media
Ben Silverman leaves NBC
Ben Silverman is leaving NBC to start a new media company.A lot of people are going to rejoice over this news because they think that NBC hasn't been the same since he took over the entertainment department at the network. While he did bring The Office and The Biggest Loser to NBC, a lot of viewers have been confused by other moves at the network. Another show that Silverman had a hand in, The Jay Leno Show, will debut in September. We'll have to see how that goes.
Ladies and gentlemen, the best of Shepard Smith
Anna Nicole judge resigns for a career in...
Remember the sobbing judge who turned the Anna Nicole Smith custody case into an audition tape for himself? He's off the bench. Judge Larry Seidlin has resigned from his position of 29 years and he's not saying where he's going. But, I'm guessing he's making a beeline for a television camera.When Seidlin was all over television a few months back, he was reportedly being wooed by at least one network for a little face time. In his resignation, Seidlin didn't say exactly what he'll be doing, except that he has "a further commitment to helping my fellow citizens through roles in the educational system, media, and non-profit organizations." I highlighted a key word there because I'm guessing we'll be seeing Judge Larry's emotional outbursts on television sometime soon.
Anyone want to guess what type of show he'll be getting?
*UPDATE: Yup, he's got a TV show. He'll be filming a pilot for CBS Television Distribution.
Museum of Television and Radio is changing its name
First Kentucky Fried Chicken and now you, Museum of Television and Radio? Oh, why must things change?
Anyway, the Museum of Television of Radio is changing its name, but not to "MTR." No, it will henceforth be known as "Paley Center for Media," which TV trivia-heads will recognize as being named after William S. Paley, who founded CBS and started the museum in 1975 (back then it was called the "Museum of Broadcasting," so it's not like this is the first time the name has changed).
So why the change? It's quite simple: we don't just get our information through TV and radio anymore. We now have this thing called "the internet," not to mention video content through mobile devices.
Exceptional Innovation announces Life|media server
Exceptional Innovation, the company behind Life|ware home automation for Windows Media Center machines is launching its own PC line. Life|media servers will include home automation features to control your lights, security and heating and cooling system. But like any good media center PC, these high end machines are optimized for media.With prices starting at $4,500, the media servers pack Intel Core 2 Duo or quad-core chips, up to 4GB of RAM, up to 4.5TB of HDD space in a RAID 5 array, support for CableCarrd, NTSC/ATSC tunors, and HD-DVD/Blu-Ray optical drives. There's also an optical audio out, an NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS graphics card, a 28-in-1 card reader, and your usual assortment of HDMI, DVI, S-Video, composite, serial, USB 2.0, Firewire, and IR inputs and outputs.
[via Engadget]
Frontline investigates the press in the march to war
Back in 2003, were you wondering why the mass media was beating the drum to war in Iraq? I sure as hell was. I was so confused as to why Tom Brokaw would go on David Letterman and advocate a war, and I was stumped as to why the New York Times continued to plaster reasons for war all over its front pages.Frontline is going to explain it all in a four-part investigative series that I cannot wait to see. Starting next Tuesday (Feb. 13th), the PBS program will investigate the way the Bush White House planted confidential tips in the media and then used subsequent media stories as evidence that America had no choice but to invade Iraq. The first hour "untangles the snarl of events" that show how the Bush administration won approval for the war from the public and the media. The second half of the program, on Feb. 20th, investigates just how much the press can reveal about the government's "war on terror" without putting the nation's security in jeopardy. The other two hours, on Feb. 27th and March 27th, look at the future of journalism in the U.S. and at journalism around the world.
Aqua Teen lights on eBay
You know that crazy Aqua Teen Hunger Force promotion that caused a kerfuffle in Boston recently? Well, if you've got a fat wad of cash I suggest you get yourself over to eBay where some of those neon Mooninites are currently up for auction. This is your chance to own a piece of advertising history. A promotion hasn't caused a scare like this since that time Poppin Fresh got high on wheat germ and held a press conference demanding the immediate execution of Mrs. Butterworth.
Our readers have had a lot of opinions about who exactly is to blame for the misunderstanding, and whether or not local authorities and media overreacted to the incident. I don't have an opinion about it one way or the other, but one thing is certain: a lot more people now know about Aqua Teen Hunger Force who probably had no idea what the heck it was before all of this craziness went down.
[via Lost Remote]
Martha Stewart to launch online social network
Inspired by the success of social networking sites like MySpace, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia is planning to launch a similar site aimed at women ages 25 to 45. The new network is set to launch in the latter half of 2007, though that could change. Rather than exist as a separate site, the new network, which will allow women to share recipes, pictures, and household tips with one another and various experts, will be integrated into Stewart's main Web site. Now that Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. owns MySpace I'm hoping the competition might eventually lead to some kind of apocalyptic battle between these two media giants, a la King Kong vs Godzilla.
Biased or not?
The "liberal bias" of the media we hear so much about was called into
question recently with a study released by Media Matters which claims that Sunday morning political shows such as
Meet the Press, Face the Nation, and This Week tend to have more conservative
guests than liberal. Of course, some are arguing against the study. NBC argued that during Clinton's term in
office there were also slightly more Republican guests on Meet the Press. The point, I suppose, is that it's
not necessarily dictated by who's in office. Also, there's the question as to who's really conservative and who isn't,
especially when it comes to centrists like John McCain and others. My advice? Tune into The McLaughlin Group,
a show where everyone is equally a raving lunatic, no matter their political affiliation. Or, go to the zoo and watch
spider monkeys fighting each other. It's pretty much the same either way.
What are college students watching on television?
Neilsen Media Research is finally going to answer that
question, now that it has decided to include college students in its ratings research. Starting next year, it will
include dorm-bound and apartment-dwelling college students in its national sample of viewers. This could increase the
coveted 18-24 viewership numbers from 3 to 12 percent. Neilsen estimates that college students who don't live at home
with mom and dad watch 24 hours of television each week.What did/do you watch during college? I actually didn't watch much television during college. All I remember watching is Conan O'Brien and South Park, which began in my junior year.
TV Squad Hot Topics
Most Popular Articles
From Our Partners
- 'Nashville' Season Finale: 21 Heartbreaking Moments from 'I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive'
- 'Burn Notice' Season 7 Premiere Photos: Michael Suffers from the Deal He Made
- 10 Former Contestants Who Should Be 'American Idol' Judges
- 20 TV Characters To Have a Summer Fling With
- 'MasterChef' Season Premiere Recap: Apron Extravaganza
- More From BuddyTV
- 'Arrested Development' Rewatch Season 3, episode 11 - 'Family Ties
- 'Arrested Development' Rewatch Season 3, episode 10 - 'Fakin' It'
- 'Nashville' season finale: Everyone's alive, everyone's a mess
- 'Criminal Minds' Season 8 finale: Who fell victim to The Replicator?
- 'Modern Family' Season 4 finale: 'Goodnight, Gracie' ends with a Dunphy funeral
- More From Zap2it
- Chicago Fire Finale Recap: Baby Fever! [Updated]
- Criminal Minds Finale Recap: The Replicator Is Unmasked, But Not Before Striking Back
- Nashville Season Finale Recap: Truth, Consequences and Black Boxer Briefs [Updated]
- Idology: Cheering Candice Glover's Season 12 Win, Debating Finale Highs and Lows, Envisioning Changes for a Brighter Idol Future!
- Law & Order: SVU Season Finale Shocker: Is [Spoiler] Leaving the Show?!
- More From TVLine
