iTunes hits 50 million TV shows sold
Apple announced it has sold 100 million iPods, 2.5 billion songs and over 50 million TV shows. At last check, iTunes has over 350 different TV shows available for sale.
Add comment April 9th, 2007
Archive for April 9th, 2007
Reminder: NAB-RTNDA coverage next week
A bunch of us will be in Las Vegas beginning this weekend for our annual coverage of NAB-RTNDA. We have our panel discussion on Tuesday at 2 p.m., and we’ll hold a meetup later that day from 4-6 p.m. at the little bar in the walkway between the Hilton convention area and the casino floor (just like last year.) Hope to see you there!
1 comment April 9th, 2007
Imus suspended for women’s basketball remark
Don Imus will serve a two-week suspension from MSNBC and CBS Radio. Last Wednesday, Imus remarked that the Rutgers women’s basketball team were “hard core hos” and “nappy-headed hos.” Imus was on Al Sharpton’s radio show Monday apologizing for the comments, but Sharpton is calling for Imus’s firing anyway. Imus in the Morning is well-known for making jokes about all sorts of races and religions and according to CNN, Imus said “I’m a good person, but I said a bad thing… these young women deserve to know that it was not said with malice.” What do you think?
Adds Sonya A in comments: “As usual someone has to keep reminding us how far we have to go yet, as a Major News Organization, MSNBC should be ashamed of this enough to do the right thing.”
Adds Allen: “Imus is an idiot but, isn’t this tame compared to what Stern used to say on regular radio?”
Adds Peter: “What are we saying here? If a racist special interest group (like Sharpton’s or Jackson’s) gets offended, they can get people fired?”
Adds Cory: “…folks, this guy is on MSNBC. It’s airing on a cable news network, not on Howard Stern, Rush Limbaugh or Chris Rock… etc. There’s a higher standard here… I, for one, have had enough of shock cable-TV-news-as-radio, and I have no patience for racist comments, even in jest. As a former NBC News employee myself, I believe he cheapens the channel and is a liability for the NBC News brand.”
Update: Today Show’s Al Rocker blogs that it’s time for Imus to go
21 comments April 9th, 2007
Miami Herald’s ‘What the 5!’ video show
Most people who work in TV still believe that newspaper sites are vastly inferior when it comes to video, yet most of the innovative online video efforts are showing up on paper sites, not TV sites. MiamiHerald.com’s What the 5! is a great example. It’s a daily web show and video podcast that covers the latest buzz, trends and watercooler stories in South Florida. And it’s very well done and quite entertaining (well, if you live in Miami). The hosts count down the top five stories, and the Flash player highlights the stories in sync along the left side, which link to the text stories on MiamiHerald.com.
What the 5! does a great job blending interactivity with viral content in a unique web experience that makes sense. All that’s missing is the ability to comment on the clips and embed the player elsewhere. Meanwhile, most TV sites just repackage what they produce on TV — short web newscasts, for example — and they risk losing valuable online video niches to innovative newspapers.
Adds Milton in comments: “Why do I want to sit through a linear presentation of two people talking — so I can click to read stories? I don’t disagree that this is slick and that the two people hosting it seem nice. But, this show is PREPRODUCED, REHEARSED, SCRIPTED and done several hours before it is posted. What about it makes me want to click on it? It’s like a short newscast without video and without news…”
8 comments April 9th, 2007
Discovery cuts staff, will add digital positions
Discovery Communications is laying off about 200 employees in a restructuring that will focus more resources on its digital efforts. Layed off employees will get the first chance to apply for the new digital positions. Stories like these — as they become more commonplace — should serve as reminders for TV staffers to branch out and learn more about the web to preserve their long-term career competitiveness.
Adds LongTimer in comments: “Cory, all well and good, but it’s not always possible for those skillsets to transfer (aka, the company may not value what your overall contribution in a new area would be and therefore would ‘pigeonhole’ you based on what you do now.) If employers can stay open minded to employees taking on new challenges, then it’s a win-win. Unfortunately too many employers see the layoffs as a good opportunity to cut experienced staffer salary and hire kids.”
25 comments April 9th, 2007
Hearst, Fox partner on magazine video sites
Fox TV Studios is working with Hearst to provide video for CosmoGIRL and PopularMechanics websites. For CosmoGIRL, Fox is working on a twice-weekly scripted show. For PopularMechanics, the studio will produce an informational series around “Hands on Guys.” The news comes a month after Hearst announced it would launch 12 video sites associated with its magazines.
3 comments April 9th, 2007
