Bounce TV, the new broadcast network targeting African-Americans and backed by such names as Martin Luther King III and former Ambassador Andrew Young, has secured its first carriage deal. Raycom said it would carry Bounce TV over digital multicast channels in 26 markets when the 24/7 network launches this fall. The deal, which puts Bounce TV on stations covering 10% of all U.S. TV households and around 19% of African American TV households, was ballyhooed by the National Association of Broadcasters, which is fighting an Obama administration plan to turn over broadcast spectrum to wireless broadband.Bounce TV said it expects …

In a "sign of the times for the telepic biz," CBS has cancelled its telecasts of the venerable  "Hallmark Hall of Fame" after a 16-year run, reports Brian Lowry in an exclusive.  The venerable TV-movie franchise began in 1951, spending 30 years on NBC and then brief runs on ABC and PBS before landing on CBS.  Over the past 60 years, 243 films have run under the "Hall of Fame" banner.Lowry says that Hallmark, the greeting cards giant, passed on a CBS plan to carry its films on an ad hoc basis rather than the current three-times-a-year deal. …

"If you've never heard of Bloomberg Markets, you're not alone," begins Noah Davis in this look at the financial mag. "All it means is that you probably are not a Master of the Universe, one of the 'global financial elite' in the magazine's parlance. You do not make $400,000 per year, have a net worth of $2.5 million, or spend nine hours a day logged into your Bloomberg terminal."But Davis writes in "The Wire" column, "You should know Markets... because the publication consistently produces some of the best investigative journalism about the financial sector, an area where virtually everyone agrees …

Joseph Rydholm describes how Showtime mixed quantitative and qualitative research methods, including an online survey and Web-based chats to better understand the preferred viewing platforms (i.e., linear, on-demand/DVR) of "Nurse Jackie" viewers - and how viewers of the show on different platforms may differ from each other.One interesting insight: "in an ideal world, most fans would watch the live Monday night episode premiere...those who did were the most fervent fans. However, due to an array of work, family and social commitments, most utilize DVR and on-demand technologies to watch the show."With the research, Showtime was able to distinguish five different …

Ok, Maine's newspaper industry may well bring in almost as much revenue as the state's long-haled potato crop, according to research touted by the Maine Press Association, but it's a "fuddy-duddy" study," writes Al Diamon.  "Those are impressive numbers, although I suspect they'd be less so if compared to, say, the Maine fast-food industry or the state's combined convenience-store purchases or the amount of liquor sales Maine loses to New Hampshire every year," says the "Maine Media" columnist.To put the study in perspective, Diamon notes that Maine's newspaper industry is currently fighting two pieces of proposed legislation - one …

The common industry assumption that the New York Times Co. wants 300,000 digital subscribers over the next year is "inaccurate," Times digital head Martin Nisenholtz said in a recent interview.  "I don't know where that number came from."  Actually, the figure first appeared in a highly reputable source that often serves as the basis for news that shows up all over the place -- the pages of The New York Times. Staci Kramer, reporting in PaidContent, takes care to point out that Niesenholtz knew that fact, and that his comment referred to the "company executives" who "privately" …

The iPad is an "especially good" option for watching TV shows on something besides a TV set, writes Walt Mossberg, who goes on to provide his take on a range of iPad TV viewing apps -- from HBO's new app HBO Go, WatchESPN and the ABC Player to iTunes, Netflix, Hulu Plus, Xfinity TV, and even MLB At Bat. "I hope eventually tablet offerings are more complete," Mossberg concludes.

Three newspapers owned by McClatchy Co. -- the Miami Herald, Kansas City Star and Raleigh News & Observer -- are cutting a total of over 50 employees from their staffs, according to MediaJobsDaily. The layoffs (the second in a series this year for the Star ) come after McClatchy announced it had lost $2 million in the first quarter of 2011.

Satellite TV provider Dish Network is being sued by Disney and Starz Entertainment in separate copyright and breach of contract suits respectively. At issue in both suits is a Dish promotion that gives subscribers complimentary access to Starz through 2012. Disney says it gave Starz the right to air its content only if Starz was on a premium tier at Dish. Starz says it has received breach of contract notices from several of its studio partners because of the Dish promotion.

The Wall Street Journal targets a niche audience -- chief financial officers and those who handle similar job functions -- with CFO Journal, a subscription-based Web product. For $49 a month, subscribers get full access to WSJ.com, use of Factiva SmartSearch, and Deloitte LLP-sponsored "CFO-centric" content including research and technical analyses.