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With more and more people watching video podcasts from iTunes on their HDTV sets via Apple TV, Apple sent out an email outlining some tips for podcasters to improve their quality. The email asks that the video is encoded at 640×480 or 640×360, and that video shot in 16×9 should preserve its aspect ratio to avoid letterboxing. Good tips.
1 comment April 11th, 2007
Following the plagiarism incident on a videoblog post, CBSNews.com said it will add a new level of editorial oversight, although it didn’t not release specific details. I have a couple observations. First, while most local TV stations have a copyediting process in place for on-air copy, there’s little or no editorial oversight for stories written for the web. And second, as Michael pointed out in comments earlier, “TV news has ALWAYS stolen from newspapers. That’s where they get their stories from.” Can’t do that on the web, folks, and newspapers will be watching.
5 comments April 11th, 2007
With pressure building from employees, advertisers and the public, NBC News announced this afternoon that MSNBC will no longer simulcast Imus’ radio show. “This decision comes as a result of an ongoing review process, which initially included the announcement of a suspension,” NBC News said in a statement. “It also takes into account many conversations with our own employees. What matters to us most is that the men and women of NBC Universal have confidence in the values we have set for this company. This is the only decision that makes that possible. Once again, we apologize to the women of the Rutgers basketball team and to our viewers. We deeply regret the pain this incident has caused.” Now, what will CBS Radio do?
Also, kudos to Al Roker who stood up and openly blogged about his desire for Imus to go. And Ron Allen also blogged about his distaste for Imus’ comments. It’s clear from NBC’s statement that employee reaction played a big role in this decision. NBC President Steve Capus said he’s received hundreds if not thousands of emails — “many of them are people who have worked at NBC News for decades, people who put their lives on the line covering wars…. When you listen to the passion and the people who come to the conclusion that there should not be any room for this sort of conversation and dialogue on our air, it was the only decision we could reach.”
Update: Video of NBC News President Steve Capus explaining the decision
23 comments April 11th, 2007
The cable giant Comcast has agreed to acquire the movie ticketing site Fandango for an undisclosed amount. At the same time, Comcast said it will launch a new site this summer called Fancast.com — “a national entertainment site where people can search and discover television and movie content, while managing their viewing experience across multiple devices.” A message on Fancast.com explains further:
With Fancast, you will be able to search for your favorite shows, movies, actors, or simply enjoy videos on the site. Fancast will provide you with a place to discover when your favorite shows or movies are on, and where you can watch them via television, video-on-demand, online or on other devices.
Comcast said it will “leverage its experience as the nation’s largest buyer of video content” to bring a wide variety of video to Fancast. Comcast has been busy building new sites: Ziddio, Game Invasion and Fearnet are recent launches. It will be interesting to see how Fancast comes together. (Thanks, Louis!) Press release follows…
Read the full post Add comment April 11th, 2007
I wrote last week about how we’re getting smothered at One LR Plaza by irrelevant PR materials for NAB. We don’t mind good, relevant information related to stories that the LR Faithful care about. But when you’re on the NAB press list, the fact is that many exhibitors don’t care about the space you cover - they just spam like crazy. So I’m writing a composite press release, using the words from the releases that have been sent to me. Yes - this is an entirely plagiarized piece, remixing words randomly. I don’t feel bad, though - they’re the ones who sent me this stuff.
Read the full post 6 comments April 11th, 2007
SFGate.com (San Francisco Chronicle) and Chron.com (Houston Chronicle) will be the first Hearst sites to roll out “internet video channels and vlogs” using technology powered by Brightcove. Other Hearst newspaper sites will follow. “The video will enhance offline content and will also build an entire experience and community around this new content,” said Lincoln Millstein, senior vice president & director of Digital Media for Hearst Newspapers. Press release below…
Read the full post 10 comments April 11th, 2007
While the 2008 election may seem like a long ways away, the Iowa Caucuses begin in 278 days. You’ll see the countdown posted prominently on IowaVotes2008.com, a standalone site dedicated to the intense campaign scene in Iowa. You’ll find news stories, candidate profiles, campaign schedules, video interviews and a politics blog. Users can submit their own photos from campaign appearances. And the site was built from the ground up by the staff at WHO-TV. Impressive. (Thanks, Jerry!)
4 comments April 11th, 2007
Couple new additions to CNN.com. First is an online tribute to Larry King’s 50 years (and still going) at CNN. The section includes a timeline of his accomplishments as well as some of the most famous interviews on Larry King Live. Second is the Anderson Cooper 360 video podcast, which is posted every weekday morning. The podcast has a custom open from Cooper and selected clips from the previous night’s show.
8 comments April 11th, 2007
Internet Broadcasting and Monster have agreed to expand their relationship to 120 local TV sites across the country. The IB sites will get Monster’s job search and career tools, and the IB-affiliated stations will integrate Monster in on-air spots. “Our relationship with Internet Broadcasting has successfully increased Monster’s local visibility through a trusted distribution channel - the local news station,” said Doug Klinger, president, Monster North America. “Extending our media alliances across 120 broadcast and online media channels - nearly doubling the scope of our previous agreement - will accelerate our localization strategy and help Monster cultivate deeper relationships with local job seekers and employers.” Release…
Read the full post 5 comments April 11th, 2007
The Wall Street Journal (paid sub. req.) has a ’state of local TV’ article today that was forwarded to me by friends before I even had my coffee. LR readers will certainly be familiar with the scenario, but it’s a good recap and certainly good to see the WSJ picking up on the story. The gist: TV stations are losing audience share and not investing nearly enough in their online presence to make up for lost ad money. The article mentions successes at WKRN, WRAL, WITN and WNEM - but points to the overall industry trend of losing viewers and stagnancy online. Some key quotes from the article:
Complacency and greed are two reasons station operators have fallen so far behind, say media analysts and consultants. The majority of local stations enjoyed 40% profit margins as recently as the mid 1990s (compared with 25% to 30% today) because they had little competition. Many didn’t see a need to invest in their Web operations as a result…
Once considered a license to print money, TV stations have suffered body blows from the Web. Lucrative 11 p.m. newscasts are sinking in the ratings as more viewers go to the Internet or cable channels to get weather and sports information. Viewers no longer have to tune in to catch shows such as ABC’s “Lost” because networks are making programming available all over the Web. And key TV advertisers such as auto manufacturers are moving cash toward online campaigns.
We will be addressing these matters at our panel at RTNDA@NAB, as well as during our liveblog coverage of NAB. But it’s pretty obvious what needs to be done: more innovation, more investment, and fewer excuses. (Thanks Mary and Rich!)
Adds Cory in comments: What’s interesting about this article is it dovetails with yesterday’s post about the lack of TV website success stories in the media. While this article highlighted a few, the overall theme is that TV sites are lagging behind — not a good message to send to Wall Street.
13 comments April 11th, 2007
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