Darnell Departing

Reality TV exec Mike Darnell is leaving Fox. Joe Flint and Yvonne Villarreal summarize his legacy, as does Brian Stelter. Brian Lowry says critics will miss him.

Ailes' Response

Erik Wemple has a memo Roger Ailes gave to Fox News staffers in regard to the Justice Department's investigation of reporter James Rosen.

Alcohol Ad Review

Ofcom will conduct a review into alcohol advertising, suspecting that the ads are readily shown in programming popular with under-18s.

BBC Digital

The BBC has dropped a digital production system project and considers it an expensive failure. The BBC is still at work on connected TV apps, though.

Attack Footage Implications

David Banks says the wide circulation of footage following the Woolwich, London, hacking attack raises questions about the potential trial impact.

Simmons Profile

Bryan Curtis checks out what Richard Simmons is up to these days.

IMDb & Social TV

Mike Shields talks to IMDb's founder about the company's second screen app and its attempts to break into the social TV arena that Twitter dominates.

Aereo Use

Aereo's CEO says the service isn't just for cord cutters.

Female Sports Reporters' Challenge

Isobel Markham looks at the challenge that female sports reporters have with being taken seriously and dealing with sexist reactions.

May Sweeps

The networks were bunched together in May sweeps ratings, and all but NBC were down notably from last year.

Westeros Politics

James Poniewozik previews his article behind a paywall, which focuses on how Game of Thrones is the best show on TV about politics.

Aereokiller Suit

The networks have filed suit against Aereokiller in Washington, DC.

Cord Cutting Hype

Swanni says the media is hyping cord cutting more than is warranted.

Real Firing

A Fox reality show starting tomorrow will have co-workers decide who should be fired at small businesses. The show is a redesigned version of an earlier one that was abandoned. James Poniewozik has a review, and he says it's as bad as you'd think. Willa Paskin finds the show mean and manipulative.

Good TVeets

My review of your review of the A.V. Club's review of a very polarizing ep of Mad Men (what Twitter seems like to me).
— Bill Lawrence (@VDOOZER) May 23, 2013

So I finished the original run of Arrested Development this afternoon and now I can understand 80% of the internet better.
— Chelsea Hawk (@letloverule42) May 24, 2013

All of Fox's new shows just started following me. That's the kind of social media savvy that might have saved "Lone Star."
— Brian Lowry (@blowryontv) May 24, 2013

China Beach Praise

Richard Burst-Lazarus offers an appreciation of China Beach, newly released on DVD.

TV Everywhere Problems

Andrea Morabito highlights panelist comments on the hurdles TV Everywhere still faces.

Hulu Bids

Initial bids are in for Hulu reportedly from DirecTV, Time Warner Cable, Chernin Group, and Guggenheim Digital Media.

Arrested Development Coverage

I'm sure there's plenty more out there I'm missing, but here are some Arrested Development posts I've come across just this afternoon: the NYT has cast interviews, and Brian Stelter profiles the show's return. Denise Martin describes a set visit. Zachary Wilcha says the show will fill a comedy void. And someone has created an infographic featuring AD character arrests. Albert Ching praises AD's joke-centric nature. THR talks to Will Arnett about the episodes. Asawin Suebsaeng analyzes the original's political satire.

Value of Local News Coverage

Laura Bennett says local news has proven its worth during the Oklahoma tornado disaster. (I think she says that. I can't get the article to format readably for me, so I'm going on the headline.)

Best HBO Pilots

Tara Aquino offers a list of the 50 best HBO pilots.

Intervention Ending

A&E is bringing Intervention to a close.

Sepinwall AMA

Critic Alan Sepinwall is doing a Reddit AMA.

Cord Cutting Info

Andrew Dodson says it's unfortunate people aren't better informed about the feasibility of cord cutting.

Netflix Ratings

Peter Kafka gets clarification on a Ted Sarandos comment on House of Cards' viewership numbers.

Soderbergh to Cinemax

Steven Soderberg will direct a 10-episode Cinemax series starring Clive Owen.

Millennial Threat

J.J. Zhang says millennials' viewing practices represent a threat to the future of pay TV.

Modern Family as NBCU Centerpiece

John Consoli says NBCU's ad sales president is trying to get the jump on upfronts deals in pushing Modern Family on USA.

LIN v. TWC

LIN TV is in a retrans battle with Time Warner Cable, and channels could go dark.

2012-13 Assessments

Kte Aurthur outlines winners and losers of the 2012-13 season, and Josef Adalian has a chart showing how much ratings ground most returning shows lost this year.

Twitter & TV Ads

Twitter has announced a new TV ad targeting service, described in a YouTube vid. Peter Kafka has analysis, as does Tanzina Vega.

Wednesday Ratings

Marc Berman's summary:
-Total Viewers: CBS: 8.98 million, ABC: 6.92, NBC: 6.34, Fox: 5.24, CW: 1.12 -
Adults 18-49: ABC and CBS: 2.2 rating/7 share each, Fox: 2.1/ 7, NBC: 1.6/ 5, CW: 0.3/ 1
 —–
 -Winners: “Modern Family” (ABC), “Criminal Minds” (CBS)
 -Losers (excluding repeats): Nothing…27 percent of last night’s line-up was not original.

Network numbers from TV By the Numbers. Final ratings. Cable ratings.

Analysis from Spotted.

McCain on Cable

John McCain explains why he wants to change cable TV practices.

Changing Viewing Habits

The eMarketer newsletter charts out changing TV viewing habits.

Cable Money

Derek Thompson charts out cable company revenue and finds that while cable TV revenue may be declining, communications transport revenue overall is still going strong.

Nashville Location

Adam Gold delves into the production location drama on Nashville, which may not shoot in its title city next season.

Actor on Coming Out

One Life to Live actor Tuc Watkins talks about coming out and issues related to being an out gay actor compared to expectations for straights.

Fan Fiction Platform

Amazon has created a publishing platform for fan fiction. Alyssa Rosenberg considers what this means for authors. Liviapenn says this is bullshit.

Aereo Law

Eriq Gardner explains Aereo's legal strategy.

Anti-Fandom Growth

Aja Romano notes that anti-fandom sites on Tumblr are growing.

AD & Episode Recaps

Joel Keller says Netflix's Arrested Development release will signal the beginning of the end of the weekly episodic recap. In a related topic, Matthew Gilbert sees the AD release strategy as bullying us into binge viewing, and Robert David Sullivan thinks binge-viewing hurts criticism.

#1 Claims

CBS and NBC are arguing over whether NCIS or Sunday Night Football is really the highest-rated program of 2012-13.

Reality TV Value

James Poniewozik says reality has become one of the last bastions for family-friendly viewing, and Allison Yarrow argues that Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, which has just premiered in the UK, is a positive cultural export for America.

ESPN Layoffs

ESPN is reportedly laying off hundreds of people. Connor Simpson says the root cause is ESPN shelling out so much money for sports rights. Another theory says the cost of building a new SportsCenter set is responsible. Deadspin notes ESPN is hiring, but looking for young, and thus lower-compensated, people.

Good TVeets

65% of car crashes are caused by season finales.
— Liana Maeby (@lianamaeby) May 23, 2013

Finally watching last week's #MadMen, which confirms my suspicion that the drug revolution of the late 1960s must have been *insufferable*.
— Alyssa Rosenberg (@AlyssaRosenberg) May 23, 2013

Joss Whedon!He puts the "fun" in "Well that wasn't much fun, was it?"
— Joss Whedon (@josswhedon) May 23, 2013

Warning: Nashville spoilers at the end.

Girls Porn

Girls has inspired a porn parody. Lena Dunham isn't happy about it.

BBCA Summer

BBC America has announced scheduling of summer shows.

Regulating Bills

Gautham Nagesh weighs the possibility that Congress could do something to bring cable bills down.

Upfronts Fact Checking

Franklin Avenue fact-checks some upfronts claims.

Reality Falling

Dustin Rowles notes that network reality TV shows are dropping in the ratings.

CBS Pickup

CBS has made a late pickup of another sitcom, Bad Teacher.

Hulu Ad Sales Control

Brian Steinberg reports that ABC, NBC, and Fox want more control over Hulu's ad sales tied to current episodes: "One person familiar with the situation said the three networks were increasingly interested in having more control over Hulu ads at a time when viewers are sampling video in new ways and more advertisers are asking for broader packages that include traditional TV as well as digital and mobile streaming."

Subtitled Drama

Channel 4 picking up a French drama is the latest example of British TV airing subtitled fare in prime time.

Dodge Defiance Partnership

Karl Greenberg outlines components of Dodge's sponsorship deal with Syfy's Defiance.

TV Talk About Sex

Carly Milne highlights how certain shows are fueling thoughtful conversations about sex.

CBS Cancellations

John Consoli explains why CBS cancelled two shows doing better in the ratings than some that were renewed by other networks.

Crystal Pilot

Billy Crystal will star in a sitcom pilot for FX, written by Larry Charles.

Netflix & AD News

Andrew Wallenstein has info on what Netflix is spending on original productions, and Lacey Rose has Arrested Development salary info. Todd Spangler notes that Arrested Development social media buzz is soaring compared to House of Cards. And James Poniewozik has an interview with AD creator Mitch Hurwitz. Hurwitz talks about AD viewing order. Lacey Rose interviews Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos about House of Cards and Netflix's next stage. Netflix has as many as 16 new shows in the works for next year, including stand-up comedy specials. Alyssa Rosenberg responds to Sarandos' comments about binge viewing.

Channel Changes

Pay TV operators are frustrated with low-rated channels rebranding themselves, leaving questions about carriage fee value.

Tuesday Ratings

Marc Berman's summary:
-Total Viewers: ABC: 11.55 million, NBC: 7.79, CBS: 7.54, Fox: 4.59, CW: 674,000
 -Adults 18-49: NBC: 2.3 rating/7 share, ABC: 2.1/ 6, Fox: 1.9/ 6, CBS: 1.3/ 4, CW: 0.3/ 1
 —–
 -Winners: NBC News Special (NBC), Dancing With the Stars (ABC), The Voice (NBC)
 -Losers: The Bachelor’s Funniest Moments (ABC)

Network numbers from TV By the Numbers. Final ratings. Cable ratings.

Analysis from Spotted and Hitfix.

New Xbox

The next Xbox, called Xbox One, seems as much about TV as gaming. Analysis from Tim Carmody, Taylor Hatmaker, Nick Wingfield, Niley Patel, Chris Kohler. IGN has video of the official unveiling. It was also announced that Steven Spielberg will produce a Halo series. Peter Kafka says this likely won't get cable out of your life. Will Richmond doesn't see this bringing major disruption either. Niley Patel says Microsoft has learned nothing from Google TV's mistakes.

BBC, Sky & Retrans

The BBC is unhappy with its retrans arrangement with BSkyB, because broadcasters are paying to be carried on Sky, and the BBC thinks the money should be flowing the other way.

Disney Apology

Disney Channel has apologized and pulled an episode of a show that made fun of a child with gluten intolerance.

Colbert & Mazda

Mazda sponsored The Colbert Report without knowing how its name would be integrated into the show; it ended up as sponsor for the "Scandal Booth" bit.

Summer Shows

Toni Fitzgerld lists ten summer shows she thinks you should be excited to see. Mike Hale highlights 32 shows.

Exiting Episodic Reviews

Ryan McGee explains why he won't be writing weekly episodic reviews anymore.

TV's Future

Henry Jenkins has posted a panel discussion about the future of TV, with particular focus on the future prospects of "bundling."

Good TVeets

How is .gif pronounced? Trick question. You don't pronounce things on the Internet. Only old people still talk out loud.
— Matthew Callan (@scratchbomb) May 21, 2013

I don't care how you pronounce it. As long as you can give me Kenny Cosgrove tap-dancing and Pete Campbell falling down stairs, we're money.
— Brian Moritz (@bpmoritz) May 22, 2013

The Xbox One’s always-on Kinect has scanned your living room and, like you, cannot figure out why you have so much but are so unhappy.
— Anthony Carboni (@acarboni) May 22, 2013

Cracks in the Facade

Brian Lowry says the upfronts revealed network problems.

Nashville Production Changes

Nashville will undergo production changes for its second season, and the wife of the fired production supervisor is speaking out.

What Notes Really Mean

THR decodes network notes.

Internet Archive Expansion

The Internet Archive database has received funding to expand with more TV new clips.

Talking TV

NPR has a piece on how word-of-mouth still has an impact on bringing new viewers to a show. Alyssa Rosenberg also chimes in.

Social Media Use

A new study from Viacom explores TV-related social media use.

GoT Nudity

Alyssa Rosenberg reacts to news that an unnamed Game of Thrones actress has refused to do any more nude scenes.

Save Me's Failure

June Thomas explores why Save Me, which has a cable comedy sensibility, has been relegated to summer burn-off status.

CBS Wins

CBS has won the 2012-13 season in total viewers, 18-49, and 25-54. Fox is proud of its number 2 finish in 18-49, as well as number one in 18-34. Even NBC is finding things to brag about. And ABC had a decent May. But for all the bragging, the networks struggled overall.

Monday Ratings

Marc Berman's summary:
-Total Viewers: ABC: 12.10 million, NBC: 9.01, CBS: 7.47, Fox: 1.58, CW: 762,000
 -Adults 18-49: NBC: 2.9 rating/8 share, ABC: 2.1/ 6, CBS: 1.9/ 5, Fox: 0.6/ 2, CW: 0.2/ 1
 —–
 -Winners: “Dancing With the Stars” (ABC), “The Voice” (NBC), “Hawaii Five-O” (CBS)
 -Losers: “The Goodwin Games” (Fox), “Oh Sit!” (CW)

Network numbers from TV By the Numbers. Final ratings. Cable ratings.

Analysis from Spotted and Hitfix.

CSN Houston, We Have a Problem

Dave Warner says the problems CSN Houston is having with carriage fees might be a sign of big problems to come for other regional sports channels.

DOJ & Fox News

Many are questioning the ethics behind the Department of Justice's targeting of a Fox News reporter, while Jack Shafer has some questions for the reporter, James Rosen.

VOD Rising

Brian Stelter and Amy Chozik look at how video-on-demand is growing in popularity, as pay TV operators push it to help overcome DVR and online competition.

Disabled Protest

A group of disabled actors are frustrated with television's continued practice of casting able-bodied actors as disabled characters, such as in fall's Ironside reboot.

Cable Company Hate

Todd Spangler highlights cable's poor showing in a customer satisfaction survey; broadband service does even worse, while satellite and fiber-optic services do better.

Good TVeets

Summer TV has begun, which means there's a new crop of beautiful people making world-weary jokes as they stand around fresh corpses.
— Jeffrey Sconce (@JeffreySconce) May 21, 2013

#Rectify gets all quiet & contemplative, then all hell breaks loose. Then it's quiet all over again. Like a really good song.
— B.A. Parker (@briepark) May 21, 2013

"Hodor." - Hodor sext
— Sean Thomason (@TheThomason) May 21, 2013