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Open Mic

Why Charlie Sheen Will Basically Get a Pass While Tiger Gets Crucified

Actor Charlie Sheen’s latest run-in with the law sounds very serious. According to initial reports, he allegedly brandished a knife and threatened to kill his wife when she said she might divorce him. He denies it. Can you imagine the uproar,…

Dec 29, 2009

Bah, Humbug! Twas the Night Before Christmas and Santa’s Unhappy About TV (and Other Transgressions)

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the House, Not a doctor was stirring, not even Hugh Laurie, that louse.The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there. But Santa wasn’t…

Dec 23, 2009

Paley Awards a Good Idea as Emmy Competition

Still pondering the surprising news that the Emmys could be in for some competition—and after the initial knee-jerk reaction of “Oh, great, another awards show,” coming around to the notion that it’s probably a good idea. The Academy of Television…

Dec 23, 2009

We Wuz Robbed! Russell Hantz Was Not the Only One Blown Away that He Didn’t Win ‘Survivor:Samoa,’ and This Viewer Thinks The Producers are Playing with Fire

We wuz robbed, plain and simple. If you’re not a fan of ‘Survivor,’ here’s what it’s like that Russell Hantz didn’t win the $1million on the latest edition of the show, which concluded Sunday night, Dec. 20th: It would be…

Dec 21, 2009

Tiger Woods and Sex and Advertising

“Sex Sells” is a premise that has been a used by advertisers almost as long as there’s been advertising. According to the book “Advertising in America,” the rules that govern the use of sex in advertising were pretty much established…

Dec 17, 2009

Tiger Woods Infidelity Breaks Up a Truly Beautiful Ad Relationship

For any of us who travel a lot—meaning that we pass through many airports—one of the joys in the past five years or so have been those huge, absolutely gorgeous ads for Accenture featuring Tiger Woods. You know the ones: They…

Dec 14, 2009

Funny or Wrong: ‘SNL’ Takes on Tiger

Just about when I got done chuckling about "Saturday Night Live’s" opening sketch spoofing the Salahis continually interrupting a presidential speech to take even more photos of themselves, a mini controversy breaks out on the heels of a major scandal. Seems…

Dec 8, 2009

How Much Is Fear of the Internet is Driving Comcast Deal?

Is fear of the Internet one of the drivers of the Comcast-NBCU deal? For those who have a vested interest in the way video is currently delivered to consumers, one of the things that keeps them up at night is…

Dec 7, 2009

PEN Awards: An Evening of Written Excellence

On a night when many people were consumed with the tabloid-y coverage of the Tiger Woods infidelity scandal, it was a pleasure to honor authors, artists and writers whose work often represents the antithesis of the low road. PEN USA,…

Dec 3, 2009

‘The Media Ruined Our Lives’

The plot thickens in the case of Michaele and Tareq Salahi, the now infamous White House state dinner party crashers who made their first television appearance on the "Today" show Tuesday morning. The Salahis, a social-climbing couple who reportedly are…

Dec 1, 2009