The recession is hitting the national television advertising market as marketers cancel big chunks of the upfront buys they made last spring, TelevisionWeek reports. The cuts range between 10% and 15% so far, and media executives said they feared it…
Marking the first time a distilled-spirits commercial has appeared on a CBS-owned TV station, 14 of the network’s top affiliates ran a 30-second branding spot for Absolut vodka during the broadcast of the 51st Annual Grammy Awards Sunday, Mediaweek reports….
Comedies have fallen out of favor with the networks, with the CW not even bothering to develop shows in the genre anymore, Daily Variety reports. There are some new comedies appearing midseason on ABC, NBC and Fox, although most of…
Joss Whedon tells TelevisionWeek he’s done with vampires as he gets set to launch his new Fox Series “Dollhouse.” Whedon tells TVWeek some elements of the show he pitched were put on hold. “But if the show were truly different…
Jennifer Lopez will produce a version of the Argentinian telenovela “Rebelde Way” (“The Rebels”) for Fox, under her Nuyorican Prods. banner, Daily Variety reports. The program tracks the members of a teen pop band who attend a top-notch private high…
Dish Network founder Charles Ergen made a bid to take over Sirius XM Radio last year that was rebuffed, the Wall Street Journal reports. Ergen recently reiterated his interest in taking control of Sirius, the paper says. —Jon Lafayette
The Grammys had to quickly reshuffle its performers after Chris Brown and Rihanna canceled at the last minute, Daily Variety reports. While there was no reason given for Rihanna’s absence; Brown had turned himself into police at 7 p.m. on…
The board of the Screen Actors Guild voted Sunday to remove former executive director Doug Allen and replace the union’s negotiating committee, the Los Angeles Times reports. Previous votes on the same issues—with the same results—were challenged in a lawsuit…
CBS greenlit four pilots, the dramas “Three Rivers” and “The Good Wife” and the comedies “Accidentally on Purpose” and “Waiting to Die,” the Hollywood Reporter says. “Three Rivers,” from CBS Paramount, focuses on organ transplants and is part of CBS’…