Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin was wrong when he claimed that his agency’s policy barring “fleeting expletives” on TV didn’t represent a significant departure from past policies. The court decision he was responding to involves live TV airings by…
Popular President Sees Gains to Be Made
When ABC president of entertainment Steve McPherson made the decision to move “Grey’s Anatomy” from Sunday to Thursday night, the network’s marketing team knew it faced a daunting task. “We wanted to get as many people as possible who watched…
CNN promotions producer John Dance created his own campaign for the “CNN=Politics” campaign. At the start of 2006, as the promotions department at the news network was considering the appropriate on-air campaign for the 2006 midterm elections, he made a…
When Hallmark Channel ran the Academy Award-winning documentary “March of the Penguins” in November, the film pulled in the network’s highest numbers to date with a 4.1 household rating, reaching more than 3 million homes. While the adorable flightless birds…
Promoting a show about people with superhero abilities is tricky. “We didn’t want to make this a niche show,” said Vince Manze, then president and creative director of the NBC Agency (now president, NBC program planning, scheduling and strategy). The…
Because it programs to high school and college students, MTV has aired public service announcements on sexual health for a number of years. The network tweaked its campaign last year, adding spots designed to empower young women. “We usually do…
Sabers Rattle in D.C. in Wake of FCC Defeat
Clinton, Waters Top Show Lineup