"Lord of the Rings" hero Elijah Wood has landed his first starring role on a television series with the FX comedy pilot Wilfred. The project, according to executive producer David Zuckerman, is "about a guy (Wood), the girl next door and a mixed-breed dog, Wilfred, who is part Labrador retriever and part Russell Crowe on a bender." The title role will be played by Jason Gann, who co-created and starred in the Australian series upon which the FX show is based. Zuckerman ("Family Guy," "American Dad") wrote the adapted pilot script. Wood next will be seen this fall in …

The global economic crisis has affected entertainment industry bottom lines, but there has been an exception. It's not a hot new media kid on the block. It's the unsexy 35-year-old pay TV biz, which has held its own and even experienced growth the past couple of years. Largest pay service HBO not only boasts the most premium subscribers, but the Time Warner-owned paybox also has the biggest profit margins. In 2009, it received an average of $6.25 a month from 41 million subscribers, generating operating revenue of $3.84 billion against operating expenses of only $2.48 billion, according to analysis …

TVNewser obtained an email Cooper sent to the staff of his show "Anderson Cooper 360" that attempts to dash Wrap reports of tension behind the scenes at CNN. Cooper's email said: "Just in case you happen to believe what you read on the internet from unnamed sources, I just want you to know I am very happy at CNN, have no plans to leave, and am not in conflict with anyone. I am really proud of the work all of us are doing here in the Gulf, and all the other stuff just seems like silly gossip and sour grapes. …

Four months after taking back the "Tonight Show," Jay Leno's ratings are actually behind those of Conan O'Brien. The reality is starting to sink in at NBC that Leno is not only getting fewer viewers, but that his show is costing the cash-strapped network between $10 million and $15 million more a year than Conan's show did. Leno's higher salary -- $30 million per year vs. Conan's $15 million -- plus the cost of his bigger production staff is pushing the show into the red, according to insiders. Leno beats David Letterman most weeks, ABC's nightly newsmagazine, "Nightline," is …

The 2010 Tour de France will mark the last time Lance Armstrong competes in the famed cycling competition and Versus has plenty of ways for fans to go along for his final ride. Presenting the race for a 10th year, Comcast's national sports service will provide 14 hours of linear TV coverage daily in full high-definition over the course of 23 days. The 97th edition of the race begins July 3 at 11:30 a.m., live from Rotterdam Netherlands. Buoyed by Armstrong's return, Versus saw its average viewership grow 98% to 529,926 in 2009 from 267,722 in 2008, …

This weekend, auto racing will join the growing list of sports to be produced live in 3D. NASCAR Media Group and Turner Sports are producing two 3D feeds from Saturday's Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway, one focused on the track and one on pit row. The feeds will be available online, through TNT RaceBuddy on NASCAR.com, and on air, through DirecTV, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Bright House Networks. To get the 3D views out to fans, both feeds will be multiplexed into a single MPEG4 stream that will be sent up via satellite. Distributors DirecTV, Comcast, Time …

Out-of-home viewing has given ESPN/ABC's 2010 FIFA World Cup coverage a 47% lift over its linear TV deliveries, and the majority of those bonus eyeballs are gravitating to the Internet. According to ESPN Research+Analytics' analysis of Knowledge Networks data, Internet platforms (including streams on ESPN3) have boosted the networks' World Cup reach by 20% over TV numbers. Out-of-home TV accounts for a 15% lift, although those furtive barroom sessions are higher (18%) on the East Coast, where the matches air during business hours. All told, non-TV media makes up 32% of alternative viewership, with radio (8%) and mobile devices …

Comcast Corp. will appoint a Latino to its board of directors within 24 months of closing a deal to acquire control of NBC Universal, the Philadelphia cable company said Wednesday. Having a Latino director is part of a broader agreement with Hispanic groups to win support for the NBC Universal deal. Comcast corporate directors earn about $300,000 a year, according to company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Lillian Rodriguez, chairwoman of the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda, said Hispanic groups did not commit to specific employment or procurement goals for Hispanics because they needed first to obtain information …

Fans and subscribers were thrilled this week when content from Domino began reappearing, rather bizarrely, under the Brides magazine masthead on the company's Brides.com website. Each piece is packaged with a fresh headline targeted at Brides readers, reference to the Domino writers who put together the original story, and a note in gray print: "This story originally appeared as ... in Domino magazine." Only 16 pieces are online now, but Brides.com Editor-in-Chief Julie Raimondi told sister site Shelterpop that many others would be added in the coming months. "I'm also thrilled to announce that Brides.com has been granted …

The news agency run by China's ruling Communist Party launched a global English-language television channel Thursday as part of efforts to expand its influence abroad, reports AP. Experts say China's media expansion also results from unhappiness with much of the international coverage of sensitive events in China, such as Tibet and human rights. The government has accused international media organizations of being biased and focused on negative news.China Xinhua News Network Corp. (CNC) began broadcasting its first English TV service, CNC World, around the clock on Thursday, including news segments, feature stories, weather updates and special bulletins, the …