Syndication Upfront Moving, CPMs for Upper Tier Programming Down a Percent or Two

As the long, long, summer sloughs along, there's finally some upfront movement for syndicators, Mediaweek reports.

Syndicators with high demand programming are writing business with cost-per-thousands (CPMs) down 1% to 2%, Mediaweek says. The selling of ad time in programming with not such high demand is tougher, and those shows are taking a hit of 7% to 9%, Mediaweek reports.

—Chuck Ross

Marie Osmond Will Not Come Back in Syndication this Fall: Victim of Poor Ad Market

Despite being originally cleared by TV stations reaching 80% of the country, Program Partners says the weak ad market prevents its new hour-long talk show with Marie Osmond from launching this fall, Variety reports.

One of the problems is that stations have been saying they now cannot afford to take the show, since their revenues are down in this recession.

"Our belief in Marie's creative vision for a new kind of talk show is unshakable, but in the end, the marketplace this year was simply unyielding," Program Partners chief Ritch Colbert told Variety.

—Chuck Ross

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Are Zucker's Critics, Especially Journalists, Fair?

Variety columnist Brian Lowry writes about the changes NBC continues to go through.

He notes that NBCU CEO Jeff Zucker is clearly innovative and, for a long time now, has been "willing to explore new ways of doing business."

Zucker has typically answered his critics, Lowry writes, "by suggesting that if NBC doesn't evolve, it will end up like the newspaper industry."

Giving Zucker his props, Lowry then examines the fairness of Zucker's critics, and the fairness of Zucker's response.

—Chuck Ross

'Bachelorette' Contender Complains: 'On that Show, I Wouldn't Believe Anything!'

Wes Hayden, one of the contenders on this summer season's "Bachelorette" series, is not happy with how the editing of the show portrayed him, People reports.

Hayden told the magazine: “There’s an old saying here in Texas “Believe nothing you hear and half of what you see … On that show, I wouldn’t believe anything.”

—Chuck Ross

Check Out This Take on 'Jon & Kate': The Obsession with Them is a Positive Media Development

Baltimore Sun TV Critic David Zurawik has a different take on the 'Jon & Kate' phenom.

In his latest column he says that "One of the pleasures some viewers get in writing and talking about the Gosselins is connected to the fact that the TV image of Jon and Kate as exemplary parents of a happy family has been exposed as a lie in recent months."

And this was accomplished, he says, not by the mainstream press, but primarily by the tabloids and online bloggers.

This, he posits, might be a good thing: "It isn't so much wanting to see someone famous torn down, it's more about wanting to see a fake media-constructed ideal deconstructed."

—Chuck Ross

WGA East, West Presidents Blast Emmy’s Decision to Pretape Some Telecast Segments

Michael Winship, president of the Writers Guild of America East, has criticized Emmy’s decision to pre-tape some of its award presentations for this September’s telecast, Daily Variety reports.

"The writers are the storytelling stars of television, and we are disappointed that the Academy chooses to diminish our members' invaluable and essential contribution to the medium," said Winship in a statement. "We ask that they reconsider the decision for this and future Emmy broadcasts."

Patric Verrone, president of the WGA West, echoed those sentiments in a statement, as well, Variety reports.

"It is also a serious demotion for writing and a fundamental misunderstanding of the importance of writers in the creation of television programs,” said Verrone. “Last year's Emmys suffered a tremendous decline in quality and ratings because of a lack of scripted material.”

--Sergio Ibarra

Tune Into One of the Best Reality Shows You've Never Heard of on Sunday Night

TV Critic Ed Martin says if you tune into the reality show "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?" this Sunday night you won't be disappointed.

What? It's on BBC America, and it's about  young women competing for the lead role in a  production of "Sound of Music" that will run on London's version of Broadway, its storied West End.

This reality show originally ran in the U.K. in 2006 and the winner did well: The West End revival of "Sound of Music,' Martin tells us, was a smash hit, and ran for two years.

—Chuck Ross

'Shark Week' Starts Sunday: One Critic Calls it Bloody but Good

Discovery Channel's 22nd Annual Shark Week begins this Sunday, August 2. As a zap2it critic says, "[T]his year's films are especially bloody. Yet for those who can't get enough of sharks, it's the place to be."

—Chuck Ross

WGA to Represent CBS Internet Writers

The Writers Guild of America West said Friday that they have gained jurisdiction over 15 Internet writers employed at CBS studios, according to Daily Variety.

The writers voted unanimously to be represented by the WGA West.

"This is good news for new media writers," WGA West president Patric Verrone said. "As more and more news, sports, and promotional content is distributed on the Internet, it is essential that its writers win respect for their work and all the benefits of a WGA contract."

--Alex Jacobius

Jackson Autopsy Results Postponed Indefintely

In the lastest development surrounding the sudden death Michael Jackson over amonth ago on June 25th, the Los Angeles coroner's office--which was expected to announce a cause of death this week--now says it cannot say when that information will be announced, the Los Angeles Times reports.

This delay of the announcement coincides with numberous investigations into the various doctors who had been treating Jackson in recent years, and the drugs he might have been taking.

—Chuck Ross

Video Footage Unearthed of Simon Cowell in the Early Dog Days of His Career

 Turrns out brutally honest “American Idol” judge Simon Cowell has known his share of humiliation.

Witness this clip from TMZ of a 1982 installment of Britain's “Top of the Pops,” in which he performs in a blue dog costume as "Wonderdog."

--Tom Gilbert

Finally, a 'Seinfeld' Reunion. The Only Catch: You'll Have to Subscribe to HBO to See It

A "Seinfeld" reunion is in the works, but not not for NBC, which carried the original series. Instead, the reunion will appear on HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm." [Note: not, of course, what we called it when we first posted this item, the "Larry David Show."]

David himself delivered the exciting news at the Television Critics Association's summer press tour on Thursday. 

David co-created "Seinfeld" with Jerry Seinfeld. In that series, the George character, played by Jason Alexander, was based on David. 

David told reporters at TCA that heretofore, wherever anyone would mention a "Seinfeld" reunion, "“I always said no. We would never do that, it’s a lame idea. And then I thought it might be very funny to do that on ‘Curb.’ And I kept thinking about it, and started to think of different scenarios. I called Jerry, and Jerry was game. I called the others, and we did it.”

As opposed to just being a "Seinfeld" reunion show on the "Curb" show, viewers will see portions of rehearsals, read-throughs and various other scenes leading up to the reunion. And a portion of the reunion will also be shown on the "Curb" show.

Furthermore, the various co-stars of  "Seinfeld" will interact with David alone on some episodes, David said.

“You’ll get an idea of what happened [to the characters] 11 years later,” David said. “You won’t see a [Seinfeld reunion] show from beginning to end, but you’ll see parts of it.”

—Chuck Ross

Report: Jackson Spent Last Hours in Doctor's Bed

Multiple law enforcement sources told TMZ that Michael Jackson spent his last hours in Dr. Conrad Murray's bedroom in the doctor's bed.

Because Jackson did not want people going in and out of his room, he used Dr. Murray's bedroom to receive Propofol by IV, TMZ says, adding that law enforcement officials believe Dr. Murray may have been using his room almost nightly to administer Propofol to Jackson.

--Tom Gilbert

Judge Kara DioGuardi Definitely Returning to 'American Idol' Panel

Judge Kara DioGuardi will return to Fox's “American Idol” next season, People reports.

Songwriter DioGuardi joined Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell on the judges’ panel last year for the show’s eighth season.

--Tom Gilbert

HBO Says It's Not Feeling the Effects of the Lousy Economy; Renews 'Hung,' Entourage,' 'Blood'

Top executives at Time Warner's pay cable channel HBO told TV critics gathered in Pasadena, Calif., this week that the network so far has been immune to the economic turmoil currently plaguing entertainment companies, the Los Angeles Times reports.

HBO Co-President Richard Plepler said at the Television Critics Assn. press tour Thursday that the network is "cautiously optimistic" it can endure the tough economic times owing to strong DVD sales and little evidence of subscribers' dropping the service as a cost-saving measure, the Times says.

Michael Lombardo, HBO's other co-president, added that the channel would not increase its programming budget anytime soon, and said the new series "Hung" would return for a new season next summer along with "True Blood" and "Entourage."

--Tom Gilbert

Lamas Family to Confront Issues of Rivalry on New E! Reality Series

Veteran actor Lorenzo Lamas and his 25-year-old soap-star son A.J., who haven't spoken since 2003, will reconcile on the E! Network's new reality series “The Lamas Life,” the New York Post reports.

Father and son have been estranged, according to published reports since the latter learned that the younger Lamas had been romantically involved with his dad's fourth ex-wife Shauna Sands, the Post says.

--Tom Gilbert

Paula Abdul Mentions 'Idol' Talks on Twitter; Holding Out for 'Fair' Deal

Paula Abdul has taken to her Twitter account to update fans on the status of her return to Fox's "American Idol."

Abdul posted on her official account, "I've been quiet as we are trying to work out details of how I can return to #Idol."

Abdul also mentioned that she will only return to "Idol" "if the deal is fair."

--Sergio Ibarra

Slow TV Ad Sales Behind Disney's 26% Profit Plunge in 3rd Quarter

Soft advertising sales at ABC and ESPN and decreased consumer spending at Disney World sent profit at Walt Disney Co., the world’s largest media company, tumbling 26 percent for its fiscal third quarter, the New York Times reports.

Over all, Disney’s net income fell to $954 million, or 51 cents a share, from $1.28 billion, or 66 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue fell 7 percent, to $8.6 billion, the Times says.

At the media networks division that includes ABC and ESPN, profit declined 13 percent to $1.3 billion and revenue dipped 2 percent to $4 billion, the paper added.

--Tom Gilbert

Sony Continues to Struggle With Economic Challenge, Posts $388 Million Quarterly Loss

Sony reported a 37.1 billion yen first-quarter net loss on Thursday, and maintained its forecast for a second year of losses owing to the global economic slump, the New York Times reports.

The loss, which is the equivalent of $388 million, increases the pressure to perform on Sony Chairman Howard Stringer, who was appointed four years ago to resuscitate the struggling company, the Times says.

Stringer pleged to bring Sony back to profit by streamlining decision-making and more creatively linking the company’s hardware, Web and entertainment businesses, the paper said, adding that the company has been hurt by declining sales as consumers have cut back on purchases of TV sets and other personal technology.

--Tom Gilbert

Genachowski Says Regulation of Broadcast Content Still Justified; to Pursue Inquiry Into State of Journalism

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski tells Broadcasting & Cable that he still sees a need for broadcast content regulation.

Genachowski said that, with millions still relying on over-the-air TV, "the core justifications for commission action in this area are unchanged," B&C says.

He also told the trade publication that the FCC will work through its backlog of indecency complaints and that the FCC will proceed with the inquiry into the state of the journalism industry initiated by his predecessor, acting Chairman Michael Copps.

--Tom Gilbert

Consumers Substituting Online TV for Cable, According to Pew Research

Almost one-fifth of Internet users watch video online almost every day, women are catching up to men in terms of online video usage and more and more recession-conscious Americans are using the Web as a cable TV substitute, Mediaweek reports.

Citing a report issued Wednesday by the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project, Mediaweek said 19 percent of Internet users surveyed claim they visit video sites in a typical day, up from 8 percent just three years ago, and that 62 percent of adults have watched videos on sites like YouTube.

--Tom Gilbert

Judge Denies Request for Federal Reserve Records by Fox Business Net

A U.S. judge on Thursday denied a bid by Fox News Network seeking details from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve about the central bank's loans to companies affected by the financial crisis, Reuters reports.

Reuters said that the owner of the Fox Business cable network made an initial request for documents last November under the Freedom of Information Act about the companies and funds they received between August 2007 and November 2008.

"I rule that one document, which the Board determined is not a record, is indeed, a record. The Board shall identify this document and either produce it or claim an exemption," Reuters quoted Hellerstein as saying in a written order. "In all other respects, I grant the Board's motion and deny Fox's motion."

--Tom Gilbert

TLC Officially on 'Jon & Kate': No More Joint Couch and More

Here's what TLC President Eileen O'Neill told the press at the TV Critics Press Tour today about "Jon & Kate Plus 8", according to The Live Feed and a number of other blogs as well as Discovery press relations personnel:

"I have a suspicion that Jon and Kate may be on your minds so before I introduce today's panels let me give you a brief update.

Over the last four years and through 100 episodes, we've captured this remarkable family's entertaining chaos.

Viewers fell in love and the show developed a passionate, loyal following.

But this past spring life intervened and the family's status changed. It was certainly something we never expected nor planned to have happen. But this has resulted in unprecedented television.

Our approach to the circumstance was simple: to cover the family with great care and thoughtfulness as they dealt with a subject that is all to familiar to many American families today.

Jon and kate have never said they were perfect, which has made them relatable and created an undeniable connection with the viewers.

We will continue to capture this family's journey in a respectful and sensitive way.

The show comes back on Monday and most new episodes remain a work in progress.

But I will tell you, the iconic couch is gone. Jon & Kate will now have separate chairs for their interviews.

You're still going to see two parents that love their kids, but you'll be seeing them parenting separately.

You'll see what it's like when Kate has to put a tent up for a backyard camping experience by herself. Or, see Jon trying to cook up a pizza for the kids.

As far as new people and places that may be cycling into Jon & Kate's lives, we are taking it on a case-by-case basis.

This is real life. It's important to remember that our cameras are only there for moments in time, and those moments have limits."

—Chuck Ross

B&C, Multichannel News Back on the Sales Block

Reed Business Information has put a number of magazines, including B&C and Multichannel News, back on the sales block, Folio reports.

Reed also announced that REI U.S. CEO Tad Smith has resigned, Folio said. The acting CEO will be John Pulin, who has been the company's CFO.

B&C and Multichannel, along with a number of other publications, including Variety, were put on sale by RBI last year, but the company "dropped the sale late last year after bids were said to have fallen from approximately $2 billion to $1 billion" because of the recession, Folio said. 

This time around the company has said it will retain Variety and some others that are not for sale.

Folio did not say if Reed had a particular buyer in mind, or how much money it expected the publications to fetch.

RBI saw adjusted operating profits plunge 43 percent in the first six months of this year, Folio said.

—Chuck Ross

Amy Poehler to Return to 'SNL'; in Special Thursday Gig, She Will Co-Anchor 'Weekend Update Thursday'

Amy Poehler is returning to "Saturday Night Live" for NBC special Thursday-night "Weekend Update" editions, Entertainment Weekly reports.

Seth Meyers and Poehler will co-anchor "Weekend Update Thursday," which kicks off Sept. 17 to help launch NBC new Thursday-night lineup, which includes "Parks & Recreation," "The Office" and "Community," before "30 Rock" returns in October.

--Sergio Ibarra

Major Cable Operators Have More Than Doubled the Number of Subscribers Who Take Their Triple Play of Video, Internet and Phone

The nation's three biggest cable operators, Comcast, Time Warner and Cox, more than doubled the number of subscribers who take what is commonly known as the Triple Play: Video, Phone and Internet services from 2007 to 2008, B&C reports.

In 2007 10.1% of their subs subscribed to the Triple Play. Last year that number rose to 23%. The value of the Triple Play bundle is $38 billion annually, B&C says.

—Chuck Ross

ESPN's Erin Andrews Continues to Be Stalked, Calls 911 on Paparazzi

ESPN's Erin Andrews called 911 to complain about paprazzi who had found her while she was staying in a home in a gated community, ABC News reports.

Furthermore, an investigaion by TMZ said the nude video of Andrews that has circulated on the Internet was apparently taken--without Andrews knowlege or consent--at two different hotels.

—Chuck Ross

Video: Jon & Kate's Relatives (Her Brother and Sister-in-Law) Complain About TLC During Appearance on CBS' 'The Early Show'

ESPN Adds Hours to '30 for 30' Documentary Slate; Morgan Freeman, Spike Jonze, Frank Marshall Sign On

ESPN has added eight hours of programming to its "30 for 30" documentary slate, the Hollywood Reporter says.

The documentary series covers specific topics in the sports world since 1979, the year ESPN launched.

Among the people committed to the new hours are Morgan Freeman, Frank Marshall and Spike Jonze. Among the topics to be covered are South African rugby, BMX star Mat Hoffman, South African Rugby and the Los Angeles Raiders.

--Sergio Ibarra

Donal Logue Joins FX Pilot 'Terriers'

FX's hourlong pilot "Terriers" has cast Donal Logue as the lead, the Hollywood Reporter says.

Logue will play former police office who joins a partner to form a private investigation agency. The project comes from "The Shield's" Shawn Ryan and "Ocean's Eleven's" Ted Griffin under Fox21.

Griffin served as writer for the pilot and will executive produce along with Ryan.

--Sergio Ibarra

Christopher Gorham Joins Piper Perabo in New USA Project 'Covert Affairs'

Christopher Gorham, who most recently appeared in CBS' "Harper's Island" and ABC's "Ugly Betty," has been cast in the upcoming USA Network pilot for "Covert Affairs," the Hollywood Reporter says.

Gorham will join Piper Perabo in the spy thriller. The Reporter also says the additions also remove the contingency on the pilot order.

Casting for "Covert" follows the lead set by the network's cast-contingent pilot orders of "Royal Pains" and "White Collar."

--Sergio Ibarra

Scott Donaton, Former Entertainment Weekly and Ad Age Publisher, Named President and CEO of New IPG Branded Entertainment Unit

Scott Donaton has been named president and CEO of Ensemble, a new branded entertainment unit of IPG's MediaBrands.

Ensemble has allied with Michael Kassan's Media Link, LLC to "help Mediabrands clients leverage a range of strategic branded entertainment opportunities," Mediabrands said in a prepared statement.

Donaton left his position as publisher of Entertainment Weekly earlier this year. Prior to that he had spent virtually his entire career at Advertising Age, a sibling publication to TVWeek. (Both are owned by Crain Communications.) Donaton was editor of Ad Age for seven years before becoming its publisher. While at Ad Age he founded the magazine's "Madison & Vine" section, and he is the author of the 2004 book "Madison & Vine: Why the Entertainment and Advertising Industries Must Converge to Survive."

Donaton's appointment was made by Nick Brien, president and CEO of Mediabrands.

—Chuck Ross

Actor/Environmentalist Ed Begley Jr. Gets New Series on Planet Green

Ed Begley Jr. wll be in 13 more episodes of "Living With Ed," Variety reports. The series has been ordered by Planet Green, which has been airing reruns of the show, which originally was on HGTV.

Furthermore,  the channel will do a brand make-over under new President and General Manager Laura Michalchyshyn, who crafted an indelible identity for Sundance Channel previously. 

Michalshyshyn is "looking to broaden the channel's programming scope beyond how-to programs and into more storytelling, all of which will still have an environmental filter," Variety reports.

—Chuck Ross

Accused Driver's Defense to Claim Slain 'Idol' Contestant Was Drunk

The driver charged with killing "American Idol" contestant Alexis Cohen in a hit-and-run last weekend plans to defend the case in part by questioning Cohen's sobriety at the time she was struck, TMZ reports.

The attorney for 24-year-old Daniel Bark said, "We're going to put a blanket not guilty plea on all counts," TMZ said.

--Tom Gilbert

Another Doctor Searched in Michael Jackson Case; Katherine Jackson Gets Custody of Kids

A Beverly Hills plastic surgeon has become at least the third physician whose records have been searched by authorities investigating the death of Michael Jackson, People reports.

 Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter, who was seen entering the clinic of Dr. Lawrence Koplin on Wednesday. later told reporters he was searching for the pop star's medical records, People says.

 "We're cooperating with the coroner's office and we have no comment at this time," a woman who answered the phone at Koplin's office told the publication.

Separately, ABC News is reporting that Jackson's mother Katherine and his ex-wife Debbie Rowe have reached an out-of-court agreement that gives Katherine Jackson full, permanent custody of the pop icon's three children, while Rowe will be granted "meaningful visitation rights." 

--Tom Gilbert

Eight Emmy Categories to Be Prerecorded and Cut Into Live Awards Telecast

Presentations in eight of the 28 Primetime Emmy Awards categories will be prerecorded and then cut into the main broadcast this year, according to a proposal presented to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' board Wednesday night, Variety reports.

Citing unidentified sources, the trade publication says the categories in question include outstanding movie and miniseries; writing for dramatic series and movies/miniseries; directing for variety, music and comedy and movie/miniseries; and the supporting actor and actress awards in longform presentations.

Organizers are referring to the approach as "time-shifting" certain categories, Variety says.

--Tom Gilbert

TLC President Eileen O'Neill: 'Jon & Kate' Mess Meant 'Heaven and Hell'

TLC President and GM Eileen O'Neill described her first year at the helm of the cable network home of the controversial reality hit "Jon & Kate Plus 8" as "heaven and hell," the Los Angeles Times reports.

While enjoying a record ratings month in July, the network under her watch has had to endure criticism that it has exploited Jon and Kate Gosselin 's marital problems for commercial gain, the paper said.

--Tom Gilbert

The Perils of Live Blogging the TV Critics Tour—on an iPhone

TVWeek's own Chuck Ross gets flummoxed at the TV Critics Association's summer press tour by a screaming baby,  modern technology, tough competition and Joan Rivers, in his latest must-read blog entry.

(Gawd, this part is so embarrassing): —Chuck Ross

No Love Interests to Be Allowed on New Season of 'Jon & Kate'

The new season of TLC's “Jon & Kate Plus 8” will feature single parenting but not dating, RadarOnline.com reports.

The showed has resumed taping for an Aug. 3 return after enjoying record ratings last season.

In the TLC show's new season, which begins Aug. 3, the trials of single parenting will be featured  but "there will be no girlfriends," Radar quoted an unidentified source as saying.

--Tom Gilbert

Dan Rather Asks President Obama to Save Democracy by Helping Rescue the News Business

Former CBS News anchor Dan Rather, in a speech at the Aspen (Colo.) Institute Tuesday night, called on President Barack Obama to form a White House commission to help save the press, the Aspen Daily News reports.

“I personally encourage the president to establish a White House commission on public media,” the HDNet newsman was quoted as saying, adding that such a commission on media reform ought to make recommendations on saving journalism jobs and creating new business models to keep news organizations alive the paper said.

Rather argued that the survival of American democracy depends on it, the newspaper added.

--Tom Gilbert

Verizon Offers DSL Customers Free NFL Sunday Ticket to Stem Losses To Cable

Verizon is offering customers who sign up for certain triple-play bundles with DirecTV free access to the satellite operator's out-of-market NFL Sunday Ticket games package for the 2009 season, Multichannel News reports.

The promotion is aimed at stopping DSL customers from switching to cable, the trade says.

 -–Tom Gilbert

NBC Charges ' House' Creator David Shore With Reviving 'Rockford Files'

"House" creator David Shore will create a new version of the '70s detective drama “Rockford Files" for NBC, Universal Media Studios and Steve Carell's Carousel Television, Variety reports.

The original series, which ran on the network from 1974-80, starred James Garner and was the breakthrough hit for writer-producer Stephen J. Cannell.

"It's one of the shows that made me want to become a writer," Variety quotes Shore as saying. "I had no interest in adapting any old stuff, but this was the one exception."

--Tom Gilbert

Diane Keaton to Headline Sexy Comedy Series for HBO

Diane Keaton will star in an yet-untitled half-hour HBO comedy about a feminist icon who attempts to rekindle the movement by starting a sexually explicit magazine for women, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Writer-producer Marti Noxon told the trade publication that the central character is an older activist inspired by Gloria Steinem.

--Tom Gilbert

AMC Partners With Eight O'Clock Coffee for 'Mad Men' Social Media Promos

AMC, along with gourmet coffee bean maker Eight O'Clock Coffee, has come up with three viral marketing and social media applications to promote the new season of "Mad Men," which starts August 16.

One will be a trivia game, "Which MadMan Are You?" that will be featured on AMC website. Then there will be a series of "Man Men" e-cards that will be featured on Eight O'Clock Coffee's website.

Finally, at madmenyourself.com, starting today, July 29, there's something called "Mad Men Yourself." That's where fans can "create and customize '60s style digital avatars," according to an AMC press release. The avatars can then be downloaded and shared on most social networks.

—Chuck Ross

TLC Serves Second Servings of 'Cake'; 'Boss' Renewed for Second Season, 'Cake Off' to debut Aug. 31

 TLC has ordered a second season of "Cake Boss," set to debut at some point this fall, Daily Variety reports.

"Cake's" first season debuted in late spring on the heels of "Jon & Kate Plus 8" and its extra media attention. The strong lead in gave the show a strong performance and "Cake" finished the month of July as the top-rated cable food show.

The first season wraps up Aug. 17, with production on new second-season episodes already underway.

TLC will debut a another cake-themed series, "Ultimate Cake Off," on Aug. 31.

--Sergio Ibarra

Mike Fleiss on Why There Are More Bachelor Than Bachelorette Stars: Because Many Men Won't Compete, Saying Instead, 'Forget that chick, let’s go to Hooters'

Mike Fleiss, the reality show creator of the Bachelor/Bachelorette franchise on ABC--which had another successful run this summer, culminating with its traditional "After the Rose" special Tuesday night--tells the Los Angeles Times why we've seen eight Bachelors but only five Bachelorettes.

The reason. Fleiss says, is that men don't generally compete for women with the same passion that women compete for men. When men get rebuffed thay are usually quick to say "Forget that chick. Let's go to Hooters," Fleiss tells the LA Times in a long piece about the show.

—Chuck Ross

Jackson's Chef Talks Publicly About Doctor's Routine of Carrying Oxygen Tanks Out of Jackson's Room; Investigators Tell AP that Theory is an Anesthetic Caused Jackson Heart to Stop

"With toxicology reports pending, investigators are working under the theory that the powerful anesthetic propofol caused Jackson's heart to stop, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press," the wire service reports.

That's from a story that focuses primarily on an AP interview with Jackson's chef, and what she saw. She claims to have seem Dr. Conrad Murray come down the stairs from Jackson's room, most morning, carrying oxygen tanks. The day of Jackson's death she said the Dr. did not come down the stairs until much later than normal, and when he did finally come down the stairs he was running and screaming.

—Chuck Ross

How the Silverman NBC Exit Story was First Reported Publicly by....Ryan Seacrest??!!

Though it had been rumored for months that Ben Silverman was going to leave NBC, when the event actually happened, it was first reported not by a professional reporter, but by Ryan Seacrest on his Twitter account.

The Los Angeles Times has the full account.

—Chuck Ross

Surprise: Madoff's First Prison Interview NOT With a TV Outlet

It's no secret that many of the TV news outlets have been fighting for weeks to land the fist interview with Bernie Madoff, who's been convicted of running a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme.

So it came as surprise when it turned out that Madoff's first jailhouse interview, which was conducted Tuesday, July 28, turned out to be with two attorneys who represent some of the investors who are suing him. 

Aftef their interview the two attorneys spoke to the press, Reuters reports. The biggest revelation: Madoff's surprise that he was never caught (as you'll recall, the scheme was only revealed when Madoff and his sons turned called authorities themselves).

The lawyers said Madoff told them "There were several times that I met with the SEC and thought 'they got me.' "

—Chuck Ross

Video: William Shatner, Oral Poet Extraordinaire, Delivers Sarah Palin's Farewell Speech on 'Tonight' With Conan

TV Veteran--and New Media Mogul--Barry Diller on the Microsoft-Yahoo Deal

In an earning call, Barry DIller spoke about the Microsoft-Yahoo deal announced today, wherein Yahoo will outsource its search-related advertising platform to Microsoft (which introduced its bing search engine recently).

The bottom line: Strong competition to Google is good. Read more in this Reuters story.

—Chuck Ross

Google Partners with Visible World to Make its Auction Based TV Initiative More Attractive

Google has been pushing its auction-based Google TV initiative for some time now. According to the Wall St. Journal, Google "is teaming up with Visible World Inc., a well-known New York technology company that uses software to create multiple versions of a given ad, in its push to offer TV advertisers more targeting options."

Since many of you don't  subscribe to the WSJ, much of the article is reprinted, and elaborated upon, by searchengineland.com.

—Chuck Ross

CW's 'Beautiful Life' Adds Macpherson, Blue as Series Regulars

 The CW's "The Beautiful Life" has promoted Elle Macpherson and Corbin Bleu to series regulars, the Hollywood Reporter says.

The two were included in the pilot as recurring characters. In the show, Macpherson plays a former supermodel who runs a New York City modeling agency, while Bleu plays a young model.

Macpherson, a former model herself, marks her return to acting in the series. Bleu is most known for his role in the Disney "High School Musical" films.

--Sergio Ibarra

Fox's 'More to Love' Debuts Modestly, Fails to Make Big Mark

 Fox's new reality dating series "More to Love," featuring a plus-sized bachelor and women competing for his love, drew 4.2 million viewers for its premiere Tuesday night, Daily Variety reports.

"More" scored a 1.9 rating/6 share among adults 18-49 and ranked as the number three show in its time slot, behind NBC's "America's Got Talent" (12.8 million, 3.3/10) and CBS' "Big Brother" (6.2 million, 2.1/6).

Meanwhile, Fox held on strongly for a win in the 8 p.m. hour with "Hell's Kitchen" (6.8 million, 3.3/11) while NBC, CBS and ABC aired repeats.

--Sergio Ibarra

People Magazine Lands (Almost) the Entire Cast of 'Saved by the Bell'; Beats Jimmy Fallon to the Goal

Most of the cast members of the original teen sitcom "Saved by the Bell" reunited for a People Magazine cover story, JustJared.com reports.

Among the cast members that reunited were Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Mario Lopez, Elizabeth Berkley, Tiffani Thiessen and Lark Voorhies. Noticeably absent was Dustin Diamond.

Jimmy Fallon has recently been campaigning to get all the original cast members to reunite on his show.

Thiessen, however, has held out on a televised reunion and explains to FunnyorDie.com why she's been too busy.

--Sergio Ibarra

An 'Extreme' Difference Between Brits and US: Our Get Up and Go is Their Laid-Back Discuss at Tea, Complains ' Makeover: Home Edition' Host

As usual, it sounded like a good idea on paper. Take the ABC hit "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" to England and tape a special episode there.

Turns out one of the big problems was getting the Brits into the show's high energy.

"The British are so polite, they are afraid of ruffling each other's feathers. They had to take the time to discuss it properly," complains show host Ty Pennington in this Reuters article.

The episode airs this Sunday, Aug. 2.

—Chuck Ross

Jackson Memoir 'Moonwalk' (Originally a Jackie Onassis Project) to Be Re-issued; for the First Time, Here's the Commercial Michael Wanted to Do for It

In October, Random House will re-issue "Moonwalk," Michael Jackson's 1988 memoir that had originally been acquired for Doubleday by then-editor Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

Another Jackie--Jacqueline Deval--then a publicist for the book and now publisher of Hearst Books, tells the Canadian Press that Jackson refused to do interviews for the book, but had wanted to do something else for promotion:

"He had this fabulous idea for a TV commercial for the book," she said. "There would be music playing and a camera would show his feet, his steps moving to the beat. And then a major celebrity friend, such as Elizabeth Taylor, would say something about Michael Jackson.

"Then the camera would pan up to his knees, and there would be another celebrity talking about him. And so on, until we finally see his face. I think it would have been fabulous, but it was way beyond the budget of any book publisher."

So the commercial was never made.

--Chuck Ross

Fox, The CW Expected to Close Upfront Ad Sales This Week; Deals Down by as Much as -3%

Fox and The CW are are expected to close their upfront ad sales by the end of the week, Mediaweek reports.

Citing unidentified sources, Mediaweek says that the CW is doing deals at -2 to -3 percent for its primetime inventory, while Fox is averaging primetime CPMs at -1 percent.

Further, the trade reports that ABC is refusing to sell its primetime inventory at negative cost-per-thousand increases compared to last season.

--Tom Gilbert

USA Network Ratings Winner Among Cable Networks for July; TNT is 2nd, Fox News, 3rd

USA Network will finish July as the most-watched cable network, averaging 3.15 million total primetime viewers and winning all three major demos, Mediaweek reports.

Citing Nielsen data for June 30 through July 27, Mediaweek says USA averaged 1.45 million adults 25-54, 1.29 million viewers 18-49 and 553,000 viewers 18-34, mainly owing to the popularity of its original series “Royal Pains” and “Burn Notice.”

Second place for July went to TNT and Fox News Channel held onto third, the trade publication says.

--Tom Gilbert

Time Warner Profit Takes a 34% Dive in Second Quarter; Ad Slump, Slow DVD Sales Blamed

Time Warner Inc.’s second-quarter profit shrank 34 percent due to revenue declines in its publishing, movie and online properties, which were affected by the ad slump and slow DVD sales, the Associated Press reports.

Time Warner, owner of Warner Bros., the HBO and Turner cable networks, Time Inc. magazines and the AOL, reported earnings of $519 million, or 43 cents per share, in the three months ended in June, down from $792 million, or 66 cents per share, a year earlier, the AP said.

--Tom Gilbert

No Brainer: USA Renews 'Burn Notice' and 'Royal Pains,' Hits Behind Its Ratings Surge

USA Network has renewed its popular action drama "Burn Notice" and freshman hit "Royal Pains," according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The Thursday team of "Burn" and "Pains" has been the force behind a ratings surge for USA, which finished first among cable networks in the second-quarter ratings and just nailed top spot for July, the Reporter says.

--Tom Gilbert

Alfre Woodard Joins CBS' 'Three Rivers'; Heather Stephens Cast in ABC's 'The Forgotten'

Emmy-winning actress Alfre Woodard has been given a lead role opposite Alex O'Laughlin on CBS' new medical drama "Three Rivers," The Hollywood Reporter reports.

Woodard will play head of surgery at the hospital in the show, a role played by Julia Ormond in the series pilot.

THR also reports that Heather Stephens has joined the cast of ABC’s new fall drama, "The Forgotten."

--Tom Gilbert

Robert Knepper Now a Regular on 'Heroes'

Robert Knepper has been made a regular on the NBC drama "Heroes," according toThe Hollywood Reporter.

Knepper originally signed on for six episodes.

--Tom Gilbert

Harrison, Inaba to Host TV Guide's Revamped Red Carpet Coverage

The TV Guide network has signed "The Bachelor" host Chris Harrison and "Dancing With the Stars" judge Carrie Ann Inaba to host its new red carpet coverage, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

The duo will make its debut with coverage of the Emmy Awards Sept. 20, THR says, and will also host the network's coverage of the 2010 Golden Globes, SAG Awards, Grammy Awards and Academy Awards.

--Tom Gilbert

Perrine Joins Starz’ 'Crash' Cast; Network Orders New Comedy Series

Veteran actress Valerie Perrine has joined the cast of Starz’ “Crash,” in a role opposite Dennis Hopper and Keith Carradine, the New York Post reports.

Perrine will play a 60something "former flower child/hippy," the Post says.

Variety further reports that Starz has given a 10-episode order to "Failure to Fly," a half-hour comedy about a support group for people who tried to commit suicide from Eric Schaeffer and Jill Franklyn.
The network also has a number of series in development, Variety says, including another project from Rob Thomas, creator-exec producer of the Starz comedy "Party Down," and a comedy from Matthew McConaughey’s production company.

John Kerry Teams Up With Discovery to Help Save the Sharks for 'Shark Week'

 Sen. John Kerry is teaming up for Discovery Channel for a round of public service announcements set to air as part of the network's Shark Week next week, the New York Post reports.

Kerry will participate in a public service campaign that will ask for viewers to contact their representatives in support of his Shark Preservation Act.

The Shark Preservation Act looks to both end the illegal act of shark finning (removing shark's fins) and help promote preservation, the Post says.

--Sergio Ibarra

Spielberg's Alien Invasion Pilot Project for TNT Adds to Cast; Four Join Star Noah Wyle

 TNT's untitled Steven Spielberg project has added more castmembers, the Hollywood Reporter says.

Among those joining the previously announced lead Noah Wyle are Moon Bloodgood, Seychelle Gabriel, Maxim Knight and Jessy Schram.

The four will join Wyle's character as they form a group of soldiers who must face alien occupancy after the outer-space invaders nearly wipe out the human population.

Spielberg is executive producing the pilot project, with Robert Rodat joining as writer.

CBS TV Gets 95% Clearance for 'Smash Cuts'; Show to Feature Web Video Clips

 CBS Television Distribution has cleared the new Web video series "Smash Cuts" in 95% of the country, Daily Variety reports.

"Smash," expected to premiere the week of Sept. 27, will feature popular clips collected from various online sources. The show will also feature viewer-submitted videos and professional content.

The series has been sold to all the top-30 markets, including Tribune, CW and CBS stations, and will air on many CW affiliates. Renegade 83's David Garfinkle and Jay Renfroe serve as executive producers.

--Sergio Ibarra

Tobey 'Spiderman' Maguire's Mom Lands Reality Show

 Wendy Maguire, mother of "Spiderman" film star Tobey Maguire, is working on a new reality series, "Growing Up Maguire," the New York Post reports.

The show will follow Ms. Maguire and her other son--15-year-old Weston--to see how normal they can stay as they try to avoid the downside of living in and around the entertainment business.

--Sergio Ibarra

TV and Movie Marketing Executives: Is the Twitter Glass Half-Full or Half-Empty?

Seems to us, given that--at the most-- there are about 7,000 attendees in a sold-out hall during any one event at Comic-Con, that we were getting Tweeted a-plenty.

But this article in Variety says no, that the Twitter-buzz generated from Comic-Con was disappointing.

—Chuck Ross

Quick: What Song--Whose Singer Has Had a Ton of BAD Publicity In Recent Months-- Has Soared Into iTunes Top 10 This Week

Chris Brown should take this as a sign that he's got to be serious about no longer hitting women:

Due to nothing he's done, his song 'Forever" has soared back into the iTunes Top 10 Chart.

The reason, of course, is because of the incredible popularity--10 milliion views and counting!!--of the vial video Jillian Peterson and Kevin Heinz posted of their wedding procession. The joyful, infectiously delightful video has the entire wedding party boogeying their entrance to the ceremony to the strains of Brown's "Forever."

Tru Blood Beverage to Hit Stores: All Flavor. No Bite.

'CSI' to Lose Another From the Lab; Lauren Lee Smith Will Not Return for Season 10

 Lauren Lee Smith will not be returning to the "CSI" set when the show debuts its 10th season this fall, TVGuide Magazine reports.

Smith played show regular Riley Adams, a character that show executive producer Naren Shankar says never really found her "footing" among the rest of the ensemble.

Jorja Fox, however, will return in at least five episodes of the upcoming season.

--Sergio Ibarra

Apple Working on New Entertainment Multimedia Device With 10 Inch Screen

Apple's much anticipated iTable-device, that could launch later this year, is likely to be able to let users read and see and hear a variety of media, from TV shows to movies to books to music albums, Mercurynews.com reports.

The device is said to have a 10-inch screen. The product comes at good time for Apple, as new iPod sales declined 7% in the last quarter, compared to the same quarter a year ago, the article says.

—Chuck Ross

As Expected, Fox Declines to Air 'Family Guy' Episode About Abortion; Also Fox Shifts Some Fall TV Premiere Dates

As "Family Guy" creator Seth MacFarland predicted at Comic-Con, Fox Broadcasting has declined to air an episode of the show next season that deals with abortion. Fox released this statement, according to The Hollywood Reporter's Live Feed:

"Fox will not air the 'Partial Terms of Endearment' episode of 'Family Guy,' but we fully support the producers' right to make the episode and distribute it in whatever way they want."

MacFarland said it might go out as part of a DVD package.

In other Fox Broadcasting news, the network has tweaked its Fall premiere dates, moving up "Glee" and "So You Think You Can Dance," and moving back "Til Death" and "Brothers," the Live Feed reports (including a chart with the new dates).

—Chuck Ross

Calif. Film Commission Picks First 25 Film and TV Projects to Quality For State Tax Credits

In making the annoucement of the first 25 productions to qualify under California's new incentive program, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said, "I fought hard for economic-stimulus measures, including the film and television production incentive, because we must do everything in our power to stimulate the economy and put Californians back to work. This is about the makeup artists, the caterers and the countless other small businesses that rely on film and television production to succeed and create jobs for Californians."

As quoted in The Hollywood Reporter. Click here for the full article, including the list of the 25 productions that qualified for the tax credits.

Viacom Optimistic as Profits Tumble and TV Media Revenues Slide

Revenue at Viacom's media neworks division, which includes its cable networks, slid 8% to $197 million in the second quarter, the Associated Press reports.

Domestic ad revenue slipped 6%.

Howvever, Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman said he was pleased with how the upfront marketplace was going and that he was optimistic moving forward.

At least one analyst was skeptical, the AP reported: "I think the upfronts are in a really odd state of flux right now," said David Bank of RBC Capital Markets . "They're going to turn out better than everyone thought three or four months ago, but no one knows exactly how these negotiations are going." 

—Chuck Ross

FX Picks Up Series Based On Elmore Leonard Character

FX has ordered 13 episodes of a new series, "The Lawman," from Sony Pictures TV and FX Prods., Variety reports.

The show is about the exploits of U. S Marshall that was created by Elmore Leonard in his short story "Fire in the Hole," Variety says. The show will star Timothy Olyphant, was as last seen in FX's "Damages." Graham Yost, who wrote the pilot, will excutive produce.

—Chuck Ross

New Channel From Partners Viacom, Lionsgate and MGM Signs First Distributor

Epix, the new premium channel that's a co-venture between Viacom, Lionsgate and MGM has signed its first distributor, Verizon's FiOS, MediaWeek reports.

According to the article, the "deal gives Verizon a lot of flexibility to offer Epix a la carte and in bundles with its broadband offers. The two firms also plan to create a mobile Epix offer that they can market to Verizon's VCast subscribers."

—Chuck Ross

Aw, Jeepers, Creepers—I Was Just About to Add Ben Silverman as a Friend on Facebook ...

An arts columnist from our neighbor up north in Toronto opines about Silverman's tenure--was it Ben, or was it the job? From the Globe and Mail.

--Chuck Ross

Must See TV: O'Reilly Attacks Lou Dobbs on Obama Birth Certificate Issue, Then Passionately Defends Dobbs' Right to Say It

Silverman's Tenure Zucker's Fault. And Who the Heck Hired Zucker?

TV Critic Tim Goodman at the San Francisco Chronicle takes on NBCU chief Jeff Zucker, and even those who pre-date him.

--Chuck Ross

‘NCIS: LA,’ ‘Leno’ Predicted to Be Hits by Researcher

NewMediaMetrics , a New York-based research company, is predicting that CBS’ “NCIS: Los Angeles” will score big ratings Tuesday nights at 9 p.m., while NBC’s “Jay Leno Show” could be a strong performer at 10 p.m., particularly on Tuesday nights, MediaWeek reports.

The research also found promising ABC’s “Flash Forward” Thursday nights at 8; NBC’s Monday 9 p.m. hospital drama, “Trauma;” Fox’s “Family Guy” spin-off “The Cleveland Show” Sundays at 8:30 p.m.; and the CW’s “Vampire Diaries” Wednesdays at 8 p.m., MediaWeek says.

--Tom Gilbert

History Special to Include Rare Interview With Manson's Driver

History’s two-hour Sept. 7 special "Manson," timed to the 40th anniversary of the Manson family murders, will feature a rare interview with Linda Kasabian, the driver who stood guard while her fellow cult members murdered actress Sharon Tate and others, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

Kasabian, the star witness for Manson's prosecution, hasn't been extensively interviewed since an "A Current Affair" special on the 20th anniversary of the murders in 1989.

--Tom Gilbert

Worldwide Pants’ Valerie Schaer Joining Harpo as Chief of Creative Development

Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Productions has named Valerie Schaer executive VP of creative development effective Aug. 17, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

Schaer joins Harpo from David Letterman's Worldwide Pants, where she was executive VP, in charge of production, development, new media and business development.

--Tom Gilbert

Small Cable Operators Share Secrets to Combat Subscription Declines

Small cable operators are seeing the recession impact their subscriber bases and are combating the downturn through pricing packages and a focus on the bundle, according to Multichannel News.

A panel of executives discussed the situation Monday in Grapevine, Texas, at The Independent Show, sponsored by the National Cable Television Cooperative and the American Cable Association.

--Tom Gilbert

George Lopez, Eva Longoria Parker to Serve as Co-Hosts for Show Awarding Latinos in Entertainment

 George Lopez and Eva Longoria Parker will serve as co-hosts of this year's ALMA Awards, recognizing Latinos in entertainment, the Associated Press says.

Longoria Parker will also serve as an executive producer for the show, which will air on ABC Sept. 18.

The ALMA (American Latino Media Arts) Awards are presented by the National Council of La Raza.

Eyeworks, the Company Behind 'The Biggest Loser' Signs Octo-Mom For Reality TV Deal

Nadya Suleman, better known as the Octo-Mom, has signed a deal on behalf of her 14 children for them to appear in a reality show that would be produced by Eyeworks,Us magazine reports.

Eyeworks is the company behind "The BIggest Loser" and "Breaking Bonaduce."

The children, collectively, would earn $250,000 over the next three years, Us says.

--Chuck Ross

Weak Advertising Market Sends Viacom Profit Tumbling 32%

Second-quarter profit at Viacom plummeted 32% as revenue fell amid a weak advertising market, slower video game sales and fewer movie releases, the Associated Press reports.

Viacom earned $277 million, or 46 cents a share, vs. $407 million, or 65 cents a share, in the same quarter last year. Domestic ad revenue dropped 6 percent and international advertising was down 8%, the AP says.

--Tom Gilbert

Rhimes Reveals Failed Plans for T.R. Knight's Final Hours on 'Grey's Anatomy'

Shonda Rhimes was hoping to show viewers the final hours of T.R. Knight's character, George, on "Grey's Anatomy" in the show's season opener, Entertainment Weekly reports.

Creator and showrunner Rhimes said Knight's character will die in the season opener, but she intended to show George's final hours leading up to his fatal accident.

Knight, however, will no longer return to the series and declined to make an appearance in the upcoming sixth season. 

--Sergio Ibarra

Ahem…Just so We and the Producers of 'Jon & Kate Plus 8' Are Clear

This is the entire short item from B.J. Hammerstein, editor of the Detroit Free Press’ Detroit.metromix.com as published on that site:

Aww, how cute. Jon Gosselin doesn't want soon-to-be ex-wife, Kate Gosselin, or the producers of the TLC hit "Jon and Kate Plus 8" to get the wrong idea.

"At this point -- I'm single -- per se. I'm just a regular guy who just wants to have friendship and good times," Gosselin confessed to People.com.

Saturday he explained 22-year-old Hailey Glassman loves him "for who I am and not for what I do," but they're going to "chill out for a while."

Remember Kate Major, the Star reporter who resigned from her gig Thursday after she went public with their fast-flowing relationship?

Gosselin delivered the dagger: "We are just friends."

He did talk about concentrating on priorities: "my family first, second my career. That's what I have to do."#

Verizon Wireless May Package Fios, Cell Phone and Internet Services

Verizon Wireless may package its Fios, mobile phone and Internet services, Bloomberg reports.

Fios customers almost doubled in the last quarter, performing much better in that regard than Verizon's mobile phone division, Bloomberg says.

“A year from now, we’d be describing a very different set of applications and use cases for the phone and bundling and buying buckets of minutes for different devices," Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam said in an intervew, Bloomberg reports.

--Chuck Ross

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aNzOyY1xEbCQ

'Battlestar's' Bamber to Guest on 'Dollhouse'

“Battlestar Galactica” star Jamie Bamber will guest star in the season premiere of Fox’s “Dollhouse,” Entertainment Weekly reports.

Bamber will play a character who is “heavily involved in an engagement with Echo and her new handler Ballard,” EW said, citing a Fox insider.

--Tom Gilbert

http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/2009/07/breaking-dollhouse-recruits-battlestar-vet-.html

ABC Family Orders More 'Make It or Break It' Episodes

ABC Family has ordered more first-season episodes of its new Monday at 9 p.m drama "Make It or Break It," Variety reports.

The cable network announced Monday that it asked for another 10 episodes of the series, bringing the first-season total to 20 installments. New episodes return early in 2010.

--Tom Gilbert

Silverman and NBC: Not a Silver Slipper Fit. ANALYSIS: Is Silverman a Better Fit With Diller?

Ben Silverman is calling his new collaboration with Barry Diller "Reveille meets BBDO," referring both to Silverman's own former entreprenuerial entertainment company and the famous ad agency.

What went wrong at NBC? Will this new venture work? Click here for analysis from Michael Learmonth of Ad Age.

--Chuck Ross

Sometimes a Great (Funny) Notion: The Official Info on the Ben Silverman/Barry Diller Project

Soon after NBCU announced that NBC Entertainment Co-Chairman Ben Silverman was leaving, Barry Diller's company, IAC, put out a release of its own about the new venture--Notion--that will see Diller and Silverman collaborating.

Here's that annoucement:

IAC (Nasdaq: IACI - News) and media entrepreneur Ben Silverman today announced that they are forming a new company to capitalize on the ever-evolving world of multimedia production and distribution, leveraging unique marketing expertise. The company, which will be headed by Ben Silverman, will unite producers, creators, advertisers and distributors under one roof and produce all forms of content for distribution across a variety of platforms around the world.

This will be the industry's first global platform that connects advertisers, distributors and content creators early on in the development process, enabling advertisers to be a partner in campaigns and content creation.

"This new venture will take full advantage of all areas of Ben Silverman's extensive media expertise - as an agent, producer and advertising innovator - to create a truly integrated and truly interactive new media production entity, a next generation enterprise that bridges the gap between traditional television and the internet," said Barry Diller, IAC Chairman & CEO.

Already a pioneer in pushing the boundaries of the media industry, as evidenced most recently by Silverman's work as Co-Chairman of NBC Entertainment - bringing advertisers into the process further upstream resulting in integrated campaigns and better content - this venture will leverage Silverman's unique expertise and break the current silos of the media industry to create a broad-based, 360-degree, multi-creative company. The new company will aim to go further than the industry has gone before, by bringing marketing and advertising expertise in-house to help advertisers sponsor, support and be involved with the content creation process from the beginning.

"Media is being consumed across an increasing number of platforms, including TV, the internet, mobile, and DVR. The next generation of media will be defined by the players who can capitalize on those trends and deliver integrated, compelling content across all platforms," said Silverman. "Uniting advertisers and content creators will fundamentally improve quality and enable a fluid production and distribution model."

NBC Universal will continue to have a relationship with Mr. Silverman via the new venture through platform partnerships and a potential investment in the enterprise.

IAC will provide initial capital to the venture, though the parties intend to ultimately structure the venture in a way that its results will not be consolidated with the financial results of IAC, whether through the participation of new investors or otherwise. Additional terms of the venture are not being disclosed.

Some Insight into Jeff Gaspin, the Big Winner in Today's Shake-up at NBC

Sometimes in this business one is prescient. Other times one gets lucky. In this case, our erstwhile TV editor, Joe Adalian, was both. So we now present, from just 4 months ago, Joe's major, in depth, interview with Jeff Gaspin.

Gaspin, of course, just received a huge boost from NBCU chief Jeff Zucker today. Gaspin, had ONLY been running some of the biggest brands in cable (USA, Bravo, Sci Fi), along with the Spanish-language Telemundo network, NBC’s syndication arm, the iVillage suite of Web properties and all of the parent company’s digital content.

Today, with the announcement that Ben Silverman is leaving NBC it was also announced that Marc Graboff is becoming sole chairman of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, reporting to Gaspin. Thus Gaspin now adds oversight for NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios to his alrready burgeoning portfolio.

Gaspin was a major power player in Hollywood before today. Now he's a major general.

Click here for our In Depth interview with Jeff Gaspin that ran in March.

--Chuck Ross

NBCU Reaches Compromise on English Language Broadcast of World Cup Quailifying Match Between USA and Mexico

By John Consoli
Special to TVWeek

NBC Universal is now going to offer all cable and satellite operators free access to Telemundo-owned cable network mun2 on August 12, so that all soccer fans around the country will get to see the English-language telecast of the World Cup qualifying match between the United States and Mexico.

The move will appease thousands of protesters who organized a petition drive last week trying to get broader English-language distribution of the 3 p.m. E.T. match.

Mun2 can reach 32 million households, carried on such cable and satellite operators as Comcast, Cablevision and Time Warner, along with DirecTV and DIsh Network.  But the protesting viewers complained that this is only a small sliver of the country and a lot of potential viewers would be shut out. Mun2 is normally carried on special tiers on DIrecTV and DIsh, but both satellite suppliers have agreed to open up the channel to all of their subscribers on Aug. 12. Thus the total potential homes that can tune into Mun2 that day will be 56 million households.

Spanish-language broadcast network Telemundo owns the entire U.S. rights to televise the match, based on a deal it has with the Mexican national team, which allows Telemundo to exclusively show any matches the team plays in Mexico. The Aug. 12 World Cup qualifying match is in Mexico.

 Telemundo will air the match on its broadcast network, which reaches 59 million homes, and after rejecting a bid by ESPN to buy the English-language U.S. telecast rights to the match, decided to give it's sibbling English-language cable network, mun2, some publicity by offering the match there.

But soccer fans protested that the match should instead be offered on other NBC Universal owned cable networks, like USA or Bravo, which has a broader reach than mun2.

Telemundo president Don Browne said last week that the goal was to give some prominence to mun2 by offering the first live sports telecast on the network ever. And that fans who did not have access to mun2 on their cable systems, could watch the match on Telemundo and get the mun2 English language feed using the (secondary audio) SAP feature.

The NBC Universal decision to make mun2 available for one day to all cable systems for free is a compromise that will still allow mun2 to get a broader audience and some recognition, which was Telemundo's goal.

Making the network available for the entire day will let viewers also have access to other mun2 programming and perhaps get some of those viewers to lobby their cable systems to add the network.

The free preview of mun2 will be promoted in each market with comprehensive marketing support that will include commercials on Telemundo and via website promotion, including notices on all the cable operators' sites.

"It's a great opportunity for new viewers to smaple our quality programming and to see a historic game produced by Telemundo Deportes (Telemundo Sports)," said Alex Pels, senior vp and general manager of mun2. "By offering a live major sporting event on mun2 free-of-charge, to the industry, we hope that all soccer fans and sports enthusiasts will recognize mun2 as uniquely American, game changing, connected and smart."

The televised match on mun2 will be preceded by a special edition of The mun2 Shuffle, a show that will offer tape music performances and a soccer preview. And following the match, the network will air a special mun2 Presents--The Best of mun2, which will offer highlights of all of the network's original shows.

Ben Silverman Leaving NBC, Entertainment Co-Chairman Marc Graboff Becomes Network Ent. Chairman, Reporting to Jeff Gaspin

NBC made official what's been rumored for months: that Ben Silverman is leaving. He'll be joining Barry Diller in a new-media venture.

Silverman leaves two years and one month after he arrived at the Peacock Network.

Said one top TV executive: "Ben's an interesting cat. I think there were just as many people in Hoillywood rooting for him as rooting against him. Oddly, I think there's a bunch of us--and I'm one of them--who felt he was really more interested in doing ad-driven creative deals than just creative deals. I know that's a strange knock on him, given the financial situation with the networks. But I feel that if he were more really creatively oriented he would've had more success with the shows he put on."

--Chuck Ross

Here's the press release NBC put out on Silverman's leaving and the consolidation of all of NBC Universal Entertainment under Jeff Gaspin:

JEFF GASPIN EXPANDS DUTIES WITH PROMOTION TO CHAIRMAN, NBC UNIVERSAL TELEVISION ENTERTAINMENT

UNIVERSAL CITY, CA - July 27, 2009 - Jeff Gaspin has been named Chairman, NBC Universal Television Entertainment, effective immediately. This move expands his role to now include oversight of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, in addition to all of his current duties. This new structure will consolidate all of the company's television entertainment assets, both broadcast and cable, English and Spanish, under one roof and will better allow the company to leverage its content across all of those properties.

Gaspin already has management responsibility for the company's portfolio of entertainment cable networks, including USA, SyFy, Bravo, Oxygen, Universal HD, Sleuth, and Chiller, as well as its interests in the A&E and History networks. In addition, Gaspin oversees the company's television distribution, including linear, digital and wireless, off-net syndication and first-run efforts, as well as the Telemundo broadcast network and its owned stations.

Ben Silverman, who has been Co-Chairman, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, has announced that he is returning to his entrepreneurial roots to form a new venture. He will remain in his current role for several weeks to assist in the launch of NBC's fall schedule. Marc Graboff, who has also been Co-Chairman, will continue as Chairman, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, reporting to Gaspin.

These announcements were made today by Jeff Zucker, President and CEO, NBC Universal, to whom Gaspin reports.

Said Zucker: "Jeff Gaspin is an extraordinary media professional who has had an incredible record of success in his 25 years in the business. He's a strong creative executive who also has the business acumen necessary to succeed in today's media environment. This new structure helps us align all of our television entertainment assets under one veteran executive at a time when continued innovation is essential."

Zucker added: “Ben Silverman has many exciting things he wants to accomplish and we applaud him as he sets off on his new endeavors. Ben brought us tremendous new thinking in this changing media age, and we're grateful for that. Now, we look forward to working with him in his new venture."

"I can't think of a more important time to take on this expanded role. Our industry is going through one of the most profound changes in history and I look forward to using all that I have learned to help build the NBC Universal assets through this period of unprecedented evolution,” said Gaspin. “NBC remains one of the strongest brands in television and I am excited to work with the talented executives at the network and Universal Media Studios."

Under the new structure, the cable and distribution executives who currently report to Gaspin will continue to do so. They include Bonnie Hammer (President, NBC Universal Cable Entertainment and Universal Cable Productions), Lauren Zalaznick (President, NBC Universal Women and Lifestyle Entertainment Networks), Barry Wallach (President, NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution), Bridget Baker (President, TV Networks Distribution, NBC Universal), Don Browne (President, Telemundo) and J.B Perrette (President, Digital and Affiliate Distribution and Content Distribution Strategy).

The cable entertainment group, which includes Bravo, Chiller, Oxygen, Syfy, Sleuth, Universal HD and the USA Network, has experienced dynamic change under Gaspin’s leadership. In 2007, the group acquired Oxygen, and in 2008, sold its interest in the Sundance Channel and established the Universal Cable Productions television studio, further bolstering the company’s commitment to a strong cable portfolio. Each channel broke ratings records in 2008 and revenues and profits have exhibited double-digit growth under Gaspin’s watch.

Previously, Gaspin had served as President and Chief Operating Officer of the Universal Television Group since February 2007. Under Gaspin, the NBC Universal entertainment cable division posted its strongest performance ever. And with Gaspin being an early proponent of online streaming video, traffic to all of the television group's entertainment websites more than doubled. Prior to that, Gaspin served as President of NBC Universal Cable Entertainment and Cross-Network Strategy since 2004, adding digital content to his responsibilities in November 2005.

In December 2002, Gaspin was named president of Bravo, where he guided the day-to-day operation, programming, and marketing when the network was acquired by NBC. Among his accomplishments are "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy," which was Bravo’s highest-rated show in its 23-year history, and "Project Runway," which continued to break ratings records for Bravo. He also brought Kathy Griffin to Bravo, where she's starred in the two-time Emmy-winning "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List." Under Gaspin’s direction in 2003, Bravo increased its subscriber base from 68 million to 80 million and more than doubled revenue and profits.

Gaspin – who had earlier worked at NBC – restarted his NBC career in March 2001 as Executive Vice President, Alternative Series, Longform, Specials and Program Strategy, where he led the network’s unscripted programming division, specials, movies and mini-series. In that role, he developed the hit NBC programs "Deal or No Deal," "The Apprentice" and "Biggest Loser."

Prior to rejoining NBC, Gaspin served as Executive Vice President, Programming and Production, at VH1, where he created the acclaimed program "Behind the Music" for which he was nominated for two Emmys. Under Gaspin – who joined the channel in 1996 – VH1’s ratings more than doubled and its profits increased fivefold. He was responsible for overall programming strategies, as well as program development, production, acquisition, scheduling, on-air talent, news and studio operations. Also developed under his watch were "Divas Live" and the hit series "Pop-up Video," "Rock and Roll Jeopardy," "Storytellers" and "Before They Were Rock Stars."

During his first nine years at NBC, as vice president of Programming and Development, Gaspin helped develop and launch "Dateline NBC." Prior to that, he was responsible for the expansion of the "Today" franchise to seven days. Gaspin started his career at NBC in finance, serving as Director of Financial Planning for NBC News and overseeing production finance for "Late Night with David Letterman," "Saturday Night Live" and NBC’s TV stations division.

Gaspin received the GE Chairman’s Overall Leadership Award for 2008 and the GE Leadership Award in the Imagination category for his work on Bravo and NBC in 2003. Gaspin also serves on the boards of the A&E Television Networks, The Paley Center for Media, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association and NBC Universal.

In addition, he was recognized with a Vision Award from Jewish Television Network in 2008 and was included in CableFAX’s 2008 Power List. Gaspin was also featured in Entertainment Weekly’s 2003 Power issue as a rising executive and in 1999, New York Magazine voted him one of the top most influential New Yorkers.

Gaspin holds an M.B.A. in strategic planning from the New York University Graduate School of Business Administration and a B.A. from the State University of New York at Binghamton. He currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife, Karen, their sons, Max and Ben, and their daughter, Samantha.

Questions About Obama's Birth: Issue That Won't Die With CNN's Lou Dobbs, Others

Though the state of Hawaii has repeatedly confirmed that President Barack Obama was born in the state--and indeed, there is even a local Hawaiian newspaper notice of his birth a little over a week after he was born--a number of media commentators are still questioning whether or not Obama was born in Kenya, the New York Times reports.

The paper mentions Lou Dobbs of CNN as one of the commentators who have "said that Mr. Obama should do more to dispel the claims" that he was not born in this country.

—Chuck Ross

Police Arrest Hit-and-Run Driver Who Killed 'Idol' Contestant Alexis Cohen

Alexis Cohen, 25, who had one of the memorable auditions on "American Idol" in 2008, was killed by a hit and run driver early Sunday morning. She was best known for her rant against 'Idol' judge Simon Cowell.

The police later arrested a 23-year-old man for the crime, TMZ reports.

Here's a video of Alexis and her rant:

An Important News Flash About American Pop Culture, And I Doubt You’ve Heard About It

In his latest Open Mike blog entry, TVWeek's Chuck Ross uncovers an announcement that's gone under the radar about a cable channel that's in 75 million homes.

'Family Guy' Shoots Episode About Abortion for Next Season, Show Creator MacFarlane Says It's Probably Too Controversial for Fox to Air

Seth MacFarland, creator of "Family Guy," said during a panel discussion at Comic-Con on Saturday the a show tackling the subject of abortion has been filmed for the upcoming season of the series, but that he doubted that Fox would air it, The Hollywood Reporter's Live Feed blog has reported.

"20th Century Fox, as always, allowed us to produce the episode and then said, 'You know what? We're scared to f--king death of this,'" MacFarlane said.

The episode will likely come out on a future DVD of the series, the Live Feed said.

—Chuck Ross

'Lost' Co-Creator Tells Comic-Con Audience That if There Were a 'Lost' Spin-off or Movie It Would Be an 'Insult' to the Fans; More 'Lost' News

Damon Lindelof, co-creator of "Lost," said it would be an insult to the show's fans if there was a "Lost" feature film or spin-off after the series ends. He made his remarks at Comic-Con, MTV News reports.

Given the fans' three year investment in watching "Lost," Lindelof said, "We can't deliver a sort of ending where it's like, 'Well, this could be the ending.' "

Furthermore, several characters that have not been seen since the first season will return, Reuters reports.

Also,"The time-travel season is over, the flash-forward season is over," Lindelof said. "We're going to do something different," says Reuters.

Finally, Lindelof said, "everything that matters we're gonna answer." 

—Chuck Ross

Vernon Forrest, 38, Who Rose to Boxing Popularity During Eight Appearances on HBO, Is Shot Dead

Vernon Forrest, 38, the popular former boxing champion in two diffenent divisions, was shot and killed in Atlanta on Saturday night July 25th, Newsday reports. It appears that he was killed in a gun battle with an assailant who was trying to rob him.

Forrest rose to popularity during his eight appearances boxing on HBO.

"Everyone at HBO Sports is shocked and saddened at the untimely death of Vernon Forrest," said HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg in a statement, Newsday reported. "Vernon was a credit to the sport. He was one of the most charitable and gracious champions...He will be missed by the entire HBO family."

—Chuck Ross

Cox’s $1 Billion Bet to Get Into Crowded, Established Mobile Phone Arena May Be Gutsiest Biz Decision of the Year

The decision by Cox Communications, the nation’s third biggest cable operator, to spend $1 billion to get into the mobile phone business is either brilliant or quixotic, Multichannel News reports.

Among those skeptical about the deal is well-known analyst Craig Moffett of Sanford Bernstein, who told Multichannel, “this is a market that just isn’t very attractive.”

Cox President Pat Esser said that the company has been criticized before for offering products that turned out to be successful. He added, “We think it’s important as a communications provider to offer wireless. Our current customers and our next generation of customers are telling us they want and need mobility as part of their life.”

Previously Cox, along with Bright House, Comcast, and Time Warner Cable, were partnered, along with Sprint Nextel, in a wireless venture called Pivot.

The other MSOs, Multichannel notes, are just offering data services now. Cox will purchase wholesale network access from Sprint and other wireless carriers for its upcoming voice and data service.

The service will launch in the second half of 2009, Multichannel says.

—Chuck Ross

More Details About Simon Cowell and Kate Moss: Their New Show Will Air in the U.S. and It's About Finding the Best Unsigned Rock Band; Moss Will Be One of the Judges

Simon Cowell is creating a new reality show that will focus on finding the nation's best unsigned rock band, according to The Daily Mirror in Britain.

Supermodel Kate Moss, who recently signed a business agreement with Cowell and his new business partner, Sir Philip Green , will be one of the judges on the show, which will debut in the U.S. before a version is done in Cowell's native U.K.

The show will be a cross between two other Cowell shows, the report says, "America's Got Talent," and "X-Factor." The latter is similar to "American Idol" except groups are elegible. Depending when the show gets on-air, Cowell will not likely be a judge on the show himself, especially if he signs a new deal with "Idol." His current "Idol" contract expires after this season. 

We're not exactly sure what this means, but according to the Mirror, a source said that Supermodel  “Kate is absolutely cock-a-hoop about her move into TV."

"Idol" is clearly more pop oriented than rock. The best a real rocker has done on the show was Chris Daughtry, who made it to the final four before being voted off the show.

—Chuck Ross

Are You Among Those Not Happy With Your Late Night Comedy Choices? ABC Is Throwing You a Nightline—and Ratings Are Up

Most of the attention in the late-night wars in the last six weeks have primarily focused upon Conan vs. Letterman. ABC's "Nightline'" has snuck under the radar, with ratings up 14% during the six weeks, the New York Times reports, compared to the same time-frame last year.

One reason, it is speculated in the article, is that some viewers have been shopping around the dial since Jay Leno left the "Tonight" show.

—Chuck Ross

HBO Leading Network in Depicting Gay Characters on TV

HBO had the highest score among 15 networks for its representation of gay characters last season the Associated Press reports, citing a report released today.

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation’s third annual Network Responsibility Index found that of HBO's 14 original prime-time series, 10 included content reflecting the lives of gay, bisexual and transgender people. That was good for 42% of the network's programming hours, in series including "True Blood," "Entourage" and "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency."

NBC and CBS only included them in 8 percent and 5 percent, respectively, of prime-time hours, the report said.

For the report, GLAAD reviewed all prime-time programming on the five major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and the CW) and 10 prominent cable networks from June 1, 2008, to May 31, 2009, the AP said.

—Tom Gilbert

At Comic-Con: Joss Whedon Shows Series Ending Episode Of 'Dollhouse' That Would Have Aired if Show Had Not Been Renewed

Joss Whedon--whose biggest TV success to date has been "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer,"--was at Comic-Con showing an episode of  his "Dollhouse" that would have ended the Fox series this last May if the show had not been picked up for another 13 episodes, MTV News reports.

Instead the episode will have a limited release on DVD.

—Chuck Ross

Syfy to Debut 'Battlestar' Prequel 'Caprica' Next January; Show to Air Fridays at 10 p.m.

 Syfy will premiere the "Battlestar Galactica" prequel "Caprica" on Jan. 22, Daily Variety reports.

"Caprica" picks up 58 years before the story of "Battlestar," which ended its run earlier this year.

"Caprica" will air Friday nights at 10 p.m. and will begin with a two-hour pilot. Syfy has ordered an additional 20 hours of the series beyond the pilot.

Upfront Deals Are Being Made; the Largely Unanswered, Whispered Question: 'Psst, That CPM Number, What Base Is That off of?

Upfront deal making has finally picked up. As usual, both buyers and sellers are compromising, sometimes one more than the other, as the marketplace settles into place.

We have three must reads for you about the upfront. All three of the reporters involved (as well as yours truly) once worked at the bible of the advertising business--Advertisng Age--and one still does.

Here are the articles:

1) Claire Atkinson's most perceptive piece from her B&C blog;

2) Veteran Wayne Friedman's reportage in MediaPost's Media Daily News; and

3) Brian Steinberg's discerning article from Ad Age.

If you're seriously interested in what's going on with the Upfront Marketplace, please read all three.

Also, if you missed our own piece about why it's almost August and all of this is just going down now, entitled "What's Really Going on with the Upfront," please click here.

—Chuck Ross

Home Grown TV: Wedding Couple Grooves Down the Aisle, Rakes In YouTube Gold

A recently married Minnesota couple threw the traditional wedding entrance out the window and it's gone hysterically viral.

Jillian Peterson and Kevin Heinz had their entire bridal party enter their wedding ceremony dancing to the  tune of Chris Brown's hit "Forever." Less than a week after posting a clip of their entrance on YouTube, the couple's video has drawn over 1.7 million viewers. (continued below)

"I always love musicals and theatre and using that to make things special and more emotive," Peterson told WCCO.com in Minneapolis-St. Paul. "I think you can say a lot through dance. So, I think doing it at the church was really something special to set the tone for the whole thing."

"I posted the video on Sunday or Monday, so the fact that we're even doing this interview is kind of crazy to us," Heinz said.

For more of the hottest videos online, subscribe to TVWeek.com's Viral Video Newsletter.

‘Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood’ To Drop to Once a Week in the Fall

The economy has done something that not even the Grim Reaper was able to accomplish: practically kill "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood."

Though host Fred Rogers died six years ago, the show has continued on, daily, in reruns.

However, PBS has told its member stations that reruns of the show will only be available once a week in the fall, not every day, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Daily reruns would be too expensive for PBS in this economic climate, Kevin Morrison, chief operating officer for Rogers' Oakland-based Family Communications Inc., told the paper.

However, PBS has launched a freshened-up “Neighborhood” web site at PBSKids.org, which includes a section for fans to post their memories and photos of growing up with host Fred Rogers.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Battlestar Galactica Showrunner Takes Emmy Voters to Task

Ron Moore, the showrunner on "Battlestar Galactica,' told a crowd at Comic-Con today that it was a "fraking crime" that the cast of the show was never recognized with any Emmys, The Hollywood Reporter's Live Feed blog reports.

—Chuck Ross

BBC Ends Plan for Internet TV Service

The BBC and two other TV network partners officially ended their attempt to establish a commercial Internet TV service for the U.K, dubbed Project Kangaroo, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The technology was sold to Arqiva Ltd., which will need to negotiate with networks for access to their programming. Arqiva plans to launch a U.K. video-on-demand service in the coming months.

—Elizabeth Jensen

'Sunny' News But Still TMI: Danny DeVito to Be Mostly Nude in an Upcoming Episode

Danny DeVito, star of FX’s “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” said the plot line of an upcoming episode calls for him to be nude, the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor told MTV News at Comic Con.

"In one episode, you'll see more of me than you have in the past, and more of me than you'd probably like to see," DeVito said.

—Chuck Ross

NFL Confirms Its 2010 Draft Will Start in Primetime

The National Football League confirmed earlier reports that its 2010 draft will kick off in primetime on Thursday April 22, and will expand to three days, B&C reports. 

In recent years it had been held on weekends. It will continue to air on ESPN and the NFL Network. Last year’s first round attracted 6.3 million viewers.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Former Brillstein-Grey TV Exec Susie Fitzgerald To Oversee Development at AMC

Cable network AMC, home of “Mad Men” and “Breaking Bad,” has hired Susie Fitzgerald to oversee development, The Hollywood Reporter reports, citing sources.

Her title is still being worked out. Fitzgerald was previously co-topper of Brillstein-Grey TV, and most recently was president of Barry Josephson's 20th TV-based production company.

AMC declined to comment.

--Elizabeth Jensen

FCC Expected to Send Engineers to Examine Continuing Digital TV Reception Problems

The Federal Communications Comission is expected to dispatch engineers to some markets, including New York and Chicago, for a more in-depth examination of what is causing ongoing DTV reception problems, B&C reports.

Some two to three dozen stations continue to have problems that the FCC is working on.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Wendy Williams to End Her Radio Show at the End of the Month

Just one week into her TV talk show, Wendy Williams announced that she is leaving the daily radio program where she made her name, the New York Times reports.

The radio show, “The Wendy Williams Experience,” which has aired on New York’s WBLS since 2002 and is syndicated nationally, will end its run on July 31.

The TV program “The Wendy Williams Show” went into national TV syndication and on BET on July 13, following a trial run on a handful of stations last summer.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Business Users Force Twitter to Change Direction; Company Now Sees Way to Make Money

Twitter, the latest new media rage, has decided to market itself as a communications network instead of a social network, Reuters reports.

"We started out by creating this very simple status updating system. And that's not what Twitter is. It evolved into something else," Twitter co-founder Biz Stone said in an interview with Reuters.

The company plans to make money "through various add-on tools and services for the business and professional users of Twitter," Reuters said.

In the TV space, for example, Twitter has been widely adopted by everyone from publicists to producers to on-air personnel to critics to trade reporters to get out their point of view about their various TV-related products.

—Chuck Ross

HBO has Money Riding on the Success of ABC's 'FlashForward' This Fall

In a deal not uncommon in Hollywood, HBO, which passed on "FlashForward," but doesn't want to be embarrassed--financially speaking--if it's a hit on ABC, will be getting paid to avoid any embarrassment, Los Angeles Times Company Town blogger Joe Flint reports.

HBO will get $5,000 to $7,000 for each episode that airs on ABC, plus about 7% of the back end.

Other shows and networks that recently have had similar deals, Flint notes, include "the CW's "Life Unexpected," which is made by CBS Productions but was originally pitched at Disney's ABC, which is now on the show's payroll. CBS, meanwhile, has been getting a cut of the USA drama "In Plain Sight," which is produced by NBC Universal. News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox Television had a stake in "Everybody Hates Chris," which was made by Paramount (now CBS Television Studios) for UPN and later the CW."

—Chuck Ross

OMG: 18 TV Related Panels at Comic-Con Today

So, you don't think Comic-Con is THE place to be this week if you're in the TV biz. Well, check this out.....Today alone there are 18 TV-related panels at the show...Here's a list of the TV programs that will be discussed today, in order of their appearance during the day (Hope we didn't miss any...):

Farscape, Stargate Universe, FlashForward, Caprica and Battlestar Galactica: The Plan, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, The Middle, Fairly Odd Parents, The Big Bang Theory, Attack of the Show, Past Life, 24, Bones, Eureka, Dollhouse, Jericho, The Simpsons and a TV-related panel put on by TV Guide.

Whew! And that's only today!

UPDATE: Oops, looks like we did forget one: Spartacus: Blood and Sand. So that makes 19!

—Chuck Ross

Showtime Creating 'Dexter' Prequel as Animated Webisodes

Showtime is creating 12 animated webisodes that will be a prequel to "Dexter," according to James Hibberd of The Hollywood Reporter's Live Feed blog.

Michael C. Hall, who plays the title character on the series, will do his character's voice on the episodes, which are called "Earl's Cuts." The webisodes will explore how Dexter "honed his killing craft," Hibberd says, and are expected to be online this fall.

Some of the show's cast and crew spoke about the project at Comic-Con in San Diego yesterday.

—Chuck Ross

News Corp. Digital Chief: Videogames on MySpace to Become 'a Crucial Theme'

Boosting the videogame platform of MySpace will become a key initiative of the social networking site that has been seriously challenged by Facebook and Twitter. 

"MySpace is and will be more in the future a gaming platform, a space for people to meet and play games," said Jonathan Miller, who's the chief digital officer for MySpace owner News Corp. Miller said his remarks at the Fortune Brainstorm: TECH conference in Pasadena, California, on Thursday, July 23,  Reuters reports. 

News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch recently said MySpace should become an "entertainment portal." He did not say exactly how that would involve the News Corp's TV or other divisions.

But Miller made it clear that videogaming was an opportunity for MySpace.

Quoting ComScore numbers, Reuters reported taht in April Facebook had 307 million unique visitors to 125 million unique visitors on MySpace.

 —Chuck Ross

Cronkite Remembered at Funeral; CBS to Have Public Memorial at Lincoln Center Next Month

CBS's legendary newcaster Walter Cronkite was remember fondly by friends and family at his funeral service in Manhattan Thursday afternoon, the New York Times reports.

The Times also reports that CBS is expected to have a public memorial for Cronkite at Lincoln Center next month.

Cronkite's son, Chip, said that his father used to tell him that he was "just a reporter" who had "just ended up reporting bigger and bigger stories," according to the Times.

—Chuck Ross

AT&T U-verse Now 10th Largest Subscriber TV Provider in U.S.

AT&T's U-verse TV service added just under 250,000 subscribers in the second quarter, making it the 10th largest subscriber TV provider in the U.S. after the six biggest cable operators, DirecTV, Dish and Verizon's Fios, Multichannel News reports.

In addition, AT&T added had a net increase in satellite subscribers in the quarter of 5,000 subs. That includes 100,000 new DirecTV subs under AT&T's deal with that company as it's video provider in areas not serviced by U-verse.

At the same time as its gain of DirecTV subs, Multichannel reports, AT&T likely shed 95,000 customers who had been with Dish under AT&T's previous agreement.

—Chuck Ross

'Beyond Twisted' Test by Warner Bros. and Fox Stations Ends Early

Saying they’ve learned what they wanted to know, Warner Bros. and Fox TV Stations have decided to end their eight-week test of the show "Beyond Twisted" after three weeks, B&C reports.

The show featured video clips of the strange and bizarre.

One of the purposes of the test was to determine where the show plays best. It appears that late-night is the answer, B&C reports.

No word as to when or if the show will come back.

—Chuck Ross

Cox Cable New VOD Scheme Increases Viewership of Turner Shows by 10% and Ads Were Included in the Shows

Eight shows from Turner Broadcasting's TNT, TBS and Cartoon networks saw boosts of almost 10% in a test on Cox's My Primetime video-on-demand service, Multichannel News reports.

Significantly, "Our work with Turner demonstrates that consumers will view on-demand content, with advertising, and that this exposure can be measured; this is a major milestone that will enable more content and convenience for consumers," said Cox's Senior VP of Programming, Bob Wilson, according to the article.

—Chuck Ross

Ken Warwick Signs Eight-Figure Deal to Continue on ‘Idol’; Richest Showrunner Deal Ever?

In what Variety says is a deal that could make “American Idol” Executive Producer and Showrunner Ken Warwick the highest paid showrunner in Hollywood, he has signed a new three-year deal that the trade paper says is worth “eight figures.”

For us who are numbers challenged (we journalists, after all, tip the scale at high single digit salaries) that means the deal is worth somewhere between $10 million and $99 million over the three-years.

‘Idol’ host Ryan Seacrest recently signed a three-year deal with the show’s producers worth a reported $45 million.

—Chuck Ross

First Word From Comic-Con About Avatar 3D is 'Wow'; Cameron will Screen 15 Minutes for the Rest of us on Aug. 21

James Cameron screened about 25 minutes of his long-anticipated new film, "Avatar," in 3D, Thursday afternoon at the sold-out Comic-Con convention in San Diego.

Los Angeles TImes staffer Denise Martin blogged after the screening that Avatar looks like it "will be every bit the spectacle" that "Titanic' was. "Titanic" was Cameron's last major release.

Furthermore, Cameron said that a 15 minute free preview of Avatar in 3D will be available at numerous Imax and 3d equipped theaters around the world on Aug. 21 for those of us who weren't able to attend the preview at Comic-Con.

—Chuck Ross

Late Night Race Heats Up as O'Brien AND Letterman Increase Their Leads—O'Brien with 18-49 Year Olds, Dave With Total Viewers

NBC’s “The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien” widened its lead over CBS’ “Late Show With David Letterman” last week among adults 18-49 year olds.

At the same time “Late Night With David Letterman,” buoyed by a much-publicized appearance by Paul McCartney, had its biggest victory in nine years over "Tonight" among total viewers.

For the week of July 13-17, “Conan” averaged 1.38 million adults 18-49 (1.0 rating/ 5 share), compared with “Letterman’s” 1 million (0.8 rating/3 share). “Conan’s” 37% margin of victory over “Letterman” was up over the show’s 29% win the week before.

However, “Letterman” 3.5 million total viewers was significantly more than “Conan’s” 2.7 million viewers.

--Sergio Ibarra

Time Magazine Poll Finds Faux Newscaster Jon Stewart is America’s Most Trusted Newscaster, Post-Cronkite

Jon Stewart, host of "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central,  won a match-up against Brian Williams, Katie Couric and Charlie Gibson in a Time Magazine online poll for “America’s Most Trusted Newscaster” now that Walter Cronkite has died, the Huffington Post reports.

The joke, of course, is that Stewart is not a newscaster. At one point, when Cronkite was the anchor of the "CBS Evening News" he was named the most trusted man in America.

Stewart drew 44% of the votes; NBC’s Brian Williams was second with 29%. The poll drew 9,409 votes.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Oscar Winner Charlize Theron Wants to Make Looooong Novel 'Atlas Shrugged' as TV Miniseries

Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron is attempting to turn the 1,300-page, 1957 Ayn Rand novel “Atlas Shrugged” into a miniseries for the startup Epix network, according to the New York Post.

Many others have been trying to bring the novel, which has heavily influenced libertarian thought, to TV and movies for decades. If Theron succeeds, she’d star as the central character, railroad exec Dagny Taggart.

Epix, set to launch later this year, is a joint venture between Lionsgate, MGM and Viacom.

Rand's other famous novel, "The Fountainhead," which is considerably shorter than "Shrugged," was made into a 1949 film starring Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Set Your DVRs: Cronkite 8-hour Award-Winning Documentary From 1997 About 20th Century Airs Sunday in a Marathon on Discover Channel

In the wake of the death of former CBS anchor Walter Cronkite, Discovery Channel has slated a marathon on Sunday, July 26 marathon of “Cronkite Remembers,” the newsman’s eight-part look at 20th century events, the Associated Press reports.

The series won a CableAce Award as Best Documentary in 1997.

--Elizabeth Jensen

NY Post Reporters Banned From Appearing on ESPN Because of Nude Photo Flap

ESPN banned NY Post reporters from appearing on the network after the newspaper published photos, taken from a surreptitiously shot video, which showed ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews nude in a hotel room, the Associated Press says.

Three images taken from the voyeuristic video were published in the tabloid on Tuesday.  The photos were printed--and displayed on the Post's website--with bars covering some of Andrews' body.

ESPN senior vice president of communications Chris LaPlaca said in a statement: “While we understand the Post's decision to cover this as a news story, their running photos obtained in such a fashion went well beyond the boundaries of common decency in the interest of sensationalism.”

Andrews has said she plans to file charges once the person who shot the video is discovered.

--Elizabeth Jensen

T.R. Knight on Why He Left 'Grey's Anatomy': He and Showrunner Shonda Rhimes Had A Failure to Communicate

T.R. Knight quit ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” after a “breakdown of communication” with exec producer Shonda Rhimes, he tells EW.com .

His character was supposed to get less screen time this season, for reasons he wasn’t told, and “My five-year experience proved to me that I could not trust any answer that was given [about George],” he told the magazine.

In the interview, which is on the cover of the upcoming Entertainment Weekly, he also discusses “Isaiahgate” and his decision to come out of the closet.

--Elizabeth Jensen

NBC's Ben Silverman on the Upfront: Ad Volume Down but Not CPMs

The upfront market isn’t as bad as predicted, with declines in ad volume but not CPMs, Ben Silverman, co-chair, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, told a Fortune magazine conference, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

Broadcast is challenged more than cable, he said, adding that he expects the upfronts to decline overall by less than 10%.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Reality Show Winner Sues Blair Underwood and David E. Talbert to Claim Prize

Charmel Brown, who says she won a reality show on TV One in 2007, has sued Blair Underwood and David E. Talbert, saying she has not yet received an acting deal that was part of her prize, THR Esq. reports.

The name of the show she was on was "David E. Talbert Presents Stage Black."

—Chuck Ross

One of the Best Music Line-ups Ever for HBO Special: Springsteen, U2, Stevie Wonder, Simon & Garfunkel, Crosby Stills Nash & Friends, Aretha Franklin, Metallica, and Eric Clapton

And those names might be just the beginning, Rolling Stone reports. The occasion is the 25th Anniversary of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and all proceeds will go toward creating a permanent endowment for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation and Museum.

The concerts, at New York City's Madison Square Garden, will take place Oct. 29th and 30th, and then be seen in a four hour HBO special in November, reports say.

—Chuck Ross

Morgan Stanley Analyst: Bullish on TV in General, Though Says Broadcast Nets May Have to Convert Themselves into Pay Nets

"[T]V can grow in the mid-single digits when you take affiliate revenue and ad revenue together..." was the pronouncement this week of Ben Swinburne, media analyst at Morgan Stanley, B&C reports.

Next year should see an increase in ad spending by 2%, Swinburne said.

He expects broadcast networks to underperform compared to cable.

"Swinburne sees a future where broadcast networks will no longer be able to invest in programming without some major improvement in retransmission fees or converting themselves into pay-TV networks," B&C wrote.

—Chuck Ross

Report: Jon and Kate's Eight Kids are Miserable; Advertisers in Their TLC Show Unhappy

MyFoxPhilly.com reports on the new US magazine, out Friday, July 24, and its cover story about how despondent Jon and Kate's eight kids are.

Furthermore, executives from TLC, the network that airs "Jon & Kate Plus 8" are reportedly meeting with marketers who advertise on the show who are unhappy with the direction the program has taken, MyFoxPhilly.com says, quoting the US magazine piece.

TLC producers have said the show, which returns to the air next month, "will focus on each spouse and new adventures for the children, in places like New York," MyFoxPhilly.com says.

—Chuck Ross

Senator Infuriated About TV Ads That Look Like Newscasts, Asks FCC and FTC to Investigate

Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo) is mad as hell and doesn't want to take it anymore.

What's gotten the Senator's ire up are commercials that look like newscasts, B&C reports.

She wants to know why the Federal Trade Commission doesn't tell the marketers who use this fake newscast technique "You can't do that. You can't pretend like you are broadcasting news when it is a paid advertisement," B&C reports.

Noting that the Federal Communications Commission has looked into this before, she will ask the FCC for an update.

Senator McCaskill articulated her complaint July 22 during a subcommittee hearing on advertising and consumer protection, B&C reported.

—Chuck Ross

FCC is Opening Inquiry Into Children's TV Rules

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski told the Senate Commerce Committee Wednesday that the FCC would revisit its rules governing children's TV, Multichannel News reported.

These are the rules that, among other things, require "broadcasters to air three hours per week of educational and informational kids programming," Multichannel says.

Genachowski said one result of the inquiry would be that "interactive ads directed at kids will be off limits unless parents opt in."

—Chuck Ross

What's REALLY Going on With the Upfront

In this exclusive TVWeek Media Planner piece, we explain why it's almost the end of July and much of the Upfront Marketplace still hasn't moved. Click here to read the article.

And if you like what you read, come back here after you've read it and subscribe here to our FREE weekly Media Planner e-newsletter---that's where this piece first appeared.

Back to the Future: Iger Says Disney Looking to Create Big Portal for Online Content, and Charge for It

Disney is considering putting a broad spectrum of its content online, perhaps in a single site for which it will charge a subscription, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

At a speech at a tech conference Wednesday, Disney President and CEO Robert Iger said, "The notion of going online at some point as a subscribe-to, robust entertainment experience is pretty attractive to us. We are developing such an experience."

Back in 1999 Disney's then Internet portal, Go.com, lost about a billion dollars and was shuttered. Go.com did not charge a subscription.

More recently, Disney has put some of its content for sale on iTunes and now participates in Hulu.com.

—Chuck Ross

Payne Brings Joy: Tyler Perry Sitcom Gets Order of 46 More Episodes From TBS

"House of Payne" has received two orders from TBS for 46 more episodes, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

It brings the total episode count of the series to 172.

"In two years (we're) where we thought we would be in three to four years," show syndicator Debmar-Mercury co-president Mort Marcus said, THR reports.

The model Debmar-Mercury developed with "Payne" creator Tyler Perry has become very successful and one Debmar-Mercury continues to duplicate.

—Chuck Ross

Director of ABC's New 'Flash Forward' on Why He Wanted to Bring a Kangaroo to Comic-Con (and What Happened)

David Goyer, who's directing ABC's "Flash Forward" is a Comic-Con veteran, he says in his guest blog for latimes.com.

He writes, "Two years ago, I ran into a woman dressed in a Cat Woman outfit who tried to hump my leg. True story."

His story so far this year is that he wanted to bring a kangaroo down to Comic-Con in San Diego, but animal regulations prevented him from doing so. And why a kangaroo? Because there's one in the pilot of the show.

—Chuck Ross

Stuttering John Still With Leno, But No Longer On-Camera; Liz Plonka From Conan's Old Show Will Direct Leno

John Melendez, the Jay Leno announcer who was known for years as Stuttering John when he was part of Howard Stern's old radio show, will no longer be on-air when Leno comes back in primetime, Variety reports. Instead, Melendez will be a part of Leno's 19 person writing staff.

And Liz Plonka, the former director of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" will be the director of Leno's new show. Leno's director on the "Tonight" show for his entire run on that show was Ellen Brown, Variety says.

—Chuck Ross

TV Will Have Its Biggest Presence Ever at Comic-Con, But May Be Upstaged by 20 Minute Screening of Cameron's 3D 'Avatar' in First Public Showing

As much as fans at the sold-out Comic-Con, starting Thursday in San Diego, might be looking forward to tons of panels and screenings of TV fare, the talk of the convention has already become the first ever public screening of James Cameron's first film since "Titanic"—"Avatar" in 3D.

The film-maker talks to USA Today about how excited he is to premiere 20 minutes of the film to the fans that attend Comic-Con after working on the project for the past 14 years.

—Chuck Ross

Search Warrant Issued for Jackson's Doctor's Office: Manslaughter Suspected

Numerous police authorities--from the Drug Enforcement Agency, LA Police Department Homicide Division and the Houston Police Department--conducted a search of Dr. Conrad Murray's clinic in Houston on Wednesday, People.com is reporting. 

Dr. Murray was the physician who was present at Michael's mansion when the singer stopped breathing. 

The search warrrant indicated that the search was being conducted in the investigation of manslaughter, people.com reported.

--Chuck Ross

Fremantle has TV Deal for Two Upcoming Graphic Novel From Liquid Comics (formerly Virgin Comics)

The company best known for "American Idol," Fremantle Media Enterprises, has lined up two TV projects as part of a first look deal with Liquid Comice, formerly known as Virgin Comics, Variety reports.

One project is "Ani-Max," which will be developed into an animated series. The other is "First Family," which will be a scripted drama. Both titles will be published later this year by Liquid as graphic novels, Variety says.

—Chuck Ross

Paula Abdul May Find a Spot on 'So You Think You Can Dance' Should 'American Idol' Talks Fail, Says Nigel Lythgoe

"So You Think You Can Dance" executive producer and judge Nigel Lythgoe said he would consider having Paula Abdul join the "Dance" panel as a guest judge should he contract talks with Fox's "American Idol" fall through, the New York Daily News reports.

Abdul's appearing as "Dance" judge wouldn't be too much of a stretch. She was previously a dancer for the Los Angeles Lakers and has worked as a choreographer for big names, including Janet Jackson.

Furthermore, Lythgoe, as the former showrunner on "American Idol," knows Adbul well.

--Sergio Ibarra

Lawyers Name 'L.A. Law' Best Legal Show of All Time

A group of lawyers and a TV critic pulled together by the American Bar Association finds that "L.A. Law" is the best legal show of all time, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Rounging off the top five were "Perry Mason," "The Defenders," "Law & Order" and "The Practice."

--Sergio Ibarra

Kelly Clarkson, Miley Cyrus Among Singers on 'VH1 Divas' Concert Special

VH1 has announced the first batch of performers set to take the stage in the return of "VH1 Divas" concert special, Extra reports.

Kelly Clarkson, Miley Cyrus, Leona Lewis and Adele will perform live on Sept. 17. The network will also announce additional performers at a later date.

"Divas," a concert which will benefit the VH1 Save the Music Foundation, has been on hiatus for four years.

--Sergio Ibarra

Taco Bell Icon Dies; Chihuahua Suffers Stroke at 15

Gidget, the famous Taco Bell chihuahua, has passed away, People.com reports.

The dog, known for the commercials with the "Yo quiero Taco Bell" catchphrase, suffered a stroke at the age of 15. She died Tuesday night.

--Sergio Ibarra

Lifetime Plans ‘Project Runway’ All-Star Challenge

Lifetime will precede the return of “Project Runway” next month with the first “Project Runway: All-Star Challenge,” reuniting previous contestants, the NY Daily News reports.

Contestants for the Aug. 20 special were drawn from seasons two through five, when the show aired on Bravo. They will vie for a prize of $100,000.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Gray TV to Manage 10 Young Broadcasting Stations on Behalf of Lenders

It appears that Gray Television has come out on top to manage 10 Young Broadcasting stations, TVNewsday reports.

In a bankruptcy filing early Wednesday, Gray will be managing the Young stations stations on behalf of the secured lenders that will end up owning the stations.

Court approval of the deal may happen as early as late Wednesday, while Gray may begin managing the stations as soon as the FCC approves license transfers within 90-120 days.

--Sergio Ibarra

Sixty-Two Percent of Viewers Want Their Regular Shows Tonight, Not More Obama

A recent poll held by TVGuide.com finds that 62% of its readers are fed up with President Barack Obama's primetime press conferences and would rather watch their regular shows.

President Obama will hold his fourth televised press conference Wednesday night. Three of the big four broadcast networks will air the special, with Fox choosing to air a new "So You Think You Can Dance" instead.

--Sergio Ibarra

ABC Picks Up 'Wipeout' for Third Season Next Summer

ABC has renewed "Wipeout" for a third season to debut next summer, the Hollywood Reporter says.

In its current season, the show has averaged a 3.1 rating among adults 18-49 and 8.8 million viewers.

--Sergio Ibarra

Fox's 'Hell's Kitchen' Returns Strong, Gives Network Win for Tuesday Night.

Fox's "Hell's Kitchen" season premiere gave Fox a ratings win Tuesday night, MediaLife Magazine reports.

"Kitchen" debuted with a 3.0 rating among adults 18-49 during its two-hour run. Last night's debut was down 17% from its most recent summer premiere two summers ago, as are many other shows on TV. Of course, this season debut is also down from the most recent season opener, which followed "American Idol" during the regular TV season.

NBC's "America's Got Talent" reached a new season high among total viewers, with 13.6 million.

--Sergio Ibarra

'Nip/Tucks' Joely Richardson Lands Final Wife Role in Showtime's 'Tudors'

"Nip/Tuck" alum Joely Richardson has been tapped to play Catherine Parr, the last of King Henry VIII's wives, on the Showtime series "The Tudors," Entertainment Weekly reports, citing an unnamed source.

Richardson wrapped up filming on "Nip/Tuck" last month.

The fourth and final season of "The Tudors" is expected to air next spring.

--Sergio Ibarra

Lifetime to Air 'Project Runway All-Star Challenge' Before Season Six Debut; Eight Designers Return to Make it Work

Lifetime is bringing back from of "Project Runway's" best-known contestants for special "All-Star Challenge" edition of the competition series, Entertainment Weekly reports.

The two-hour special will air Aug. 20 at 8 p.m. EST, followed by the sixth season premiere of "Project Runway" at 10 p.m. and the series premiere of the new show "Models of the Runway" at 11 p.m.

The eight contestants competing in the challenge are season two's Santino Rice and Daniel Vosovic; season three's Uli Herzner, Mychael Knight and Jeffrey Sebelia; season four's Chris March and Sweet P and season five's Korto Momolu.

The eight designers will head back to the workroom with Tim Gunn and face judges Heidi Klum, Michael Kors and Nina Garcia for a chance at a $100,000 cash prize.

--Sergio Ibarra

Mischa Barton ‘Making Improvements,’ Plans Return to ‘Beautiful Life’

A spokesman for Mischa Barton said the 23-year-old actress is “still seeking treatment but making improvements,” and will report to work on the CW’s “The Beautiful Life” later this month, the Associated Press reports.

Barton was removed from her home by Los Angeles police nearly a week ago for an undisclosed medical problem. Her spokesman Craig Schneider declined to elaborate on her condition.

The CW drama, in which Barton is to play a supermodel, is scheduled to begin production July 31.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Alleged Head-Butting Case Against Kiefer Sutherland is Dropped

Misdemeanor assault charges against Kiefer Sutherland, who allegedly head-butted a fashion designer in a New York City nightclub in May, are being dropped, ending the “24” actor’s legal troubles in the case, the Associated Press reports.

A spokeswoman for the Manhattan D.A. said the charges are being dropped because of a lack of cooperation from the alleged victim, designer Jack McCollough, who said his nose had been broken in the incident The two later issued a joint statement saying they had resolved their differences.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Judge Restores Fraud Claim in Dan Rather’s Suit Against CBS

A New York City judge restored a previously dismissed fraud claim in Dan Rather’s lawsuit against CBS which followed his firing from the network, the Associated Press says.

Rather’s lawyer alleges the fraud resulted when CBS failed to keep promises it made to the former “CBS Evening News” anchor before he was pushed out, after problems developed with a story about former President George W. Bush’s Vietnam-era military service.

CBS’ lawyer said he’ll move to have the fraud claim dismissed.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reports that Rather on Tuesday also won access to more than 3,000 internal documents that his lawyer said could show that CBS tried to influence the findings of the outside panel appointed by the network to investigate the problems with the piece.

Editor Says James Murdoch Approved Financial Settlement to Phone Hacking Victim

Rupert Murdoch’s son James Murdoch agreed to the payment of $1.1 million to a victim of phone-hacking by the News Corp.-owned British tabloid News of the World, the paper’s current editor told a parliamentary committee in London, Bloomberg reports.

James Murdoch oversees European and Asian operations for News Corp., which also owns Fox. Rupert Murdoch has said he wasn’t aware of any payments to settle legal cases stemming from what was reported to be an extensive phone-hacking operation by the newspaper. The paper has denied the charges.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Bernstein Analyst Criticizes Media Executive Pay Scales

Bernstein Research senior media analyst Michael Nathanson singled out News Corp. and CBS for particular criticism in a report that argued that senior executive pay in the media business is out of line with company performance, Broadcasting & Cable says.

He noted that the five top media CEOs took home, on average, $26.6 million last year, and wrote: “Given the relatively poor one-, three- or five-year performances of most of these stocks, the rich compensation packages look even more extraordinary.”

--Elizabeth Jensen

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/315934-Bernstein_Research_Criticizes_Media_CEO_Pay.php

Jamie-Lynn Sigler Joins ‘Ugly Betty’, Reruns Go to TV Guide Network

“Sopranos” daughter Jamie-Lynn Sigler is joining the cast of ABC’s “Ugly Betty,” in a recurring role as Daniel’s assistant, EW.com reports.

Meanwhile, TV Guide Network bought the exclusive basic cable syndication rights to the series, including all past, current and future episodes, Multichannel News says.

It’s the first major deal for the evolving network under new owners Lionsgate and One Equity Partners. Beginning in October, episodes of the series will air on the cable network two weeks after their broadcast showing. Stripping of reruns begins in fall 2010.

--Elizabeth Jensen

http://wwwmultichannel.com/article/316046-TV_Guide_Network_Gains_Exclusive_Cable_Rights_To_Ugly_Betty_.php

Dr. Laura Comments About 'Jon & Kate'

As the Jon and Kate story gets messier and more tabloid, it seems less and less is written about the eight. Interestingly, if it wasn't for their eight kids, most likely none of us would have even heard of Jon or Kate, because certainly no one was going to sign them up for a TV show alone.

The conservative talk show host Dr. Laura, who has always been a strong advocate for kids and family, has been deluged with emails about the show. She finally responded on her blog last month (we missed it at the time).

In relevant part, here's what she said:

My heart goes out to the kids.  Is it humane to children to let their parents exploit them in a television program when their images and intimacies are exposed to everyone for all time when they have no say or control?  Is it in the children’s best interests to be USED as entertainment by two parents so self-absorbed that they put money and celebrity in front of their children’s privacy?  It’s like putting your children in a circus freak show strip and having a barker yelling: “Come in, come in and see what happens to children when their parents use them for your entertainment… It’s exciting, it’s damaging, but you won’t be able to take your eyes off ‘em.  Watch ‘em wiggle. Watch ‘em cry. Watch ‘em squirm.  It’s so much fun…bring popcorn and beer and come watch the show.”

To read Dr. Laura Schlessinger's entire response to the Jon and Kate circus, click here.

—Chuck Ross

‘Kendra’ Returning for Second Season on E!

E! ordered up a second season of the reality series “Kendra,” which follows former “Girls Next Door” co-star Kendra Wilkinson's marriage to Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Hank Baskett, The Hollywood Reporter says.

The couple are expecting a child in December. The show debuted in June and is drawing about 2 million viewers on average.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Spike Renews ‘Deadliest Warrior,’ Plots Major Expansion

Spike ordered a second season of its hit historical fighting series “Deadliest Warrior,” and will bring it back in the spring, Variety reports.

The show pits fighters from different eras against each other. A tournament of first-season champions is being considered, and the network is also looking to expand the franchise into books, videogames and merchandising.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Ad Minutes on Broadcast Network Prime Time Jumped 3.5% Last Year

Broadcast networks squeezed in 3.5% more commercial minutes in prime time last year, Mediapost says.

According to Nielsen figures, the total of national spots on the English-language networks excluding Ion rose to 5,688 minutes in 2008, up from 5,492 the previous year. Daytime commercial minutes were about flat.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Baldwin Brother Goes Bankrupt; Files for Chapter 11 Protection

One of the well-known brothers of the Baldwin acting family has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Reuters reports.

It's Stephen Baldwin, 43, brother of Emmy-winner Alec Baldwin. He claims he owes more than $2.3 million. According to court documents, he owes about $1.2 million on two mortgages, over $1 million in taxes and owes debts to credit cards.

His wife Kennya Baldwin is also named in the filings.

--Sergio Ibarra

Producers of 'Beautiful Life' Casting to Replace Mischa Barton if She Can't Do Part

Producers of The CW’s “The Beautiful Life” are casting for a new female recurring character, tentatively named Jane, in the wake of star Mischa Barton’s hospitalization last week, EW.com reports.

Sources told EW that the series set in the fashion business will go on whether Barton is able to take on her role as an aging model or not. The new character will also be an experienced supermodel, although not a direct substitute for the Baron role.

Production on the new drama was to have started this week but was pushed back to next week because the sets weren’t ready.

Last week Barton was placed under involuntary psychiatric hold by the Los Angeles Police Department.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Should Web Sites Show Video of ESPN Reporter Naked Taken Without Her Knowledge or Consent?

In an article published on opposingviews.com, journalist ethics are debated about the surfacing on the Internet of video taken of ESPN reporter Erin Andews that show her nude.

The video was taken without her knowledge or consent while she was in a hotel room. It appears that the video was taken though a hole in a wall, the article says.

Where do Web sites whose bread and butter is the salcious side of celebrity draw the line about what they will and will not publish?

Says the article on opposingviews.com, "Web sites routinely run celebrity photos that can be argued as having invaded their privacy, such as shots of them sunbathing in their backyards, taken with a long telephoto lens.

"Perhaps [deciding to publish this material]  has much do with the what is legal and what is not, and if there is a threat of legal action. In this case, ESPN general counsel David Pahl sent [a] letter to at least one website."

—Chuck Ross

Video: Susan Boyle on 'Today' Talks About the Pressure She Was Under; Complete Interview Airs Wednesday

Scottish singer Susan Boyle tells NBC’s “Today Show” that her sudden fame on “Britain’s Got Talent” was “a lot like a giant demolition ball,” the NY Post reports.

In her first extended TV interview since the show ended, Boyle tells NBC’s Meredith Vieira that “Anyone who has that kind of impact...finds it really hard to get a head around it,” adding that “I've got to be honest here. I guess I had to get my head around it through the...guidance of a great team.” The interview airs Wednesday, July 22.

Here's a clip, courtesy MSNBC.com:

K-Fed, His New Girlfriend and His and Britney's Sons Eye New Reality Series on VH1

Britney Spears’ ex-husband Kevin Federline is talking to VH-1 about a new reality series that would also feature the couple’s two sons, Sean Preston and Jayden James, and Federline’s new girlfriend, Victoria Prince, E! Online reports, citing an anonymous source.

Prince is a student and former AVP volleyball player.

Federline and Spears starred four years ago in “Britney & Kevin: Chaotic.” That series was on UPN and was rerun on VH1 and MTV.

A rep for VH-1 could not confirm that a show is in the works, E! reports.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Mogul Haim Saban Sued by Own Lawyer for $36 Million Frozen in a Bank

This one's a little complicated, so bear with us as we explain it. It's from a piece Joe Flint has on his LA Times Company Town blog.

As explained in the blog entry, back in 2001, Haim Saban and News Corp., co-owners of the Family Channel, sold it for $5.2 billion to The Walt Disney Co. Saban realized a capital gain of $1.5 billion on the sale, and hired tax attorney Matthew Krane to "minimize his pain," the blog says. Krane in turned contacted a Seattle-based investment firm called the Quellos Group to see what they could do.

The blog says they had a tax shelter plan "which manged to turn Saban's gain into a loss until the the government jumped in and charged Quellos Group with tax fraud."

Krane received a commission of $36 million from Quellos, the blog says, which was put in an Austrian bank.

Saban, who paid the IRS $250 million to settle charges of tax evasion, then laid claim to the $36 million, which essentially froze it in the bank.

This is the money that Krane filed suit in Los Angeles County Superior Court to get, the blog says.

—Chuck Ross

Simon Cowell Wants Paula Abdul Back as an 'Idol' Judge

Simon Cowell wants Paula Abdul back as a judge on 'American Idol," the acidic Brit told "Extra."

"She'll be fine. She'll be on the show," Cowell said, adding, "I don't get a lot of say. I've just made it clear that I want Paula on the show."

We thinks Mr. Cowell's opinion would actually carry a lot of weight, since he's only got one more year on his contract and 'Idol' would most likely be in trouble if he left.

Abdul is currently negotiating a new contract for the show.

--Chuck Ross

NBC Offered $10 Million for Jackson Special, Which Now May Not Happen at All; Sony Bids $50 Mill for Jackson Film

NBC was prepared to pay $10 million or more to telecast the scheduled Aug. 29 Michael Jackson memorial in London as a special, Roger Friedman is reporting at Showbiz411.com.

But plans for a TV special of the event, to be held at London’s O2 Arena, may have completely fallen apart, he reported, citing unidentified sources who said that negotiations came to a halt over price and due to conflict among the "players in the Jackson estate."

The network was considering slating the special for an 8-10 p.m. slot during the premiere week of Jay Leno’s new talk show, possibly before that show’s Sept. 14 premiere.

It has also been reported by numerous publications that Sony has bid $50 million for Jackson's "This Is It" rehearsal footage that would be released theatrically.

--Tom Gilbert

Winners and Losers on Time Warner Cable's New York City System

It's good news for the likes of FX, Oxygen and Discovery Kids, and not so good news for some of the Turner networks, as one of the most influential cable systems in the nation's biggest city makes some channel line-up changes, Multichannel News reports. 

For example, as of Aug. 19, FX wil be seen on channel 10; previously it was on channel 37. On the other side of the ledger, CNN is moving from channel 10 to channel 78.

—Chuck Ross 

20th Century Fox TV Restructures Marketing, Publicity

20th Century Fox TV has moved from having a single department for marketing and publicity to one that sees marketing and research under one team, headed by Mark Pearson, senior VP brand management, and publicity and talent relations under another team, headed by Chris Alexander, senior VP corporate communications, Variety reports.

In the restructuring, Marketing Senior VP Steven Melnick will now oversee 20th TV's new media initiatives, Variety says.

—Chuck Ross

Dethroned Miss California USA, Carrie Prejean, Gets Book Deal

Former Miss California USA Carrie Prejean, who had her post taken away for what pageant officials claimed was a dereliction of her duties, has landed a book deal with Regnery Publishing, the Huffington Post says.

The book will be titled “Still Standing” and will tell her side of the controversy surrounding her reign, including the flap over her opposition to gay marriage.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Jerry Springer's Next Gig--Singing on Broadway?

Jerry Springer, on hiatus from his TV show, has been wowing them on the London stage as Billy Flynn, the ethically challenged lawyer in the musical “Chicago,” and Springer is now in talks to play the part on Broadway, the New York Times reports.

It’s the part Richard Gere played so memorably in the Oscar-winning film version of the musical.

Springer tells the Times he was offered the part in London after the producers had seen him as a contestant on ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars.”

Springer may be in the Broadway production as soon as Aug. 18th, and then go on to play the role is some other cities, including Philadelphia in September, the Times said.

Critical reaction to Mr. Springer’s performance in London has been mixed. Ben Brantley, the New York Times’ theatre critic, saw the show and wrote on his blog, “Mr. Springer obviously understands the American appetite for the lurid as deeply as the cynical Billy does.”

Mr. Springer himself told the Times of the first number he sings in the show, “If you miss that first note, you’re sunk — the audience knows that you’re not ready to do big-time ‘Chicago.’ And I’m pretty good at telling when an audience is buying what you’re selling and when they’re not.”

—Chuck Ross

Daniel Sunjata, Andie MacDowell to Star in Lifetime TV Movies Based on Popular Books by Patricia Cornwell

Daniel Sunjata and Andie MacDowell will be joined by Diahann Carroll, Annabeth Gish and Ashley Williams in two Lifetime made for TV movies based on books by the bestselling author Patricia Cornwell, Variety reports.

The two crime movies are "At Risk" and "The Front." 

It's the first time Cornwell's novels have been adapted for the screen, Variety says. 

—Chuck Ross

Guide for TV Fans at Comic-Con

Comic-Con, which has become a must attend for many in the TV biz, officially begins Thursday in San Diego, with "previews" Wednesday night.

One comic book source, the blog Robot 6, has come up with a Comic-Con guide for the TV fan. It includes sessions about "Lost,"  "Futurama," "True Blood" and a reunion panel about the old TV cult favorite "Farscape."

 —Chuck Ross

Exclusive: Telemundo President Tells Why Huge US-Mexico World Cup Soccer Qualifying Match on mun2 and not USA; Fans Protest

By John Consoli 
Special to TVWeek 

Rule of life: Don’t screw around with sports fans. Rule of the universe: Especially don’t screw around with fans of the world’s most popular sport, soccer.

It’s a rule that is testing NBC Universal executives as you read this. NBCU will televise the English-language version of the World Cup qualifying match between the United States and Mexico on Aug. 12th on mun2 rather than offering it to one of NBCU’s broader distributed cable networks, such as USA.

Some fans are so upset that they’ve organized petitions to send to NBCU.

Don Browne, president of NBCU’s Telemundo, which also runs mun2, makes two immediate points. First, he said mun2 will televise the match in English to more than 30 million potential viewers on cable systems such as Comcast, Cablevision and Time Warner.

Second, he noted that in addition the match will be shown on Telemundo. While the primary audio feed on Telemundo is in Spanish, the network will offer the mun2 voice feed in English via secondary audio feature SAP, Browne said. Telemundo is available to more than 59 million households.

“We honestly believe that this configuration will service the entire country and make the match available to everyone who wants to see it, otherwise we wouldn’t be doing it this way,” Browne said. “Anyone who doesn’t have access to mun2 can watch the game in English on Telemundo using the SAP feature.”

Since word leaked out late last week that ESPN had failed in a bid to buy the English-language U.S. TV rights to the match from Telemundo, and that the Hispanic network was going to put the English language telecast on mun2, petition drives were started aimed at trying to get Telemundo parent NBC to take the match away from mun2 and put it on an NBC Universal owned cable networks like USA or Bravo.

However Browne believes his parent company’s executives understand the importance of offering the match on mun2. “This decision has been vetted a lot internally before we announced it,” Browne said.

“We have invested a lot of money in getting TV sports rights, particularly in soccer,” Browne said. “And this is a residual benefit. It’s an opportunity to draw viewers to mun2 and to give that network a higher profile among viewers.”

Unlike Telemundo, which programs entirely in Spanish-language, mun2 programs primarily in English and targets a younger, Hispanic-American audience, that it is trying to grow.

“This soccer telecast will bring viewers to both Telemundo and mun2 that are not regular viewers of these networks, and give us an opportunity to promote our other shows to them,“ Browne said. The World Cup qualifying match will be the first time mun2 has televised a live sporting event.

Browne said some major advertisers like Ford and AT&T are on board to advertise in the telecast on both Telemundo and mun2. Each network will have its own set of announcers and advertisers can buy each network or both for the match.

“You make these investments [for TV rights to sporting events] for this very reason,” Browne said, wondering why the network should be expected to give up the rights.

While Browne would not comment on whether ESPN made a bid for the U.S. English-language rights, insiders at ESPN confirmed that discussions were held and Telemundo’s asking price was too high.

While ESPN has the rights to the regular World Cup matches in 2010, and has English-language rights to the qualifying matches, Telemundo has the specific TV rights for both Spanish and English to games the Mexican national team plays in Mexico, including the World Cup qualifying game. The Aug. 12 match will be played in Mexico.

The televised soccer matches between the U.S. and Mexico have drawn solid ratings, another reason why Telemundo is hesitant to give up the English-language telecast.

The last time the U.S. team played Mexico, in Feb. 2009, the match on ESPN2 drew 1.2 million viewers, the largest TV viewing audience of 26 prior World Cup qualifying matches. And that same match in Spanish on Telemundo rival Univision drew 5.9 million viewers. Telemundo did not have the rights to that match because it was played in the U.S.#

Obama Administration Wants More Women and Minority Ownership of TV and Radio Stations

The Obama administration wants to figure out how to get more women and minorities to own TV and radio stations, B&C reports.

The publicaion quoted Susan Crawford, special assistant to the President for Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy as saying that the administration "seeks to encourage opportunites for minorities and women to own radio and television stations."

She added,"We support the expression of diverse viewpoints as fundamental to the health of our civil society."

Crawford delivered her remarks during a Minority Media & Telecommunications Conference in Washington.

—Chuck Ross

Michael J. Kelly Named President-CEO of The Weather Channel Companies

The Weather Channel Companies has tapped Michael J. Kelly, a former president of AOL Media Networks, as the group's new president/CEO, the Hollywood Reporter reports.

In his new role, Kelly will oversee the all of the group's operations, such as the Weather Channel, weather.com, the Weather Channel Interactive, Weather Services International and Weather Channel Mobile. He was most recently an advisor for Veronious Suhler Stevenson.

Kelly takes over from NBC Universal's Lisa Gersh, whohad been interim CEO since last fall when NBCU bought the Weather Channel and its properties.

—Sergio Ibarra

Sean Bean to Star in HBO Production Based on Fantasy 'Thrones' Books

Sean Bean has been tapped to star in HBO's "Game of Thrones," inspired by the George R.R. Martin fantasy books, the Hollywood Reporter says.

Bean will star in the lead role of Lord Eddard "Ned" Stark. Other actors who have already joined include Kit Harrington, Jack Gleeson and Harry Lloyd, Peter Dinklage, with Mark Addy also in final talks to join.

The project is still in the pilot stage and is set to begin production in Ireland in October.

—Sergio Ibarra

'Burn' Star Jeffrey Donovan Arrested for Alleged DUI; Released by Miami Beach Authorities

 Jeffrey Donovan, star of USA's "Burn Notice" was arrested last Sunday, July 12, for allegedly driving under the influence, TMZ.com reports. 

The actor was pulled over in Miami Beach, where he was taken into custody and released after a few hours.

--Sergio Ibarra

'Smallville's' John Schneider Returns to The CW for Upcoming Season of '90210'

 "Smallville" alum John Schneider is returning to The CW in the upcoming season of "90210," E! Online reports.

Schneider will play the stepfather of bad boy Liam (Matt Lanter). The two will have conflicts throughout the second season.

—Sergio Ibarra

CBS Reversal: Cronkite's Voice to Continue to Introduce Couric Newscast

CBS News has reversed its decision to stop having the voice of the late Walter Cronkite introduce the "CBS Evening News with Katie Couric," according to the Associated Press.

CBS said that Cronkite's family has given approval to the decision. Earlier, CBS President Sean McManus said it might not be appropriate to keep using that announcement after Cronkite's death, so they wouldn't.

—Chuck Ross

Sarah Jessica Parker and Bravo Team for the 'Project Runway' of the Art World

Bravo’s New York City auditions for its upcoming contemporary art reality series drew nearly 400 artists of variable talent over the weekend, the New York Times  reports.

The show, to be produced by Sarah Jessica Parker, is vying to be the “Top Chef” or “Project Runway” of the art world, with promises of a gallery show for the winner.

--Elizabeth Jensen

W Hotels Teams Up With HBO's 'Entourage' in Co-Branding Campaign

 W Hotels is teaming up with HBO's Entourage in a new co-branding campaign, MediaPost reports.

As part of the deal, W Hotels will feature a selection of "A-list" caliber amenities under an "Entourage" profile. W is also capitalizing on the promotion to launch its new W South Beach property with an luxury three-story Entourage Bungalow.

Civic Entertainment Group, which handles co-branding, experimental marketing and brand recognition campaigns, created the promotion for both.

"Entourage" star Adrian Grenier will be on hand at W South Beach July 23 to launch the national campaign. 

—Sergio Ibarra

ABC Teams Up With NBA's Shaq for Reality Competition Series; Other Star Athletes Set to Appear

 ABC has ordered a new reality series starring NBA star Shaquille O'Neal, Daily Variety reports.

The show, which has been picked up for five episodes and a potential sixth, features Shaq competing against other star athletes in their areas of expertise. Among other athletes participating in the show are Michael Phelps, Serena Williams, Ben Roethlisberger, Oscar de la Hoya, Albert Pujols and the duo of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh.

"Shaq Vs." debuts Aug. 18 at 9 p.m. Media Rights Capital and Dick Clark Productions are behind the series.

--Sergio Ibarra

Spike TV Launches Web Search for an On-Air Spokeswoman

MTV Networks’ Spike.com is launching “Girls of Spike: The Ultimate 50,” for fans to vote on 50 women competing to be the Spike TV on-air spokesperson, Mediaweek reports.

The web contest will go online Aug. 17 and continue through the end of September. The top ten candidates will then be showcased in an on-air special before a winner is chosen.

--Elizabeth Jensen

ReelzChannel Devotes Weekly Show to Teen and Tween Favorite ‘Twilight’

The cable channel ReelzChannel is taking specialized programming to the extreme: Starting next month it will devote a weekly primetime show to the vampire book and movie franchise “Twilight,” the New York Times reports.

The show will be call "Twilight Weely: Spotlight" and is set to debut Aug. 10th.

The series, believed to be the first weekly show dedicated to a single movie, comes in advance of the second “Twilight” film, “New Moon,” which will hit theaters in November.

--Elizabeth Jensen

New TLC Reality Show to Follow the Morbidly Obese

TLC, home of “Little People, Big World,” has ordered six episodes of “One Big Happy Family,” which follows a family whose members are morbidly obese, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

The series will chronicle the daily challenges for a family of four in Charlotte, N.C., whose members weigh between 330 and nearly 400 pounds.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Barry Diller Predicts Broadcasters Will Benefit from Cable Operators Buying Streaming Rights

Broadcasters will eventually be reaping revenues for Internet streaming rights to their shows from cable operators who want to keep subscribers from fleeing to free Internet programming, Barry Diller predicts in a Business Week interview.

Diller, chairman and CEO of IAC/InteractiveCorp, predicts cable companies will want to lock in network TV programs to stream through their own online networks.

--Elizabeth Jensen

‘Big Brother’ Speeches Censored for Slurs; Show's Ratings Slip

CBS’ “Big Brother” has been censoring for broadcast ethnically and sexually derogatory comments made by the participants in the reality series, the Huffington Post reports.

The statements were removed from the broadcast because they didn’t meet the network’s standards, CBS said. The comments could be heard on the show’s live Web stream, however.

Furthermore, the show's ratings has shown some slippage, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Univision Victorious in Legal Bid to Stop Streaming of Shows by Televisa

Spanish-language broadcaster Univision prevailed in its legal bid to stop Grupo Televisa, the Mexican producer of some of Univision’s most popular telenovelas, from streaming the series online in the U.S, the Los Angeles Times reports.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Disney Channel ‘Wizards’/’Hannah Montana’ Crossover Hits Kids Cable Ratings High

Disney Channel's 90-minute Friday night crossover special “Wizards on Deck With Hannah Montana,” drew 9.3 million viewers, and was cable’s most-watched scripted telecast among kids 6-11 and tweens 9-14 this year, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

The special featured episodes of “Hannah Montana,” “The Suite Life on Deck” and “Wizards of Waverly Place.”

--Elizabeth Jensen

65% of Univision’s 2010 World Cup Ad Inventory Already Sold

Advertiser demand for soccer’s 2010 World Cup remains strong, despite the recession, Multichannel News reports.

Univision has already sold about 65% of its inventory, as well as other on-air elements. The network says it is ahead of where it was in sales prior to the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

 --Elizabeth Jensen

‘Family Guy’ Writer Breaches Etiquette, Campaigns for Emmy Votes

Openly campaigning for Emmy votes usually isn’t done by writers, but “Family Guy” writer Patrick Meighan sent an email around Hollywood that one recipient called a “naked trolling for votes,” Deadline Hollywood Daily reports.

The series got a Best Comedy nomination, the first time an animated series appeared in the category since 1961.

Meighan writes that “since I, in particular, am new to this whole Emmy scene, I'm gonna violate longstanding rules of Emmy decorum and beg you -- if you happen to be a member of the TV Academy -- to please consider wasting your Best Comedy vote on our cartoon picture!”

--Elizabeth Jensen

FCC Nominations of Clyburn, Baker, Move to Full Senate

The Senate Commerce Committee approved the nominations of Mignon Clyburn (Democrat) and Meredith Attwell Baker (Republican) to be FCC commissioners, Multichannel News says.

The nominations now move on to a full Senate vote, which could come later this week.

--Elizabeth Jensen

CBS News to Produce Channel One’s Teen Newscast

CBS News will co-produce “Channel One News,” the school-distributed, two-year-old newscast for teens, beginning in the fall, TVNewser says.

CBS replaces NBC News, which had been partnering with Channel One since 2007.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Report: Networks, Studios in Bidding Frenzy Over Jackson TV, Film Projects

NBC and Sony are the front runners in the bidding for upcoming Michael Jackson-related TV and film projects, respectively, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Both projects are related to the "This Is It" comeback concert series Jackson was planning when he died, and both projects are being shopped by AEG LIve, the promoter who had been behind the now-canceled Jackson concerts in London.

The TV special is targeted to air in September, to be directed by Kenny Ortega, who was going to direct the Jackson shows, the Times says. He's a well-known director/choreographer who is responsible for the "High School Musical" franchise.

According to the account in the LA Times, the TV special is "described as featuring an ensemble of superstars that might include Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake and Will.I.Am performing Jackson’s hits using the costuming, choreography, aerial ballet and special effects-driven illusions that had been engineered for the singer’s comeback, a source said."

The film project would be based on 1,200 hours of rehearsal footage, the article said.

—Chuck Ross

Al Roker Debuts New Morning Weather Channel Show; Will Also Continue on 'Today'

Al Roker, the popular "Today" show weatherman, starts double-duty Monday, July 20th, when he co-hosts "Wake Up With Al" on The Weather Channel in addition to continuing his duties on "Today," the Associated Press reports.

"Wake Up WIth Al," will air an hour before the "Today" show and Roker will tape it across the street from the "Today" show studio in Manhattan, the report says.

NBC, which owns and airs the "Today" show also owns "The Weather Channel."

—Chuck Ross

Report: Paula Abdul's New Manager is Saber Rattling: Claims No Contract Offer Yet; Says Abdul Will Leave 'Idol' if Producers Don't Step Up

Paula Abdul's new manager, David Sonenberg, who started managing her at the end of June, has told the Los Angeles Times that he's gotten nowhere trying to get contact offers for Abdul from show producer 19 Entertainment or from Fox, and thus, "Very sadly, it does not appear that she's going to be back on 'Idol.'"

The Times said that 19 Entertainment and Fox declined to comment on Sonenberg's statements.
Given that 'Idol' host Ryan Seacrest just closed a new deal worth a reported $45 million for three years, giving him a significant increase in salary, the Times noted in its article, might be the reason Abdul's manager has gone public with his complaints.

Sonenberg said that Abdul has not been well compensated in tha past. He told the Times, "She's not a happy camper as a result of what's going on. She's hurt. She's angry. I think at this point we're going to be considering everything, including some kind of a competition show. She has tremendous ideas for a whole variety of shows."

Abdul's last non-"Idol" show, "Hey Paula" on Bravo in 2007, was not a success, the Times noted.

It was just a few weeks ago, on Tuesday, July 7th, that Abdul told the Associated Press that, pending her ageement to a new contract, "I've been invited to stay the duration of the show, however long it lasts."

Sonenberg didn't mention this earlier remark by his client, and it doesn't appear that the Times asked him about it.

—Chuck Ross

Production on "Beautiful Life' with Mischa Barton Postponed; Sources Tell Pub It's NOT Because of Her Hospitalization

Production of the new CW show "The Beautiful Life," has been postponed a week, though producers say it has nothing to do with the recent hospitalization of co-star Mischa Barton, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

On Wednesday, July 15th, Barton was placed under an involuntary psychiatric hold at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

The reason for the production delay on the say, the Reporter said, quoting sources, is that some sets for the show will not be completed in time. The new production start date is July 31.

—Chuck Ross

ESPN To Challenge TV Stations and Newspapers With Local Sports Internet Sites; First Up are NY, LA, Chicago and Dallas

ESPN will announce it will cover local sports extensively, via new websites, in three markets today: New York, Los Angeles and Dallas, the New York Times reports.

The announcement will be made after a successful test of ESPN Chicago, which debuted in April and is already Chicago's top sports site, the paper said.

The first four sites are characterized by ESPN executives as "only the 'first inning' of their effort to provide hyperlocal sports coverage in cities across the country" via websites.

ESPN will be competing for local ad dollars with the new sites. In addition, ESPN will leverage its local radio stations to help the sites, the report says.

—Chuck Ross

'Top Chef' Co-Host Padma Lakshmi Developing Sitcom for NBC

"Top Chef" co-host Padma Lakshmi is developing a sitcom for NBC tentatively titled "Single Serving," Variety reports.

She would play a "woman working in the culinary world," Variety says.

The development deal is with with NBC, Universal Media Studios, and Original Media, the trade paper reports. "Top Chef" is on Bravo, which is owned by NBC Universal.

—Chuck Ross

ABC, CBS, NBC to Air Obama Press Conference Live on July 22; Fox Passes

Fox Broadcasting, as is its wont, has passed on airing President Obama's next press conference on Wednesday, July 22, live.

It will air live on ABC, CBS, NBS and Fox's cable news channels.

The White House moved the press conference back an hour, from 9 pm ET to 8 pm ET. Thus the popular reality programming on ABC and NBC will still air in its entirely (ABC has moved its shows to an hour later to accomodate the press conference).

President Obama revealed the conference on Friday afternoon via Twitter. This next conference marks his fourth since beginning his term in office six months ago.

—Sergio Ibarra and Chuck Ross

FedEx, Known for its TV Advertising, Starts Web-only Video Ad Campaign

FedEx, which made news when it did not have a commercial in the Super Bowl this year for the first time in 18 years, starts its first ever web video campaign today, July 20, 2009, the New York Times reports.

FedEx, long known for its humorous advertising, shot the videos as parody infomercials with actor Fred Willard. They can be found at YouTube. You can watch one below.

“We’re still very involved in television, especially with all our sports and sponsorship support,” Steve Pacheco, director of advertising at FedEx, told the Times. “But digital advertising and communication is taking a bigger role in the overall plan, because we try to scale our media plan to be where our customers are.”

CBS Will No Longer Use Cronkite's Nightly Introduction to Katie Couric

With the death of Walter Cronkite on Friday, July 17, CBS News had decided to no longer use Cronkite's recorded announcement introducing Karie Couric and the evening news, the New York Times reports.

The announcement, used since Couric started, had Cronkite saying, simply, "This is the 'CBS Evening News with Katic Couric.'"

Sean McManus, president of CBS News, told the TImes that it was "probably not appropriate" to use the announcement after Cronkite's death.

—Chuck Ross

Mark Rosenthal, formerly of Spot Runner, Interpublic and MTV, Named CEO of Current TV Parent Current Media

Mark Rosenthal has been named CEO of Current TV parent Current Media, Variety reports. He'll start July 27th.

Current Current CEO, Joel Hyatt, who co-founded Current with former Vice President Al Gore four years ago, will become vice chairman.

Previous executive positions held by Rosenthal include Vice Chairman and President of Media Platforms at Spot Runner, Chairman and CEO of Interpublic Media, and President and COO of MTV Networks. Rosenthal began his career in media at the storied CBS Cable in 1980.  

He's been on the Current board since its inception. Current is in 60 million homes.

The network was in the news recently because two of its staff members were sentenced to prison in North Korea.

—Chuck Ross

20th Puts Out Casting Call To Recruit New Voices for 'Futurama' if Deal Can't be Reached with Actors Who Did the Original Voices

Neogotiations between the original voices of "Futurama"—John DiMaggio, Maurice LaMarche, Tress MacNeille, Katey Sagal, and Billy West—and 20th Century Fox TV to have them star in the animated show when it returns to TV next year have broken down, Variety reports.

Thus 20th has put out a casting call to replace the voices in case agreements with the original stars cannot be reached, Variety said..

According to the article, "It's believed that the "Futurama" cast members were asking for around $75,000 per episode; it was not clear what 20th was offering. Calls to the voice stars' reps were not immediately returned."

Variety said the studio also put out a call for replacement voices for "The Simpsons" during the last round of negotiations with the voice actors in that show. The originals eventually  signed contracts for that show.

—Chuck Ross 

ks have broken down between Talks have broken down between 20th Century Fox TV and stars Billy West, , ,  and over how much they should be paid to take part in the show

Major Hollywood Prop Shop Shutting Down; Sales Declined After Production Left California

 Hollywood prop shop 20th Century Props is closing down after falling victim to the ailing economy and production moving out of California for locations with tax breaks and easier rules,  Reuters reports.

Harvey Schwartz has run the shop for 40 years and had grown it to become the second-largest prop house in the world.

20th Century will hold an auction of all its remaining merchandise, including props from films such as "Titanic" and TV shows "The X Files" and "Golden Girls," among others.

--Sergio Ibarra

Report: Jackson Investigation NOT Likely to Say He Was Murdered

Here's how the Los Angeles Times sumarizes it's own report about the Michael Jackson investigation:

"The investigation is far from over, but a law enforcement official says there's nothing to suggest murder. Some doctors could face lesser charges of improperly prescribing drugs, but not any time soon."

—Chuck Ross

If You are Under 45 Years Old, Here's a Personal Explanation as to Why—and How—Cronkite was so Powerful and Influential

TVWeek's Managing Diretor, Chuck Ross, does the explaining in his Open Mike blog--click here.

NBCU Profit Drops 41% in 2nd QTR, Revenues Fall 8%

Citing declining ad revenues and cutbacks in consumer spending, NBC Universal's second quarter profits fell 41% and its revenues fell 8%, Reuters reported.

The company--80% owned by General Electric--also cited a write-down of its Ion Media stake and few DVD releases.

—Chuck Ross

David Halberstam on Walter Cronkite

In 1976, the late writer David Halberstam wrote a piece in The Atlantic magazine about broadcast news. With Walter Cronkit'es death, The Atlantic has just republished, on its website, the parts of Halberstam's piece about Cronkite. Here's an excerpt of that reprint:

"[Cronkite] was not a great interviewer; he was too aware of danger of seeming combative, and his questions were often easy (most memorably at the 1968 Democratic National Convention, when he pitched softballs to Mayor Daley of Chicago). But he was a good synthesizer and clarifier, working hard in the brief time allotted to his program to make the news understandable to millions of people. And his style and character seemed to come through. People set him apart from his office, as they did Eisenhower. When news was bad or upsetting, the audience might be angry with television reporters, but rarely with Walter Cronkite personally. He was exempt."

—Chuck Ross

TV News Legend Walter Cronkite Dead at 92

Walter Cronkite, the legendary CBS Evening News anchorman once named the “most trusted” figure in American public life, died Friday of cerebral vascular disease. He was 92 and had been in ill health for some time.

Cronkite, who famously ended his nightly newscasts with the line, “And that’s the way it is,” was a central figure in the development of the 30-minute broadcast network evening newscast as we still know it today. He anchored CBS’ flagship news report from 1962 until 1981, when, at age 65, he was forced out of the seat by the network’s mandatory retirement policy. He was replaced with much younger CBS stalwart Dan Rather.

Born Nov. 4, 1916 in St. Joseph, Mo., Cronkite joined CBS as a reporter in the nascent television news department in 1950 after having distinguished himself as a war correspondent for United Press during World War II. He initially worked at the network’s Washington, D.C., affiliate and was anchor of CBS’ coverage of the 1952 Republican and Democratic national conventions—the first ever televised—and the subsequent presidential election. It was the first of many he would anchor for the network over the ensuing decades.

Cronkite, who hosted the CBS historical reenactment series “You Are There” during its 1953-57 run, was named anchor of the nightly 15-minute “CBS Evening News” telecast in April 1962, replacing Douglas Edwards, who had been the face of the network’s principal newscast since 1948. His paternalistic air of solid credibility quickly earned him a place in the pantheon of news legends, and he was came to be identified by the public as the “most trusted” man in the country in opinion polls.

 “CBS Evening News” was stretched to 30 minutes in September 1963. It was two months later that Cronkite broke into the network’s daytime programming with the now-iconic news bulletin announcing the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, during which he was visibly moved to tears.

CBS, by 1964 challenged in the ratings by NBC’s dual-anchor “Huntley-Brinkley Report,” decided not to use Cronkite as anchor of that year’s presidential nomination conventions, using the team of Robert Trout and Roger Mudd instead. Perturbed, Cronkite considered leaving the network for a while, but stuck it out and in 1967 returned to ratings dominance, where he remained until his retirement in 1981.

CBS’ coverage of the Vietnam War during Cronkite’s tenure as anchor and managing editor culminated in his game-changing post-Tet Offensive editorial, which declared “the bloody experience of Vietnam is a stalemate” and urged the U.S. to open negotiations with the North Vietnamese government. The editorial has been credited as playing a key role President Lyndon B. Johnson's offer to negotiate with the enemy and his decision not to run for re-election in l968.

“If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost Middle America,” Johnson was quoted as saying at the time.

The Cronkite years at CBS were further defined by his reportage of the Apollo space missions and the Watergate scandal that unseated the Nixon Administration in the 1970s.

He remained active at CBS News after his retirement, involved primarily with special reports, and appeared frequently on television as himself in hosting roles, or as a witness to history.

--Tom Gilbert 

How Cronkite was Instumental in Helping Make the Primetime Emmys What They Are

Without Walter Cronkite, the Primetime Emmys might not exist as we know then. In a piece in the L.A. Times' The Envelope, Tom O'Neil, who wrote the wonderful "The Emmys" book, recounts that incident and more. To read the entire piece, click here. 

Here's a short excerpt. To find out what happened go to the entire article:

"Even though Cronkite was 'the most trusted man in America' and former president of the TV academy (1959-60), he kept losing the news Emmy to NBC stars Chet Huntley and David Brinkley during the early 1960s. The reason was obvious.

Emmy winners were determined by a popular vote and the peacock web was the most popular TV network. But the Emmy result was so unpopular with CBS News Chief  Fred Friendly that he finally got fed up, became most unfriendly and screamed, 'Boycott!'

George Clooney, Who Co-Wrote, Co-Starred and Directed Movie about CBS News, Talks About Cronkite

Speaking about Walter Cronkite, George Clooney said the following according to CBS  and a released statement:

"I'm the son of a newsman, and it's a huge part of my life, I grew up in a newsroom. I know Walter very well, we did a live television show. It's fun to be around somebody who's actually been part of real historical events. . . . His legacy will be one of the great legacies of great Americans. It sounds overstated, but it isn't. He's that important to us. Not just to generations before him but to generations coming up."

"He was the most important voice in our lives for thirty years. And that voice made people reach for the stars.I hate the world without Walter Cronkite."

Clooney co-wrote, co-starred in, and co-directed the movie "Good Night and Good Luck," which was about Cronkite's colleague at CBS, Edward R Murrow.

—Chuck Ross

Cronkite on What Broadcast News Has Become

"The nation whose population depends on the explosively compressed headline service of television news can expect to be exploited by the demagogues and dictators who prey upon the semi-informed." Walter Cronkite in his 1996 memoir, "A Reporter's Life."

"The misfortune with broadcasting today is that all -- even including your network, which is dedicated to the news -- do not take enough time to give us all of the facts and the background." Cronkite in a 2005 interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

Both quotes from CNN.com

—Chuck Ross

Cronkite on the Accusation That the Press Has a Liberal Bias

In a  2003 interview Richard Zoglin of Time Magazine asked Walter Cronkite: "You have basically come out and said you're a liberal. How do you respond when critics say, 'Aha, I know reporters were liberal, and this is why the media is biased?' "

To which Cronkite responded: "I do not consider a liberal necessarily to be a leftist. A liberal to me is one who--and it suits some of the dictionary definitions--is unbeholden to any specific belief or party or group or person, but makes up his or her mind on the basis of the facts and the presentation of those facts at the time. That defines what I am. I have never voted a party line. I vote on the individual and the issues."

—Chuck Ross

CBS to Air Tribute to Cronkite Sunday Night

 "That's The Way it Was: Remembering Walter Cronkite," will air on CBS Sunday, July 19 at 7 p.m. ET/PT, pre-empting a rerun of "60 Minutes.".

ABC News ran a tribute to Cronkite on Friday night as part of "Nightline."

The all-news cable networks ran salutes to Cronkite when it was announced he had passed away on Friday.

—Chuck Ross

Letterman Tops O’Brien, Whose ‘Tonight Show’ Continues to Slide in Total Viewers

David Letterman’s CBS “Late Show” beat Conan O’Brien’s “Tonight Show” last week, as the NBC program pulled in 2.8 million total viewers, its least-viewed week since Nielsen has been measuring total viewers, the New York Times says.

Letterman’s show had 3.7 million viewers last week, while ABC’s “Nightline,” with 3.8 million viewers in its half-hour, beat them both with its Michael Jackson memorial coverage.

A year ago, the Jay Leno-hosted “Tonight” had 4.6 million viewers, meaning O’Brien’s show has lost 38% of the audience. His show still draws a much younger audience, however.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Video: Cronkite in His Own Words--from a Newseum Interview

President Obama, Senator McCain, Praise Cronkite

“Walter set the standard by which all others have been judged," President Obama said, the Associated Press reported.

Sen. John McCain called Cronkite, "one of the most influential newsmen of our time," the AP said.

—Chuck Ross

Tributes from Cronkite's Colleagues at CBS

These short tributes have all been gathered  from the Associated Press:

His passing is, of course, a major loss for journalism. He was a great broadcaster and a gentleman whose experience, honesty, professionalism and style defined the role of anchor and commentator. For almost two exciting and turbulent decades during the 1960s and 1970s he helped inform our nation, and bring us together." — CBS Corp. chief executive Leslie Moonves.
___
"How many news organizations get the chance to bask in the sunshine of a half-century of Edward R. Murrow followed by a half-century of Walter Cronkite?" — CBS News executive producer Don Hewitt, who created "60 Minutes" and was Cronkite's first executive producer on the CBS Evening News.
___
"I've been proud over the years to see Walter become not just one of the best-known people on television but one of the best-known people in the whole world of people. He was proud of me, too and there's no better feeling in life than that. I wouldn't trade Walter Cronkite liking me for just about anything I've ever had." — "60 Minutes" commentator Andy Rooney.

___
"You will never meet anyone who is as warm and as much of a gentleman as Walter Cronkite. He loved music, he loved the Grateful Dead. He collected drums, including one from the drummer of the Grateful Dead. He adopted them and they adopted him; he was totally a fan. There were many sides to Walter." — CBS News and Sports president Sean McManus.
___
"It's hard to imagine a man for whom I had more admiration than Cronkite. ... He was a superb reporter and honorable man, a fine friend and I have nothing but admiration for Cronkite." — CBS "60 Minutes" correspondent emeritus Mike Wallace.
___
"He was so revered and beloved here. ... He was a personification of integrity and decency and humanity." — CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric.

—Chuck Ross

Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes Praises Cronkite

Roger Ailes, Chairman and CEO of Fox News had this praise for Walter Cronkite, according to TVNewser:

"Everybody who's in the news business today was influenced in a positive way by Walter Cronkite. He had ability, humility and integrity, a rare combination."

—Chuck Ross

Debbie Rowe Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Woman Claiming to Speak for Her on ‘Extra’

White had said on air that she had an email from Rowe indicating she wasn’t interested in custody of her children. The emails don’t exist, Rowe claimed.

She charges in the suit that White has inserted herself into numerous celebrity stories, claiming that two models forced her to smuggle drugs, and that she saw Heath Ledger using cocaine before his death.

Meanwhile, the L.A. County Coroner’s office said it needs two more weeks before it can release Jackson’s autopsy report, TMZ says.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Mischa Barton’s Role in ‘Beautiful Life’ ‘Contingent’ on Her Recovery, Rep Says

Mischa Barton’s participation in the upcoming CW series “The Beautiful Life” “will ultimately be contingent upon her progress and doctor's orders,” her representative, Craig Schneider, said in an email to the Los Angeles Times.

Barton was hospitalized Wednesday after being placed under involuntary psychiatric hold by the L.A. Police Dept.

The series is to begin filming in New York City next week, and so far Barton’s illness hasn’t disrupted production. Barton is supposed to play an aging model.

--Elizabeth Jensen

‘Oprah’ Ratings for Last Week Were Her Lowest Since 1983

Yes, it was the week of July 4 and her show was in reruns, but ratings for Oprah Winfrey’s talk show were her lowest last week since 1983, says the New York Post.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Cable News Rivals Dispute CNN Ad Campaign

CNN claims in a new TV ad campaign which is aimed at media buyers that it has more viewers than Fox News and MSNBC, an assertion that has its two higher-rated rivals crying foul, the Los Angeles Times says.

CNN’s spot says the news network is “No. 1, with more viewers than Fox and MSNBC.” That claim is based on a little-used monthly cumulative number. In the more-commonly used ratings standards, Fox News easily dominates CNN in prime time and total day, and MSNBC also recently surpassed CNN in prime time audience.

MSNBC asked Nielsen to investigate.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Dutch Producer de Mol, Creator of ‘Big Brother,’ Buys ‘Real World’ Producer Bunim/Murray

Dutch producer John de Mol, creator of “Big Brother,” is buying Bunim/Murray Prods., which produces MTV’s reality series “Real World,” The Hollywood Reporter says.

De Mol’s Talpa Media is paying an estimated $50 million to $70 million, The Reporter says, citing sources. Among Bunim/Murray's current productions are E!'s “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” and Lifetime’s “Project Runway.”

De Mol’s company is producing, with Endemol USA, ABC’s upcoming reality series “Dating in the Dark.” De Mol co-founded Endemol, but sold his share in 2000.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Senate Sets July 21 Vote for New FCC Commissioners

The Senate will vote next Tuesday on the nominations to FCC commissioner of Democrat Mignon Clyburn and Republican Meredith Attwell Baker, Broadcasting & Cable says.

The two are expected to be confirmed.

--Elizabeth Jensen

John Goodman Signed to Star in Fox Comedy Pilot

John Goodman signed on to co-star in “The Station,” a comedy series pilot for Fox, The Hollywood Reporter says.

The “Roseanne” alum will play a CIA veteran who mentors a covert CIA operative on a mission in Central America to install a dictator.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Turner Sports’ PGA Deal Included Role for Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network played an important role when Turner Sports recently extended its deal for TV rights to the PGA of America, The Hollywood Reporter says.

Some observers thought Turner was in jeopardy of losing the golf rights, having also recently lost rights to early British Open rounds, which went to ESPN. But Turner says it got its deal by suggesting that Cartoon Network could help the PGA target kids, creating a new generation of golfers and golf-viewers.

As part of the deal, Cartoon Network Enterprises will create consumer product lines for the PGA that are targeted at kids.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Margaret Loesch Named to Run New Discovery-Hasbro Kids Network

Kids TV veteran Margaret Loesch was named president and CEO of the new Discovery-Hasbro children’s channel, Broadcasting & Cable says.

The network is taking over the Discovery Kids channel spot in the fall of 2010. Loesch previously ran Marvel Productions and the Hallmark Channel, was executive VP of Hanna-Barbera Productions and president of television worldwide at the Jim Henson Group.

--Elizabeth Jensen

NBC Buys ‘Persons Unknown’ International Co-Production

NBC picked up “Persons Unknown,” an international co-production from Fox TV Studios about strangers held prisoner in a ghost town, Variety says.

Italy’s RAI and Mexico’s Televisa are partners in the series, which was developed at Fox and later Sci Fi.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Christiane Amanpour Drops No-Nonsense Wardrobe for Couture in New Harper’s Bazaar Spread

CNN’s Christiane Amanpour is always seen on camera in no-nonsense attire, and often in modest Muslim dress, but not so in the August Harper’s Bazaar, the Huffington Post notes.

To accompany a story written by Rita Wilson, the correspondent posed in a slinky Donna Karan gown and De Beers diamonds, among other outfits.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Kiefer Sutherland’s Court Date Friday Postponed

Kiefer Sutherland, who allegedly head-butt a fashion designer in New York City on May 7, breaking the man’s nose, has had his day in court postponed. It was supposed to be Friday, July 17. No new date has been set. The report comes from the Associated Press.

—Chuck Ross

Keeping us in Stritches: Reactions to Getting Nominated for an Emmy

Our favorite reaction to being nominated for a Primetime Emmy on Thursday comes from one of our favorite people, Elaine Stritch.

First, a personal note about Stritch here. It was about seven years ago that I took my septuagenarian mom to see septuagenarian Stritch at her one-woman show on Broadway. My mom loved it, and as we were walking out she turned to me and said that she wanted to go backstage and tell Stritch how much she loved the show.

The only problem, of course, is that neither of us knew Stritch. Hell, we didn’t even know how to get backstage. But my mom just grabbed my hand and we fell in with a group of people who had just told an usher that they were friends of Stritch and were supposed to meet her backstage after the show. Follow me, the usher said.

Our entire group was escorted backstage. I tried to slink as far to the rear as possible. Stritch greeted each of her guests in the group by name and with a big hug. She finally got to the last person, my mom, and gave her a big hug as well. Then Stritch broke the hug, looked at my mom, and said, “Do I know you?”

My mom said no, but that she was a huge fan. “I just love what you do.”

Stritch then asked my mom what she did. My mom said she makes wine—and yes, she actually is the proprietor of a company that makes wine.

Upon which Stritch’s face lit up and she gave my mom another big hug. “Honey,” she said, “and I just looooove what you do.”

Stritch, who won an Emmy last year for her performance on “30 Rock” and gave one of her memorable acceptance speeches, was nominated again today. Here’s her reaction:

“I was overjoyed with my nomination, for what was it, 30 Rock?? Because if I get lucky, it will give me yet again another opportunity to express my deepest feelings about 'show business.' Feelings that have been bottled up for 365 days.”

Both The Hollywood Reporter and Daily Variety have other reactions from nominees.

—Chuck Ross

Hear Previously Unreleased Jackson Song; Similar to America Hit

A previously unreleased song by Michael Jackson, called “A Place With No Name,” has been unearthed by TMZ. The song (click here to play it) sounds a lot like America’s “A Horse with No Name,” and America had given Jackson permission to record the similar sounding song, TMZ says.

It is not known when Jackson recorded the song.

—Chuck Ross

TV Actress Mischa Barton Held Under Involuntary Psychiatric Protection by Los Angeles Authorities

Former "The O.C." star Mischa Barton was placed under involuntary psychiatric hold by the Los Angeles Police Department Wednesday, Access Hollywood reports.

Officials first responded to a non-911 emergency call to the actress' home in Los Angeles, where they took her in under Section 5150 and held her involuntarily. She has since been transferred to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

Under Section 5150, authorities are authorized to hold an individual involuntarily for up to 72 hours if they present a threat to themselves or others or suffer from a mental illness. The same code was used to hold Britney Spears under custody last year.

Barton will star in the upcoming series "The Beautiful Life" on The CW.

--Sergio Ibarra

Report: Bad Economy Might be Good for Ratings of Emmy Telecast

While the Emmy telecast has faces recent years of declining ratings, CBS should not be worried about its performance when it airs the show live Sept. 20, Forbes reports.

While many less-watched cable shows claimed a large amount of nominations Thursday morning, that may not lead to less viewers.  According to Forbes, several award shows that have aired this year to date have performed better than expected.

The nation's ailing economy is leading to more viewers to stay in and watch. Additionally, Neil Patrick Harris, who stars in CBS' "How I Met Your Mother," may be a huge draw after receiving positive reviews for his hosting duties at this year's Tony Awards.

There is a caveat though: While viewership may not slide as far as expected, ad revenue will likely take a slip.

--Sergio Ibarra

Dish Network in $6 Million Settlement; Had Been Accused of Unfair Sales Practices by 46 States

Satellite TV provider Dish Network has paid 46 states $6 million to settle suits that had alleged deceptive and unfair sales practices, Multichannel News reports.

“Dish, in a statement, said there was no finding of any violation or wrongdoing by the company and added that the states released it from the matters investigated,” Multichannel wrote.

—Chuck Ross

1.5 Million Homes—Equivalent to the Size of Phoenix— Still Not Switched Over to Digital TV

One and a half million homes—about 1.3% of U.S. households—don’t have a digital TV or a converter box installed a month after the official transition to digital TV. The stat comes from Nielsen Media Research, reports Multichannel News. That's equivalent to the size of the nation's fifth largest city, Phoenix.

The good news is that that is 200,000 fewer homes than the number of homes that were unprepared to get digital TV signals a month ago.

—Chuck Ross

Drugmakers Using Same Characters in TV Commercials Supporting Health Care Reform as Were Used in Commercials to Kill Clinton Health Care Reform; $4 Million Campaign Starts This Weekend

Families USA and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, a trade group based in Washington, are reviving two characters, Harry and Louise, in new TV commercials to advocate the exact opposite of what the two characters advocated in 1993, Bloomberg reports.

At that time the characters were used in spots opposing healhcare reform as proposed by the Clinton administration. This time around the $4 million, three-week campaign is supporting President Obama's healthcare reform.

—Chuck Ross

LL Cool J Quarantined After Fellow Plane Passenger Became Ill

Rapper and actor LL Cool J was held in quarantine for a few hours after traveling on a flight from Los Angeles to St. Louis, the New York Post reports. 

The plane's pilot made an emergency landing in Kansas City after there were reports of smoke on board. Once the plane landed, a passenger who had been traveling overseas complained about feeling sick. As a precaution, authorities quarantined all passengers, including LL Cool J.

Cool J, who will be starring in the "NCIS" spin-off "NCIS: Los Angeles," was heading to Tuesday evening's MLB All-Star Game in St. Louis.

--Sergio Ibarra

Bethenny Frankel to Leave New York "Housewives" for New Bravo Reality Series

 "The Real Housewives of New York" star Bethenny Frankel is leaving the Bravo reality series and starting her own show for the network, the New York Post reports.

According to an unnamed source, the new series, "Skinny and The City," will follow Frankel as she plans her upcoming wedding.

In addition to starring in "Housewives" for the first two season, Frankel is also a chef and an author.

--Sergio Ibarra

NBC Sports, NHL Extend Broadcast Deal to 2010-11 Season

NBC Sports has renewed its broadcast deal with the National Hockey League, the Hollywood Reporter says.

As part of the deal, NBC will not pay any fees for the broadcast rights, but rather split the ad revenue with the NHL. The renewal covers the NHL’s 2010-11 season.

The upcoming NHL season kicks off Jan. 1, 2010.

--Sergio Ibarra

HBO Leads In Primetime Emmy Nominations; Politically Incorrect 'Family Guy's' Nomination for Best Comedy Series Showcases a Number of Surprises

HBO once again lead in total Primetime Emmy nominations that were announced today, with 99, NBC was next with 67, followed by ABC (55), CBS (49), Fox (42), Showtime (29) and PBS (26).

First-time nominees in drama series programs included "Big Love" and "Breaking Bad."

First-time nominees in comedy series programs included "Family Guy," "Flight of the Conchords," and "How I Met Your Mother."

The nomination of the edgy, often politically incorrect hit "Family Guy"--an animated show at that--as Outstanding Comedy Series, is probably the biggest surprise of the day.

Newcomers (not nominated last year) in the drama series performer categories include (lead) Simon Baker in "The Mentalist"; (supports) Elizabeth Moss in "Mad Men," Christian Clemenson in "Boston Legal," Aaron Paul in "Breaking Bad," William Hurt in "Damages," Rose Byrne in "Damages," Hope Davis in "In Treatment" and Cherry Jones in "24."

Newcomers (not nominated last year) in the comedy series categories included (leads) Jim Parsons in "The Big Bang Theory," Jemaine Clement in "Flight of the Conchords," Toni Collette in "United States of Tara," and Sarah Silverman in "The Sarah Silverman Program"; (supports) Tracy Morgan in "30 Rock," Jack McBrayer in "30 Rock," Kristin Wiig in "Saturday Night Live," Jane Krakowski in "30 Rock," and Elizabeth Perkins in "Weeds."

Leaders by program are "30 Rock" and "Mad Men." "30 Rock nailed down a precedent-setting 30 nominations--the most ever by a comedy series. Last year's Outstanding Drama Series, "Mad Men" again led the way in the drama category with 19 nominations.

Below please find nominees for some of the major categories. For a list of nominees by selected CATEGORY, please click here.  For the entire list of nominees (including the Creative Arts nominees), please click here.

Outstanding Drama Series

Big Love • HBO • Anima Sola Productions and Playtone in association with HBO Entertainment

Breaking Bad • AMC • High Bridge, Gran Via Productions, Sony Pictures Television

Damages • FX Networks • FX Productions and Sony Pictures Television

Dexter • Showtime • Showtime Presents in association with John Goldwyn Productions,
The Colleton Company, Clyde Phillips Productions

House • FOX • Universal Media Studios in association with Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z
Productions and Bad Hat Harry Productions

Lost • ABC • Grass Skirt Productions and ABC Studios

Mad Men • AMC • Lionsgate Television

Outstanding Comedy Series

Entourage • HBO • Leverage and Closest to the Hole Productions in association with
HBO Entertainment

Family Guy • FOX • Fox Television Animation

Flight Of The Conchords • HBO • Dakota Pictures and Comedy Arts in association with HBO Entertainment

How I Met Your Mother • CBS • 20th Century Fox Television

The Office • NBC • Deedle-Dee Productions and Reveille LLC in association with Universal Media Studios

30 Rock • NBC • Broadway Video, Little Stranger, Inc. in association with Universal
Media Studios

Weeds • Showtime • Showtime Presents in association with Lionsgate Television and
Tilted Productions, Inc.

Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series

The New Adventures Of Old Christine • CBS • Kari's Logo Here in association with
Warner Bros. Television
Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Christine

Samantha Who? • ABC • ABC Studios
Christina Applegate as Samantha Newly

The Sarah Silverman Program • Comedy Central • Central Productions/Eleven Eleven
O'Clock Productions/Oil Factory Inc.
Sarah Silverman as Sarah Silverman

30 Rock • NBC • Broadway Video, Little Stranger, Inc. in association with Universal
Media Studios
Tina Fey as Liz Lemon

United States Of Tara • Showtime • Showtime presents in association with DreamWorks Television
Toni Collette as Tara Gregson

Weeds • Showtime • Showtime Presents in association with Lionsgate Television and
Tilted Productions, Inc.
Mary-Louise Parker as Nancy Botwin

Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series

Brothers & Sisters • ABC • ABC Studios
Sally Field as Nora Walker

The Closer • TNT • The Shephard/Robin Company in association with Warner Bros.
Television
Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson

Damages • FX Networks • FX Productions and Sony Pictures Television
Glenn Close as Patty Hewes

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC • Wolf Films in association with Universal
Media Studios
Mariska Hargitay as Detective Olivia Benson

Mad Men • AMC • Lionsgate Television
Elisabeth Moss as Peggy Olson

Saving Grace • TNT • Fox Television
Holly Hunter as Grace Hanadarko

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Comedy Series

The Big Bang Theory • CBS • Chuck Lorre Productions, Inc. in association with Warner
Bros. Television
Jim Parsons as Sheldon Cooper

Flight Of The Conchords • HBO • Dakota Pictures and Comedy Arts in association with HBO Entertainment
Jemaine Clement as Jemaine

Monk • USA • Universal Cable Productions in association with Mandeville Films and ABC Studios
Tony Shalhoub as Adrian Monk

The Office • NBC • Deedle-Dee Productions and Reveille LLC in association with Universal Media Studios
Steve Carell as Michael Scott

30 Rock • NBC • Broadway Video, Little Stranger, Inc. in association with Universal
Media Studios
Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy

Two And A Half Men • CBS • Chuck Lorre Productions, Inc., The Tannenbaum Company in association with Warner Bros. Television
Charlie Sheen as Charlie Harper

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series

Breaking Bad • AMC • High Bridge, Gran Via Productions, Sony Pictures Television
Bryan Cranston as Walter White

Dexter • Showtime • Showtime Presents in association with John Goldwyn Productions,
The Colleton Company, Clyde Phillips Productions
Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan

House • FOX • Universal Media Studios in association with Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z
Productions and Bad Hat Harry Productions
Hugh Laurie as Dr. Gregory House

In Treatment • HBO • Leverage, Closest To The Hole Productions and Sheleg in association with HBO Entertainment
Gabriel Byrne as Paul

Mad Men • AMC • Lionsgate Television
Jon Hamm as Don Draper

The Mentalist • CBS • Warner Bros. Television
Simon Baker as Patrick Jane

—Tom Gilbert and Chuck Ross

New Details Emerge About Proposed Twitter TV Show

UPDATE: We've been told that this Twitter show has nothing to do with the one written about in Variety in May.

More details have surfaced about  that proposed Twitter TV show that was originally written about in Variety last May. The new details come from a Web site called techcrunch.com, which says it was recently given, surreptitiously, a lot of internal Twitter documents. The proposed TV show is called "Final Tweet."

"The pitch: four teams of 'young entrepreneurs' battle with non-profit organizations to win a cash prize of $100,000. They’ll travel across the U.S. and live off 'limited cash,' " techcrunch.com reports.

—Chuck Ross

Former HBO CEO Albrecht Developing Drama Show for Starz

Chris Albrecht, the former chairman and CEO of HBO, has teamed up with another premium cable service, Starz, to develop a one-hour drama, Variety says.

The show revolves around a young female photographer trying to make her way in the tough New York fashion business. Albrecht and partner Rob Lee will be executive producers if the show is picked up. Starz has been on an ambitious push to add original programming.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Cox Might Sell 'The Travel Channel'; Hires Goldman Sachs

Cox Communications has received unsolicited inquiries regarding its Travel Channel, and has hired Goldman Sachs to sort out the options, The Hollywood Reporter says.

Cox, which has owned the channel for two years, didn’t mention a sale in what the Reporter says was a carefully worded statement, but the channel could bring in as much as $1 billion if it is auctioned off.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Dave Chappelle, Who Walked Away From a $50 Million Deal With Comedy Central Some Years Ago, Twitters His Way to Portland, Oregon

In an odd--but modern--way to promote a personal appearance, thousands of people in Portland, Ore., learned through text messages and Twitter that comedian Dave Chapelle was going to perform a free show in a downtown Portland square at 1 am Wednesday morning, the Associated Press reports.

Chappelle expected about 200 to come. Thousands arrived at the last minute to see the show, the AP reports.

"It's not clear why Chappelle was in Portland, and what led him to [Portland's] Pioneer Courthouse Square," the AP said. "I'm not here for money," Chappelle told the crowd.

Chappelle might be best known for walking away from his hit show several years ago on Comedy Central, despite having a deal on the table that would have paid him about $50 million.

—Chuck Ross

Glenn Weiss to Direct Emmy Awards

Glenn Weiss directed the Tony Awards this year and now he’ll get to team up with host Neil Patrick Harris again, as he directs the Emmy Awards for the first time, The Hollywood Reporter says.

Don Mischer is executive producing the Sept. 20 awards ceremony. He and Weiss worked as co-executive producers of the last three Super Bowl halftime shows.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Ryan Seacrest Jumps Agencies After Signing $45 Million Deal

Ryan Seacrest left the William Morris Agency, his home for 10 years, and signed with CAA, just days after concluding his three-year, $45 million deal to continue hosting “American Idol,” The Hollywood Reporter says.

WMA didn’t represent him in that deal; his attorney Craig Jacobson did, along with Adam Sher, a former WMA agent who once co-represented him until joining Seacrest's Ryan Seacrest Prods.

CAA now represents three of the show’s key players: creator Simon Fuller, judge Simon Cowell and Seacrest.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Discovery Channel to Keep ‘Pitchmen’ Going Without Star Billy Mays

Two weeks after infomercial host Billy Mays died of a possible heart attack, the Discovery Channel has decided to renew the show he starred in, “Pitchmen,” the New York Times says.

For its second season, the cable channel said it may follow a group of infomercial hosts.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Young Stations to Go to the Broadcaster’s Bankers After Canceling Auction

With no other bids meeting the minimum the company was looking for, Young Broadcasting is expected to go to the company’s lenders, Broadcasting & Cable reports.

The station group, which entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February, canceled a planned auction earlier this week. The highest bid received for the 10 stations was from existing senior lenders.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Sen. Jay Rockefeller Says FCC is Broken, Slates Hearing About Kid's TV

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller slated a hearing on children’s TV for next week, after saying that he remains concerned about TV content and kids, Broadcasting & Cable reports.

The July 22 hearing is titled “Rethinking the Children's Television Act For a Digital Media Age.” The act requires stations to offer three hours each week of educational and informational programming for children, and puts limits on the commercial load in kids’ programming.

Earlier in the day, the Senator repeated his claim that the FCC is broken, and under the previous administration had become “beholden” to the media industry it regulates.

--Elizabeth Jensen

NBC Pulling ‘The Listener’

NBC is pulling its Thursday 10 p.m. summer drama “The Listener” at the end of July, with five episodes remaining, Variety says.

“Law and Order” repeats will be substituted for the Canadian co-production about a telepathic paramedic, which hasn’t caught on with viewers.

--Elizabeth Jensen

FCC Nominees Appear Before Senators

Mignon Clyburn and Meredith Attwell Baker answered questions from Senators Wednesday during their nomination hearing for the two remaining vacancies on the Federal Communications Commission, Multichannel News reports..

Clyburn said she would be consumer- and public-interest focused, called for high-speed and affordable broadband, and said she opposed the fairness doctrine.Baker also disavowed the doctrine and talked about the importance of broadband, Multichannel said.

--Tom Gilbert

Just Released Video: Michael Jackson's Hair Catches Fire During 1984 Pepsi Commercial Shoot

Entertainment and celebrity news magazine Us Weekly has released footage of a Michael Jackson commercial shoot for Pepsi gone wrong.

In the clip from 1984, during the sixth take of the commercial--which was filmed before a live audience filled with 3,000 Jackson fans, the singer's hair catches fire after a pyrotechnics element goes off too early.

Jackson continues dancing as he decends onto the stage. Crew members rush to Jackson to extinguish the flames.

The King of Pop suffered second- and third-degree burns on his scalp and face. The magazine also claims that in order to deal with the pain of the accident Jackson began taking medications--leading to the star's alleged addiction to painkillers and plastic surgery.

Debmar-Mercury, TBS Convert Film 'Are We There Yet' To TV Series

Using the formula it developed with success for Tyler Perry shows, Debmar-Mercury and TBS are making a TV series of the 2005 film "Are We There Yet?"

The star of the film, Ice Cube, will have a recurring role in the sitcom, and his Cube Vision will produce the show. Debmar-Mercury will distribute.

Intially 10 episodes have been ordered, with an option to add 90 more. Ali LeRoi, the Emmy-winning showrunner of "The Chris Rock Show," will be the showrunner on "Are We There Yet."

The film was from Revolution Studios, and Revolution's Joe Roth will be one of the executive producers, along with Ice Cube, Matt Alvarez (Ice Cube's partner in Cube Vision) and LeRoi.
Starring in the role of Nick that Ice Cube played in the movie will be Terry Crews.

“When we set out to expand on the television comedy model that the amazing Tyler Perry has turned into a runaway success at TBS, we knew we had to be in business with Ice Cube, a cultural icon who can do it all: an acclaimed hip-hop artist, film phenomenon, actor, writer, director and producer,” said Debmar-Mercury Co-President Mort Marcus in a statement.

Added Co-President Ira Bernstein, “To be back with TBS again and have a dream team of creative partners like Ice Cube, Joe Roth, Matt Alvarez and Ali LeRoi attached to this project, plus a breakout star in Terry Crews, this show has all the elements to be a major hit.”

—Chuck Ross

ITV Studios (Formerly Granada America) Partners With Parade for New Reality Show With $1 Million Prize

A new reality show is coming to cable TV in which the winner will get $1 million. It’s from ITV Studios (“Hell’s Kitchen,” “Nanny 911”) and the publishers of Parade magazine and Parade.com., the companies announced.

It’s a 10-part series called “America’s Million Dollar Recipe,” and will be “a nationwide quest for the very best dish created by ordinary families,” the companies said in a statement.

Recipes from various regions of the country will be targeted. Two celebrity chefs—yet to be named—will judge the finals. The cable network partner has yet to be revealed.

Clearly this contest is a competitor to the Pillsbury Bake-Off. Now in its 44th year, the winner of that contest also gets $1 million.

—Chuck Ross

Update: Target IS Staying With 'Gossip Girl' for Anna Sui Fashion Line; Retailer to Sponsor CW Show’s Season Opener

Target has denied claims that it is pulling ties between designer Anna Sui’s upcoming “Gossip Girl”-inspired line and the retailer, MTV’s Hollywood Crush reports.

According to a Target spokesperson an online article saying otherwise--which has since been substantially altered--“is a complete fabrication.” The plan for the original line, featuring Sui’s designs modeled after some of The CW’s “Gossip Girl” characters, will remain as previously planned.

In addition to selling the line, Target is also sponsoring the show’s season premiere, which will feature the first commercial for Anna Sui for Target.

--Sergio Ibarra 

Report: Los Angeles Police Treating Jackson Death as a Homicide, Might Have a Suspect

The Los Angeles Police Department suspects that Michael Jackson’s death may be related to his being injected with the anesthesia Propofol, and are treating his death as a possible homicide, TMZ reports.

Thus the LAPD is very interested in who administered the drug to Jackson, TMZ says.

In a follow-up report by Access Hollywood, the LAPD said they were not currently handling the investigation as a homicide. However, TMZ has not amended its story and sources there say they are standing by what they wrote. 

—Chuck Ross

Don Ohlmeyer’s New Job: ESPN Ombudsman

Veteran television executive Don Ohlmeyer was named ESPN’s ombudsman, and will write a monthly column critiquing its content and journalism for ESPN.com, starting next month, says the Los Angeles Times.

Ohmeyer, who retired in 1999 as president, NBC West Coast, has numerous sports production credits on his resume, from the Olympics and the Super Bowl, to “Monday Night Football” and “ABC's Wide World of Sports.” And as the Times notes, he has never been shy about calling reporters in the past to comment on their work.

He succeeds former New York Times sports editor Le Anne Schreiber, whose 18-month stint had expired.

--Elizabeth Jensen

CBS, 17 More Cable Channels Join Comcast’s Online Trial

CBS is joining the Comcast “On Demand Online” trial which will let cable subscribers watch many of the shows in their cable packages online, Broadcasting & Cable says.

CBS, which notably doesn’t take part in Hulu, the web video outlet for NBC, Fox and ABC shows, is the first broadcaster to jump in. It hasn’t yet said which shows will be part of the trial.

B&C also says another 17 cable channels joined the program, including A&E, History, Food Network, DIY Network, HGTV, AMC, WE TV, BBC America and Comcast’s own E!, Style Network and G4.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Young Broadcasting Auction Is Canceled

Young Broadcasting called off the auction of its 10 stations that was to have taken place yesterday, Broadcasting & Cable says.

The lawyers representing Young didn’t say why the auction was canceled but some insiders believe that it signals that the bids didn’t meet the minimum the company had sought.

--Elizabeth Jensen

'Idol's' Simon Cowell is Hooking up With Supermodel Kate Moss to Challenge Disney

Simon Cowell, the acerbic judge on "American Idol," is joining forces with supermodel Kate Moss and Sir Philip Green, a billionaire retailer, to create "a global entertainment super- company to rival Disney," according to the U.K. paper the Daily Mail.

The plan would have the new company "own all the rights and content of the TV programmes Cowell produces, including 'Britain's Got Talent,' 'The X Factor' and
'America's Got Talent,'" the Mail reports.

The company would be owned by Cowell and Green. They would hire Moss for up to $80 million to handle branding and style for the new company, which the Mail says will "straddle showbusiness and fashion."

The Mail quotes one unnamed source as saying about Moss's role in the new venture, "She will also be involved in finding and signing new bands and promoting them. Something that has also been talked about is Kate developing her own singing career and starting a music label.

"She has a big network of people they have no access to and they want her to make the new venture hip, and not so nerdy, and up-to-date..."

—Chuck Ross

'ET' Special Correspondent Says Allegations Michael Jackson Was Gay Are Not True

Diane Dimond, the special correspondent for "Entertainment Tonight" who has been covering Michael Jackson for six years, says she has never found any evidence that Jackson was gay.

Dimond was responding in a piece on the ET website to a new book—"Unmasked:The Final Years of Michael Jackson"—by Ian Halperin, in which Halperin raises questions about Jackson’s sexual orientation.

—Chuck Ross

PBS Gets Most Nominations for News and Doc Emmys, Followed by CBS, ABC and HBO/Cinemax

PBS scored nearly twice as many nominations--41--as the second-place network for the 30th Annual News and Documentary Emmys announced Tuesday by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

CBS was second with 23 nominations, followed by ABC and HBO/Cinemax, which had 13 nominations each.

Next came National Geographic Channel with 12 nominations, NBC with 10 nods and CNN with eight nominations.

Discovery garnered four nods, the Travel Channel had three and MSNBC received two nominations. One each went to Current TV, Discovery Health, History, and Smithsonian Channel.

Web sites receiving nominations included two each for Tate.org and Washingtonpost.com. One each went to freep.com/Detroit Free Press, Globeandmail.com, livehopelove.com/Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, mediastorm.org and Reuters/Mediastorm. 

Previously announced were Lifetime Achievement honoree Barbara Walters and President's Award honoree CNN Productions. 

The Emmys will be presented on Monday, Sept. 21, during a ceremony at the Frederick P. Rose Hall at the Time Warner Center in New York City.  

For a complete list of nominations go to http://emmyonline.org/mediacenter/news_30th_nominations.html

--Chuck Ross

Farrah Fawcett Pal Alana Stewart to Publish Diary She Kept of Fawcett's Battle Against Cancer

Alana Stewart, Farrah Fawcett's friend who was close to the late actress during her struggle with cancer, will publish a diary she kept during the illness.

A portion of the proceeds of the book, “My Journey With Farrah,” to be released in August, will be donated to the Farrah Fawcett Foundation for cancer research, the Associated Press reports.

—Chuck Ross

Vocal Cord Surgery That Rachael Ray Had Has High Success Rate

The operation TV personality Rachael Ray had last week had to remove a benign cyst from her vocal cord has a high success rate, the New York Daily News reports.

—Chuck Ross

TV IQ Time: Quick, Name the Network That Was No. 2 in Primetime in Adults 18-34 Last Week

Our guess is that most of you will not get this one correct. This network was also No. 2 for the week in teens 12-17, and, No. 1 in kids 2-11.

The answer is (drum roll, please): Univision. Only Fox pulled a higher rating in adults 18-34 and teens 12-17 last week.

—Chuck Ross

BBC Worldwide Profit Falls Almost 30%; Spotlight on Whether on Not BBC Should Share Its License Fee

There's a big debate going on in the U.K. over the funding of the BBC, Variety reports. Currently all homes with TV sets pay a license fee to fund the BBC.

At least one influential politician--who is also a former BBC corresondent --says it would be wrong for the license fee to be shared "with cash-strapped commercial rivals to fund their public broadcasting service requirement--such as local news," Variety says.

All of this is happening against a background wherein the BBC announced that profits fell 27% to $140 million for its last fiscal year, which ended in March.

—Chuck Ross

FX Picks Up Its First Animated Series

FX has picked up “Archer,” an animated comedy about the intrigue among employees of an international spy agency, The Hollywood Reporter says.

The show, the network’s first animated series in a decade, will premiere in the fall. It was created by Adam Reed and Floyd County Prods. Reed was a co-creator of the Adult Swim series “Frisky Dingo” and “Sealab 2021.”

—Elizabeth Jensen

Add 'The Big Valley' to List of TV Series Riding to the Big Screen

Producer Kate Edelman Johnson is working on a feature film version of “The Big Valley,” the 1960s TV series co-created by her father, producer Louis F. Edelman, and writer A.I. Bezzerides, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

The Western, set in the 1870s, ran on ABC from 1965-69 and starred Barbara Stanwyck as the matriarch of a ranching clan. Daniel Adams (“The Golden Boys”) wrote the screenplay and will direct. No casting was announced.

—Elizabeth Jensen

Is NBC Blurring the Meaning of What it Means to Be a Journalist on New Show?

In a piece entitled “Chasing Terrorists (and TV Ratings)," New York Times reporter Brian Stelter talks about a forthcoming series from NBC News called “The Wanted,” that some are already derisively calling “To Catch a Terrorist,” a reference to "Dateline NBC’s" controversial franchise “To Catch a Predator.”

—Chuck Ross

ABC Signs Jennifer Garner to Production Deal; 20th Century Fox Inks Overall Deal With Jason Winer

Former “Alias” star Jennifer Garner has signed a development deal with ABC, Entertainment Weekly reports. 20th Century Fox has also signed Jason Winer, director of ABC “Modern Family” pilot, to a two-year, seven-figure overall deal, the Hollywood Reporter says.

Garner will develop projects for ABC under her Vandalia Films production title. While specifics have yet to be revealed, the deal does not specifically call for Garner to star in any of those potential projects.

As part of his deal, Winer will be a co-executive producer for ABC’s “Family” and direct six of the show’s initial 12 episodes. Winer will also write, develop and direct other projects for the studio.

--Sergio Ibarra 

'Scrubs' Newbie Eliza Coupe Joins Sitcom as Series Regular; Joins Others in New Format

“Scrubs” actress Eliza Coupe has joined the cast a series regular, Entertainment Weekly reports. 

Coupe first appeared in the show last season as an “insensitive intern.” She’ll join some of the show’s returning regulars in addition to some other potential additions as the series takes on a medical school format.

--Sergio Ibarra

Steven Weber in Talks to Join ABC’s Mid-Season “Happy Town”

“Wings” alum Steven Weber is in talks to star in the upcoming ABC mid-season show “Happy Town,” the Hollywood Reporter says.

The show focuses on a small town facing the threat of a kidnapper known only as the Magic Man. Weber would play John Haplin, whose daughter was a victim of the Magic Man years before.

Ben Schnetzer has also joined the cast. Both Weber and Schnetzer join the show as replacements for other actors (Dean Winters and John Patrick Amedori, respectively) originally featured in the pilot.

--Sergio Ibarra

MTV's VMAs Moving Back to New York; Russell Brand Again to Host

The MTV Video Music Awards are moving back to New York, where they will be presented on Sept. 13th at Radio City Music Hall, MTV announced.

Reprising his hosting duties at last year’s raucous Video Music Awards event will be Russell Brand.

 Featured performers include Taylor Swift, making her VMAs debut singing “You Belong to Me.” Muse, a British rock trio, will be performing on U.S. TV for the first time during the show.

—Chuck Ross

ABC News Accused of Checkbook Journalism in Joe Jackson Interview

The essential charge is that ABC News paid $200,000 for video footage shown during the interview, the Los Angeles Times reports, citing a TV Newser blog.

ABC says paying for the footage “has nothing to do with the exclusive interview,” the LA Times reports.

Segments of the interview have run on “Nightline,” “Good Morning America,” and are scheduled to air Tuesday night on “Primetime Family Secrets.”

—Chuck Ross

Sinclair, Nation’s 12th-Largest TV Station Owner, Says It Might Have to File Bankruptcy

Citing weak auto advertising and the downgrading of its debt, Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns 58 TV stations in 35 markets, said it may be forced into bankruptcy, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

Sinclair, the nation's 12th-largest TV station group, has $11 million in cash, which may not be enough for it to meet certain financial obligations. Last year the company lost $241 million on revenues of $756 million, the Reporter says, quoting an SEC filing. Sinclair has $1.33 billion in debt.

The company’s stock shares plunged 21% (38 cents) Monday to $1.46.

Sinclair said it will discuss its options during a conference call Tuesday, the Reporter said.

—Chuck Ross

Judge Refuses to Let Richard Hatch Leave Confinement Early for ‘Survivor’ Reunion

“Survivor” winner Richard Hatch’s request to leave home confinement early to take part in a 10th anniversary edition of the show has been denied by a federal judge in Rhode Island, the Associated Press says.

Hatch was recently released from several years in federal prison for failing to pay taxes on his "Survivor" winnings ten years ago. The last 90 days of his sentence are being spent in home confinement.

—Elizabeth Jensen

Jon Gosselin to Co-Design Kids Line of Clothes; Also, His New Girlfriend Has a Wild Past

TV reality show personality Jon Gosselin, who has eight kids, will co-design a line of children’s clothing with French designer Christian Audigier, says the Chicago Sun Times.

Meanwhile, Jon’s new girlfriend has had a wild past, according to Popeater.com.

—Chuck Ross

Chicago Cubs, One of the Mainstays of Superstation WGN America, Considers Filing for Bankruptcy Protection to Hasten Sale of Team

The idea is that the filing would allow the team to clean up its books for its eventual sale, the Associated Press reports.. The team’s owner, the Tribune Co., is already in bankruptcy.

—Chuck Ross

'Lost' Lawsuit: Former 'Baretta' Producer Says He Created Series First—in 1977

Anthony Spinner, a producer on “Baretta,” filed a lawsuit against ABC and Touchstone Television claming that back in 1977 he was paid $30,000 by the network to write a pilot that eventually became “Lost,” TMZ reports.

Spinner cites numerous close parallels between his treatment and the current series—from a plane that crashes in a tropical jungle to many of the characters and their dark pasts—and says the network passed on his version three times between 1977 and 1994.

His suit was filed last week and follows an earlier suit that was dismissed for procedural reasons.

—Elizabeth Jensen 

Minority Broadcasters Appeal to Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner for Help

Fourteen minority broadcasters appealed to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner for help, arguing that their business is in danger of extinction, B&C reports.

In their appeal, which also went to a number of key legislators, the broadcasters said they would like to see steps similar to those taken to help the auto industry, including freeing up credit and financing of government-backed bridge loans.

—Elizabeth Jensen

HBO Joins Comcast Test Wherein Paying Subs Can Watch Cable Programming Online

HBO is joining the trial run of Comcast’s “On Demand Online” service, which will allow subscribers to watch cable programming online as long as it is part of their cable packages, B&C reports.

HBO, and its sibling service, Cinemax, will provide about 750 hours of programming a month for the trial, including series such as “True Blood” and “The Sopranos,” hit movies, and family programming.

—Elizabeth Jensen

Fox to Air 'Simpsons' Documentary; Taps 'Super Size Me's' Morgan Spurlock to Direct

"Super Size Me" director and documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock will direct a TV special on Fox's "The Simpsons" in celebration of the animated series' 20 years on the air, MTV Movies Blog reports.

The documentary, "The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special in 3-D on Ice," will explore the show's effects on popular culture over the last two decades. The special is scheduled to air next January.

No specific word yet on whether the program will be in 3D or on ice.

--Sergio Ibarra

'High School Musical' Star Who Apologized for a Nude Pic Plays Hooker in New Film, Says She'll be Wearing 'Not a Whole Lot of Clothes'

Vanessa Hudgens, 20, star of all of Disney's "High School Musical" TV and theatrical movies, has taken on a more adult role.

Target Nixes 'Gossip Girl'-themed Campaign; Anna Sui's Line Still Set for Fall Release

Target has decided to cut ties between an upcoming Anna Sui clothing line to be sold in its stores and The CW’s “Gossip Girl,” the New York Daily News reports.

According to unnamed sources close to “Gossip’s” production, executives at the retailer expressed concern over some of the show’s more risqué elements.

Sui’s clothing line, meant to be inspired by characters from the show, is still on track for a fall launch at Target, but the store will not advertise it as connected to the series.

During a recent shoot for the show, all Target-related placements in a scene were removed, as was reference to Sui. Target, The CW and Sui have not released comment.

--Sergio Ibarra

Maura Tierney Explains Health Concerns; ‘Parenthood’ Delayed for Actress’ Surgery

“E.R” alum Maura Tierney has released a statement regarding her health issues, which recently caused NBC to delay production of the upcoming series “Parenthood,” Entertainment Weekly reports.

Last week the network did not disclose details of Tierney’s condition, causing alarm.

The actress, however, revealed that she is having surgery to remove a tumor in her breast.

“I will not know either my exact diagnosis or course of treatment until that surgery is performed,” said Tierney in her statement. “My doctors have all assured me this is a very treatable condition. I'm very optimistic as to the outcome and want to thank everyone who has sent positive thoughts and support. I look forward to going back to work soon."

--Sergio Ibarra

Mark Mandala, Former President of the ABC TV Network, Dead at 72

Mark Mandala, the popular former president of the ABC Television Network, has died at age 72.

An avid golfer, Mandala passed away while playing golf on Saturday in Dorset, Vermont.

He had retired from ABC in 1994, after serving 32 years at the network. He had been appointed President of the Network in 1986, where his responsibilities included Sales, Affiliate Relations, Affiliate Marketing Services, Sales Development, Network Operations, Program Administration and Public Relations.

Mandala had been promoted after a three-year stint as President of the ABC-owned TV stations division. Before that he had worked in various sales and management slots for ABC in some of its biggest markets: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco.

Mandala was born in the LA suburb of Downey, Calif. He attended USC and attained a liberal arts degree.

He had homes in Dorset, Vermont and La Quinta, California.

Mandala is survived by his wife of 48 years, Joan Neely Mandala, and three sons, Steve, Charlie and Michael. Steve is a top TV executive at NBC Universal. He is also survived by his sister, Cecelia Woodward, and six grandchildren.

A reception for family and friends will be hosted on Tuesday, July 14 from 6-8 p.m. at the Dorset Field club in Dorset, Vermont, according to a statement released by ABC. An additional memorial will be planned in the future on the West Coast for family and friends there.

—Chuck Ross
 

La Toya Bombshell: Michael Was Murdered for the Music Publishing Rights He Owned

La Toya Jackson, Michael's sister, says her brother was murdered, according to the UK publication News of the World.

"We don't think just one person was involved in the murder. It was a conspiracy to get Michael's money,"  she told the paper in an interview.

“I feel it was all about money,” she said. “Michael was worth well over a billion in music publishing assets and somebody killed him for that. He was worth more dead than alive.”

Furthermore La Toya said, "A couple of years ago Michael told me he was worried that people were out to get him. He said, 'They're gonna kill me for my publishing. They want my catalogues and they're gonna kill me for these.'

She said she never wanted her brother do agree to the 50-date tour that he was rehearsing for at the time of his death.

She also said Michael was robbed of $2 million in jewelry and cash as he was dying.

La Toya told another UK paper, the Daily Mail, that  “Less than a month ago, I said I thought Michael was going to die before the London shows because he was surrounded by people who didn’t have his best interests at heart.”

—Chuck Ross

Ryan Seacrest Closes 3-Year $45 Million Deal; Gets Raise of $10 Million per Year for Hosting 'American Idol'

Ryan Seacrest, host of  “American Idol," has closed deal with CKX, parent of “Idol” producer 19 Entertainment, worth $15 million per year for the next three years, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

The deal ties Seacrest exclusively to "Idol" (or any CKX show that succeeds it) in primetime broadcast TV, THR reports.

Under his previous deal Seacrest was getting paid just under $5 million per show, the report says.

—Chuck Ross

Raging Controversy: Time For Sports Programming to Move to C3 Ratings? At Stake: Fate of an $8 Billion Market

With a letter that went out to clients last week from Nielsen Media Research to its clients, there's a raging debate whether or not the $8 billion-plus live sports marketplace should move from live ratings to C3 ratings. The veteran TV reproter Steve McClellan reports for AdWeek.

CBS Wants First 'Survivor' Winner, Richard Hatch, Sprung From Home Confinement for 10th Anniversary Edition of the Series

CBS’ “Survivor” wants its first winner, Richard Hatch, back for a 10th anniversary edition that starts shooting next month, but first he has to get permission from federal authorities to cut short a home confinement sentence, the New York Post says.

Hatch is finishing a sentence, which also included time in jail, for failing to pay taxes on his $1 million winnings on the show. He also needs permission from authorities to leave the country. He petitioned for the permission Friday in a Rhode Island federal court. Although he hasn’t yet paid the taxes and penalties he said in his court filing that any winnings from the upcoming show would go to the government.

—Elizabeth Jensen

Report: Joe Jackson (Michael's Father) Wants Michael's Kids to Tour as 'The Jackson Three'

Michael Jackson's father, Joe Jackson, is trying to get Michael's kids to commence a world tour as The Jackson Three — despite family members accusing him of trying to "exploit them, " Fox News reports.

—Chuck Ross

Jon With a Date (It’s not Kate)

Jon Gosselin shows off new girlfriend, Hailey Glassman, as he travels in France, according to the Boston Herald.

—Chuck Ross

Networks Vying for First Jailhouse Interview with Madoff

ABC, CBS and NBC have confirmed that that are all trying to woo Bernie Madoff for an interview, B&C reports. Madoff was recently sentenced to prison for a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme.

—Chuck Ross

Showtime Lines Up New Show From Craig Wright; It's 180 Degrees From the Show He Previously Created, 'Dirty Sexy Money'

Showtime is developing a religion-themed drama called “Revelation,”  Variety reports.

The CBS TV Studios series comes from David Janollari and Craig Wright, creator of “Dirty Sexy Money." Interestingly, Wright is a former minister.

Janollari used to be a partner of Showtime Entertainment president Bob Greenblatt, in the long-successful Greenblatt/Janollari Studio in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Variety notes.

—Elizabeth Jensen

Cox Cable Wants to Up VOD Offerings to 100 Top-rated Shows Per Week

Cox Cable wants to offer, on video-on-demand, 100 "of America's top-rated television programs from that week," Cox president Pat Esser told Multichannel News.

Currently the cable operator offers 50 to 60 shows per week on its VOD service. Cox is targeting Oct. 1 for the upgrade. 

—Chuck Ross

FCC Asked To Force Cablevision to Sell HD Sports Programming to Rival

Verizon Cmmmunications wants the Federal Communications Commission to force Cablevision to sell HD programming from Cablevision's  Madison Square Garden Nets to Verizon's Fios TV service, Multichannel News reports.

In addition, "Connecticut attorney general Richard Blumenthal [has written to the FCC] arguing that an exclusive agreement between Cablevision and MSNBC may be illegal.

—Chuck Ross

NBC Holds 'Parenthood' for Midseason Due to Star's Illness; 'Mercy' Called for Fall Duty

NBC has delayed the premiere of its new drama “Parenthood” to midseason due to an illness affecting show star Maura Tierney that has delayed production by eight weeks, the Hollywood Reporter says.

Filming was scheduled to begin July 27 for a fall premiere.

The network will now move midseason series “Mercy” to begin in the fall. The cast and crew of the show have been called to begin work.

NBC did not release information about Tierney’s condition.

This marks the second time “Parenthood” has faced production delays. Pilot production was shut down for two days after the unexpected death of NBC vice president of drama Nora O’Brien.

--Sergio Ibarra

MTV Boards the Big Train in New Coming-of-Age Series, Follows ‘Hung’s’ Footsteps

MTV is following in HBO’s footsteps and ordered a new series about a big member, the Hollywood Reporter says.

“Hard Times” will follow the story of an unknown 15-year-old high school student who accidentally reveals his impressive manhood to the entire school. From then, he receives fame and must deal with all the extra attention.

The show is drawing comparisons to HBO’s latest comedy, “Hung,” about a schoolteacher who begins to use his own large gift to his advantage.

“Hard” comes from New Remote Productions. David Katzenberg will serve as creator and executive producer.

--Sergio Ibarra

'American Idol' Host Ryan Seacrest Nears New Megadeal

“American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest is getting a major pay raise that will put him in the top paid ranks of TV reality hosts under a contract renewal that is being wrapped up, The Hollywood Reporter says.

Seacrest made just under $5 million for his work on the series this season, and there’s no word on how much more he’ll get under the new contract, which is believed to be for three years. The new deal also calls for him to possibly develop series with “Idol” creator Simon Fuller’s 19 Entertainment.

--Elizabeth Jensen

NBC Universal’s Zucker: The Marketplace Has Bottomed Out

NBC Universal chief Jeff Zucker told CNBC’s Erin Burnett in a Sun Valley, Idaho, interview that he thinks the marketplace has hit bottom, and that the NBCU local station business appears to be improving, Broadcasting & Cable says.

The ad marketplace is “still quite uncertain and we don’t really see the full recovery we are all hoping for,” he said, adding, “It’s still tough out there, but I think we have seen a bottom.” He didn’t elaborate on the local station situation.

--Elizabeth Jensen

International Olympic Committee Unhappy About New U.S. Olympic Cable Channel

The International Olympic Committee criticized the U.S. Olympic Committee’s plan to launch an Olympics cable channel with Comcast, saying it could have a negative impact on other Olympic broadcasters and sponsors, the Wall Street Journal says.

The IOC, which is worried about the impact on Olympics rights-holder NBC, accused its U.S. counterparts of making the channel plans public on Wednesday before all the issues were thought through.

Meanwhile NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol said that in April he broke off talks about combining the new channel with the new Universal Sports, which is owned by NBC and InterMedia Partners, the New York Times says.

--Elizabeth Jensen

LAPD Investigating Michael Jackson's Drug History

L.A. Police Chief William Bratton told CNN that his detectives are investigating Michael Jackson’s prescription drug history and waiting for a report from the coroner before making conclusions about the death, with even homicide on the table, the Associated Press says.

Based on the coroner’s report and toxicology tests, “we'll have an idea of what we're dealing with,” Bratton said. “Are we dealing with homicide? Are we dealing with an accidental overdose? What are we dealing with?”

--Elizabeth Jensen

Lindsay Lohan Sets Up Production Company, Eyes Fashion TV Show

Lindsay Lohan and her fashion-line partner Kristi Kaylor have set up Unforgettable Prods., which will develop TV and film projects, The Hollywood Reporter says.

One project is a TV show called “Faux Real,” described as a fashion world-version of “Entourage.” The company is also working on a dating game show.

--Elizabeth Jensen

No Further British Police Investigation Into Reports Murdoch Papers Hired P.I.s to Hack Cellphones

Scotland Yard quickly decided not to investigate further after a report in The Guardian that two of Rupert Murdoch’s British tabloids hired private investigators to tap into the cellphones of thousands of public figures, the New York Times says.

A Scotland Yard official said The Guardian’s report didn’t add to what the police learned three years ago when they first investigated the tabloids’ activities. Nonetheless, the newspaper’s report is continuing to cause an uproar and is likely to have eventual political repercussions.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Billy Mays Will Continue to Pitch After Death

An ad that pitchman Billy Mays taped prior to his death June 28 from a heart attack will be introduced posthumously, the Associated Press reports.

The commercial for a product called Mighty Tape will start airing July 20. Other ads that had been pulled after his death could return to the airwaves even earlier.

“Our feeling is, everyone wants to have Billy go on,” said Bill McAlister, president of Media Enterprises, a sales and marketing company Mays worked with.

--Elizabeth Jensen

TV Networks Fighting Against House Plan to Change Ads for Prescription Drugs

The major broadcast networks –ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox—argued in a letter to the House Ways and Means Committee that a possible plan to eliminate a tax deduction for prescription drug ads, one of their major ad categories, would cost jobs, the Wall Street Journal says.

The elimination of the deduction is one option House Committee members are considering as they try to figure out how to pay for a health care system overhaul.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Starz Joining Comcast's 'TV Everywhere' Trial

Starz Entertainment will contribute about 300 movies to Comcast’s test of a new program that allows cable subscribers to watch programs from their cable packages online for free, Broadcasting & Cable says.

The initiative has been dubbed “TV Everywhere” by Time Warner, which is contributing TNT and TBS content.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Best Buy, TiVo Join for Promotional Deal; Electronics Chain to Get Screen Time, DVR Service to Have Heavy In-Store Presence

National electronics retailer Best Buy has entered a promotional deal with the video recording service TiVo, the New York Times reports.

As part of the deal, TiVo products will receive heavy promotion in Best Buys 1,100 stores across the U.S., while TiVo will create a specific Best Buy set-top box that will allow the chain to advertise its products in customers’ TV screens.

Additionally, Best Buy will also work with TiVo to bring the DVR service to the store’s own electronics, such as the Insignia line of HDTVs.

The two companies did not disclose financial details about the deal.

--Sergio Ibarra

NATAS to Honor Barbara Walters at News and Documentary Emmys

The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences will honor Barbara Walters with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the news and documentary Emmys, scheduled for Sept. 21, Daily Variety reports.

Walters served at NBC for 15 years before becoming the first female co-anchor at ABC. She has been a chief correspondent for “20/20,” serves as co-host of “The View” and continues to host primetime specials for the network.

The news and documentary Emmys will take place in New York’s Lincoln Center.

--Sergio Ibarra

Marcia! Marcia! Marcia! Keeps Jan Out of Brady Reunion on ‘Oprah’

TV’s Marcia Brady, Maureen McCormick, said TV sister Jan, Eve Plumb, is holding out on a scheduled “The Brady Bunch” reunion on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show in September, the New York Post reports.

According to McCormick, Plumb became upset after McCormick joked that the two had a lesbian love affair while taping the classic “Brady” series. McCormick made the remarks during the promotional push for her autobiography.

Plumb’s agent, however, said his client has not been reached about an “Oprah” reunion.

--Sergio Ibarra

Comedy Central Orders Jon Heder Sitcom From Gary Sanchez Productions; Debmar-Mercury to Serve as Distributor

Comedy Central has ordered a new unnamed sitcom from Gary Sanchez Productions and Debmar-Mercury starring Jon Heder.

In the show, which was picked up for an initial 10-episode run, will feature Heder as former big-city IT specialist who loses his job and moves back in with his small-town family. Will Ferrell, Adam McKay and Chris Henchy will serve as producers for Gary Sanchez Productions.

Debmar-Mercury will serve as distributor in a deal similar modeled after deals struck by the company’s co-presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein for Tyler Perry’s sitcoms.
As part of the deal, Comedy Central will have the option to order an additional 90 episode after the initial run while Debmar-Mercury will keep the syndication rights.

"We immediately jumped at the opportunity to be in business with this elite team of A-list comedy talents, who are among a handful of people in Hollywood capable of pulling off a project of this magnitude," said Marcus in a release.

"As we expand on a proven business model, we could not be more pleased that Comedy Central chose this concept to serve as its first full-fledged, live-action original sitcom,” added Bernstein.

Debmar-Mercury has previously worked to Comedy Central on the broadcast syndication of “South Park.”

"Combining the creative genius of the Gary Sanchez gang with the brilliant business model established by Mort and Ira at Debmar-Mercury should ensure many, many great laughs in the years to come on Comedy Central," said the network’s president Michele Ganeless.

--Sergio Ibarra

British Police Open Preliminary Investigation Into Report That Murdoch’s U.K. Papers Paid Hacking Victims to Stay Quiet

British police said they will begin a preliminary investigation into a report by The Guardian that alleged that Fox-owner Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper group settled legal cases in which his journalists were accused of working with private investigators to hack into cellphones to get stories, The New York Times says.

The Guardian, citing unnamed sources, reported that thousands of public figures including actors, sports stars and cabinet officials had their phones tapped or hacked into. The U.K. paper said Murdoch’s News Group News­papers paid about $1.6 million to settle the legal cases out of court, in exchange for secrecy.

Murdoch denied The Guardian report.

--Elizabeth Jensen

Reality Shocker: N.J. 'Real Housewives' Do Series for Free, Pay Bravo 10% of Post-Show Earnings. UPDATE: Bravo Says it Pays All Housewives on Show

According to a contract given to participants, the “Real Housewives of New Jersey” don’t get paid to appear on the hit Bravo show.

Adding insult to injury, according to a contract signed by one cast member, participants have to pay Bravo 10% of “any and all gross income … unrelated to the Series” that they bring in for up to four years after the last episode airs.

This is a great deal for Bravo. Last month's season finale of the show drew more than 4.6 million viewers. It aired on a Tuesday night, and the episode was the most-watched show on television that night  in the 18-49 adult demographic.

Our source for the contract info is Popsquire, the website that bills itself as the place "where pop culture and the law collide." The copy of the contract the site acquired--which is on display on the site--was from February, 2008.

UPDATE: (July 10th) Bravo has issued the following statement with regard to this Popsquire story:

"Rest assured, all our housewives are financially compensated...we only wish they would participate for free."

--Chuck Ross

HBO's 'Big Love' Series in Trouble With the University of Utah

The University of Utah has sent a cease-and-desist letter to HBO, saying that the HBO series about a polygamist family in the Salt Lake City suburbs can’t use the school’s name or logo without permission, the Associated Press says.