Tina Fey's surprise return to Saturday Night Live as Sarah Palin was one of the ten greatest TV moments of 2008 (and quite possibly the decade, the century, the millennium and the eon).

So it's no surprise that Fey's name and show 30 Rock came up so many times in the recent list of Emmy nods. I'm no longer convinced that she's a woman. I'm convinced she's an experimental humanoid prototype designed by studio executives solely to win awards like Tom Hanks (aka "Project Red Shoe").

It's also no surprise that one of the two acting nods she scored included her Palin performance on SNL.

Television is a vast alien landscape of shows, programs and other watchables. So the odds of a really good show not getting special recognition are about as good as Michael Chiklis' chances of his noggin being mistaken for a shiny, beige Brunswick in a bowling alley.

The Emmys also tend to favor younger shows rather than the oldies that have had their chance to win some awards because the best stuff on television is always fresher out of the gate. It's just the beast of the cycle. Great movies age like a fine cheese. Great TV shows age like spray cheese.

The Shield, however, got totally snubbed from this year's nomination list. And is that something the Academy really wants to do to a guy with a hair trigger anger who considers a Smith and Wesson as his "backup piece"? (I should ask myself the same thing after that bowling ball noggin joke.)

CBS and Condé Nast Media Group announced some heavy hitters for Fashion Rocks. The show, which coincides with New York's Fashion Week, will now include A-listers like Beyoncé, Justin Timberlake, Fergie, Mariah, Carey, Rihanna, Chris Brown, Duffy, Keith Urban, Kid Rock and Lil Wayne.

Okay, maybe they're not all A-listers. But all of them are performing.

BET is tagging this event as "the hottest ticket on television." And from this list of performers, I can see why. Usher, Lil Wayne, Nelly, Alicia Keys, Chris Brown, Kanye West, and Young Jeezy will take the stage at the BET Awards '08. The award show will be hosted by The Original Kings of Comedy member, D.L. Hughley.

The network is honoring some iconic names in music as well. Legendary R&B crooner Al Green will receive BET's Lifetime Achievement Award. Celebrated producer / arranger / composer Quincy Jones is set for BET's Humanitarian Award for his work in the Listen Up, a charity which connects youth with music, technology and culture.