by Wayne Friedman on Apr 30, 10:45 AM
Vanity Fair is a magazine for adult readers. Fifteen-year old Disney phenomenon Miley Cyrus of "Hannah Montana" is not an adult -- yet.
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 29, 11:00 AM
Cross-marketing TV shows across fiercely competitive networks is always a tough job. Now the word is that NBC is taking an even more diplomatic approach when it comes to that network's seven-year ending run of "Scrubs" -- which will move over to ABC next year. NBC is calling the comedy's last show a "season finale" --which to be fair, it is. But NBC is barely giving the show any sort of major send-off.
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 28, 11:00 AM
It's a new season for the NFL Network -- and hopefully there'll be new plays. Once again, the network is working to convince the biggest cable operators in the land that they need to put NFL on their basic tiers that go to most TV consumers.
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 25, 2:15 PM
New Federal rules say TV stations should keep lists of local programming -- but not necessarily run any programming on that list. Huh?
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 24, 1:30 PM
In 10 years from now, the upfront advertising market will still be around. But it may not exactly look the same. Tiny Fey may be hosting a fingernail-biting show on Gawker.com that you might want to buy for your nail polish client.
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 23, 1:46 PM
Take those Earth Day messages from your friendly media giants and put them to good use. Here are two of them: NBC's "Green is Universal" and Fox's "Green It. Mean It." Earth Day now gets a bump up from its 1970s fringe appeal to non-mainstream folks and older hippies. Now green is big business -- at least when consumers recognize there are products made from the earth's limited resources, like "The Jerry Springer Show."
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 22, 2:30 PM
Another pay TV movie channel? Is that really Viacom's new business need? Is that what consumers need? No. With the burgeoning number of digital TV alternatives Viacom has something else up its sleeve -- it better. Listening to CBS's Showtime and Viacom executives explain their sides of the story, the takeaway seems that Viacom may have pushed into launching another pay TV movie channel after Showtime balked in paying too much for a new Paramount Pictures deal.
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 21, 11:30 AM
The original threat of the Internet to TV networks may not be just gossip that more people watching a streaming or download of a TV episode would hurt traditional TV ratings. In virtually every bit of research so far, TV network researchers will tell you that's not the case -- that online exposure of TV shows only helps drive back viewers to the traditional TV airwaves, acting as a marketing tool. But CW is seeing something different. And, in contrast to virtually every other network's Internet programming effort, CW won't be streaming the first five episodes of the new season …
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 18, 1:00 PM
Comcast's Versus and the Golf Channel want to tie it all together. But is the bow big enough?
by Wayne Friedman on Apr 17, 1:30 PM
Exhausted after doing a series of walking lunges in the cardio room of my gym, I look down at the floor, still huffing and puffing. What do I see? A bunch of worn yoga mats with this message: "Silk. Soy Milk." I smile. Nice target. The fine makers of Silk Soy Milk perhaps couldn't get me on TV. So they found another way - targeting as well all those doing downward-facing dogs.