professionals. Yesterday, she sold Mediabistro.com, the company that sprang from those mixers, for $23 million, reports the New York Times.
Music Web sites are sponsoring concerts and albums, reports Associated Press.
As negotiations continue over steep increases in music royalty fees for Internet radio stations, the stations continue broadcasting, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Consumers are starting to become skeptical of mortgage TV ads, reports Media Daily News.
The sister of a man who committed suicide after a Dateline: To Catch A Predator videotaping in Texas is suing NBC for $100 million, says the New York Post.
Writers and studios are clashing in labor talks now underway, reports Associated Press.
NBC executive John Wallace, who has been with the company for 19 years, has been placed in charge of NBC owned-and-operated TV stations, including NBC channel 4 New York and WV IT channel 30 Hartford, reports TV Newsday.
The Chinese government is cracking down on teenaged Internet gambling, reports Associated Press.
With the oldies format back on WCBS-FM 101.1 New York, the New York Daily News asks: whatever happened to the music of the 1950s and early 1960s which laid the foundation for rock?
The Rev. Al Sharpton would not oppose the return of Don Imus to the airwaves, reports Radar Online. Imus is heading back to the airwaves and the Rev. Sharpton will not stand in his way, says Newsmax.
After using an anti-gay slur word publicly twice and losing his co-starring role on ABC's Grey's Anatomy, actor Isaiah Washington gets another chance on a new series, reports the Washington Post. He says he is grateful for an unexpected second chance, reports Associated Press. The New York Daily News comments on why Washington was given a second chance.
Consolidation of ownership of broadcast stations, together with elimination of local community service to cut expenses, has resulted in a loss of listeners. And now a new report shows radio is poised for its 7th year of no advertising growth, reports Reuters.
Trix are no longer for kids - at least not on children's television shows. But Cocoa Puffs are another matter. Trying to persuade critics the industry does not need government regulation, 11 big food companies have agreed to stop advertising to children under 12 products that do not meet certain nutritional standards. The New York Times reports. The move restricts ads for products such as McDonald's Happy Meals and the use of popular cartoon characters, says Associated Press.
What ever happened to Shari Lewis' sidekick Lamb Chop? Lewis died in 1998, and her daughter started receiving letters from children asking if Lamb Chop, who co-starred on series on NBC and PBS, had also died. Mallory Lewis then revived the puppet and six years later, her revival continues, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Members of Congress this summer plan to take up the first of two content-control measures that seek to force Hollywood to tone down its products for TV and the movies. The bill the Senate Commerce Committee plans to consider first is the Protecting Children from Indecent Programming Act. It would reinstate the FCC policy making broadcasters liable for a $325,000 fine for a slip of the tongue. A committee vote on the indecency measure is expected tomorrow, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Facing declining circulation and declining advertising revenues, the Hartford Courant is joining its sister newspapers, the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune, in accepting and running front page advertisements. The Hartford Courant reports.
Newspapers reeling from major losses of advertising revenue to the Internet are getting a lift from the company that helped lure advertisers away: Google. Google plans to announce today a significant expansion of its Print Ads program, in which advertisers purchase ads in newspapers through the Web, reports the New York Times. This project, Ad Words, serves 225 newspapers, reports Media Daily News.
An independent body that audits newspaper circulation says it will begin providing combined print and on line readership data, a change that could help publishers negotiate with advertisers as readers increasingly move to the Internet. The Audit Bureau of Circulations plans to begin incorporating the additional data for participating newspapers during the current six-month reporting period. Under the new initiative, newspapers will be able to report print, on line and combined readership figures, reports Associated Press.
The sale of Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal may come down to one family, the Bancroft family, says the New York Times. The Dow Jones board has given its go-ahead and it is now down to the Bancrofts, says the New York Times. Because of that, the final fate of the Murdoch deal is still uncertain, says the Los Angeles Times.
An estimated 18 million people are watching TV and movies on the Internet, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
The Baltimore Sun is partnering with the ABC affiliate in Baltimore, WMAR channel 2, and with Maryland Public Television, sharing resources, reports the Baltimore Sun.
Minnesota Public Radio, which originates the popular NPR show Prairie Home Companion, is buying a full power FM station in Washington, WGTS 91.9, which would give Minnesota Public Radio a major voice in the nation's capital, reports the Washington Times. The price might be as much as $25 million, says dcrtv.com. Meanwhile, those wanting to retain the current Christian format have established a Web site, Save WGTS.
The ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox networks ran TV ads for condoms, but the local affiliates for the four networks in Pittsburgh declined to run the ads. The Pittsburgh Post Gazette examines their decision.
Everett, Washington has a "little TV station that could," a public access station covering a wide range of public activities and public interest issues, reports the Seattle Times.
The MAC cable channel has a new series about an advertising agency on Manhattan's Madison Avenue, Mad Men, which premieres tomorrow night at 10 p.m.
Democrats have been opposing the administration's war in Iraq. But now a Pittsburgh newspaper, the Tribune Review, owned by ultra-conservative Richard Mellon Scaife, who has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to conservative causes, has editorialized against the war, saying it agrees with Democratic congressman John Murtha on this issue, according to Editor and Publisher.
Oprah Winfrey is raising money for Barack Obama in his presidential bid, reports Associated Press.
While Massachusetts is known as a high-tech state for its high-tech firms, wide areas, especially in the west, are in the Third World as far as broadband Internet service, reports the Boston Globe.
CEO Jerry Yang struck a humble tone in his first report to investors as Yahoo's new chief executive, turning a routine earnings call into an unusual corporate confession. "I'm very well aware of the challenges we face," Yang said, as Yahoo's financial performance disappointed investors for the sixth quarter in a row. "There's a significant gap between where Yahoo is and where it needs to be." The San Jose Mercury News reports.
Broadband and household income go hand-in-hand, says Media Post.com.
Despite high security, the new Harry Potter book has been posted on the Internet. Lawyers for Scholastic, the Harry Potter series' U.S. publisher, have subpoenaed a file-sharing site called Gasoline.com, asking for the name of the person who had posted the text on that site, according to Bloomberg News. The Boston Globe reports. The posting frustrates perhaps the most elaborately orchestrated marketing machine ever mobilized for a book, says the New York Times. The Wall Street Journal has a Harry Potter notebook, with news and analysis about the book and the craze. Pirated copies of Harry Potter are thickening the plot, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
Telephone service could be lost for more than 200,000 customers of Sun Rocket, an Internet telephone company that says it has gone out of business, according to a person involved in its liquidation. The customers also could lose money paid in advance to Sun Rocket, which offered unlimited telephone service for a year for an upfront payment of $199. This report is from the New York Times. The shutdown raises questions about the viability of other standalone Internet phone providers, says Associated Press.
Internet entrepreneur Laurel Toby turned her popular cocktail parties into a high-traffic Web site for job-seeking media and creative professionals. Yesterday, she sold Mediabistro.com, the company that sprang from those mixers, for $23 million, reports the New York Times.
Music Web sites are sponsoring concerts and albums, reports Associated Press.
As negotiations continue over steep increases in music royalty fees for Internet radio stations, the stations continue broadcasting, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Consumers are starting to become skeptical of mortgage TV ads, reports Media Daily News.
The sister of a man who committed suicide after a Dateline: To Catch A Predator videotaping in Texas is suing NBC for $100 million, says the New York Post.
Writers and studios are clashing in labor talks now underway, reports Associated Press.
NBC executive John Wallace, who has been with the company for 19 years, has been placed in charge of NBC owned-and-operated TV stations, including NBC channel 4 New York and WV IT channel 30 Hartford, reports TV Newsday.
The Chinese government is cracking down on teenaged Internet gambling, reports Associated Press.
With the oldies format back on WCBS-FM 101.1 New York, the New York Daily News asks: whatever happened to the music of the 1950s and early 1960s which laid the foundation for rock?
Media Briefing for Tuesday, July 17, 2007
The Cincinnati Post, owned by Scripps Howard, will cease publication December 31, says TV Newsday. The Cincinnati Post is closing after 126 years.
Rupert Murdoch has reached a tentative deal to purchase Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal, reports the Boston Globe. Agreement on major terms has been reached, says the Washington Post. The deal is for the original $5 billion Murdoch had offered, says Associated Press. Murdoch is putting the finishing touches on the agreement, says the Los Angeles Times. The agreement is tentative, says the New York Times.
The Chicago PBS station WTTW channel 11 is dazzling in the desert with a special recorded in Israel for a singer known as Israel's Bruce Springsteen, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
With broadcast TV in the U.S. going all digital February 17, 2009, the FCC is holding a special workshop on the issue at its Washington headquarters Wednesday, September 26, which will be simulcast on the FCC Web site, according to the FCC.
Connecticut has joined Arizona, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine, and Washington as states that ban non-compete clauses in broadcaster contracts (California bans them in all industries), according to the American Federation of Television and Radio Employees, which had pushed for the law. The clause prevents, say, an anchor at one station from leaving and immediately appearing on a competitor?s broadcast. A law prohibiting the clause was signed by Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Video game makers have long talked of reaching past hard-core gamers who revel in bloody action and tense drama and appealing to a larger swatch of society with video games for young and old, women and men alike. But up until now, for the most part, the talk has been a lot of unfulfilled promises. Now the industry finally seems ready to chase after the mass market in earnest, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
Hundreds of groups and individual Internet users sounded off to the Federal Communications Commission on net neutrality in comments filed yesterday, the deadline for responding to the agency's inquiry into the proposed regulation. Individual Internet users, trade groups and advocacy organizations filed about 670 comments about net neutrality rules with the FCC yesterday, and individuals and organizations have submitted nearly 29,000 comments on net neutrality since the FCC opened its inquiry in late March, reports PC World.
A new study shows four out of five people who read the Web sites of newspapers also read the print edition, reports Media Post.com.
The Chicago Tribune, like its sister paper the Los Angeles Times, is introducing front page ads, reports Editor & Publisher.
Microsoft is once again on the defensive against hackers after the launch of a new program that gives average PC users tools to unlock copy-protected digital music and movies. The latest version of the FairUse4M program, which can crack Microsoft's digital-rights-management system for Windows Media audio and video files, was published online late Friday, reports Associated Press.
SunRocket is discontinuing its Internet phone service, reports the New York Times.
An advertising downturn is threatening the continuation of Business 2.0, reports the New York Times.
Google is planning a search service for mobile content. Google is developing a new search service for cellphones that will help consumers find and buy ringtones, games and other mobile content as the Internet company pushes more deeply into wireless. Google already offers cellphone users a version of its popular engine for searching the Web. Now the company wants to go beyond just looking up Web pages, effectively becoming a gateway for finding and paying for mobile media content, reports the Wall Street Journal. The technology will allow consumers to use Mountain View, California-based Google to obtain lists of companies that provide the content they're seeking and links to where the products can be purchased, says the San Jose Mercury News.
Google is offering to run small websites' search engines for as little as $100 a year. Google's service is aimed at the millions of websites that either don't have search engines or are unhappy with their current capabilities. The price for Custom Search Business Edition will start at $100 annually to sift up to 5,000 Web pages and run to $500 annually to search up to 50,000 pages, reports the Boston Globe wire services.
A student at Lewis S. Mills High School in rural Burlington, Connecticut who was barred from running for class office after she called administrators a derogatory term on an Internet blog is accusing top school officials of violating her free speech rights. The student, Avery Doninger, a senior at the school this fall, was removed as class secretary over the controversy in May. She is asking a state judge to order the school superintendent and the principal to reinstate her as secretary of the Class of 2008 and allow her to run for re-election in September, reports the Hartford Courant.
Connecticut state government workers are allowed to send their co-workers an e-mail announcing a fellow employee's wedding, baby shower or birthday party. But they can't use a state computer to read a newspaper online, even if they're on their lunch break. Connecticut's 53,000 state employees are expected to adhere to a state policy that says the Internet and e-mail can be used only for work-related purposes, says the Hartford Courant.
In a prostitution sweep police arrested 140 people in the Bay Area of California, and officials say there is an epidemic in prostitution that is being enabled by the Internet, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
NBC.com is broadening Internet social networking around its shows, reports Online Media Daily. Lost Remote.com examines some of the offerings of the site.
KNBC channel 4 Los Angeles has introduced Your LA TV.com, which the station calls "an all-new, state-of-the-art video Web site highlighting what?s hot, hip and happening in and around Los Angeles." It features hundreds of stories showcasing "the gems, quirky locations and out-of-the-way places that make Southern California such an amazing place to live or visit." TV Newsday reports.
Internet radio broadcasters and the music industry appear to be moving closer to resolving a dispute over a new system mandating higher royalty fees for streaming music online. Participants describe the negotiations as constructive and say they hope to build on the momentum achieved last week, when both sides promised quick progress on the issue at a closed-door Congressional meeting held by Congressman Ed Markey of Massachusetts, reports Associated Press. The songs remained the same on Internet radio yesterday, as many stations continued to stream music while their representatives negotiated to lower a controversial royalty increase that took effect over the weekend. With talks progressing, SoundExchange, the organization that collects royalties for musicians and record companies, indicated to Web casters that it wouldn't seek immediate payment of the higher rates. The Los Angeles Times reports. However, the Webcasters' fate is still uncertain, says the Washington Post. Web stations are cautiously optimistic, says the New York Daily News.
The way for broadcasting to recapture market share from cable and satellite is not by promoting the facts that it is free and a better HD medium, but by developing compelling local programming, according to TV Newsday.
TiVo owners can easily skip past the commercials, but the dirty little secret is that they don't - surprisingly often. Indeed, the number of TiVo owners who watch some commercials occasionally exceeds the number watching the most popular TV shows, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
Michael Moore is calling a truce with CNN over his movie Sicko, reports Associated Press.
Donald Trump's TV show The Apprentice is returning for another season - this time with celebrities, says Associated Press.
The new NBC Entertainment co-chairman, Ben Silverman, says he has landed his dream job, according to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
In announcing their new shows, the commercial networks had their thunder stolen by PBS with Ken Burns? documentary series The War which debuts in September, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
In 1961, Broadcast House in downtown Hartford, Connecticut was hailed as a marvel of modern architecture and technology, the first structure to be completed on Constitution Plaza after the razing of the Front Street neighborhood. The dedication of the channel 3 television and WTIC-AM 1080 and WTIC-FM 96.5 radio studios was an event so momentous that a bronze sculpture and original symphony were commissioned for it. The music was later released as a record because so many wanted a copy. This week, as WFSB-Channel 3 finishes up its move from Broadcast House to a new, $25 million facility in suburban Rocky Hill, the once celebrated four-story structure with its scalloped cornice is now looking like a candidate for the wrecking ball or, at best, a total gutting, reports the Hartford Courant. The WTIC radio stations left the building in the 1970s.
A British TV production company has accepted blame for wrongly implying Queen Elizabeth II walked out of a portrait sitting with photographer Annie Leibovitz. In an e-mail to the BBC, RDF Media's chief executive David Frank admitted his company was "guilty of a serious error of judgment." Last week, the BBC was forced to apologize to the queen, reports Associated Press.
The Cincinnati Post, owned by Scripps Howard, will cease publication December 31, says TV Newsday. The Cincinnati Post is closing after 126 years.
Rupert Murdoch has reached a tentative deal to purchase Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal, reports the Boston Globe. Agreement on major terms has been reached, says the Washington Post. The deal is for the original $5 billion Murdoch had offered, says Associated Press. Murdoch is putting the finishing touches on the agreement, says the Los Angeles Times. The agreement is tentative, says the New York Times.
The Chicago PBS station WTTW channel 11 is dazzling in the desert with a special recorded in Israel for a singer known as Israel's Bruce Springsteen, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
With broadcast TV in the U.S. going all digital February 17, 2009, the FCC is holding a special workshop on the issue at its Washington headquarters Wednesday, September 26, which will be simulcast on the FCC Web site, according to the FCC.
Connecticut has joined Arizona, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine, and Washington as states that ban non-compete clauses in broadcaster contracts (California bans them in all industries), according to the American Federation of Television and Radio Employees, which had pushed for the law. The clause prevents, say, an anchor at one station from leaving and immediately appearing on a competitor?s broadcast. A law prohibiting the clause was signed by Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Video game makers have long talked of reaching past hard-core gamers who revel in bloody action and tense drama and appealing to a larger swatch of society with video games for young and old, women and men alike. But up until now, for the most part, the talk has been a lot of unfulfilled promises. Now the industry finally seems ready to chase after the mass market in earnest, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
Hundreds of groups and individual Internet users sounded off to the Federal Communications Commission on net neutrality in comments filed yesterday, the deadline for responding to the agency's inquiry into the proposed regulation. Individual Internet users, trade groups and advocacy organizations filed about 670 comments about net neutrality rules with the FCC yesterday, and individuals and organizations have submitted nearly 29,000 comments on net neutrality since the FCC opened its inquiry in late March, reports PC World.
A new study shows four out of five people who read the Web sites of newspapers also read the print edition, reports Media Post.com.
The Chicago Tribune, like its sister paper the Los Angeles Times, is introducing front page ads, reports Editor & Publisher.
Microsoft is once again on the defensive against hackers after the launch of a new program that gives average PC users tools to unlock copy-protected digital music and movies. The latest version of the FairUse4M program, which can crack Microsoft's digital-rights-management system for Windows Media audio and video files, was published online late Friday, reports Associated Press.
SunRocket is discontinuing its Internet phone service, reports the New York Times.
An advertising downturn is threatening the continuation of Business 2.0, reports the New York Times.
Google is planning a search service for mobile content. Google is developing a new search service for cellphones that will help consumers find and buy ringtones, games and other mobile content as the Internet company pushes more deeply into wireless. Google already offers cellphone users a version of its popular engine for searching the Web. Now the company wants to go beyond just looking up Web pages, effectively becoming a gateway for finding and paying for mobile media content, reports the Wall Street Journal. The technology will allow consumers to use Mountain View, California-based Google to obtain lists of companies that provide the content they're seeking and links to where the products can be purchased, says the San Jose Mercury News.
Google is offering to run small websites' search engines for as little as $100 a year. Google's service is aimed at the millions of websites that either don't have search engines or are unhappy with their current capabilities. The price for Custom Search Business Edition will start at $100 annually to sift up to 5,000 Web pages and run to $500 annually to search up to 50,000 pages, reports the Boston Globe wire services.
A student at Lewis S. Mills High School in rural Burlington, Connecticut who was barred from running for class office after she called administrators a derogatory term on an Internet blog is accusing top school officials of violating her free speech rights. The student, Avery Doninger, a senior at the school this fall, was removed as class secretary over the controversy in May. She is asking a state judge to order the school superintendent and the principal to reinstate her as secretary of the Class of 2008 and allow her to run for re-election in September, reports the Hartford Courant.
Connecticut state government workers are allowed to send their co-workers an e-mail announcing a fellow employee's wedding, baby shower or birthday party. But they can't use a state computer to read a newspaper online, even if they're on their lunch break. Connecticut's 53,000 state employees are expected to adhere to a state policy that says the Internet and e-mail can be used only for work-related purposes, says the Hartford Courant.
In a prostitution sweep police arrested 140 people in the Bay Area of California, and officials say there is an epidemic in prostitution that is being enabled by the Internet, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
NBC.com is broadening Internet social networking around its shows, reports Online Media Daily. Lost Remote.com examines some of the offerings of the site.
KNBC channel 4 Los Angeles has introduced Your LA TV.com, which the station calls "an all-new, state-of-the-art video Web site highlighting what?s hot, hip and happening in and around Los Angeles." It features hundreds of stories showcasing "the gems, quirky locations and out-of-the-way places that make Southern California such an amazing place to live or visit." TV Newsday reports.
Internet radio broadcasters and the music industry appear to be moving closer to resolving a dispute over a new system mandating higher royalty fees for streaming music online. Participants describe the negotiations as constructive and say they hope to build on the momentum achieved last week, when both sides promised quick progress on the issue at a closed-door Congressional meeting held by Congressman Ed Markey of Massachusetts, reports Associated Press. The songs remained the same on Internet radio yesterday, as many stations continued to stream music while their representatives negotiated to lower a controversial royalty increase that took effect over the weekend. With talks progressing, SoundExchange, the organization that collects royalties for musicians and record companies, indicated to Web casters that it wouldn't seek immediate payment of the higher rates. The Los Angeles Times reports. However, the Webcasters' fate is still uncertain, says the Washington Post. Web stations are cautiously optimistic, says the New York Daily News.
The way for broadcasting to recapture market share from cable and satellite is not by promoting the facts that it is free and a better HD medium, but by developing compelling local programming, according to TV Newsday.
TiVo owners can easily skip past the commercials, but the dirty little secret is that they don't - surprisingly often. Indeed, the number of TiVo owners who watch some commercials occasionally exceeds the number watching the most popular TV shows, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
Michael Moore is calling a truce with CNN over his movie Sicko, reports Associated Press.
Donald Trump's TV show The Apprentice is returning for another season - this time with celebrities, says Associated Press.
The new NBC Entertainment co-chairman, Ben Silverman, says he has landed his dream job, according to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
In announcing their new shows, the commercial networks had their thunder stolen by PBS with Ken Burns? documentary series The War which debuts in September, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
In 1961, Broadcast House in downtown Hartford, Connecticut was hailed as a marvel of modern architecture and technology, the first structure to be completed on Constitution Plaza after the razing of the Front Street neighborhood. The dedication of the channel 3 television and WTIC-AM 1080 and WTIC-FM 96.5 radio studios was an event so momentous that a bronze sculpture and original symphony were commissioned for it. The music was later released as a record because so many wanted a copy. This week, as WFSB-Channel 3 finishes up its move from Broadcast House to a new, $25 million facility in suburban Rocky Hill, the once celebrated four-story structure with its scalloped cornice is now looking like a candidate for the wrecking ball or, at best, a total gutting, reports the Hartford Courant. The WTIC radio stations left the building in the 1970s.
A British TV production company has accepted blame for wrongly implying Queen Elizabeth II walked out of a portrait sitting with photographer Annie Leibovitz. In an e-mail to the BBC, RDF Media's chief executive David Frank admitted his company was "guilty of a serious error of judgment." Last week, the BBC was forced to apologize to the queen, reports Associated Press.
Media Briefing for Monday, July 16, 2007
The George W. Bush administration has used its executive powers to curtail access to information, expand the power to classify information, and create a range of categories of "sensitive" information, according to Open The Government.org and People for the American Way, according to the Cox News Service.
In the age of blogs, and with surveillance cameras in public streets and buildings, privacy is being lost, says the Hartford Courant.
When broadcast stations and networks are the subject of news stories, as was Chicago?s WMAQ channel 5, NBC over the firing of a reporter seen at the home of a subject of a news story, sometimes they are as tight-lipped as their usual targets in the political and business worlds, reports the Washington Post. The Detroit News suspects gender bias and says the reporter might not have been fired if she were a man.
Internet radio has gotten a reprieve. Many Internet disc jockeys who stream their favorite music around the world say new music royalty fees to compensate performers and record companies, which were to go into effect today, retroactive to January 2006, would force them to pull the plug on their operations. However, a Friday meeting between SoundExchange, the music industry group, and representatives of the Internet radio broadcasters produced a commitment toward a compromise. The talks, held in Washington, D.C., came after a nationwide outcry from fans of Internet music spurred some members of Congress to get the two sides together, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Despite the compromise, hundreds of small Internet stations have already shut down, says the Los Angeles Times.
Online radio stations have a reprieve, but Yahoo and AOL must pay up, reports Online Media Daily.
In February, the Connetquot School District in Bohemia, Long Island established a special website, Connetquot.k12 to squelch rumors. Traffic to the site surged after police intercepted and prevented a potential plot for a Columbine-style attack at Connetquot High School, reports Newsday.
On Long Island, the abandoned Kings Park Psychiatric Center, which at its height in the 1960s housed 10,000 patients, is now visited by teenagers and young people who post pictures of the decaying interiors of multiple buildings on You Tube. Amateur filmmakers post spooky videos with titles like "The Nightmare at Kings Park," reports the New York Times.
In Florida, school districts are cracking down on student Internet hackers and their mischief, says the Orlando Sentinel.
Charles Tisdale, publisher of the legendary Jackson, Mississippi Advocate, often called "the most fire-bombed newspaper in America," has died. Known for his vehement civil rights advocacy, Tisdale succumbed after collapsing last week while on a routine dialysis treatment. He was 80. "He was civil rights twenty-four, seven," says his wife of 23 years, Alice Thomas-Tisdale, associate editor of the paper, reports the National Newspapers Publishers Association, an organization of 200 African-American community newspapers. He also had a radio show on WMPR 90.1, reports the Jackson Clarion Ledger Despite 20 attacks, the newspaper never missed an edition, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Journalist Simeon Booker, who worked for the African-American magazine Jet, covered the turbulent Civil Rights years in the 1950s and 1960s, reports the Washington Post.
A new survey shows young adults are not reading newspapers, and only 9 percent of teenagers read newspapers every day. Young people get more news from TV and the Internet, contrary to public perception, reports the New York Times.
Black Entertainment Television (BET) is exploring launching several news channels, reports MultiChannel News.
In an effort to boost ratings, CBS is abandoning the format for the Early Show which allowed local stations to present local news between 7-8 a.m., reports Associated Press. CBS is working to make the Early Show competitive with NBC's Today show and ABC's Good Morning America.
While the FCC indecency crackdown has levied huge fines on broadcasters, some in Congress are now calling for indecency regulation of pay cable TV as well. This season HBO will offer a series with the most sexually explicit scenes ever seen on TV, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Television networks are running some ads for condoms, but local affiliates can still reject them, such as the ABC station in Pittsburgh, WTAE channel 4 and the CBS station there, KDKA-TV channel 2, as well as the NBC affiliate WPXI channel 11, reports the New York Times.
The Washington Post, well known for its detailed coverage of the White House and global affairs, is introducing a Web site with news and other information for a rarefied group: people who live in Loudoun County, Virginia, population 272,000. The site, Loudoun Extra.com, is an experiment in hyperlocal news and will have church schedules, restaurant menus and real-time high school football scores. The county, in northern Virginia, includes Dulles International Airport and the town of Leesburg. The New York Times reports.
Court TV is tilting to the tabloid side in its quest for ratings, says the New York Times.
Documentarian Ken Burns discusses his upcoming series on World War II, The War, which debuts in September, with the editorial board of the Chicago Tribune.
Charles Gibson, anchor of the ABC World News, is the highest rated and lowest paid of the three evening network news anchors, says the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Every year, Americans save billions in sales taxes by buying merchandise on the Internet rather than at retail stores. But state and federal legislators are working together to close the loophole and generate billions in new revenues for state coffers, reports the Boston Globe.
Big brand firms are reaching more customers with simple text messages, a technology attracting big brands more quickly than online retailers, says the New York Times.
The blog is 10 years old, reports the Wall Street Journal.
In the little town of Minier, Illinois, cell phone service is often spotty, disrupting even emergency calls, so US Cellular wants to tap into a special federal fund, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Sony is retooling its Web site to host videos by aspiring filmmakers, reports the New York Times. This is a big break for video Internet stars, says the Los Angeles Times.
Standup comedians, once wary of the Internet, are now posting their routines on the Web, says Associated Press.
Fifteen companies in the online media marketplace have formed a new coalition, the Association for Downloadable Media is focused on bringing some set of standardized metrics to the downloaded media industry, reports Lost Remote.com.
A single mother and a telephone operator in Silver Spring, Maryland needed a computer for her son but had little cash or credit. So she was intrigued by a flier promising guaranteed approval, with no credit check, to buy a laptop on a "low weekly payment plan." Two nonworking computers later, after having spent well over $1,000, she demanded a refund from the sales company, BlueHippo. She got it only after endless complaints to the Better Business Bureau and the Maryland attorney general. And there are many similar schemes on the Internet, with offers of computers saying "Bad credit? No credit? Bankruptcy? No problem!" The New York Times reports.
Anonymity on the Web is a lure for some executives who can assume a different name and then post unpleasant, hurtful and damaging comments about competitors, but sometimes their identities are found out, much to their chagrin. The New York Times reports.
In 2001, the German electronics retailer Saturn introduced the advertising tagline "Stinginess is cool!" ? in German, "Geiz ist geil!" ? and soon found it summed up the nation?s mood with a slogan that left the advertising world and entered popular culture. Now that the German economy has improved, the slogan is being retired, says the New York Times.
Former press baron Conrad Black has been convicted of fraud charges and faces 20 years in prison, reports the New York Times. Black's newspapers included the and others. Black is now a felon, says the Chicago Sun Times.
Conrad Black showed a capacity for mixing mischief and capitalism at an early age: at 14, he was expelled from a Toronto private school for stealing copies of coming exams and selling them to his fellow students. The New York Times reports.
A New York Times journalist has been shot and killed in Baghdad, reports the New York Times.
Google and Viacom are facing off over YouTube, reports Associated Press.
The boat is about to rock again in Internet video, says the New York Times.
In the high-tech Internet era, it's the revenge of the nerds, says the Washington Post.
Talk is not cheap when you take your cellular telephone abroad, where you will be subject to steep fees, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In Maryland, a robot visits patients when the doctor cannot, says Associated Press.
Six months later, there is a report card on Microsoft's new Windows Vista operating system, reports Associated Press.
Minnesota Public Radio, which originates the popular Prairie Home Companion show on NPR Saturday evenings, may be purchasing a non-commercial FM radio station in Washington, D.C. which is owned by a Christian college, WGTS 91.9, reports DCRTV.
The mayor of Los Angeles, whose affair with a TV news anchor has been widely reported in the media, was greeted at a public event with something he has not encountered until now: boos. The Associated Press reports.
Back in the 1800s, many newspapers had front-page ads. The Los Angeles Times may get them again. The Los Angeles Times just completed one of its worst ad sales quarters ever, says Bloomberg News.
For months, the nation's largest telecommunications companies and biggest technology brands have maintained an uneasy truce while investing billions of dollars in an attempt to dominate the mobile Internet. Now, thanks to a proposal by a little-known government official, all-out war has broken out between the two sides over the potential payoff for those huge bets. At stake is an area of the nation's airwaves, now used to broadcast UHF channels, that could support a new nationwide high-speed mobile network, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
In the U.K, restoring trust is the biggest headache for British TV, both commercial and the BBC, says Reuters.
Matthew Lesko, Washington, D.C.'s infomercial king, is profiled by the Washington Post.
Mexico's antitrust commission has placed strict conditions on the nation?s biggest media company, Grupo Televisa SA, acquiring a 49 percent stake in cable TV operator Cablemas SA. In a news release, the Federal Competition Commission, or CFC, said that for Televisa to acquire the stake in Cablemas, it must offer its free broadcast content to other pay-TV carriers in the country, says Associated Press.
ABC has a new show based on college fraternities called Greek, which airs Friday nights at 9. The show is reviewed by the New York Times.
The George W. Bush administration has used its executive powers to curtail access to information, expand the power to classify information, and create a range of categories of "sensitive" information, according to Open The Government.org and People for the American Way, according to the Cox News Service.
In the age of blogs, and with surveillance cameras in public streets and buildings, privacy is being lost, says the Hartford Courant.
When broadcast stations and networks are the subject of news stories, as was Chicago?s WMAQ channel 5, NBC over the firing of a reporter seen at the home of a subject of a news story, sometimes they are as tight-lipped as their usual targets in the political and business worlds, reports the Washington Post. The Detroit News suspects gender bias and says the reporter might not have been fired if she were a man.
Internet radio has gotten a reprieve. Many Internet disc jockeys who stream their favorite music around the world say new music royalty fees to compensate performers and record companies, which were to go into effect today, retroactive to January 2006, would force them to pull the plug on their operations. However, a Friday meeting between SoundExchange, the music industry group, and representatives of the Internet radio broadcasters produced a commitment toward a compromise. The talks, held in Washington, D.C., came after a nationwide outcry from fans of Internet music spurred some members of Congress to get the two sides together, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Despite the compromise, hundreds of small Internet stations have already shut down, says the Los Angeles Times.
Online radio stations have a reprieve, but Yahoo and AOL must pay up, reports Online Media Daily.
In February, the Connetquot School District in Bohemia, Long Island established a special website, Connetquot.k12 to squelch rumors. Traffic to the site surged after police intercepted and prevented a potential plot for a Columbine-style attack at Connetquot High School, reports Newsday.
On Long Island, the abandoned Kings Park Psychiatric Center, which at its height in the 1960s housed 10,000 patients, is now visited by teenagers and young people who post pictures of the decaying interiors of multiple buildings on You Tube. Amateur filmmakers post spooky videos with titles like "The Nightmare at Kings Park," reports the New York Times.
In Florida, school districts are cracking down on student Internet hackers and their mischief, says the Orlando Sentinel.
Charles Tisdale, publisher of the legendary Jackson, Mississippi Advocate, often called "the most fire-bombed newspaper in America," has died. Known for his vehement civil rights advocacy, Tisdale succumbed after collapsing last week while on a routine dialysis treatment. He was 80. "He was civil rights twenty-four, seven," says his wife of 23 years, Alice Thomas-Tisdale, associate editor of the paper, reports the National Newspapers Publishers Association, an organization of 200 African-American community newspapers. He also had a radio show on WMPR 90.1, reports the Jackson Clarion Ledger Despite 20 attacks, the newspaper never missed an edition, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Journalist Simeon Booker, who worked for the African-American magazine Jet, covered the turbulent Civil Rights years in the 1950s and 1960s, reports the Washington Post.
A new survey shows young adults are not reading newspapers, and only 9 percent of teenagers read newspapers every day. Young people get more news from TV and the Internet, contrary to public perception, reports the New York Times.
Black Entertainment Television (BET) is exploring launching several news channels, reports MultiChannel News.
In an effort to boost ratings, CBS is abandoning the format for the Early Show which allowed local stations to present local news between 7-8 a.m., reports Associated Press. CBS is working to make the Early Show competitive with NBC's Today show and ABC's Good Morning America.
While the FCC indecency crackdown has levied huge fines on broadcasters, some in Congress are now calling for indecency regulation of pay cable TV as well. This season HBO will offer a series with the most sexually explicit scenes ever seen on TV, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Television networks are running some ads for condoms, but local affiliates can still reject them, such as the ABC station in Pittsburgh, WTAE channel 4 and the CBS station there, KDKA-TV channel 2, as well as the NBC affiliate WPXI channel 11, reports the New York Times.
The Washington Post, well known for its detailed coverage of the White House and global affairs, is introducing a Web site with news and other information for a rarefied group: people who live in Loudoun County, Virginia, population 272,000. The site, Loudoun Extra.com, is an experiment in hyperlocal news and will have church schedules, restaurant menus and real-time high school football scores. The county, in northern Virginia, includes Dulles International Airport and the town of Leesburg. The New York Times reports.
Court TV is tilting to the tabloid side in its quest for ratings, says the New York Times.
Documentarian Ken Burns discusses his upcoming series on World War II, The War, which debuts in September, with the editorial board of the Chicago Tribune.
Charles Gibson, anchor of the ABC World News, is the highest rated and lowest paid of the three evening network news anchors, says the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Every year, Americans save billions in sales taxes by buying merchandise on the Internet rather than at retail stores. But state and federal legislators are working together to close the loophole and generate billions in new revenues for state coffers, reports the Boston Globe.
Big brand firms are reaching more customers with simple text messages, a technology attracting big brands more quickly than online retailers, says the New York Times.
The blog is 10 years old, reports the Wall Street Journal.
In the little town of Minier, Illinois, cell phone service is often spotty, disrupting even emergency calls, so US Cellular wants to tap into a special federal fund, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Sony is retooling its Web site to host videos by aspiring filmmakers, reports the New York Times. This is a big break for video Internet stars, says the Los Angeles Times.
Standup comedians, once wary of the Internet, are now posting their routines on the Web, says Associated Press.
Fifteen companies in the online media marketplace have formed a new coalition, the Association for Downloadable Media is focused on bringing some set of standardized metrics to the downloaded media industry, reports Lost Remote.com.
A single mother and a telephone operator in Silver Spring, Maryland needed a computer for her son but had little cash or credit. So she was intrigued by a flier promising guaranteed approval, with no credit check, to buy a laptop on a "low weekly payment plan." Two nonworking computers later, after having spent well over $1,000, she demanded a refund from the sales company, BlueHippo. She got it only after endless complaints to the Better Business Bureau and the Maryland attorney general. And there are many similar schemes on the Internet, with offers of computers saying "Bad credit? No credit? Bankruptcy? No problem!" The New York Times reports.
Anonymity on the Web is a lure for some executives who can assume a different name and then post unpleasant, hurtful and damaging comments about competitors, but sometimes their identities are found out, much to their chagrin. The New York Times reports.
In 2001, the German electronics retailer Saturn introduced the advertising tagline "Stinginess is cool!" ? in German, "Geiz ist geil!" ? and soon found it summed up the nation?s mood with a slogan that left the advertising world and entered popular culture. Now that the German economy has improved, the slogan is being retired, says the New York Times.
Former press baron Conrad Black has been convicted of fraud charges and faces 20 years in prison, reports the New York Times. Black's newspapers included the
Conrad Black showed a capacity for mixing mischief and capitalism at an early age: at 14, he was expelled from a Toronto private school for stealing copies of coming exams and selling them to his fellow students. The New York Times reports.
A New York Times journalist has been shot and killed in Baghdad, reports the New York Times.
Google and Viacom are facing off over YouTube, reports Associated Press.
The boat is about to rock again in Internet video, says the New York Times.
In the high-tech Internet era, it's the revenge of the nerds, says the Washington Post.
Talk is not cheap when you take your cellular telephone abroad, where you will be subject to steep fees, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In Maryland, a robot visits patients when the doctor cannot, says Associated Press.
Six months later, there is a report card on Microsoft's new Windows Vista operating system, reports Associated Press.
Minnesota Public Radio, which originates the popular Prairie Home Companion show on NPR Saturday evenings, may be purchasing a non-commercial FM radio station in Washington, D.C. which is owned by a Christian college, WGTS 91.9, reports DCRTV.
The mayor of Los Angeles, whose affair with a TV news anchor has been widely reported in the media, was greeted at a public event with something he has not encountered until now: boos. The Associated Press reports.
Back in the 1800s, many newspapers had front-page ads. The Los Angeles Times may get them again. The Los Angeles Times just completed one of its worst ad sales quarters ever, says Bloomberg News.
For months, the nation's largest telecommunications companies and biggest technology brands have maintained an uneasy truce while investing billions of dollars in an attempt to dominate the mobile Internet. Now, thanks to a proposal by a little-known government official, all-out war has broken out between the two sides over the potential payoff for those huge bets. At stake is an area of the nation's airwaves, now used to broadcast UHF channels, that could support a new nationwide high-speed mobile network, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
In the U.K, restoring trust is the biggest headache for British TV, both commercial and the BBC, says Reuters.
Matthew Lesko, Washington, D.C.'s infomercial king, is profiled by the Washington Post.
Mexico's antitrust commission has placed strict conditions on the nation?s biggest media company, Grupo Televisa SA, acquiring a 49 percent stake in cable TV operator Cablemas SA. In a news release, the Federal Competition Commission, or CFC, said that for Televisa to acquire the stake in Cablemas, it must offer its free broadcast content to other pay-TV carriers in the country, says Associated Press.
ABC has a new show based on college fraternities called Greek, which airs Friday nights at 9. The show is reviewed by the New York Times.
Media Briefing for Friday, July 13, 2007
Stealth ads are infiltrating TV newscasts in small local markets, at about the same percentage that owners of digital video recorders are skipping the commercials, say researchers at the University of Oregon. What's disturbing about this trend of "stealth advertising" is that viewers seldom are aware of potential slants in coverage because the connection of a story to an advertiser rarely is disclosed, said Jim Upshaw, a professor of journalism at the University Of Oregon.
Internet sites such as Club Penguin and Webkinz are introducing pre-teens to online social networking, reports Associated Press. With its games and entertaining features, Webkinz is not just for the children, says AP.
To attract a younger customer, the consumer care division of Bayer is starting an online game today for Aleve Liquid Gels, a painkiller product that was introduced in March. By visiting the Web site Aleviator.com, Internet users will be able to follow a fictional storyline that leads them through a series of clues, taking them in and out of social networking sites, wikis and blogs. The New York Times reports.
U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) has introduced a bill that would explicitly give the FCC the power to find a fleeting expletive indecent. Backing the bill are Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-HI), ranking member Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), and Senator Mark Pryor (D-AR), according to a Commerce Committee spokeswoman. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
"Bluenoses Unite" is Broadcasting and Cable?s headline on efforts to re-impose such stiff fines for fleeting profanities on the airwaves.
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is opposing a proposal by U.S. Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) to regulate and limit violence on television, according to The Hill.
The NAB also opposes a return of the Fairness Doctrine, repealed 20 years ago, which required broadcast radio and TV stations to present both sides of controversial issues, according to Radio Ink.
The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing July 26 to get a read on the America?s readiness for the transition to digital-only broadcasting. The hearing is titled "Preparing Consumers for the Digital Transition," and will examine the consumer impact of the transition, scheduled for February 17, 2009. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Sharply higher music royalty fees take effect Sunday for Internet radio stations, which lost an appeal in federal court, and many are expected to shut down. In addition to the fee increases, Internet stations will have to pay retroactively for 17 months. Jake Ward, spokesman for the SaveNetRadiot coalition, a group of Internet broadcasters, estimates that there are about 30,000 companies and individuals broadcasting music over the Internet, and that many of them will cease operations because of the royalty hike, according to the Boston Globe. Federal judges have cleared the way for the high fees, reports the Los Angeles Times. The average Internet station plays 16 songs per hour, so this means the station for the year 2006 would be paying $1.28 per listener-hour, reports the Radio And Internet Newsletter.
Iran has a new satellite news channel called Press TV, aimed at countering what Tehran sees as a steady stream of Western propaganda against Iran on channels around the world. The Los Angeles Times reports.
ABC News will begin to sell DVDs of news programs from its library that were previously unavailable to the public, reports TMCNET.com. Hundreds of hours of historic programming will be available on DVD, says Lost Remote.com.
The airwaves that carry billions of calls, text messages and e-mails have become one of the hottest corporate properties. Not only are they in demand by a nation of 240 million mobile-phone users, they are also in short supply. Soon, one of the last available, and most attractive, sections of airwave spectrum will be sold, and how to manage that sale has become the focus of debate, reports the Washington Post. It appears that an FCC draft will soften the rivalry on this issue, reports the Seattle Times.
Talk To Me, the movie being released today that tells the story of an African American radio and TV talk host and his impact on the community, has received major reviews today in the New York Times, the Washington Post and the San Francisco Chronicle.
CBS News President Sean McManus is dismissing talk that Katie Couric may leave as CBS Evening News anchor, saying that he expects her to remain on the job through her full five-year contract. Associated Press reports.
Meanwhile, the New York Post says WNBC-TV channel 4 New York inadvertently ran a promo for the Today show on Monday?s 11 p.m. news that showed Katie Couric at the desk. She left that show to become the CBS Evening News anchor last September.
The New York Post also says NBC Dateline's popular To Catch A Predator sting shows are in limbo.
Claims made about television picture quality by cable TV and satellite companies can be confusing for viewers, reports the Wall Street Journal.
A Wall Street analyst says Rupert Murdoch's announcement that he will launch the Fox Business Network in October could strengthen his bid for the Wall Street Journal. Further, Pali Research's Richard Greenfield projects that while FBN will lose some $75 million in its first 12 months, it will move "rapidly to profitability" in 2009, reports Media Daily News.
Even with all the technological gadgetry available today that lets people create their own original audio and video, most people would rather just watch or listen, according to an article in eMarketer. Media Post.com reports.
Political races are sending TV ad revenues soaring, says Media Daily News.
TV Newsday examines the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision on that allows a wider range of political ads on TV.
California has a digital divide, similar to the nation's income divide, in which more affluent areas have greater access to broadband Internet service than poorer and rural areas, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
Yahoo has taken control of online advertising exchange Right Media, giving the slumping Internet portal a head start on rivals Google and Microsoft in a heated race to build more powerful marketing vehicles. Yahoo is counting on its nearly $700 million acquisition of Right Media to help sell more Internet ads that rely on graphics and other visuals - a format expected to become increasingly popular as companies promote brands online instead of television, magazines and newspapers. Google has relied largely on short, text-based messages to establish the Internet's largest ad network so far, says Associated Press.
Yahoo is the top news site on the Internet which people visited for news during June, reports Lost Remote.
Australia's consumer watchdog agency has launched legal action against Google for allegedly misleading users by blurring the distinction between paid and unpaid search results in favor of one of its advertisers, reports Associated Press.
The Warner Music Group has dropped a copyright infringement lawsuit against the social networking Web site imeem and agreed to license its music and video content to the site in return for a slice of its ad revenue, according to Associated Press.
Adobe software is a well-established tool for anyone working, or even dabbling, in computer-based design. But in order to market its new Creative Suite 3 software package ? which includes well-known design software like Photoshop and Illustrator ? Adobe has temporarily abandoned the computer screen in favor of a busy Manhattan street. It is unveiling an interactive wall of projected animation in Union Square, along the 14th Street side of the Virgin Megastore. As pedestrians walk past the wall, infrared sensors will lock on to the person closest to the wall, who will then be able to control a projected slider button at the bottom of the wall. The New York Times reports.
The latest Top 10 list of broadcast network TV show Web sites demonstrates the increasing value of putting popular TV shows online ? even after they are taken off the air. Two of the top 10 most visited sites for the week of July 7 were for shows that either ended their season (Fox?s American Idol) or ended their run (ABC?s National Bingo Night) but had a loyal following online, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
As a follow-up to last weekend?s Live Earth concerts he helped promote, Al Gore is sponsoring a competition to create a series of television and Internet ads to raise awareness on the issue of climate change. Details of the contest are at the Current.TV Web site, reports the New York Times.
The National Labor Relations Board has accused the Washington Post of failing to negotiate with the newspaper's union over extra work employees were asked to perform for its radio station, WTWP 1500, reports Associated Press. Though the newspaper says it is in full compliance with its labor contracts, the board is taking the side of the union, says the Washington Business Journal.
The Hallmark Channel is planning to commission 30 original movies for 2008, marking the largest made-for slate in the network's history, according to Variety.
Connecticut has a new law governing cable TV. Over the objections of the cable industry and state consumer counsel, Governor Jodi Rell signed a bill that promotes competition in cable TV, but increases a tax on cable and satellite service and reduces some consumer protections. The complex bill arose from AT&T's entrance into the Connecticut cable market last year through a TV service known as U-verse that's delivered over the telephone lines, reports the Hartford Courant.
The New York Daily News comments on the return of the oldies format to WCBS-FM 101.1New York.
Veteran Philadelphia Inquirer TV reporter Gail Shister has been taken off the television beat and is now on the metro beat, reports TV Newser.
Newspaper revenues in Denver, where there are two dailies, the Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News, are being sustained by a single furniture warehouse, reports Westword.com.
The summer of 1967 brought civil unrest in two major American cities, Detroit, Michigan and Newark, New Jersey. The unrest was considered rebellion rather than riot according to participants interviewed in Revolution '67, an examination of the Newark uprising on P.O.V. being televised Monday at 1:30 a.m. on Thirteen/WNET. The film's interviews with white activists have stirred strong feelings and are a concern in Newark, reports the Newark Star Ledger. A former mayor, activists, National Guardsmen and Newark residents are among those interviewed, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
BBC One executive Peter Fincham was forced to apologise to the Royal Family for misrepresenting a scene involving the Queen in a documentary scheduled to air this fall. However, Fincham is rejecting calls to resign, reports the London Times. The BBC waited a day to give its apology, says the Daily Mail.
Stealth ads are infiltrating TV newscasts in small local markets, at about the same percentage that owners of digital video recorders are skipping the commercials, say researchers at the University of Oregon. What's disturbing about this trend of "stealth advertising" is that viewers seldom are aware of potential slants in coverage because the connection of a story to an advertiser rarely is disclosed, said Jim Upshaw, a professor of journalism at the University Of Oregon.
Internet sites such as Club Penguin and Webkinz are introducing pre-teens to online social networking, reports Associated Press. With its games and entertaining features, Webkinz is not just for the children, says AP.
To attract a younger customer, the consumer care division of Bayer is starting an online game today for Aleve Liquid Gels, a painkiller product that was introduced in March. By visiting the Web site Aleviator.com, Internet users will be able to follow a fictional storyline that leads them through a series of clues, taking them in and out of social networking sites, wikis and blogs. The New York Times reports.
U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) has introduced a bill that would explicitly give the FCC the power to find a fleeting expletive indecent. Backing the bill are Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-HI), ranking member Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), and Senator Mark Pryor (D-AR), according to a Commerce Committee spokeswoman. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
"Bluenoses Unite" is Broadcasting and Cable?s headline on efforts to re-impose such stiff fines for fleeting profanities on the airwaves.
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is opposing a proposal by U.S. Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) to regulate and limit violence on television, according to The Hill.
The NAB also opposes a return of the Fairness Doctrine, repealed 20 years ago, which required broadcast radio and TV stations to present both sides of controversial issues, according to Radio Ink.
The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing July 26 to get a read on the America?s readiness for the transition to digital-only broadcasting. The hearing is titled "Preparing Consumers for the Digital Transition," and will examine the consumer impact of the transition, scheduled for February 17, 2009. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Sharply higher music royalty fees take effect Sunday for Internet radio stations, which lost an appeal in federal court, and many are expected to shut down. In addition to the fee increases, Internet stations will have to pay retroactively for 17 months. Jake Ward, spokesman for the SaveNetRadiot coalition, a group of Internet broadcasters, estimates that there are about 30,000 companies and individuals broadcasting music over the Internet, and that many of them will cease operations because of the royalty hike, according to the Boston Globe. Federal judges have cleared the way for the high fees, reports the Los Angeles Times. The average Internet station plays 16 songs per hour, so this means the station for the year 2006 would be paying $1.28 per listener-hour, reports the Radio And Internet Newsletter.
Iran has a new satellite news channel called Press TV, aimed at countering what Tehran sees as a steady stream of Western propaganda against Iran on channels around the world. The Los Angeles Times reports.
ABC News will begin to sell DVDs of news programs from its library that were previously unavailable to the public, reports TMCNET.com. Hundreds of hours of historic programming will be available on DVD, says Lost Remote.com.
The airwaves that carry billions of calls, text messages and e-mails have become one of the hottest corporate properties. Not only are they in demand by a nation of 240 million mobile-phone users, they are also in short supply. Soon, one of the last available, and most attractive, sections of airwave spectrum will be sold, and how to manage that sale has become the focus of debate, reports the Washington Post. It appears that an FCC draft will soften the rivalry on this issue, reports the Seattle Times.
Talk To Me, the movie being released today that tells the story of an African American radio and TV talk host and his impact on the community, has received major reviews today in the New York Times, the Washington Post and the San Francisco Chronicle.
CBS News President Sean McManus is dismissing talk that Katie Couric may leave as CBS Evening News anchor, saying that he expects her to remain on the job through her full five-year contract. Associated Press reports.
Meanwhile, the New York Post says WNBC-TV channel 4 New York inadvertently ran a promo for the Today show on Monday?s 11 p.m. news that showed Katie Couric at the desk. She left that show to become the CBS Evening News anchor last September.
The New York Post also says NBC Dateline's popular To Catch A Predator sting shows are in limbo.
Claims made about television picture quality by cable TV and satellite companies can be confusing for viewers, reports the Wall Street Journal.
A Wall Street analyst says Rupert Murdoch's announcement that he will launch the Fox Business Network in October could strengthen his bid for the Wall Street Journal. Further, Pali Research's Richard Greenfield projects that while FBN will lose some $75 million in its first 12 months, it will move "rapidly to profitability" in 2009, reports Media Daily News.
Even with all the technological gadgetry available today that lets people create their own original audio and video, most people would rather just watch or listen, according to an article in eMarketer. Media Post.com reports.
Political races are sending TV ad revenues soaring, says Media Daily News.
TV Newsday examines the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision on that allows a wider range of political ads on TV.
California has a digital divide, similar to the nation's income divide, in which more affluent areas have greater access to broadband Internet service than poorer and rural areas, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
Yahoo has taken control of online advertising exchange Right Media, giving the slumping Internet portal a head start on rivals Google and Microsoft in a heated race to build more powerful marketing vehicles. Yahoo is counting on its nearly $700 million acquisition of Right Media to help sell more Internet ads that rely on graphics and other visuals - a format expected to become increasingly popular as companies promote brands online instead of television, magazines and newspapers. Google has relied largely on short, text-based messages to establish the Internet's largest ad network so far, says Associated Press.
Yahoo is the top news site on the Internet which people visited for news during June, reports Lost Remote.
Australia's consumer watchdog agency has launched legal action against Google for allegedly misleading users by blurring the distinction between paid and unpaid search results in favor of one of its advertisers, reports Associated Press.
The Warner Music Group has dropped a copyright infringement lawsuit against the social networking Web site imeem and agreed to license its music and video content to the site in return for a slice of its ad revenue, according to Associated Press.
Adobe software is a well-established tool for anyone working, or even dabbling, in computer-based design. But in order to market its new Creative Suite 3 software package ? which includes well-known design software like Photoshop and Illustrator ? Adobe has temporarily abandoned the computer screen in favor of a busy Manhattan street. It is unveiling an interactive wall of projected animation in Union Square, along the 14th Street side of the Virgin Megastore. As pedestrians walk past the wall, infrared sensors will lock on to the person closest to the wall, who will then be able to control a projected slider button at the bottom of the wall. The New York Times reports.
The latest Top 10 list of broadcast network TV show Web sites demonstrates the increasing value of putting popular TV shows online ? even after they are taken off the air. Two of the top 10 most visited sites for the week of July 7 were for shows that either ended their season (Fox?s American Idol) or ended their run (ABC?s National Bingo Night) but had a loyal following online, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
As a follow-up to last weekend?s Live Earth concerts he helped promote, Al Gore is sponsoring a competition to create a series of television and Internet ads to raise awareness on the issue of climate change. Details of the contest are at the Current.TV Web site, reports the New York Times.
The National Labor Relations Board has accused the Washington Post of failing to negotiate with the newspaper's union over extra work employees were asked to perform for its radio station, WTWP 1500, reports Associated Press. Though the newspaper says it is in full compliance with its labor contracts, the board is taking the side of the union, says the Washington Business Journal.
The Hallmark Channel is planning to commission 30 original movies for 2008, marking the largest made-for slate in the network's history, according to Variety.
Connecticut has a new law governing cable TV. Over the objections of the cable industry and state consumer counsel, Governor Jodi Rell signed a bill that promotes competition in cable TV, but increases a tax on cable and satellite service and reduces some consumer protections. The complex bill arose from AT&T's entrance into the Connecticut cable market last year through a TV service known as U-verse that's delivered over the telephone lines, reports the Hartford Courant.
The New York Daily News comments on the return of the oldies format to WCBS-FM 101.1New York.
Veteran Philadelphia Inquirer TV reporter Gail Shister has been taken off the television beat and is now on the metro beat, reports TV Newser.
Newspaper revenues in Denver, where there are two dailies, the Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News, are being sustained by a single furniture warehouse, reports Westword.com.
The summer of 1967 brought civil unrest in two major American cities, Detroit, Michigan and Newark, New Jersey. The unrest was considered rebellion rather than riot according to participants interviewed in Revolution '67, an examination of the Newark uprising on P.O.V. being televised Monday at 1:30 a.m. on Thirteen/WNET. The film's interviews with white activists have stirred strong feelings and are a concern in Newark, reports the Newark Star Ledger. A former mayor, activists, National Guardsmen and Newark residents are among those interviewed, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
BBC One executive Peter Fincham was forced to apologise to the Royal Family for misrepresenting a scene involving the Queen in a documentary scheduled to air this fall. However, Fincham is rejecting calls to resign, reports the London Times. The BBC waited a day to give its apology, says the Daily Mail.
Media Briefing for Thursday, July 12, 2007
The long awaited Fox Business News Channel will launch in mid-October, reports Broadcasting & Cable. The channel will be based at the Manhattan headquarters of the Fox News Channel, says the New York Times. If Rupert Murdoch succeeds in acquiring the Wall Street Journal, the paper's staff would be used for the channel, reports the Washington Post. It will be shown on cable TV systems with 30 million subscribers, says Media Daily News. The channel will be competing head-on with CNBC, reports the Los Angeles Times.
ABC is planning a return to the cable all-news channel business, which it abandoned more than a quarter century ago with the closing of Satellite News Channel, reports TV Newsday.
Daimler Chrysler has launched its own Internet video channel to market its vehicles, Daimler Chrysler TV, reports Associated Press.
State Farm Insurance has declined to advertise on a new show on Black Entertainment Television (BET) because the show presents stereotypes of blacks. But BET says it is standing by the show, which it says is promoting "tough love" images. The New York Times reports.
The movie Talk to Me, which stars Don Cheadle and opens in theaters tomorrow, offers one of the strongest movie portrayals yet of black radio's community power. The film focuses on Cheadle's Ralph (Petey) Greene, a drug user and small-time criminal who rehabilitated himself into a voice of black people in his native Washington, D.C., in the 1960s. Greene parlayed a radio show on WOL into a TV show and a career in standup comedy, says the New York Daily News. Moviegoers nationwide are being introduced to his story, says the Washington Post.
Sunday is the day steep music royalty fees take effect for Internet radio stations, and some of them are already shutting down, reports the Los Angeles Times. In a major defeat, the U.S. Court Of Appeals has denied Internet radio broadcasters' appeal of the steep rates, reports Radio And Internet Newsletter.
Classified advertising traditionally provided half the revenue for most newspapers. Now Craigs List and eBay?s ?Kijiji? have been providing competition, and even more competition will be coming from the local level as local TV stations open Internet classified ad sites, says Media Daily News.
The American Civil Liberties Union has written the Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate Appropriations Committee asking them to oppose a move by conservative Republican U.S. senator Sam Brownback of Kansas to strengthen the FCC?s profanity-regulation powers and give it the ability to regulate violence. Broadcasting & Cable reports. Brownback wishes to reverse the effects of a recent court decision, says Variety.
Led by former talk radio host and now conservative Republican congressman Mike Pence of Indiana, a group of House members have introduced a bill that would block the reinstating of the FCC?s Fairness Doctrine, mirroring a similar senate bill sponsored by John McCain, reports Broadcasting & Cable. The National Association of Broadcasters is also opposing the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine, reports TV Newsday.
The political right and talk radio are well suited to each other, as 1930s talk show hosts like Father Charles Coughlin and Huey Long demonstrate, according to the Seattle Times.
The powerful head of the House Telecommunications & Internet Subcommittee says food marketers haven?t agreed to go on the Kellogg food marketing diet. Chairman Ed Markey (D-MA) says he is not happy with the responses he has gotten from Coca-Cola General Mills, Kraft, McDonalds, and Pepsi because they have not pledged to "supersize their commitment to public health" as he had asked them to do. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
In a separate matter, Markey is slamming the iPhone for its steep termination fee of $175, according to Associated Press.
The New York Times examines the problems surrounding the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric.
Ratings for the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams sank to an all time low last week, when Brian Williams vacationed Wednesday through Friday, reports the New York Times.
Court TV is re-branding itself with a new name, truTV, effective January 1st, reports Broadcasting & Cable. The network says the new name will better reflect its emphasis on non-fiction programming, says Associated Press.
Senator Russ Feingold, a Wisconsin Democrat and one of Congress's most vocal critics of radio pay-for-play practices, has written CBS Radio, Entercom, Clear Channel, and Citadel Broadcasting asking for more information on how they are complying with their payola settlement agreements, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Listening to an iPod during an electrical storm can be dangerous, says Associated Press.
Consumers should be allowed to take phones along with them when they switch wireless carriers, and spectrum to be auctioned through the FCC should include rules requiring the winning bidders to sell access to competitors at wholesale rates, according to some members of Congress. Some members of the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet also questioned what they call huge early termination fees on wireless telephone contracts, according to PC World.
Verizon Wireless says a proposal to force the buyer of some wireless airwaves to open its network to more kinds of devices may reduce the amount the FCC can raise in a spectrum auction, reports Bloomberg News.
The FCC auction of radio spectrum would set aside one-third of the available spectrum for open wireless service, says the Washington Post. The FCC plans to open the airwaves to many compatible uses, says the Los Angeles Times.
Averting a looming court battle over how it has handled the exodus from its Internet dial-up service, AOL has agreed to make it easier for its remaining customers to leave as part of a $3 million settlement with 48 states and the District of Columbia. Associated Press reports.
Cable TV companies are entering Florida after a new law makes it easier for cable companies to compete with existing franchise holders, reports the Miami Herald.
Real estate site Zillow is creating community web pages for 6,500 neighborhoods in 130 U.S. cities. Users will be able to upload events, news and photos, says Lost Remote.com.
At the Web site Daily Lit.com, one can sign up for e-mail installments of out-of-copyright books, reports the International Herald Tribune.
Move over Simpsons and Family Guy ? PBS is getting into the primetime animation business with a new show based on the popular NPR radio series, Car Talk. PBS has greenlighted 10 episodes of a sitcom featuring characters based on the show, says Broadcasting & Cable. The show will feature a star of Harry Potter, reports the Orlando Sentinel.
PBS has created an online site for its most high-profile documentary filmmaker, Ken Burns. PBS President Paula Kerger told critics at the Television Critics Association Press Tour in Los Angeles that PBS has created a Ken Burns shop at the
Burns, criticized for overlooking the role of Hispanic soldiers in his new World War II documentary, says nearly a half-hour of footage on Hispanic and Native American veterans is being added to the film. Profiles of two Hispanics will conclude the first and sixth episodes of the roughly 15-hour, seven-part The War, debuting September 23 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations across the nation. A Native American soldier's story will be at the end of episode five, reports Associated Press. PBS?s Kerger says the additions have improved the series, according to the Hartford Courant. The documentary series arrives amid a war of words, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. The Washington Post reports too.
How strict will the FCC be when PBS broadcasts The War, with its coarse language, asks the Philadelphia Daily News.
Pioneers In Television, a documentary series with episodes on late night shows, sitcoms, game shows and variety shows, recalls a gentler era in TV, says the Hartford Courant. The series debuts on Thirteen/WNET and PBS in January. There will be four one-hour documentaries, according to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Stars such as Tim Conway, Dick Cavett and Ed McMahon will be among those featured, says the Miami Herald.
PBS will be digitalizing 900 episodes of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood dating back to 1967, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Most magazines that fail are like leaking balloons, slowly losing readers, advertisers and interest until they deflate. Jane magazine, which announced on Monday that it would close after 10 years, was different. Although it had its business struggles, the magazine also had readers ? women in their 20s and 30s ? who didn?t just flip through it at the nail salon and forget about it once the polish was dry. They loved it or hated it, or both, reports the New York Times.
In Canada, Corus Communications is demanding that U.S. cable channels not be allowed to win carriage by systems in Canada, reports the Globe & Mail.
The music industry has long blamed illegal file sharing for the slump in music sales. But now, a key part of the music industry is trying to harness file sharing to boost its own bottom line, according to Wall Street Journal.
The gloves are off in the Chicago TV news war, reports the Chicago Sun Times. Other questionable moments in Chicago TV journalism are recalled by the Chicago Sun Times. The news anchor terminated after being spotted in a video of the backyard swimming pool of a man whose wife is missing is now on a tour to rehabilitate her image, says the Chicago Tribune.
A little bit of music goes a long way toward helping viewers remember local stations, says TV Newsday.
A new study shows TV ads are a key driver of brand name health, reports Brandweek.
The TV programming and movie studios are calling for a study of the writer residuals system. Executives say the formulas are outmoded. The union rejects the proposal as a way to put off coming up with a fair way to share money from new technologies. The Los Angeles Times reports.
What drives listeners' choice of stations or broadcasts? On AM, FM, satellite and Internet radio, MP3 players and iPods, and cell phones, content matters more than convenience or ease of use, according to Bridge Ratings.
The Rev. Tori Spelling has married a gay couple at the California Inn she runs on her reality series on the Oxygen cable network, reports Associated Press.
One reason for the return of the oldies music format on WCBS-FM 101.1 New York this week is that the former listeners refused to let it go after the format was dropped two years ago, according to the New York Daily News. Also returning are Mr. G with the weather, news director Al Meredith and disc jockeys Bob Shannon and Dan Taylor.
The Venezuelan TV station taken off the air at the end of May by the administration of president Hugo Chavez, Radio Caracas Television, is back broadcasting on cable systems in the country, says Associated Press. Broadcasting & Cable examines the issue.
The long awaited Fox Business News Channel will launch in mid-October, reports Broadcasting & Cable. The channel will be based at the Manhattan headquarters of the Fox News Channel, says the New York Times. If Rupert Murdoch succeeds in acquiring the Wall Street Journal, the paper's staff would be used for the channel, reports the Washington Post. It will be shown on cable TV systems with 30 million subscribers, says Media Daily News. The channel will be competing head-on with CNBC, reports the Los Angeles Times.
ABC is planning a return to the cable all-news channel business, which it abandoned more than a quarter century ago with the closing of Satellite News Channel, reports TV Newsday.
Daimler Chrysler has launched its own Internet video channel to market its vehicles, Daimler Chrysler TV, reports Associated Press.
State Farm Insurance has declined to advertise on a new show on Black Entertainment Television (BET) because the show presents stereotypes of blacks. But BET says it is standing by the show, which it says is promoting "tough love" images. The New York Times reports.
The movie Talk to Me, which stars Don Cheadle and opens in theaters tomorrow, offers one of the strongest movie portrayals yet of black radio's community power. The film focuses on Cheadle's Ralph (Petey) Greene, a drug user and small-time criminal who rehabilitated himself into a voice of black people in his native Washington, D.C., in the 1960s. Greene parlayed a radio show on WOL into a TV show and a career in standup comedy, says the New York Daily News. Moviegoers nationwide are being introduced to his story, says the Washington Post.
Sunday is the day steep music royalty fees take effect for Internet radio stations, and some of them are already shutting down, reports the Los Angeles Times. In a major defeat, the U.S. Court Of Appeals has denied Internet radio broadcasters' appeal of the steep rates, reports Radio And Internet Newsletter.
Classified advertising traditionally provided half the revenue for most newspapers. Now Craigs List and eBay?s ?Kijiji? have been providing competition, and even more competition will be coming from the local level as local TV stations open Internet classified ad sites, says Media Daily News.
The American Civil Liberties Union has written the Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate Appropriations Committee asking them to oppose a move by conservative Republican U.S. senator Sam Brownback of Kansas to strengthen the FCC?s profanity-regulation powers and give it the ability to regulate violence. Broadcasting & Cable reports. Brownback wishes to reverse the effects of a recent court decision, says Variety.
Led by former talk radio host and now conservative Republican congressman Mike Pence of Indiana, a group of House members have introduced a bill that would block the reinstating of the FCC?s Fairness Doctrine, mirroring a similar senate bill sponsored by John McCain, reports Broadcasting & Cable. The National Association of Broadcasters is also opposing the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine, reports TV Newsday.
The political right and talk radio are well suited to each other, as 1930s talk show hosts like Father Charles Coughlin and Huey Long demonstrate, according to the Seattle Times.
The powerful head of the House Telecommunications & Internet Subcommittee says food marketers haven?t agreed to go on the Kellogg food marketing diet. Chairman Ed Markey (D-MA) says he is not happy with the responses he has gotten from Coca-Cola General Mills, Kraft, McDonalds, and Pepsi because they have not pledged to "supersize their commitment to public health" as he had asked them to do. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
In a separate matter, Markey is slamming the iPhone for its steep termination fee of $175, according to Associated Press.
The New York Times examines the problems surrounding the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric.
Ratings for the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams sank to an all time low last week, when Brian Williams vacationed Wednesday through Friday, reports the New York Times.
Court TV is re-branding itself with a new name, truTV, effective January 1st, reports Broadcasting & Cable. The network says the new name will better reflect its emphasis on non-fiction programming, says Associated Press.
Senator Russ Feingold, a Wisconsin Democrat and one of Congress's most vocal critics of radio pay-for-play practices, has written CBS Radio, Entercom, Clear Channel, and Citadel Broadcasting asking for more information on how they are complying with their payola settlement agreements, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Listening to an iPod during an electrical storm can be dangerous, says Associated Press.
Consumers should be allowed to take phones along with them when they switch wireless carriers, and spectrum to be auctioned through the FCC should include rules requiring the winning bidders to sell access to competitors at wholesale rates, according to some members of Congress. Some members of the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet also questioned what they call huge early termination fees on wireless telephone contracts, according to PC World.
Verizon Wireless says a proposal to force the buyer of some wireless airwaves to open its network to more kinds of devices may reduce the amount the FCC can raise in a spectrum auction, reports Bloomberg News.
The FCC auction of radio spectrum would set aside one-third of the available spectrum for open wireless service, says the Washington Post. The FCC plans to open the airwaves to many compatible uses, says the Los Angeles Times.
Averting a looming court battle over how it has handled the exodus from its Internet dial-up service, AOL has agreed to make it easier for its remaining customers to leave as part of a $3 million settlement with 48 states and the District of Columbia. Associated Press reports.
Cable TV companies are entering Florida after a new law makes it easier for cable companies to compete with existing franchise holders, reports the Miami Herald.
Real estate site Zillow is creating community web pages for 6,500 neighborhoods in 130 U.S. cities. Users will be able to upload events, news and photos, says Lost Remote.com.
At the Web site Daily Lit.com, one can sign up for e-mail installments of out-of-copyright books, reports the International Herald Tribune.
Move over Simpsons and Family Guy ? PBS is getting into the primetime animation business with a new show based on the popular NPR radio series, Car Talk. PBS has greenlighted 10 episodes of a sitcom featuring characters based on the show, says Broadcasting & Cable. The show will feature a star of Harry Potter, reports the Orlando Sentinel.
PBS has created an online site for its most high-profile documentary filmmaker, Ken Burns. PBS President Paula Kerger told critics at the Television Critics Association Press Tour in Los Angeles that PBS has created a Ken Burns shop at the
Burns, criticized for overlooking the role of Hispanic soldiers in his new World War II documentary, says nearly a half-hour of footage on Hispanic and Native American veterans is being added to the film. Profiles of two Hispanics will conclude the first and sixth episodes of the roughly 15-hour, seven-part The War, debuting September 23 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations across the nation. A Native American soldier's story will be at the end of episode five, reports Associated Press. PBS?s Kerger says the additions have improved the series, according to the Hartford Courant. The documentary series arrives amid a war of words, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. The Washington Post reports too.
How strict will the FCC be when PBS broadcasts The War, with its coarse language, asks the Philadelphia Daily News.
Pioneers In Television, a documentary series with episodes on late night shows, sitcoms, game shows and variety shows, recalls a gentler era in TV, says the Hartford Courant. The series debuts on Thirteen/WNET and PBS in January. There will be four one-hour documentaries, according to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Stars such as Tim Conway, Dick Cavett and Ed McMahon will be among those featured, says the Miami Herald.
PBS will be digitalizing 900 episodes of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood dating back to 1967, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Most magazines that fail are like leaking balloons, slowly losing readers, advertisers and interest until they deflate. Jane magazine, which announced on Monday that it would close after 10 years, was different. Although it had its business struggles, the magazine also had readers ? women in their 20s and 30s ? who didn?t just flip through it at the nail salon and forget about it once the polish was dry. They loved it or hated it, or both, reports the New York Times.
In Canada, Corus Communications is demanding that U.S. cable channels not be allowed to win carriage by systems in Canada, reports the Globe & Mail.
The music industry has long blamed illegal file sharing for the slump in music sales. But now, a key part of the music industry is trying to harness file sharing to boost its own bottom line, according to Wall Street Journal.
The gloves are off in the Chicago TV news war, reports the Chicago Sun Times. Other questionable moments in Chicago TV journalism are recalled by the Chicago Sun Times. The news anchor terminated after being spotted in a video of the backyard swimming pool of a man whose wife is missing is now on a tour to rehabilitate her image, says the Chicago Tribune.
A little bit of music goes a long way toward helping viewers remember local stations, says TV Newsday.
A new study shows TV ads are a key driver of brand name health, reports Brandweek.
The TV programming and movie studios are calling for a study of the writer residuals system. Executives say the formulas are outmoded. The union rejects the proposal as a way to put off coming up with a fair way to share money from new technologies. The Los Angeles Times reports.
What drives listeners' choice of stations or broadcasts? On AM, FM, satellite and Internet radio, MP3 players and iPods, and cell phones, content matters more than convenience or ease of use, according to Bridge Ratings.
The Rev. Tori Spelling has married a gay couple at the California Inn she runs on her reality series on the Oxygen cable network, reports Associated Press.
One reason for the return of the oldies music format on WCBS-FM 101.1 New York this week is that the former listeners refused to let it go after the format was dropped two years ago, according to the New York Daily News. Also returning are Mr. G with the weather, news director Al Meredith and disc jockeys Bob Shannon and Dan Taylor.
The Venezuelan TV station taken off the air at the end of May by the administration of president Hugo Chavez, Radio Caracas Television, is back broadcasting on cable systems in the country, says Associated Press. Broadcasting & Cable examines the issue.
Media Briefing for Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Senator and presidential candidate Sam Brownback (R-KS), who helped get the FCC's indecency fines increased ten-fold, wants to give the FCC back the profanity enforcement power that a federal court decision essentially took away. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
NBC News says it is creating its own in-house firm, Peacock Productions, to make nonfiction programming available to various cable networks. It essentially expands upon the work being done by producers and correspondents at Dateline NBC. Associated Press reports. Variety asks, Is NBC crossing the line between news and entertainment?
Air wars have broken out over the Fairness Doctrine, an FCC rule that required that broadcast stations carry both sides of controversial issues. Its elimination 20 years ago brought the rise of conservative talk show hosts such as Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage and Sean Hannity. Some Democrats want its return. Now, talk radio has turned up volume against reinstating the defunct regulation. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Ten ABC owned and operated television stations including WABC-TV channel 7 New York have launched ad-supported mobile video. The free service, which includes local news clips, is available in the 10 markets to people with video-enabled cell phones, reports TV Newsday. The stations are trying to avoid missing out on the mobile phenomenon, says Media Daily News.
Usage of mobile video is small but growing rapidly, says Media Post.com.
Even though the language of both Great Britain and the United States is English, there are differences, and a U.S. TV executive has been hired by BBC America to translate the programming into U.S. English, says Associated Press.
A mounting backlash against an upcoming BET series accused of trafficking in racial stereotypes has prompted at least two advertisers to pull out of the premiere episode on the Viacom-owned channel. Sources say that State Farm Insurance and the Home Depot requested that their advertisements be yanked from the new comedy series "Hot Ghetto Mess" as well as from a Web page on BET.com touting the program. The Hollywood Reporter has the story. Critics say the show puts black stereotypes on display but the channel calls the show "a blend of tough love and social commentary," according to Associated Press.
A news aggregation site will start letting its users influence the placement of articles by voting on items they like or dislike. Congoo currently pulls stories from about 25,000 news sources and uses software formulas to rank the top ones in about 500 predetermined categories such as real estate and cancer. Associated Press reports.
The TV news reporter at WMAQ channel 5 Chicago who was seen in a video at the home of a man whose wife has disappeared, which has become a major story there, is no longer at WMAQ, reports the Chicago Tribune. Partying with a news source has rightly sunk her career at WMAQ, says the Chicago Sun Times in an editorial. Rival station WBBM-TV channel 2 internally debated and struggled for four days on whether to run the video, but then ran it, according to the WBBM-TV Web site.
Nielsen's new system of ratings for the Internet, measuring time spent on sites more than simple numbers of visits, favors America OnLine and Yahoo over Google, says the Washington Post. The social networking site MySpace.com also gets a comparatively low rating by the new system, says the Los Angeles Times.
Millions of Internet videos are being recorded worldwide and popping up on laptops, cell phones, and desktop computers everywhere. Much of the enabling technology fueling the online video boom ? software that lets consumers play and search for videos and allows content providers to post, distribute, and link them to advertising ? can be traced to a cluster of venture-backed start-up companies operating around Boston's Kendall Square and near Fresh Pond. The companies in the Boston area are the power behind this industry, reports Boston Globe, which also lists the top Boston area companies fueling the boom.
Editor & Publisher examines the phenomenon of newspapers losing advertising dollars to the Internet.
The new classified ad service being offered by eBay, Kijiji, represents a threat to newspapers unless they can somehow team up with the Internet giant, says Media Daily News.
Stealth ads are finding their way into TV newscasts, especially in smaller markets, according to Science Blog.
Parents and child safety experts concerned about the online activities of teenagers have been particularly nervous about a Web site called Stickam, which allows its 600,000 registered users, age 14 and older, to participate in unfiltered live video chats using their Web cameras. But those Internet safety advocates might be even more anxious if they knew of Stickam?s close ties to a large online pornography business, says the New York Times. Stickham officials say its site is totally secure and nothing inappropriate gets onto it, reports the Times.
Microsoft executives have announced several efforts to broaden the appeal of their Xbox 360 game machine to families. They have announced a deal to distribute films from the Walt Disney Company on their Xbox Live Internet service and outlined a broader array of games focused mostly on children and families, says the New York Times.
Geeks are taking back online dating with the site Sweet On Geeks.com, says the Boston Globe.
In California, a new studio will market short videos for the Web, says the New York Times.
TiVo, the pioneer of digital video recorders, has introduced a service to let customers buy movies and television shows from the Unbox service of Amazon.com without using a personal computer. Owners of some TiVo digital video recorders that have high-speed Internet access may download Unbox movies directly to their television, reports the New York Times.
While items such as photographs and written text may easily be saved online, it is difficult to save Internet videos. The Wall Street Journal explains how it can be done.
A cheaper iPhone may be available by the end of the year, says a stock analyst. The San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Plans being considered by the FCC concerning valuable wireless spectrum may not go far enough to encourage a new broadband competitor, say groups calling for open-access rules for part of the spectrum. The Washington Post reports.
TNS Media Research is offering TV ratings as an alternative to Nielsen, reports Media Week.
CBS News has announced coverage plans for the 2008 presidential campaigns. In addition to TV coverage, CBS Radio and CBSNews.com will also have exclusive content and extensive coverage. Katie Couric will continue to anchor the CBS Evening News during the race as well as all special coverage. Couric will also moderate a live debate for Democratic candidates on December 10, 2007. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
PBS is planning a four-hour documentary called The Pioneers Of Television, which will air during the 2007-2008 season, according to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
This summer?s press tour for TV critics in Beverly Hills has featured two PBS programs focusing on words, Wordplay and Wordgirl, reports the Hartford Courant. They?re evidence that programs on PBS are of a higher intellectual level than shows on most other channels, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Nature?s upcoming season will be its 26th on PBS, and one episode scheduled for spring 2008 describes ?what females want and what males do? in the animal world, reports the Washington Post.
As the audience for Masterpiece Theatre dwindles, PBS is readying a makeover for the venerable series, reports the Boston Globe.
A radio station in Hamburg, Germany is organizing an effort to erect a monument to the Beatles there, reports the Associated Press.
WCVB Channel 5 Boston news anchor Natalie Jacobson, a familiar face in Boston TV news for the past 35 years, plans to retire from the anchor chair next Wednesday. Jacobson, 63, shared her decision with colleagues yesterday at the WCVB-TV news studio, reports the Boston Globe.
In Argentina, a reality TV show about people losing weight is drawing a big audience, says Associated Press.
In Boston, conservative radio personality Howie Carr filed suit against his employer, WRKO-AM 680, yesterday. The suit comes one day after he shocked station officials with the disclosure that he would move from his afternoon show to a morning drive-time slot on rival station WTKK-FM 96.9, reports the Boston Globe.
Senator and presidential candidate Sam Brownback (R-KS), who helped get the FCC's indecency fines increased ten-fold, wants to give the FCC back the profanity enforcement power that a federal court decision essentially took away. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
NBC News says it is creating its own in-house firm, Peacock Productions, to make nonfiction programming available to various cable networks. It essentially expands upon the work being done by producers and correspondents at Dateline NBC. Associated Press reports. Variety asks, Is NBC crossing the line between news and entertainment?
Air wars have broken out over the Fairness Doctrine, an FCC rule that required that broadcast stations carry both sides of controversial issues. Its elimination 20 years ago brought the rise of conservative talk show hosts such as Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage and Sean Hannity. Some Democrats want its return. Now, talk radio has turned up volume against reinstating the defunct regulation. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Ten ABC owned and operated television stations including WABC-TV channel 7 New York have launched ad-supported mobile video. The free service, which includes local news clips, is available in the 10 markets to people with video-enabled cell phones, reports TV Newsday. The stations are trying to avoid missing out on the mobile phenomenon, says Media Daily News.
Usage of mobile video is small but growing rapidly, says Media Post.com.
Even though the language of both Great Britain and the United States is English, there are differences, and a U.S. TV executive has been hired by BBC America to translate the programming into U.S. English, says Associated Press.
A mounting backlash against an upcoming BET series accused of trafficking in racial stereotypes has prompted at least two advertisers to pull out of the premiere episode on the Viacom-owned channel. Sources say that State Farm Insurance and the Home Depot requested that their advertisements be yanked from the new comedy series "Hot Ghetto Mess" as well as from a Web page on BET.com touting the program. The Hollywood Reporter has the story. Critics say the show puts black stereotypes on display but the channel calls the show "a blend of tough love and social commentary," according to Associated Press.
A news aggregation site will start letting its users influence the placement of articles by voting on items they like or dislike. Congoo currently pulls stories from about 25,000 news sources and uses software formulas to rank the top ones in about 500 predetermined categories such as real estate and cancer. Associated Press reports.
The TV news reporter at WMAQ channel 5 Chicago who was seen in a video at the home of a man whose wife has disappeared, which has become a major story there, is no longer at WMAQ, reports the Chicago Tribune. Partying with a news source has rightly sunk her career at WMAQ, says the Chicago Sun Times in an editorial. Rival station WBBM-TV channel 2 internally debated and struggled for four days on whether to run the video, but then ran it, according to the WBBM-TV Web site.
Nielsen's new system of ratings for the Internet, measuring time spent on sites more than simple numbers of visits, favors America OnLine and Yahoo over Google, says the Washington Post. The social networking site MySpace.com also gets a comparatively low rating by the new system, says the Los Angeles Times.
Millions of Internet videos are being recorded worldwide and popping up on laptops, cell phones, and desktop computers everywhere. Much of the enabling technology fueling the online video boom ? software that lets consumers play and search for videos and allows content providers to post, distribute, and link them to advertising ? can be traced to a cluster of venture-backed start-up companies operating around Boston's Kendall Square and near Fresh Pond. The companies in the Boston area are the power behind this industry, reports Boston Globe, which also lists the top Boston area companies fueling the boom.
Editor & Publisher examines the phenomenon of newspapers losing advertising dollars to the Internet.
The new classified ad service being offered by eBay, Kijiji, represents a threat to newspapers unless they can somehow team up with the Internet giant, says Media Daily News.
Stealth ads are finding their way into TV newscasts, especially in smaller markets, according to Science Blog.
Parents and child safety experts concerned about the online activities of teenagers have been particularly nervous about a Web site called Stickam, which allows its 600,000 registered users, age 14 and older, to participate in unfiltered live video chats using their Web cameras. But those Internet safety advocates might be even more anxious if they knew of Stickam?s close ties to a large online pornography business, says the New York Times. Stickham officials say its site is totally secure and nothing inappropriate gets onto it, reports the Times.
Microsoft executives have announced several efforts to broaden the appeal of their Xbox 360 game machine to families. They have announced a deal to distribute films from the Walt Disney Company on their Xbox Live Internet service and outlined a broader array of games focused mostly on children and families, says the New York Times.
Geeks are taking back online dating with the site Sweet On Geeks.com, says the Boston Globe.
In California, a new studio will market short videos for the Web, says the New York Times.
TiVo, the pioneer of digital video recorders, has introduced a service to let customers buy movies and television shows from the Unbox service of Amazon.com without using a personal computer. Owners of some TiVo digital video recorders that have high-speed Internet access may download Unbox movies directly to their television, reports the New York Times.
While items such as photographs and written text may easily be saved online, it is difficult to save Internet videos. The Wall Street Journal explains how it can be done.
A cheaper iPhone may be available by the end of the year, says a stock analyst. The San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Plans being considered by the FCC concerning valuable wireless spectrum may not go far enough to encourage a new broadband competitor, say groups calling for open-access rules for part of the spectrum. The Washington Post reports.
TNS Media Research is offering TV ratings as an alternative to Nielsen, reports Media Week.
CBS News has announced coverage plans for the 2008 presidential campaigns. In addition to TV coverage, CBS Radio and CBSNews.com will also have exclusive content and extensive coverage. Katie Couric will continue to anchor the CBS Evening News during the race as well as all special coverage. Couric will also moderate a live debate for Democratic candidates on December 10, 2007. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
PBS is planning a four-hour documentary called The Pioneers Of Television, which will air during the 2007-2008 season, according to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
This summer?s press tour for TV critics in Beverly Hills has featured two PBS programs focusing on words, Wordplay and Wordgirl, reports the Hartford Courant. They?re evidence that programs on PBS are of a higher intellectual level than shows on most other channels, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Nature?s upcoming season will be its 26th on PBS, and one episode scheduled for spring 2008 describes ?what females want and what males do? in the animal world, reports the Washington Post.
As the audience for Masterpiece Theatre dwindles, PBS is readying a makeover for the venerable series, reports the Boston Globe.
A radio station in Hamburg, Germany is organizing an effort to erect a monument to the Beatles there, reports the Associated Press.
WCVB Channel 5 Boston news anchor Natalie Jacobson, a familiar face in Boston TV news for the past 35 years, plans to retire from the anchor chair next Wednesday. Jacobson, 63, shared her decision with colleagues yesterday at the WCVB-TV news studio, reports the Boston Globe.
In Argentina, a reality TV show about people losing weight is drawing a big audience, says Associated Press.
In Boston, conservative radio personality Howie Carr filed suit against his employer, WRKO-AM 680, yesterday. The suit comes one day after he shocked station officials with the disclosure that he would move from his afternoon show to a morning drive-time slot on rival station WTKK-FM 96.9, reports the Boston Globe.
Media Briefing for Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Starting today, TiVo users can now download Amazon movies directly from their TV, says Associated Press. ?PC intervention won?t be needed.?
Harvard Law Professor Laurence Tribe says violence on TV is speech protected by the First Amendment. At the most fundamental level, any attempt to regulate such protected speech will fail because it will be impossible to define "impermissible" depictions of violence, Tribe says in Broadcasting & Cable.
With advertising?s migration to the Web, newspapers are losing the most, more so than TV, says Lost Remote.com.
In an editorial, the Seattle Times says Congress should act quickly to save Internet radio, or else Sunday could be a dark day for democracy. Steep music royalty fees are scheduled to take effect then, which could drive many Internet stations under.
Yet another classical music station has disappeared from the radio dial. There are only about 30 classical music radio stations left in the entire U.S. WBKK 97.7 Amsterdam, New York has dropped classical music aimed at younger people, and switched call letters to WEXT and format to progressive rock, reports the Albany Times Union. Last week Milwaukee lost its only classical station when WMFR 106.9 dropped the format.
In Berkshire County, Massachusetts, two excellent public FM stations are battling for audience. WAMC 90.3 Albany, which transmits from Mount Greylock in Adams, Massachusetts, is getting competition from Amherst, Massachusetts public FM station WFCR 88.5, reports the Albany Times Union.
The publisher of TV Guide is considering various moves to ?build shareholder value,? including a possible sale, reports Associated Press. Media analysts say current owner Rupert Murdoch overpaid for TV Guide in the 1980s and that it went into decline soon after he purchased it, according to the Los Angeles Times. Magazine officials say they cannot guarantee any transaction and there may be no further announcements, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
In Chicago, executives at NBC station WMAQ-TV channel 5 are weighing what, if any, disciplinary action to take against reporter Amy Jacobson, seen on video with her children at a backyard pool-side get-together last week at the home of Craig Stebic, whose wife's disappearance Jacobson has been covering. Officials at rival CBS station WBBM-TV channel 2 have been debating since Friday whether they should air the video, which appears to show Jacobson and her children along with Stebic, whose wife, Lisa, 37, has been missing since April 30. The couple was in the process of divorcing and Lisa Stebic was moving to evict her husband from their Plainfield, Illinois home on the day of her disappearance, according to the Chicago Tribune.
A cell phone company is proposing to erect a communications antenna atop a Catholic hall in Hamburg, Illinois, but the parishioners there are opposed to the tower - not out of concern about radiation, but rather that some cell phone customers may use it as a conduit to pick up pornography, reports the Chicago Tribune.
A leading online measurement service will scrap rankings based on the longtime industry yardstick of page views and begin tracking how long visitors spend at the sites. The move by Nielsen/NetRatings comes as online video and new technologies increasingly make page views less meaningful, says Associated Press.
In Denver, local TV stations are looking at the success of Craigs List and want in on the profits of online classified advertising, reports the Denver Post.
For a long time there has been talk of the convergence of TV, telephone and the Internet, but so far the only thing that has been converged is the monthly bill. A Vermont firm known as Integra5 is working to make convergence a reality, reports the Boston Globe.
Google has agreed to buy e-mail security company Postini for $625 million, underscoring the search giant's increasing rivalry with Microsoft in business software. The all-cash deal is aimed at beefing up Google offerings for the workplace, which already include e-mail, calendaring and documents, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. With this deal Google is sharpening its aim at Microsoft, says the New York Times.
Customers who research electronics purchases online before buying in-store spend 10 percent more than those who do not, according to a new study. Media Publications.com reports.
In Pennsylvania, Web sleuth Shannen Rossmiller told a federal court jury yesterday how she discovered and ensnared Wilkes-Barre terror suspect Michael C. Reynolds on the Internet during the fall of 2005. Rossmiller, 38, a former municipal court judge in Montana who pretended to be an al-Qaeda operative on the Web, testified how Reynolds, 49, told her via e-mail how the terrorist organization could blow up the trans-Alaska pipeline and other elements of the American energy infrastructure. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
WTXX channel 20 Waterbury, the CW affiliate in Connecticut, has been fined by the FCC for a children's show ad violation, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Democratic political threats to reinstate the FCC's so-called fairness doctrine topped the debate over the Iraq war policy - and even the latest news about Paris Hilton - as topics of conversation for radio and cable talk shows for the week ending June 29, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
A stinging appellate court rebuke and other legal challenges may have hobbled the FCC's indecency and profanity enforcement. But the FCC appears to have found a way to keep making its point to CBS, thanks to a consent decree signed back in November 2004, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
By year end, the 60-year-old nonprofit Ad Council will launch its first ever public service announcement with a gay message by teaming with GLSEN, the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network, to combat anti-gay language and harassment in schools. Michael Wilke, president of Commercial Closet.org has the story.
Small-market TV is difficult but doable, according to TV Newsday.
With vigorous marketing campaigns, broadcast TV can win back homes lost to cable and satellite TV, says TV Newsday.
In the U.S., 19 million viewers tuned in to the Live Earth concerts, reports Associated Press. The ratings worldwide were lackluster, says Reuters. The concert was buried by criticism and by low ratings, says Media Daily News.
CBS is banking on having Katie Couric as anchor of the CBS Evening News through next year's presidential election, says the New York Daily News.
The contest among the three evening network news has resulted in a victory for old-fashioned TV news, with the oldest of the three anchors winning, says the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Former NBC entertainment executive Kevin Reilly has been hired by the Fox network in the same position less than two months after being fired, reports Associated Press. To make room for Reilly, Fox bumped up Peter Liguori to chairman of Fox, where he will spend more time extending the network's programs to the Web and mobile phones. Liguori has drawn fire for failing to come up with another blockbuster like American Idol, the sensation he inherited when he became Fox Entertainment president two years ago and which has kept the network at the top of the prime-time ratings with younger viewers. The Los Angeles Times reports. Early in the decade, Liguori was Reilly's boss, notes Media Daily News.
Clear Channel Radio's Total Traffic Network has announced that it has begun transmitting traffic data via HD Radio in 48 of the largest U.S. metropolitan areas. This launch marks the first commercially available data service over HD Radio and leverages its data delivery capabilities. Clear Channel is working with a variety of receiver manufacturers to make the specially-equipped receivers available by the end of this year, according to a press release.
The mayor of Los Angeles was bombarded with questions at his first public appearance since word of the extramarital affair with a TV news anchor broke, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The embattled chief of the National Hurricane Center has resigned after losing the support of his staff, reports the Washington Post. Bill Proenza had been chief for just six months, reports the Miami Herald. Deputy Director Ed Rappaport succeeds Proenza, reports the Sun Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale.
Scientist and showman fuse in Neil deGrasse Tyson, the handsome, genial host of the PBS series Nova scienceNOW, says the Philadelphia Inquirer. The flashy, fast-paced show designed for younger viewers airs tonight at 8 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations nationwide.
After 10 years, the women's magazine Jane will fold after the August issue, reports Media Daily News.
WCBS-FM 101.1 New York restores its oldies format, which it abandoned in 2005 for the Jack music format aimed at younger demographics, while Jack will go onto an HD channel. The oldies will return Thursday afternoon at 1:00, reports the New York Daily News.
Guitarist Les Paul is featured on American Masters Wednesday evening at 9 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations nationwide. The telecast is reviewed by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
All the talk about the Summer of Love obscures the fact that 1967 was also a long, hot summer of civil unrest. The riots were also considered rebellions, according to participants interviewed in Revolution '67, the sharp examination of the Newark uprising on P.O.V. The documentary airs tonight at 10 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations nationwide (check local listings). The Hartford Courant reports. A former mayor, activists, National Guardsmen and Newark residents are among those interviewed, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Dan Patrick is leaving ESPN after 18 years, says Associated Press.
Starting today, TiVo users can now download Amazon movies directly from their TV, says Associated Press. ?PC intervention won?t be needed.?
Harvard Law Professor Laurence Tribe says violence on TV is speech protected by the First Amendment. At the most fundamental level, any attempt to regulate such protected speech will fail because it will be impossible to define "impermissible" depictions of violence, Tribe says in Broadcasting & Cable.
With advertising?s migration to the Web, newspapers are losing the most, more so than TV, says Lost Remote.com.
In an editorial, the Seattle Times says Congress should act quickly to save Internet radio, or else Sunday could be a dark day for democracy. Steep music royalty fees are scheduled to take effect then, which could drive many Internet stations under.
Yet another classical music station has disappeared from the radio dial. There are only about 30 classical music radio stations left in the entire U.S. WBKK 97.7 Amsterdam, New York has dropped classical music aimed at younger people, and switched call letters to WEXT and format to progressive rock, reports the Albany Times Union. Last week Milwaukee lost its only classical station when WMFR 106.9 dropped the format.
In Berkshire County, Massachusetts, two excellent public FM stations are battling for audience. WAMC 90.3 Albany, which transmits from Mount Greylock in Adams, Massachusetts, is getting competition from Amherst, Massachusetts public FM station WFCR 88.5, reports the Albany Times Union.
The publisher of TV Guide is considering various moves to ?build shareholder value,? including a possible sale, reports Associated Press. Media analysts say current owner Rupert Murdoch overpaid for TV Guide in the 1980s and that it went into decline soon after he purchased it, according to the Los Angeles Times. Magazine officials say they cannot guarantee any transaction and there may be no further announcements, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
In Chicago, executives at NBC station WMAQ-TV channel 5 are weighing what, if any, disciplinary action to take against reporter Amy Jacobson, seen on video with her children at a backyard pool-side get-together last week at the home of Craig Stebic, whose wife's disappearance Jacobson has been covering. Officials at rival CBS station WBBM-TV channel 2 have been debating since Friday whether they should air the video, which appears to show Jacobson and her children along with Stebic, whose wife, Lisa, 37, has been missing since April 30. The couple was in the process of divorcing and Lisa Stebic was moving to evict her husband from their Plainfield, Illinois home on the day of her disappearance, according to the Chicago Tribune.
A cell phone company is proposing to erect a communications antenna atop a Catholic hall in Hamburg, Illinois, but the parishioners there are opposed to the tower - not out of concern about radiation, but rather that some cell phone customers may use it as a conduit to pick up pornography, reports the Chicago Tribune.
A leading online measurement service will scrap rankings based on the longtime industry yardstick of page views and begin tracking how long visitors spend at the sites. The move by Nielsen/NetRatings comes as online video and new technologies increasingly make page views less meaningful, says Associated Press.
In Denver, local TV stations are looking at the success of Craigs List and want in on the profits of online classified advertising, reports the Denver Post.
For a long time there has been talk of the convergence of TV, telephone and the Internet, but so far the only thing that has been converged is the monthly bill. A Vermont firm known as Integra5 is working to make convergence a reality, reports the Boston Globe.
Google has agreed to buy e-mail security company Postini for $625 million, underscoring the search giant's increasing rivalry with Microsoft in business software. The all-cash deal is aimed at beefing up Google offerings for the workplace, which already include e-mail, calendaring and documents, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. With this deal Google is sharpening its aim at Microsoft, says the New York Times.
Customers who research electronics purchases online before buying in-store spend 10 percent more than those who do not, according to a new study. Media Publications.com reports.
In Pennsylvania, Web sleuth Shannen Rossmiller told a federal court jury yesterday how she discovered and ensnared Wilkes-Barre terror suspect Michael C. Reynolds on the Internet during the fall of 2005. Rossmiller, 38, a former municipal court judge in Montana who pretended to be an al-Qaeda operative on the Web, testified how Reynolds, 49, told her via e-mail how the terrorist organization could blow up the trans-Alaska pipeline and other elements of the American energy infrastructure. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
WTXX channel 20 Waterbury, the CW affiliate in Connecticut, has been fined by the FCC for a children's show ad violation, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Democratic political threats to reinstate the FCC's so-called fairness doctrine topped the debate over the Iraq war policy - and even the latest news about Paris Hilton - as topics of conversation for radio and cable talk shows for the week ending June 29, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
A stinging appellate court rebuke and other legal challenges may have hobbled the FCC's indecency and profanity enforcement. But the FCC appears to have found a way to keep making its point to CBS, thanks to a consent decree signed back in November 2004, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
By year end, the 60-year-old nonprofit Ad Council will launch its first ever public service announcement with a gay message by teaming with GLSEN, the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network, to combat anti-gay language and harassment in schools. Michael Wilke, president of Commercial Closet.org has the story.
Small-market TV is difficult but doable, according to TV Newsday.
With vigorous marketing campaigns, broadcast TV can win back homes lost to cable and satellite TV, says TV Newsday.
In the U.S., 19 million viewers tuned in to the Live Earth concerts, reports Associated Press. The ratings worldwide were lackluster, says Reuters. The concert was buried by criticism and by low ratings, says Media Daily News.
CBS is banking on having Katie Couric as anchor of the CBS Evening News through next year's presidential election, says the New York Daily News.
The contest among the three evening network news has resulted in a victory for old-fashioned TV news, with the oldest of the three anchors winning, says the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Former NBC entertainment executive Kevin Reilly has been hired by the Fox network in the same position less than two months after being fired, reports Associated Press. To make room for Reilly, Fox bumped up Peter Liguori to chairman of Fox, where he will spend more time extending the network's programs to the Web and mobile phones. Liguori has drawn fire for failing to come up with another blockbuster like American Idol, the sensation he inherited when he became Fox Entertainment president two years ago and which has kept the network at the top of the prime-time ratings with younger viewers. The Los Angeles Times reports. Early in the decade, Liguori was Reilly's boss, notes Media Daily News.
Clear Channel Radio's Total Traffic Network has announced that it has begun transmitting traffic data via HD Radio in 48 of the largest U.S. metropolitan areas. This launch marks the first commercially available data service over HD Radio and leverages its data delivery capabilities. Clear Channel is working with a variety of receiver manufacturers to make the specially-equipped receivers available by the end of this year, according to a press release.
The mayor of Los Angeles was bombarded with questions at his first public appearance since word of the extramarital affair with a TV news anchor broke, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The embattled chief of the National Hurricane Center has resigned after losing the support of his staff, reports the Washington Post. Bill Proenza had been chief for just six months, reports the Miami Herald. Deputy Director Ed Rappaport succeeds Proenza, reports the Sun Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale.
Scientist and showman fuse in Neil deGrasse Tyson, the handsome, genial host of the PBS series Nova scienceNOW, says the Philadelphia Inquirer. The flashy, fast-paced show designed for younger viewers airs tonight at 8 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations nationwide.
After 10 years, the women's magazine Jane will fold after the August issue, reports Media Daily News.
WCBS-FM 101.1 New York restores its oldies format, which it abandoned in 2005 for the Jack music format aimed at younger demographics, while Jack will go onto an HD channel. The oldies will return Thursday afternoon at 1:00, reports the New York Daily News.
Guitarist Les Paul is featured on American Masters Wednesday evening at 9 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations nationwide. The telecast is reviewed by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
All the talk about the Summer of Love obscures the fact that 1967 was also a long, hot summer of civil unrest. The riots were also considered rebellions, according to participants interviewed in Revolution '67, the sharp examination of the Newark uprising on P.O.V. The documentary airs tonight at 10 on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations nationwide (check local listings). The Hartford Courant reports. A former mayor, activists, National Guardsmen and Newark residents are among those interviewed, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Dan Patrick is leaving ESPN after 18 years, says Associated Press.
Media Briefing for Monday, July 9, 2007
Traditional news programs such as Tim Russert's Meet The Press and PBS's NewsHour with Jim Lehrer are finding new lives on computer screens, iPods and cell phones, reports the Baltimore Sun.
A lighter and paper shredder helped make Mika Brzezinski the symbol of television journalism's guilt trip about covering Paris Hilton. Brzezinski used both to destroy a script calling for her to read about Hilton's release from jail on MSNBC's Morning Joe program recently. Part serious, part an act, it has become an Internet sensation. More than 2 million people have watched a clip of the incident, around 10 times the number who watched it live on TV. Associated Press reports.
A new Web site called Minisode is pruning classic TV shows down to six minutes, reports Associated Press.
Children cannot escape news of war, terrorism and school violence, but parents can help them keep it in perspective, reports Newsday.
Seattle is getting its first Spanish language TV newscast, on Univision's KUNS channel 51, which went on the air in January. The newscast is produced by sister station KOMO-TV channel 4, reports the Seattle Times.
Spanish language TV stations are struggling to cover the news, reports Associated Press.
TV stations are redesigning newscast sets with a focus on colors that will work well for HDTV, credibility and ratings, says the Boston Globe.
Black Entertainment Television is broadening its schedule, reports the New York Times.
Sony has issued a public apology for a violent video game that features a bloody shootout inside an Anglican cathedral, but it did not address the Church of England's demands that the company withdraw the game. The church has demanded that Sony stop selling the game, "Resistance: Fall of Man", reports Associated Press.
A children's television show on the BBC faked the results of a contest, drawing a $100,000 fine today from a regulatory agency. In imposing its first fine on the BBC, the Office of Communications said the broadcaster broke the rules by using a studio guest to pose as the winner of a phone-in competition on the Blue Peter show on November 27. Associated Press reports. In the U.K., the Telegraph, the London Times, the Guardian, and the Daily Mail have stories.
The British press is assailing curbs on reporting in the U.K., reports the New York Times.
A new movie tells the life story of a pioneering black talk show host, Petey Greene, whose regular broadcast on Washington's WOL radio in the 1930s covered the African American community. The movie is called Talk to Me, reports the Washington Post.
Fine Arts Radio will broadcast live concerts of the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts each weekend during July and August. WMNR 88.1 Monroe, Connecticut and WGRS 91.5 Guilford, Connecticut will carry three concerts every weekend, Friday and Saturday evenings at 8:30 and Sunday afternoons at 2:30. Westchester and Long Island stations (88.9 Mount Kisco, 94.5 Sag Harbor and 100.7 Southampton) will carry repeats. The Boston Phoenix provides a listing of the concerts this season.
Channel One, the in-school broadcast network, has partnered with NBC News to deliver specially created content to approximately 7 million middle- and high-school students, reports Media Daily News.
A British business publication, The Business, is reporting that Rupert Murdoch has gained approval from the Dow Jones board to acquire the company and the Wall Street Journal, according to Media Daily News. The New York Times discusses this report from The Business.
The board of Dow Jones will meet with a California billionaire to seek an alternative bid, says the New York Times, which also discusses possible job cuts at the Wall Street Journal.
The Huffington Post, a blog that has made it big, is trending up and left, reports the Washington Post.
A company called Presto Services provides e-mail for people who do not use computers and are technologically impaired, reports Associated Press.
The iPhone is very cool but has drawbacks, including e-mail snags and no GPS, says the Boston Globe.
Former FCC chairman Reed Hundt, now vice chairman of Frontline Wireless, says the nation needs a faster national wireless system. The Washington Post reports.
DC Comics, the venerable publisher of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and other comics, today introduces an online imprint that amounts to a virtual slush pile, accepting submissions from the public and paying for the best comics that come in. The imprint, Zudacomics.com, will permit aspiring cartoonists to register at its website, says the New York Times.
Ken Burns describes his upcoming World War II documentary series The War, which debuts in September on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations across the nation, in USA Weekend.
BBC World News is seeking more exposure in the U.S., aiming for viewers who want foreign news, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In a profile in New York magazine, CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric says she would like to do more 60 Minutes pieces. She says she would have been less interested in CBS if she knew she'd be doing the more traditional network newscast she is doing now, reports Associated Press.
Ex-CNN news anchor Aaron Brown says his evening broadcast on CNN was killed by Fox News Channel's wall-to-wall coverage of the Natalie Holloway story, the Alabama teen who disappeared on the Caribbean Dutch island of Aruba, reports Variety.
In Texas, critics are railing against a Fox network reality show, Anchorwoman, which put a bikini model into a news anchor position at CBS affiliate KYTX channel 19 for four weeks, reports the Dallas Morning News. On her second day, she unintentionally ruined another report's live shot when she danced around in the background, says the Fort Worth Star Telegram. She has left and returned to modeling swimwear, reports Associated Press.
The Advocate, the national gay magazine, is kicking off the covers. That is, the magazine is starting to do away with the extra cover that is placed on the magazine before it is sealed in a plastic wrapper, concealing its identity during shipment. The New York Times reports.
Publishing a book can propel your career even if you pay to get it into print, reports Newsday, which also gives a primer on print-on-demand publishing.
Advertisers continue to aim at the 18- to 34-year-old demographic, so radio stations are tuning their formats to that group and turning their backs on the baby boomers. It is hard to find not just Frank Sinatra on the radio, but also the Beach Boys, Motown and even classic rock. But baby boomers are finding their music elsewhere, reports the Washington Post.
Oldies music disappeared from the New York City FM dial when WCBS-FM 101.1 dropped the format in 2005, but is now returning to the station, according to Associated Press. "This music has been treated terribly, and people in their 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s are still a very viable product in this society," says disc jockey ?Cousin Brucie? Morrow in the New York Times.
Israel has been denounced by a media watchdog group, the International Federation of Journalists, after the shooting of a Hamas news cameraman, reports Associated Press.
Traditional news programs such as Tim Russert's Meet The Press and PBS's NewsHour with Jim Lehrer are finding new lives on computer screens, iPods and cell phones, reports the Baltimore Sun.
A lighter and paper shredder helped make Mika Brzezinski the symbol of television journalism's guilt trip about covering Paris Hilton. Brzezinski used both to destroy a script calling for her to read about Hilton's release from jail on MSNBC's Morning Joe program recently. Part serious, part an act, it has become an Internet sensation. More than 2 million people have watched a clip of the incident, around 10 times the number who watched it live on TV. Associated Press reports.
A new Web site called Minisode is pruning classic TV shows down to six minutes, reports Associated Press.
Children cannot escape news of war, terrorism and school violence, but parents can help them keep it in perspective, reports Newsday.
Seattle is getting its first Spanish language TV newscast, on Univision's KUNS channel 51, which went on the air in January. The newscast is produced by sister station KOMO-TV channel 4, reports the Seattle Times.
Spanish language TV stations are struggling to cover the news, reports Associated Press.
TV stations are redesigning newscast sets with a focus on colors that will work well for HDTV, credibility and ratings, says the Boston Globe.
Black Entertainment Television is broadening its schedule, reports the New York Times.
Sony has issued a public apology for a violent video game that features a bloody shootout inside an Anglican cathedral, but it did not address the Church of England's demands that the company withdraw the game. The church has demanded that Sony stop selling the game, "Resistance: Fall of Man", reports Associated Press.
A children's television show on the BBC faked the results of a contest, drawing a $100,000 fine today from a regulatory agency. In imposing its first fine on the BBC, the Office of Communications said the broadcaster broke the rules by using a studio guest to pose as the winner of a phone-in competition on the Blue Peter show on November 27. Associated Press reports. In the U.K., the Telegraph, the London Times, the Guardian, and the Daily Mail have stories.
The British press is assailing curbs on reporting in the U.K., reports the New York Times.
A new movie tells the life story of a pioneering black talk show host, Petey Greene, whose regular broadcast on Washington's WOL radio in the 1930s covered the African American community. The movie is called Talk to Me, reports the Washington Post.
Fine Arts Radio will broadcast live concerts of the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts each weekend during July and August. WMNR 88.1 Monroe, Connecticut and WGRS 91.5 Guilford, Connecticut will carry three concerts every weekend, Friday and Saturday evenings at 8:30 and Sunday afternoons at 2:30. Westchester and Long Island stations (88.9 Mount Kisco, 94.5 Sag Harbor and 100.7 Southampton) will carry repeats. The Boston Phoenix provides a listing of the concerts this season.
Channel One, the in-school broadcast network, has partnered with NBC News to deliver specially created content to approximately 7 million middle- and high-school students, reports Media Daily News.
A British business publication, The Business, is reporting that Rupert Murdoch has gained approval from the Dow Jones board to acquire the company and the Wall Street Journal, according to Media Daily News. The New York Times discusses this report from The Business.
The board of Dow Jones will meet with a California billionaire to seek an alternative bid, says the New York Times, which also discusses possible job cuts at the Wall Street Journal.
The Huffington Post, a blog that has made it big, is trending up and left, reports the Washington Post.
A company called Presto Services provides e-mail for people who do not use computers and are technologically impaired, reports Associated Press.
The iPhone is very cool but has drawbacks, including e-mail snags and no GPS, says the Boston Globe.
Former FCC chairman Reed Hundt, now vice chairman of Frontline Wireless, says the nation needs a faster national wireless system. The Washington Post reports.
DC Comics, the venerable publisher of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and other comics, today introduces an online imprint that amounts to a virtual slush pile, accepting submissions from the public and paying for the best comics that come in. The imprint, Zudacomics.com, will permit aspiring cartoonists to register at its website, says the New York Times.
Ken Burns describes his upcoming World War II documentary series The War, which debuts in September on Thirteen/WNET and PBS stations across the nation, in USA Weekend.
BBC World News is seeking more exposure in the U.S., aiming for viewers who want foreign news, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In a profile in New York magazine, CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric says she would like to do more 60 Minutes pieces. She says she would have been less interested in CBS if she knew she'd be doing the more traditional network newscast she is doing now, reports Associated Press.
Ex-CNN news anchor Aaron Brown says his evening broadcast on CNN was killed by Fox News Channel's wall-to-wall coverage of the Natalie Holloway story, the Alabama teen who disappeared on the Caribbean Dutch island of Aruba, reports Variety.
In Texas, critics are railing against a Fox network reality show, Anchorwoman, which put a bikini model into a news anchor position at CBS affiliate KYTX channel 19 for four weeks, reports the Dallas Morning News. On her second day, she unintentionally ruined another report's live shot when she danced around in the background, says the Fort Worth Star Telegram. She has left and returned to modeling swimwear, reports Associated Press.
The Advocate, the national gay magazine, is kicking off the covers. That is, the magazine is starting to do away with the extra cover that is placed on the magazine before it is sealed in a plastic wrapper, concealing its identity during shipment. The New York Times reports.
Publishing a book can propel your career even if you pay to get it into print, reports Newsday, which also gives a primer on print-on-demand publishing.
Advertisers continue to aim at the 18- to 34-year-old demographic, so radio stations are tuning their formats to that group and turning their backs on the baby boomers. It is hard to find not just Frank Sinatra on the radio, but also the Beach Boys, Motown and even classic rock. But baby boomers are finding their music elsewhere, reports the Washington Post.
Oldies music disappeared from the New York City FM dial when WCBS-FM 101.1 dropped the format in 2005, but is now returning to the station, according to Associated Press. "This music has been treated terribly, and people in their 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s are still a very viable product in this society," says disc jockey ?Cousin Brucie? Morrow in the New York Times.
Israel has been denounced by a media watchdog group, the International Federation of Journalists, after the shooting of a Hamas news cameraman, reports Associated Press.
Media Briefing for Friday, July 6, 2007
Two U.S. senators are postponing a task force report on child obesity, an indication that the nation?s biggest food and beverage marketers are preparing to unveil major new concessions in how they market food to kids on TV. Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Tom Harkin (D-IA), announced that the children's obesity task force they formed with the FCC?s Kevin Martin and Deborah Taylor Tate will report in September instead of next week, says TV Week. Powerful Democratic Congressman Ed Markey is not happy, saying it's time for the FCC to step in, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Web video will be the new political battleground of the 2008 presidential campaign, says Associated Press.
PBS?s Frontline is going digital and is also going online, reports Media Daily News.
The FCC has given CBS until August 10th to respond to its letter (released June 27) looking for some answers related to CBS?s airing of a Without a Trace episode back in 2004 that drew a proposed multi-million-dollar indecency fine from the FCC. The Parents Television Council challenged the license of CBS?s KUTV channel 2 Salt Lake City claiming CBS did not honor the terms of a consent decree following the FCC?s issuance of a proposed fine against the show. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Senior citizens are finally flocking to the Internet, says the Baltimore Sun.
Internet usage is up sharply in African-American homes, reports the Chicago Tribune.
In Massachusetts, a prison security video showing guards struggling to enter a cell where a convicted killer was strangling a defrocked pedophile priest has turned up on the Internet, reports CBS station WBZ-TV in Boston. State prison officials are investigating how the 10-minute video, shot from outside former Roman Catholic priest John Geoghan's cell during his slaying, made it onto YouTube. The video on YouTube was brought to the attention of the Boston Herald, apparently by Joseph Druce, the man convicted of killing the priest inside the maximum security prison in August 2003. WBZ-TV channel 4 News reports.
People who bought iPhones when they became available last weekend and hoped to resell them at a profit are finding there aren't buyers out there, reports the New York Times.
A consumer advocacy group has expressed outrage over Apple's battery replacement program for the iPhone. Meanwhile, developers and hackers are trying to figure out ways they could expand the capabilities of the hot new gadget. The iPhone, a hybrid cell phone, iPod media player and wireless Web-browsing device, launched to much fanfare on June 29. Associated Press reports.
Microsoft has a billion-dollar problem with the Xbox 360. The software giant has acknowledged what many gamers have been saying since the game console's launch in November 2005: Xbox 360s are prone to failure. In response, the company is extending the warranty on the game machine and promising to reimburse customers who already have had to pay out of pocket for repairs or replacement machines, reports the San Jose Mercury News. Microsoft will have to spend more than one billion dollars to repair the problem, says the New York Times.
A TV newscaster romantically involved with the mayor of Los Angeles has been placed on leave, reports Associated Press.
Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney, who rails against the "cesspool" of pornography, is being criticized by social conservatives who argue that he should have tried to halt hardcore movie offerings in hotel rooms during his near-decade on the Marriott hotel chain board of directors. Two anti-pornography crusaders, as well as two conservative activists of the type Romney is courting, say the distribution of such graphic adult movies runs counter to the family image cultivated by Romney, the Marriotts and their shared Mormon faith. Associated Press reports.
The director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami, upon which all media rely for hurricane warnings and advisories, is defiantly refusing to resign amid demands from much of the staff that he do so. The Miami Herald reports. Half the staff, a total of 23, is revolting, says the Sun Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale.
Seminole County, Florida is giving away weather radios and signing up people to receive text messages about severe storms including hurricanes and tornadoes that may move into the county, reports the Orlando Sentinel. Also, in the town of Deltona, Florida, officials are handing out 500 weather radios today to help residents prepare for hurricane season. Priority will be given to low-income families and residents who are disabled or 62 and older, says the Orlando Sentinel.
After multiple requests, inmates at the state prison in Sterling, Colorado have finally gotten a PBS channel on their TV menu, reports the Denver Post.
The Live Earth concert is being broadcast online as well as on NBC, reports Associated Press. The concert may be confusing, but it will be easy to tune in at home, says the New York Daily News.
There is a cool reception for conservative talk radio in Washington, reports the Washington Post.
In New York, WCBS-FM 101.1 reportedly will switch back to an oldies format next week, reports Media Daily News. When it dropped the format in summer 2005 there was an outcry that the veteran disc jockeys were dismissed without notice and the oldies format was eliminated abruptly.
After 11 years, conservative talk show host Bob Grant is back on the airwaves of WABC 770, reports Newsmax.
American Lawyer magazine is being sold, reports Bloomerg News.
The Canadian Radio Television Commission is planning a major review of television, including rules governing cable, satellite and pay TV services, reports the Globe and Mail of Toronto.
An 86-year-old on-air reporter at KTRK channel 13 Houston, Marvin Kindlier, says he will remain on the air despite a serious bout with cancer, reports the Houston Chronicle, which also profiles Kindlier through the years.
Two U.S. senators are postponing a task force report on child obesity, an indication that the nation?s biggest food and beverage marketers are preparing to unveil major new concessions in how they market food to kids on TV. Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Tom Harkin (D-IA), announced that the children's obesity task force they formed with the FCC?s Kevin Martin and Deborah Taylor Tate will report in September instead of next week, says TV Week. Powerful Democratic Congressman Ed Markey is not happy, saying it's time for the FCC to step in, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
Web video will be the new political battleground of the 2008 presidential campaign, says Associated Press.
PBS?s Frontline is going digital and is also going online, reports Media Daily News.
The FCC has given CBS until August 10th to respond to its letter (released June 27) looking for some answers related to CBS?s airing of a Without a Trace episode back in 2004 that drew a proposed multi-million-dollar indecency fine from the FCC. The Parents Television Council challenged the license of CBS?s KUTV channel 2 Salt Lake City claiming CBS did not honor the terms of a consent decree following the FCC?s issuance of a proposed fine against the show. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Senior citizens are finally flocking to the Internet, says the Baltimore Sun.
Internet usage is up sharply in African-American homes, reports the Chicago Tribune.
In Massachusetts, a prison security video showing guards struggling to enter a cell where a convicted killer was strangling a defrocked pedophile priest has turned up on the Internet, reports CBS station WBZ-TV in Boston. State prison officials are investigating how the 10-minute video, shot from outside former Roman Catholic priest John Geoghan's cell during his slaying, made it onto YouTube. The video on YouTube was brought to the attention of the Boston Herald, apparently by Joseph Druce, the man convicted of killing the priest inside the maximum security prison in August 2003. WBZ-TV channel 4 News reports.
People who bought iPhones when they became available last weekend and hoped to resell them at a profit are finding there aren't buyers out there, reports the New York Times.
A consumer advocacy group has expressed outrage over Apple's battery replacement program for the iPhone. Meanwhile, developers and hackers are trying to figure out ways they could expand the capabilities of the hot new gadget. The iPhone, a hybrid cell phone, iPod media player and wireless Web-browsing device, launched to much fanfare on June 29. Associated Press reports.
Microsoft has a billion-dollar problem with the Xbox 360. The software giant has acknowledged what many gamers have been saying since the game console's launch in November 2005: Xbox 360s are prone to failure. In response, the company is extending the warranty on the game machine and promising to reimburse customers who already have had to pay out of pocket for repairs or replacement machines, reports the San Jose Mercury News. Microsoft will have to spend more than one billion dollars to repair the problem, says the New York Times.
A TV newscaster romantically involved with the mayor of Los Angeles has been placed on leave, reports Associated Press.
Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney, who rails against the "cesspool" of pornography, is being criticized by social conservatives who argue that he should have tried to halt hardcore movie offerings in hotel rooms during his near-decade on the Marriott hotel chain board of directors. Two anti-pornography crusaders, as well as two conservative activists of the type Romney is courting, say the distribution of such graphic adult movies runs counter to the family image cultivated by Romney, the Marriotts and their shared Mormon faith. Associated Press reports.
The director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami, upon which all media rely for hurricane warnings and advisories, is defiantly refusing to resign amid demands from much of the staff that he do so. The Miami Herald reports. Half the staff, a total of 23, is revolting, says the Sun Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale.
Seminole County, Florida is giving away weather radios and signing up people to receive text messages about severe storms including hurricanes and tornadoes that may move into the county, reports the Orlando Sentinel. Also, in the town of Deltona, Florida, officials are handing out 500 weather radios today to help residents prepare for hurricane season. Priority will be given to low-income families and residents who are disabled or 62 and older, says the Orlando Sentinel.
After multiple requests, inmates at the state prison in Sterling, Colorado have finally gotten a PBS channel on their TV menu, reports the Denver Post.
The Live Earth concert is being broadcast online as well as on NBC, reports Associated Press. The concert may be confusing, but it will be easy to tune in at home, says the New York Daily News.
There is a cool reception for conservative talk radio in Washington, reports the Washington Post.
In New York, WCBS-FM 101.1 reportedly will switch back to an oldies format next week, reports Media Daily News. When it dropped the format in summer 2005 there was an outcry that the veteran disc jockeys were dismissed without notice and the oldies format was eliminated abruptly.
After 11 years, conservative talk show host Bob Grant is back on the airwaves of WABC 770, reports Newsmax.
American Lawyer magazine is being sold, reports Bloomerg News.
The Canadian Radio Television Commission is planning a major review of television, including rules governing cable, satellite and pay TV services, reports the Globe and Mail of Toronto.
An 86-year-old on-air reporter at KTRK channel 13 Houston, Marvin Kindlier, says he will remain on the air despite a serious bout with cancer, reports the Houston Chronicle, which also profiles Kindlier through the years.
Media Briefing for Thursday, July 5, 2007
Alan Johnston, the BBC journalist held hostage in Gaza, was freed and handed over to Palestinian officials early today after a late-night deal with the Al Qaeda-inspired, clan-based group that kidnapped him in March. Reuters reports. The kidnapped newsman says it was like being "buried alive," reports Associated Press. Looking wan and thin, he is flying home to Great Britain, reports the New York Times. The release provides a public relations boost for Hamas, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Johnston found solace in the airwaves in listening to the BBC, reports the Los Angeles Times. Night after night for 114 days he lay alone in his Gaza jail, hoping to see the sun come up and dreaming of being free again, reports the McClatchy newspapers. He has recounted his long ordeal, reports Associated Press.
The number of classical music stations in the U.S. continues to dwindle. Milwaukee has lost its classical music FM station, WFMR 106.9, which has switched to a new music format. Milwaukee now joins Philadelphia, Detroit, Miami and other cities with no classical music station. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Southern Vermont recently got a new full-time classical FM service, a rare development these days in radio. Vermont Public Radio (VPR) is now offering a full-time, FM classical music service on WNCH 88.1 Norwich and WJAN 95.1 Sunderland, Vermont. It is also available online.
Back in the 1930s and 40s, the FCC encouraged local radio stations to provide airtime to local talent. Now in Pittsburgh, FM station WRRK 96.9 will devote its HD channel to local bands, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Two-second ads have taken off on the radio, reports the Boston Globe.
PBS?s Tavis Smiley says the news media is ignoring the issues relevant to people of color, reports Cyber News Service.
An Islamic advocacy group is urging its supporters to call a Washington, D.C. radio station to "express your concerns about the Islamophobic attitudes" expressed by conservative columnist and author Cal Thomas. In a commentary on news-talk WTOP 103.5 radio Monday morning, Thomas discussed the car-bomb terror attacks recently thwarted in the United Kingdom. The eight Muslims arrested in connection with the plot include several physicians. "How much longer should we allow people from certain lands, with certain beliefs to come to Britain and America and build their mosques, teach hate, and plot to kill us?" Thomas asked. Cyber News Service reports.
This summer marks the 20th anniversary of the abolition of the FCC?s Fairness Doctrine. Former FCC chairman Dennis Patrick will speak on the impact of his decision to eliminate the doctrine on Wednesday, July 18, according to TV Newsday.
Cable TV companies are planning to charge more for current set-top boxes to help pay for new, more expensive versions mandated by the FCC. They say the price increases are a result of the FCC's push to spur competition for the boxes, which are required to receive digital programming and change channels. It's not yet clear how much the charges will rise, says Associated Press.
Analog TV's demise on February 17, 2009 will be a nuisance for some, as all broadcast TV stations in the U.S. convert to digital-only transmission on that date, reports Associated Press.
State senator Joseph Bruno, New York?s top Republican, has asked the Albany County district attorney to investigate the Albany Times Union newspaper, saying that a representative of the newspaper tried on Tuesday to commit extortion by pressuring him to buy advertisements in exchange for favorable coverage. The newspaper?s publisher denied the allegation, reports the New York Times.
The Boston Phoenix has released its 10th annual Muzzle awards, for individuals and agencies muzzling free speech.
A news anchor and reporter at WTXF channel 29 Philadelphia has been suspended after ranting within the newsroom that there is nothing wrong with the "n" word, reports the Philadelphia Daily News.
The school superintendent of Lewiston, Maine has sued the Fox News Channel, claiming irresponsible and reckless reporting, reports the Lewiston, Maine Sun Journal.
The Motion Picture Association of America has sued two Web sites, YouTVpc.com and Peekvid.com, alleging that they are offering pirated TV shows and movies, reports Broadcast Engineering.
Because of the high costs, NBC may drop original programming on Friday evenings, says Media Daily News.
As TV shows go online, the networks are trying to adapt ads to the Internet, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The arts channel Ovation TV has re-launched with national distribution, reports Associated Press.
The Spanish language TV network Univision had three of the top 10 shows in the 18-to-49 age demographic, reports Associated Press. In New York WXTV channel 41 is the Univision station.
Advertising is booming for Spanish-language consumer magazines, reports Media Daily News.
WHDH channel 7 Boston Randy Price's openness about being gay has made him a fixture in local TV news and a role model for gays. Off the air, he is active in the area of gay rights and animal rights, reports the Boston Globe.
Yahoo's users will see marketing pitches that are more personalized to where they live and what they like to do, part of an upgrade to the Internet site's advertising system. The company's new product, unveiled Monday, will allow advertisers to more easily customize their campaigns to specific groups of users, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
Broadband growth in the U.S. is slowing, reports Associated Press.
eBay wants to be a competitor of Craig's List, introducing a classified ad service online, reports the New York Times. It's the battle of the online-classified titans, says the San Francisco Chronicle. The world's largest online auction company will upgrade its Web site to placate sellers and revitalize the company's slumping sales growth, according to eBay chief executive Meg Whitman. Bloomberg News reports.
Apple?s iPhone is already a big moneymaker for the company, and looks to remain so for years to come, according to a new research report. For every dollar consumers are spending on Apple's high-end iPhone, the company is making a cool 55 cents after factoring in supply and manufacturing costs, according to an industry research firm. The San Jose Mercury News reports.
After the warranty runs out, iPhone replacement batteries will cost $86, says the San Jose Mercury News.
Accessories for the iPhone are hitting the market, and some are worthwhile, says the Wall Street Journal. The Journal also answers questions about the iPhone.
A Russian music site accused of copyright violations has closed down, but may operate on the Internet under a different name, says the New York Times.
Album sales have continued their downward slide this year, but sales of digital tracks are up almost 50 percent over this time last year, reports Associated Press.
Turtles will be used to test wireless networks, reports Associated Press.
Internet matchmaking is blooming in China, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
Credit card companies that process payments for Internet pirates are not liable for copyright infringement, a federal appeals court has ruled. The Los Angeles Times reports.
In the state of Washington, Microsoft is buying a large tract of land in Redmond from Nintendo, reports the Seattle Times.
There is discord within the National Hurricane Center, which provides hurricane weather information to TV and radio stations and Internet and print media, reports the Miami Herald.
In Venezuela, a media mogul and his network, Venevision, are learning to live with president Hugo Chavez, reports the New York Times.
Venezuela?s Radio Caracas Television, which was critical of Chavez and which went dark on May 27 after Chavez refused to renew its license, might seek to reach viewers via cable or satellite, according to the channel's top executive. Associated Press reports.
Blackberries will hit the market in China after eight years of efforts to obtain approval to sell them there, reports Associated Press.
Europe's major consumer group BEUC fears Internet search engine Google's takeover of online ad tracker DoubleClick will damage European Union privacy rights and limit consumers' choice of Web content, reports Associated Press.
Will Schaefer, composer of music themes for commercial TV shows including the Flintstones and I Dream Of Jeannie, has passed away, reports Associated Press.
Beverly Sills, who passed away at age 78, was the only opera singer ever to guest-host Johnny Carson?s Tonight show, and she made numerous other TV and radio appearances, reports the New York Times.
Steep increases in music royalty fees for Internet radio stations are scheduled to take effect July 15, and independent artists are fearful that they will no longer receive any airplay, according to an op-ed in the Baltimore Sun.
There is now a move to make radio stations pay musical artists and record labels royalty fees, just as they pay copyright and writers? royalties, reports Business Week.
Demand for advertising in U.S. business publications is eroding, says Media Daily News.
Local TV stations are already benefiting from spending by six presidential hopefuls, reports Media Daily News.
Regarding its broadcast of the upcoming Live Earth concert, NBC has learned lessons from its 2005 concert telecast, when there were major complaints about too many commercials, reports the Hollywood Reporter.
ABC World News with Charles Gibson has pulled ahead in the evening network news race, reports Variety.
The Tribune Co. faces key tests in finalizing the deal in which Chicago real estate magnate Sam Zell takes over as owner, reports the Los Angeles Times. This includes obtaining FCC waivers to take over TV stations in New York, Hartford, Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles where Tribune also owns major daily newspapers.
NBC says ads are still engaging in the fast-forward mode, according to Lost Remote.
On Tuesday evening?s Countdown With Keith Olbermann on MSNBC, Olbermann called on George W. Bush and Dick Cheney to resign their offices in the wake of Bush?s commutation of Scooter Libby?s 30-month prison sentence.
Alan Johnston, the BBC journalist held hostage in Gaza, was freed and handed over to Palestinian officials early today after a late-night deal with the Al Qaeda-inspired, clan-based group that kidnapped him in March. Reuters reports. The kidnapped newsman says it was like being "buried alive," reports Associated Press. Looking wan and thin, he is flying home to Great Britain, reports the New York Times. The release provides a public relations boost for Hamas, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Johnston found solace in the airwaves in listening to the BBC, reports the Los Angeles Times. Night after night for 114 days he lay alone in his Gaza jail, hoping to see the sun come up and dreaming of being free again, reports the McClatchy newspapers. He has recounted his long ordeal, reports Associated Press.
The number of classical music stations in the U.S. continues to dwindle. Milwaukee has lost its classical music FM station, WFMR 106.9, which has switched to a new music format. Milwaukee now joins Philadelphia, Detroit, Miami and other cities with no classical music station. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Southern Vermont recently got a new full-time classical FM service, a rare development these days in radio. Vermont Public Radio (VPR) is now offering a full-time, FM classical music service on WNCH 88.1 Norwich and WJAN 95.1 Sunderland, Vermont. It is also available online.
Back in the 1930s and 40s, the FCC encouraged local radio stations to provide airtime to local talent. Now in Pittsburgh, FM station WRRK 96.9 will devote its HD channel to local bands, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
Two-second ads have taken off on the radio, reports the Boston Globe.
PBS?s Tavis Smiley says the news media is ignoring the issues relevant to people of color, reports Cyber News Service.
An Islamic advocacy group is urging its supporters to call a Washington, D.C. radio station to "express your concerns about the Islamophobic attitudes" expressed by conservative columnist and author Cal Thomas. In a commentary on news-talk WTOP 103.5 radio Monday morning, Thomas discussed the car-bomb terror attacks recently thwarted in the United Kingdom. The eight Muslims arrested in connection with the plot include several physicians. "How much longer should we allow people from certain lands, with certain beliefs to come to Britain and America and build their mosques, teach hate, and plot to kill us?" Thomas asked. Cyber News Service reports.
This summer marks the 20th anniversary of the abolition of the FCC?s Fairness Doctrine. Former FCC chairman Dennis Patrick will speak on the impact of his decision to eliminate the doctrine on Wednesday, July 18, according to TV Newsday.
Cable TV companies are planning to charge more for current set-top boxes to help pay for new, more expensive versions mandated by the FCC. They say the price increases are a result of the FCC's push to spur competition for the boxes, which are required to receive digital programming and change channels. It's not yet clear how much the charges will rise, says Associated Press.
Analog TV's demise on February 17, 2009 will be a nuisance for some, as all broadcast TV stations in the U.S. convert to digital-only transmission on that date, reports Associated Press.
State senator Joseph Bruno, New York?s top Republican, has asked the Albany County district attorney to investigate the Albany Times Union newspaper, saying that a representative of the newspaper tried on Tuesday to commit extortion by pressuring him to buy advertisements in exchange for favorable coverage. The newspaper?s publisher denied the allegation, reports the New York Times.
The Boston Phoenix has released its 10th annual Muzzle awards, for individuals and agencies muzzling free speech.
A news anchor and reporter at WTXF channel 29 Philadelphia has been suspended after ranting within the newsroom that there is nothing wrong with the "n" word, reports the Philadelphia Daily News.
The school superintendent of Lewiston, Maine has sued the Fox News Channel, claiming irresponsible and reckless reporting, reports the Lewiston, Maine Sun Journal.
The Motion Picture Association of America has sued two Web sites, YouTVpc.com and Peekvid.com, alleging that they are offering pirated TV shows and movies, reports Broadcast Engineering.
Because of the high costs, NBC may drop original programming on Friday evenings, says Media Daily News.
As TV shows go online, the networks are trying to adapt ads to the Internet, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The arts channel Ovation TV has re-launched with national distribution, reports Associated Press.
The Spanish language TV network Univision had three of the top 10 shows in the 18-to-49 age demographic, reports Associated Press. In New York WXTV channel 41 is the Univision station.
Advertising is booming for Spanish-language consumer magazines, reports Media Daily News.
WHDH channel 7 Boston Randy Price's openness about being gay has made him a fixture in local TV news and a role model for gays. Off the air, he is active in the area of gay rights and animal rights, reports the Boston Globe.
Yahoo's users will see marketing pitches that are more personalized to where they live and what they like to do, part of an upgrade to the Internet site's advertising system. The company's new product, unveiled Monday, will allow advertisers to more easily customize their campaigns to specific groups of users, says the San Francisco Chronicle.
Broadband growth in the U.S. is slowing, reports Associated Press.
eBay wants to be a competitor of Craig's List, introducing a classified ad service online, reports the New York Times. It's the battle of the online-classified titans, says the San Francisco Chronicle. The world's largest online auction company will upgrade its Web site to placate sellers and revitalize the company's slumping sales growth, according to eBay chief executive Meg Whitman. Bloomberg News reports.
Apple?s iPhone is already a big moneymaker for the company, and looks to remain so for years to come, according to a new research report. For every dollar consumers are spending on Apple's high-end iPhone, the company is making a cool 55 cents after factoring in supply and manufacturing costs, according to an industry research firm. The San Jose Mercury News reports.
After the warranty runs out, iPhone replacement batteries will cost $86, says the San Jose Mercury News.
Accessories for the iPhone are hitting the market, and some are worthwhile, says the Wall Street Journal. The Journal also answers questions about the iPhone.
A Russian music site accused of copyright violations has closed down, but may operate on the Internet under a different name, says the New York Times.
Album sales have continued their downward slide this year, but sales of digital tracks are up almost 50 percent over this time last year, reports Associated Press.
Turtles will be used to test wireless networks, reports Associated Press.
Internet matchmaking is blooming in China, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
Credit card companies that process payments for Internet pirates are not liable for copyright infringement, a federal appeals court has ruled. The Los Angeles Times reports.
In the state of Washington, Microsoft is buying a large tract of land in Redmond from Nintendo, reports the Seattle Times.
There is discord within the National Hurricane Center, which provides hurricane weather information to TV and radio stations and Internet and print media, reports the Miami Herald.
In Venezuela, a media mogul and his network, Venevision, are learning to live with president Hugo Chavez, reports the New York Times.
Venezuela?s Radio Caracas Television, which was critical of Chavez and which went dark on May 27 after Chavez refused to renew its license, might seek to reach viewers via cable or satellite, according to the channel's top executive. Associated Press reports.
Blackberries will hit the market in China after eight years of efforts to obtain approval to sell them there, reports Associated Press.
Europe's major consumer group BEUC fears Internet search engine Google's takeover of online ad tracker DoubleClick will damage European Union privacy rights and limit consumers' choice of Web content, reports Associated Press.
Will Schaefer, composer of music themes for commercial TV shows including the Flintstones and I Dream Of Jeannie, has passed away, reports Associated Press.
Beverly Sills, who passed away at age 78, was the only opera singer ever to guest-host Johnny Carson?s Tonight show, and she made numerous other TV and radio appearances, reports the New York Times.
Steep increases in music royalty fees for Internet radio stations are scheduled to take effect July 15, and independent artists are fearful that they will no longer receive any airplay, according to an op-ed in the Baltimore Sun.
There is now a move to make radio stations pay musical artists and record labels royalty fees, just as they pay copyright and writers? royalties, reports Business Week.
Demand for advertising in U.S. business publications is eroding, says Media Daily News.
Local TV stations are already benefiting from spending by six presidential hopefuls, reports Media Daily News.
Regarding its broadcast of the upcoming Live Earth concert, NBC has learned lessons from its 2005 concert telecast, when there were major complaints about too many commercials, reports the Hollywood Reporter.
ABC World News with Charles Gibson has pulled ahead in the evening network news race, reports Variety.
The Tribune Co. faces key tests in finalizing the deal in which Chicago real estate magnate Sam Zell takes over as owner, reports the Los Angeles Times. This includes obtaining FCC waivers to take over TV stations in New York, Hartford, Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles where Tribune also owns major daily newspapers.
NBC says ads are still engaging in the fast-forward mode, according to Lost Remote.
On Tuesday evening?s Countdown With Keith Olbermann on MSNBC, Olbermann called on George W. Bush and Dick Cheney to resign their offices in the wake of Bush?s commutation of Scooter Libby?s 30-month prison sentence.
Media Briefing for Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Conservative Internet bloggers and radio talk show hosts form a unified voice, says the Wall Street Journal.
The backlog of pending federal Freedom of Information requests is out of control, according to a study. Associated Press reports.
With the presidential primaries six months away, Nielsen says political ads are already flowing into local TV markets, according to Media Week.
Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has placed more TV ads on the air than all the other presidential hopefuls combined, says Associated Press. Romney has been responsible for more than 4,500 TV ads so far, says the Hollywood Reporter.
There will be television in all New York City cabs by October, with programming from NBC, WNBC channel 4, and Clear Channel, reports Media Daily News.
Fast food chain Jack in the Box can continue to air TV ads that make a rival restaurant the butt of its jokes, under a ruling yesterday by a federal judge, reports Associated Press.
The Association of Public Television Stations has created the Digital Rights Coalition to lobby for broadening noncommercial stations' exemptions from copyright law to reflect new delivery platforms. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Iran has launched a 24-hour English language satellite news channel, aimed at competing with the BBC and CNN. The New York Times reports. Iran's combative president launched the channel, saying it is directed at countering western points of view on other news channels, reports Associated Press.
The San Francisco Chronicle has video and translation of the cartoon being run on a Palestinian Hamas channel, showing the cartoon character Farfour being "martyred" by the Israelis.
Hamas has taken a step to try to force the release of a BBC journalist who was captured by radical Islamist kidnappers in March in Gaza, reports the New York Times. Hamas militia have taken up positions around the area where the radical group is holding out, says Associated Press.
These days TV networks never use the word "cancel" when they terminate shows. Instead a show is "Pulled Indefinitely," taken "Off the Schedule" or placed on "Permanent Hiatus." The Los Angeles Times reports.
A new radio guide in Minnesota. Radio Magazine, is hitting the newsstands in September, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
The high-stakes battle over royalty payments for streaming music on the Internet has helped spark a parallel proposal that could be even more controversial and involve even more money. A group of artists called the musicFIRST Coalition, including such well-known stars as Christina Aguilera, Jimmy Buffett, Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez, Toby Keith and John Legend, wants over-the-air radio to pay performance royalties for broadcasting recorded music. The New York Daily News reports. Frank Sinatra was the first to press for royalties for artists, says the Washington Post.
There is a sign of a possible settlement in the dispute over proposed steep increases in music royalty fees for Internet stations. Forbes reports. Radio Ink has some of the details.
While most iPhone owners couldn't wait to try out their pricey new gadgets, a few raced to break them apart. The dismantled, and in some cases, permanently busted, iPhones revealed one of Apple's closely guarded secrets: Being sought were the names of the companies that supplied the chips and other electronic components for the highly anticipated device. Associated Press reports.
How many iPhones has Apple sold since they went on sale Friday evening? As many as 700,000, reports the San Jose Mercury.
Yahoo is aiming to personalize its ads, and charge more. Travel is the first industry buying, says Bloomberg News.
Seeking to lift advertising dollars, Sony will be tracking user data, in a project involving the Nielsen Co., reports the Boston Globe. Nielsen, known for keeping track of TV viewership, is keeping track of the games people play, says the Los Angeles Times.
Opera star Beverly Sills, who has passed away, was also a popular television performer, having sung entire operas on PBS over the years, among other things, reports the Baltimore Sun. She made her debut at age 7 in a radio commercial, singing for Rinso laundry soap.
The federal government's War On Drugs has hit an Indian reservation. The federal Drug Enforcement Administration has been going after the Oglala Lakotas for trying to grow industrial hemp. The DEA comes across as not only heartless but they come across as idiots, according to the New York Times review of the documentary, Standing Silent Nation, featured on P.O.V. tonight at 10 on Thirteen/WNET.
The rule of law has come to China, and in the past quarter century, 400 law schools have opened in the world's most populous nation. The issue is examined tonight on The People's Court on Wide Angle on Thirteen/WNET at 9, reports the New York Times.
Equitrekking anyone? The horseback riding travel series is coming to PBS on Saturdays in July, beginning July 9 at 2 p.m. on KRMA-Channel 6 Denver, leading off with a Colorado episode. Host-producer Darley Newman taped it in the state last summer. The episodes are barely concealed advertisements for the guest ranches and working cattle ranches they cover, but that's nothing new in travel shows, says the Denver Post. In the northeast it is seen on WGBX channel 44 Boston.
Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. has purchased two weeklies in the Bronx, the Bronx Times and the Bronx Times Reporter, for an undisclosed sum, reports the New York Times.
The founder of the company that spawned the social networking site My Space, says he would be willing to put together a bid for Dow Jones, owner of the Wall Street Journal. Rupert Murdoch has already bid $5 billion, and many reporters are concerned that editorial independence will be compromised if Murdoch prevails. The Los Angeles Times reports.
Even with all the new technology, the jukebox ? which first appeared in the black community in the 1930s ? remains a constant favorite and is ingrained in American culture, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
As more listeners are finding that with HD radio, including second music channels of terrestrial FM stations, satellite radio is feeling the competition, says the Washington Post.
The Live Earth concerts are scheduled to be televised worldwide, including on NBC and the BBC on Saturday. More than 150 acts ?
including such marquee names as Madonna, the Police, Bon Jovi and Black Eyed Peas ?
will perform at the Live Earth series of benefit concerts in support of a greener planet. The Hollywood Reporter has the story.
Bill Gates is interested in investing in the troubled PlanetOut, which publishes some of the top gay magazines including the Advocate and Out . This report is in the Seattle Times.
The mayor of Los Angeles who is involved in a divorce, has acknowledged that he is involved in a relationship with a TV reporter at a Spanish language station, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The Seattle Times art critic reviews the PBS series The Power Of Art which was telecast in June.
NBC is experimenting with fast-forward ads, says the New York Times.
Julie Chen, host of CBS's Big Brother, and who is married to CBS CEO Les Moonves, is profiled in USA Today.
CBS won't deny it's bring back Imus, according to a column on the Maynard Institute Web site.
Conservative Internet bloggers and radio talk show hosts form a unified voice, says the Wall Street Journal.
The backlog of pending federal Freedom of Information requests is out of control, according to a study. Associated Press reports.
With the presidential primaries six months away, Nielsen says political ads are already flowing into local TV markets, according to Media Week.
Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has placed more TV ads on the air than all the other presidential hopefuls combined, says Associated Press. Romney has been responsible for more than 4,500 TV ads so far, says the Hollywood Reporter.
There will be television in all New York City cabs by October, with programming from NBC, WNBC channel 4, and Clear Channel, reports Media Daily News.
Fast food chain Jack in the Box can continue to air TV ads that make a rival restaurant the butt of its jokes, under a ruling yesterday by a federal judge, reports Associated Press.
The Association of Public Television Stations has created the Digital Rights Coalition to lobby for broadening noncommercial stations' exemptions from copyright law to reflect new delivery platforms. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Iran has launched a 24-hour English language satellite news channel, aimed at competing with the BBC and CNN. The New York Times reports. Iran's combative president launched the channel, saying it is directed at countering western points of view on other news channels, reports Associated Press.
The San Francisco Chronicle has video and translation of the cartoon being run on a Palestinian Hamas channel, showing the cartoon character Farfour being "martyred" by the Israelis.
Hamas has taken a step to try to force the release of a BBC journalist who was captured by radical Islamist kidnappers in March in Gaza, reports the New York Times. Hamas militia have taken up positions around the area where the radical group is holding out, says Associated Press.
These days TV networks never use the word "cancel" when they terminate shows. Instead a show is "Pulled Indefinitely," taken "Off the Schedule" or placed on "Permanent Hiatus." The Los Angeles Times reports.
A new radio guide in Minnesota. Radio Magazine, is hitting the newsstands in September, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
The high-stakes battle over royalty payments for streaming music on the Internet has helped spark a parallel proposal that could be even more controversial and involve even more money. A group of artists called the musicFIRST Coalition, including such well-known stars as Christina Aguilera, Jimmy Buffett, Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez, Toby Keith and John Legend, wants over-the-air radio to pay performance royalties for broadcasting recorded music. The New York Daily News reports. Frank Sinatra was the first to press for royalties for artists, says the Washington Post.
There is a sign of a possible settlement in the dispute over proposed steep increases in music royalty fees for Internet stations. Forbes reports. Radio Ink has some of the details.
While most iPhone owners couldn't wait to try out their pricey new gadgets, a few raced to break them apart. The dismantled, and in some cases, permanently busted, iPhones revealed one of Apple's closely guarded secrets: Being sought were the names of the companies that supplied the chips and other electronic components for the highly anticipated device. Associated Press reports.
How many iPhones has Apple sold since they went on sale Friday evening? As many as 700,000, reports the San Jose Mercury.
Yahoo is aiming to personalize its ads, and charge more. Travel is the first industry buying, says Bloomberg News.
Seeking to lift advertising dollars, Sony will be tracking user data, in a project involving the Nielsen Co., reports the Boston Globe. Nielsen, known for keeping track of TV viewership, is keeping track of the games people play, says the Los Angeles Times.
Opera star Beverly Sills, who has passed away, was also a popular television performer, having sung entire operas on PBS over the years, among other things, reports the Baltimore Sun. She made her debut at age 7 in a radio commercial, singing for Rinso laundry soap.
The federal government's War On Drugs has hit an Indian reservation. The federal Drug Enforcement Administration has been going after the Oglala Lakotas for trying to grow industrial hemp. The DEA comes across as not only heartless but they come across as idiots, according to the New York Times review of the documentary, Standing Silent Nation, featured on P.O.V. tonight at 10 on Thirteen/WNET.
The rule of law has come to China, and in the past quarter century, 400 law schools have opened in the world's most populous nation. The issue is examined tonight on The People's Court on Wide Angle on Thirteen/WNET at 9, reports the New York Times.
Equitrekking anyone? The horseback riding travel series is coming to PBS on Saturdays in July, beginning July 9 at 2 p.m. on KRMA-Channel 6 Denver, leading off with a Colorado episode. Host-producer Darley Newman taped it in the state last summer. The episodes are barely concealed advertisements for the guest ranches and working cattle ranches they cover, but that's nothing new in travel shows, says the Denver Post. In the northeast it is seen on WGBX channel 44 Boston.
Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. has purchased two weeklies in the Bronx, the Bronx Times and the Bronx Times Reporter, for an undisclosed sum, reports the New York Times.
The founder of the company that spawned the social networking site My Space, says he would be willing to put together a bid for Dow Jones, owner of the Wall Street Journal. Rupert Murdoch has already bid $5 billion, and many reporters are concerned that editorial independence will be compromised if Murdoch prevails. The Los Angeles Times reports.
Even with all the new technology, the jukebox ? which first appeared in the black community in the 1930s ? remains a constant favorite and is ingrained in American culture, says the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
As more listeners are finding that with HD radio, including second music channels of terrestrial FM stations, satellite radio is feeling the competition, says the Washington Post.
The Live Earth concerts are scheduled to be televised worldwide, including on NBC and the BBC on Saturday. More than 150 acts ?
including such marquee names as Madonna, the Police, Bon Jovi and Black Eyed Peas ?
will perform at the Live Earth series of benefit concerts in support of a greener planet. The Hollywood Reporter has the story.
Bill Gates is interested in investing in the troubled PlanetOut, which publishes some of the top gay magazines including the Advocate and Out . This report is in the Seattle Times.
The mayor of Los Angeles who is involved in a divorce, has acknowledged that he is involved in a relationship with a TV reporter at a Spanish language station, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The Seattle Times art critic reviews the PBS series The Power Of Art which was telecast in June.
NBC is experimenting with fast-forward ads, says the New York Times.
Julie Chen, host of CBS's Big Brother, and who is married to CBS CEO Les Moonves, is profiled in USA Today.
CBS won't deny it's bring back Imus, according to a column on the Maynard Institute Web site.
Media Briefing for Monday, July 2, 2007
The Task Force on Media and Childhood Obesity is looking to release its recommendations to Congress on July 11, according to one of the members. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Some requests for documents and information made under the federal Freedom of Information Act languish for years, some going back to the Ronald Reagan era, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
At the FCC hearing on localism in broadcasting and consolidation of ownership of broadcast radio and TV stations in Portland, Maine, speakers spoke of little or no local coverage on Maine stations now owned by out-of-state conglomerates, while some spoke of the service the stations provide, according to MultiChannel News.
There is a loss of democracy on the airwaves, evidenced at the Portland, Maine FCC hearings, says the Seattle Times.
There is a glitch in plans to introduce TV service on subways in Atlanta and other markets. The National Association of Broadcasters says the FCC has rejected a waiver of rules regarding interference on the FM band, which had been requested by The Rail Network which wishes to launch television service on big-city subways. The request is detailed in the Truth, Justice and Telecom Policy blog.
CBS and Fox recently rejected TV ads for condoms, but there is a role for television in sexual health, says the Boston Globe.
House Detectives returned for a new season this past week on PBS, with a featured segment on Amos and Andy, the highly popular radio and later CBS television comedy series that stereotyped black people, reports the New York Amsterdam News. House Detectives is seen Monday evenings at 9 on Thirteen/WNET.
The black press, so vital in the civil rights movement in this nation during its history, is preparing the next generation of editors and reports, reports the New York Amsterdam News.
Is the fight against steep increases in music royalty fees in two weeks the last stand of Internet radio? Time magazine examines this question.
Hamas has killed off its Mickey Mouse look-alike on its television programming, a mouse that spewed virulently anti-Israeli sentiments . In the final skit, the mouse "Farfour" was killed by an actor posing as an Israeli official trying to buy Farfour's land. Farfour was martyred while defending his land," said Sara, the teen presenter. He was killed "by the killers of children," she added. Associated Press reports.
The TV and radio editor of the Rocky Mountain News of Denver, Dusty Saunders, discusses his recent retirement after 53 years.
MSNBC anchor Mika Brezinski refused to read a news story about Paris Hilton, despite pressure from the news producers, says TV 3 which has a video if the incident.
MSNBC has decided that former conservative Republican Florida Congressman Joe Scarborough will take over the morning show formerly hosted by Don Imus, on a permanent basis, reports the Washington Post.
NBC has scheduled two presidential debates for January, reports Variety.
Last week's U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the campaign finance reform law may bring a crush of late-breaking political ads in the presidential campaign, reports the Boston Globe.
The NAACP has endorsed the Sirius-XM satellite radio merger, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
In Connecticut, judges have approved a pilot program putting cameras in the courtroom, reports the Associated Press. The vote by the state's judges to allow cameras was overwhelming, says the Connecticut Post.
Movie critic Joel Siegel of ABC's Good Morning America and WABC-TV channel 7 New York, has died at age 63, reports Associated Press. He was able to capture the essence of a film without giving too much away, says the New York Times.
Network television can't get enough of lists, says Associated Press.
What happens when blogging involves events for which broadcasters have exclusive rights? The Hartford Courant reports.
A small but growing number of presidential hopefuls are using text messaging to the cellphones of possible supporters, in their campaign efforts, reports the Washington Post.
Sometimes political and business people are subjected to scathing attacks on the Internet, with postings that include rumors and even lies ? postings that come up in search engines such as Google. Now the attacked individuals are bringing in professionals such as Reputation Defender to help deal with the situation, and as much as possible set the record straight, reports the Washington Post.
Even with the spectacular rise of the Internet, it may be too early for individual community news websites to thrive. The Backfence group of community Web sites in northern Virginia, in Bethesda, Maryland, and in California, is shutting down, according to a message on the Backfence Web site today.
People skipped work and played hooky to get in line to buy an iPhone Friday. Apple fueled the frenzy by teasing about enticing features of the iPhone, while refusing to let anyone near, reports the Boston Globe. The iPhone is not only cool, but is groundbreaking, says the Boston Globe. People lined up in long lines in Pittsburgh Friday to get the iPhone, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
There are some areas in the U.S. where the iPhone does not work, at least not yet, says Associated Press.
The iPhone is beautiful and sleek but also frustrating, and there are glitches, says the San Jose Mercury News. For the iPhone there are some shortages in stores, and activation problems as well, reports the New York Times.
Blogs continue to simmer with complaints from people who waited months to buy an iPhone and now are experiencing problems activating it, reports Associated Press.
All the buzz about new technological and electronic devices like the iPhone are tempting for investors, but gadget stocks are no sure thing, says the Washington Post.
In Japan and South Korea, the iPhone is being greeted with yawns, reports the New York Times.
The FCC will be acting as referee in the dispute between large and small telephone companies over the issue of free telephone conference calls, reports the Washington Post.
Can Yahoo president Susan Decker turn Yahoo into Google? The New York Times reports.
Yahoo is launching behavior-based smart ads, which epitomize the blending of brand and direct response advertising. It allows advertisers to target their message and creative on-the-fly and triggered by online user behavior, according to Media Daily News. Online customized ads have moved a step closer at Yahoo, says the New York Times.
Blogs are giving painters a new way to sell their art, says the Boston Globe.
Online lending and borrowing is reshaping the banking business, according to the Boston Globe.
The impact of new technology on the small upstate New York community of Corinth, population 6,000, is examined in the New York Times.
The popularity of mobile video is suggesting the great advertising potential of the medium, reports Media Post.com.
In Seattle, some 200 black publishers have challenged Microsoft for a fair share of advertising dollars, reports the New York Amsterdam News.
AT&T has acquired rural wireless provider Cellular One which operates in 17 states, reports Associated Press.
Want a Wii? Come early and get in line, since supplies are behind demand, says Associated Press.
The Web-based teen soap opera Prom Queen is being offered as a full-length download on Amazon.com Inc.'s Unbox video store, taking its place for the first time along Hollywood films and TV shows. Prom Queen was produced by Vuguru, a new media studio backed by former Disney CEO Michael Eisner. It ran for 80 episodes on the Internet, with the finale appearing June 20. Associated Press reports.
A political battle is raging in Russian cyberspace. Opposition parties and independent media say murky forces have committed vast resources to hacking and crippling their Web sites in attacks similar to those that hit tech-savvy Estonia as the Baltic nation sparred with Russia over a Soviet war memorial. While they offer no proof, the groups all point the finger at the Kremlin, calling the electronic siege an attempt to stifle Russia's last source of free, unfiltered information. according to Associated Press.
A start-up wireless company has proposed a high-stakes debate with Verizon Communications before U.S. regulators considering how the government should conduct an auction of valuable wireless spectrum. Frontline Wireless has asked the FCC to hold the debate early next month as the agency weighs competing proposals for the auction 700 megahertz band airwaves. The airwaves are being returned by TV broadcasters as they move from analog to digital signals February 17, 2009 and are considered valuable because they can travel long distances and penetrate thick walls. The auction is seen as the last opportunity for a new player to enter the wireless market. FCC officials are expected to hold the sale later this year and are in the process of setting the auction rules, reports Reuters.
The U.S. government needs better ways to measure broadband availability and adoption in order to develop policies that focus on ways to use broadband to improve the economy, according to several telecom experts. PC World reports.
The CEO of Citadel, the radio group broadcaster which just took over ABC radio including WABC 770 and WPLJ 95.5 in New York, says he thinks turning over advertising inventory to Google is a flawed model that hurts business, according to Lost Remote.
The conservative right, which has dominated talk radio on the AM dial, is concerned about the Democrats being in power now and possibly reintroducing the Fairness Doctrine, according to a column on Alternet on the liberal blog Truthout. Senator John McCain is backing a bill that would prohibit the return the Fairness Doctrine, says Broadcasting & Cable.
British Internet news sites are seeking readers in the United States, says the New York Times.
A new state law that took effect in Indiana yesterday requires that mobile homes be equipped with special weather alert radios, that would set off a loud tone when tornadoes hit an area, reports Associated Press.
The Washington Post reviews the PBS production of A Capitol Fourth Wednesday evening at 8 on Thirteen/WNET.
In Pittsburgh, PBS station WQED channel 13 has dropped Lifequest, a health and lifestyle show, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
The New York Post says NBC Dateline's To Catch A Predator has been renewed.
The Task Force on Media and Childhood Obesity is looking to release its recommendations to Congress on July 11, according to one of the members. Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Some requests for documents and information made under the federal Freedom of Information Act languish for years, some going back to the Ronald Reagan era, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
At the FCC hearing on localism in broadcasting and consolidation of ownership of broadcast radio and TV stations in Portland, Maine, speakers spoke of little or no local coverage on Maine stations now owned by out-of-state conglomerates, while some spoke of the service the stations provide, according to MultiChannel News.
There is a loss of democracy on the airwaves, evidenced at the Portland, Maine FCC hearings, says the Seattle Times.
There is a glitch in plans to introduce TV service on subways in Atlanta and other markets. The National Association of Broadcasters says the FCC has rejected a waiver of rules regarding interference on the FM band, which had been requested by The Rail Network which wishes to launch television service on big-city subways. The request is detailed in the Truth, Justice and Telecom Policy blog.
CBS and Fox recently rejected TV ads for condoms, but there is a role for television in sexual health, says the Boston Globe.
House Detectives returned for a new season this past week on PBS, with a featured segment on Amos and Andy, the highly popular radio and later CBS television comedy series that stereotyped black people, reports the New York Amsterdam News. House Detectives is seen Monday evenings at 9 on Thirteen/WNET.
The black press, so vital in the civil rights movement in this nation during its history, is preparing the next generation of editors and reports, reports the New York Amsterdam News.
Is the fight against steep increases in music royalty fees in two weeks the last stand of Internet radio? Time magazine examines this question.
Hamas has killed off its Mickey Mouse look-alike on its television programming, a mouse that spewed virulently anti-Israeli sentiments . In the final skit, the mouse "Farfour" was killed by an actor posing as an Israeli official trying to buy Farfour's land. Farfour was martyred while defending his land," said Sara, the teen presenter. He was killed "by the killers of children," she added. Associated Press reports.
The TV and radio editor of the Rocky Mountain News of Denver, Dusty Saunders, discusses his recent retirement after 53 years.
MSNBC anchor Mika Brezinski refused to read a news story about Paris Hilton, despite pressure from the news producers, says TV 3 which has a video if the incident.
MSNBC has decided that former conservative Republican Florida Congressman Joe Scarborough will take over the morning show formerly hosted by Don Imus, on a permanent basis, reports the Washington Post.
NBC has scheduled two presidential debates for January, reports Variety.
Last week's U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the campaign finance reform law may bring a crush of late-breaking political ads in the presidential campaign, reports the Boston Globe.
The NAACP has endorsed the Sirius-XM satellite radio merger, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
In Connecticut, judges have approved a pilot program putting cameras in the courtroom, reports the Associated Press. The vote by the state's judges to allow cameras was overwhelming, says the Connecticut Post.
Movie critic Joel Siegel of ABC's Good Morning America and WABC-TV channel 7 New York, has died at age 63, reports Associated Press. He was able to capture the essence of a film without giving too much away, says the New York Times.
Network television can't get enough of lists, says Associated Press.
What happens when blogging involves events for which broadcasters have exclusive rights? The Hartford Courant reports.
A small but growing number of presidential hopefuls are using text messaging to the cellphones of possible supporters, in their campaign efforts, reports the Washington Post.
Sometimes political and business people are subjected to scathing attacks on the Internet, with postings that include rumors and even lies ? postings that come up in search engines such as Google. Now the attacked individuals are bringing in professionals such as Reputation Defender to help deal with the situation, and as much as possible set the record straight, reports the Washington Post.
Even with the spectacular rise of the Internet, it may be too early for individual community news websites to thrive. The Backfence group of community Web sites in northern Virginia, in Bethesda, Maryland, and in California, is shutting down, according to a message on the Backfence Web site today.
People skipped work and played hooky to get in line to buy an iPhone Friday. Apple fueled the frenzy by teasing about enticing features of the iPhone, while refusing to let anyone near, reports the Boston Globe. The iPhone is not only cool, but is groundbreaking, says the Boston Globe. People lined up in long lines in Pittsburgh Friday to get the iPhone, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
There are some areas in the U.S. where the iPhone does not work, at least not yet, says Associated Press.
The iPhone is beautiful and sleek but also frustrating, and there are glitches, says the San Jose Mercury News. For the iPhone there are some shortages in stores, and activation problems as well, reports the New York Times.
Blogs continue to simmer with complaints from people who waited months to buy an iPhone and now are experiencing problems activating it, reports Associated Press.
All the buzz about new technological and electronic devices like the iPhone are tempting for investors, but gadget stocks are no sure thing, says the Washington Post.
In Japan and South Korea, the iPhone is being greeted with yawns, reports the New York Times.
The FCC will be acting as referee in the dispute between large and small telephone companies over the issue of free telephone conference calls, reports the Washington Post.
Can Yahoo president Susan Decker turn Yahoo into Google? The New York Times reports.
Yahoo is launching behavior-based smart ads, which epitomize the blending of brand and direct response advertising. It allows advertisers to target their message and creative on-the-fly and triggered by online user behavior, according to Media Daily News. Online customized ads have moved a step closer at Yahoo, says the New York Times.
Blogs are giving painters a new way to sell their art, says the Boston Globe.
Online lending and borrowing is reshaping the banking business, according to the Boston Globe.
The impact of new technology on the small upstate New York community of Corinth, population 6,000, is examined in the New York Times.
The popularity of mobile video is suggesting the great advertising potential of the medium, reports Media Post.com.
In Seattle, some 200 black publishers have challenged Microsoft for a fair share of advertising dollars, reports the New York Amsterdam News.
AT&T has acquired rural wireless provider Cellular One which operates in 17 states, reports Associated Press.
Want a Wii? Come early and get in line, since supplies are behind demand, says Associated Press.
The Web-based teen soap opera Prom Queen is being offered as a full-length download on Amazon.com Inc.'s Unbox video store, taking its place for the first time along Hollywood films and TV shows. Prom Queen was produced by Vuguru, a new media studio backed by former Disney CEO Michael Eisner. It ran for 80 episodes on the Internet, with the finale appearing June 20. Associated Press reports.
A political battle is raging in Russian cyberspace. Opposition parties and independent media say murky forces have committed vast resources to hacking and crippling their Web sites in attacks similar to those that hit tech-savvy Estonia as the Baltic nation sparred with Russia over a Soviet war memorial. While they offer no proof, the groups all point the finger at the Kremlin, calling the electronic siege an attempt to stifle Russia's last source of free, unfiltered information. according to Associated Press.
A start-up wireless company has proposed a high-stakes debate with Verizon Communications before U.S. regulators considering how the government should conduct an auction of valuable wireless spectrum. Frontline Wireless has asked the FCC to hold the debate early next month as the agency weighs competing proposals for the auction 700 megahertz band airwaves. The airwaves are being returned by TV broadcasters as they move from analog to digital signals February 17, 2009 and are considered valuable because they can travel long distances and penetrate thick walls. The auction is seen as the last opportunity for a new player to enter the wireless market. FCC officials are expected to hold the sale later this year and are in the process of setting the auction rules, reports Reuters.
The U.S. government needs better ways to measure broadband availability and adoption in order to develop policies that focus on ways to use broadband to improve the economy, according to several telecom experts. PC World reports.
The CEO of Citadel, the radio group broadcaster which just took over ABC radio including WABC 770 and WPLJ 95.5 in New York, says he thinks turning over advertising inventory to Google is a flawed model that hurts business, according to Lost Remote.
The conservative right, which has dominated talk radio on the AM dial, is concerned about the Democrats being in power now and possibly reintroducing the Fairness Doctrine, according to a column on Alternet on the liberal blog Truthout. Senator John McCain is backing a bill that would prohibit the return the Fairness Doctrine, says Broadcasting & Cable.
British Internet news sites are seeking readers in the United States, says the New York Times.
A new state law that took effect in Indiana yesterday requires that mobile homes be equipped with special weather alert radios, that would set off a loud tone when tornadoes hit an area, reports Associated Press.
The Washington Post reviews the PBS production of A Capitol Fourth Wednesday evening at 8 on Thirteen/WNET.
In Pittsburgh, PBS station WQED channel 13 has dropped Lifequest, a health and lifestyle show, reports the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
The New York Post says NBC Dateline's To Catch A Predator has been renewed.
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