Alan Sepinwall draws our attention to a David Mills blog entry about Treme, which has some beautiful thoughts about the threading of themes through TV series and a now-poignant image of his empty chair.
"Theme operates at a submerged level in storytelling. You don’t need to be aware of David Milch’s thematic intent to be entertained or moved by an episode of NYPD Blue. But it’s in there. And the experience of the story, I believe, is richer for that."
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
State of Hulu
Brian Stelter and Brad Stone take a close look at Hulu, where it stands now and where it's possibly headed.
CNN Fixes
Politico's Michael Calderon drums up some suggestions for fixing the ratings-challenged CNN.
Jay Rosen expands on the ideas he stated in the article.
Jay Rosen expands on the ideas he stated in the article.
Political Viewing
A new study says Democrats watch more prime-time network TV, Republicans watch more sports. Charts are involved. (Hmm...do Democrats or Republicans like charts more?)
Prime-Time Ratings: Tuesday
Tuesday night's fast nationals: The countdown clock definitely wasn't worth it, though V's and Parenthood's numbers might be enough to get them off the bubble.
David Mills, 1961-2010
In stunning news, writer David Mills, who wrote for Homicide, NYPD Blue, ER, The Wire, and the upcoming Treme and blogged under the moniker Undercover Black Man, died yesterday of a brain aneurysm. Alan Sepinwall shares memories of his friend. Also, there's an unsigned obit allegedly written by David Simon and fellow Treme writers. Jaime Weinman notes that the public outpouring of grief over Mills' death indicates the more public status of the TV writer today.
Peabody Awards
The Peabody Award winners for this year were announced today; among the winners: Glee, Modern Family, Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, and In Treatment. The official press release has some good commentary from Peabody head Horace Newcomb: "To those who say all media content is the same, or presented from a single perspective, we offer this great range of material as a response. Our selections demonstrate that great work available in 2009 varied widely and appealed to viewers and listeners with very different tastes interests, and concerns."
Myles McNutt takes issue the impreciseness of the Peabody's descriptions of their selections of shows like Glee and Modern Family and, by extension, the concept of honoring entire series in this way.
Myles McNutt takes issue the impreciseness of the Peabody's descriptions of their selections of shows like Glee and Modern Family and, by extension, the concept of honoring entire series in this way.
Bubble Predictions
Media Life investigates the season renewal bubbles via survey results; NBC has the most shows thought to be on the bubble.
L&O Record on the Line
NBC's decision whether or not to renew Law and Order for a Gunsmoke-record-breaking 21st season might hinge on if TNT is interested in extending its syndication deal for the show. Also, it's ratings for NBC have steeply declined.
Nielsen Changes
Nielsen will start factoring DVR viewing into local ratings now, and the company will also begin factoring duplicate viewing (for instance, viewing a program both "live" and on demand) into its average audience ratings. Advertisers aren't thrilled about either of these moves.
Spectrum Fight
Broadcasters are gearing up to fight the FCC when it tries to take spectrum space away from them to give to wireless companies.
YouTube Reality
Marlee Matlin couldn't get a TV network to sign on for her reality TV series about the lives of deaf people, so she's taken it to YouTube instead. Matlin says, "YouTube is akin to having my own [TV] network."
Free TV
Free TV used to mean broadcasting; now it can mean online TV. Richard Siklos considers the implications of the latter.
ABC's Countdown to Fail
Had to link to at least one article about ABC's unbelievable stupidity in running a countdown clock for V throughout the entirety of Lost, even at one point obscuring a piece of narrative information with the graphic. OK, make that two articles, as Alan Sepinwall also generates some appropriate rage. And here's yet more outrage.
RT @StephenAtHome: last night's V countdown may have been ruined by Lost, but at least i've got my countdown fan fiction
RT @StephenAtHome: last night's V countdown may have been ruined by Lost, but at least i've got my countdown fan fiction
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Late Night Online
The AP's David Bauder writes of late night TV sketches and shows appearing online, "Testing is ongoing, but so far the conclusion is that online release of video clips or the full programs doesn't cut into viewership for the programs themselves." Yes, I think they might want to keep testing that. But ABC's head of marketing claims, "What we see is that the online experience is helping us build the audience, rather than cannibalizing it."
More Anti-Spoiler
There's been grumbling about a Hollywood News article that, without warning, spoiled a key event in the 100th episode of Bones. Sarah at Motivators TV, who has actually seen the 100th episode, responds with an anti-spoiler plea.
State-Run TV Deficient
The Moscow bombings were only cursorily covered by state-run TV in Russia, at least until things were cleaned up and government officials wanted on camera.
French Reality
Legendary reality TV production company Bunim-Murray has been acquired by a French company.
The Hub
Yet another new channel from Discovery will launch in October. This one, The Hub, is a partnership with the toy company Hasbro and is aimed at 2-12 year-olds.
Law & Order Analysis
There's a dearth of scholarly analysis of "ordinary TV" (using that term to distinguish it from "quality TV"), so Noel Kirkpatrick helps us out with an astute narrative analysis of Law and Order using last night's episode (with guest star Tony Hale) as the central example. Bonus: clips of comedians like Chevy Chase and Stephen Colbert playing serious on the show in past episodes.
iPad as Video Viewer
iPad marketing is focusing heavily on the device as a video viewer, despite the lack of Flash capability.
NCAA Viewing
Media Life points out that CBS hasn't gotten the ratings bump from the NCAA tourney that other big TV events have gotten lately, but there are actually more people watching the tournament this year over last year; all those extra people are watching online, though.
Prime-Time Ratings: Monday
Monday night's fast nationals:It was ABC's turn to shine. Also, a little good news for Chuck fans, as it's numbers went up after two weeks of declines. Maybe that fan campaign is actually having an impact.
In other ratings news from TV By the Numbers, USA leads cable, MSNBC beats CNN, Nightline beats Letterman and Leno.
In other ratings news from TV By the Numbers, USA leads cable, MSNBC beats CNN, Nightline beats Letterman and Leno.
Martha Channel
Martha Stewart may be getting her own cable channel soon, but Joe Flint wonders why Hallmark doesn't just give over their whole channel to her.
Internet Over TV
An Arbitron and Edison Research survey finds that more people, if forced to choose, would give up TV rather than the internet. I wonder how the responses might change if they were told they wouldn't be allowed to watch TV on that internet.
Retrans Podcast
Print coverage of retrans just not doing it for you? Then you're in luck: here's a podcast on retrans!
Selling 3D
The New York Times on the marketing strategies for getting you interested in a 3D TV set.
Crime TV
Thomas Umstead looks at Investigation Discovery, a new cable channel focusing on crime-related programming.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Post-Oprah
Stations are looking with excitement toward Oprah's exit, as her ratings and revenues have declined in recent years; B&C says, "The real opportunity is proving to be stations’ ability to cut costs rather than find the next big thing."
Cable in Congloms
Hollywood Reporter analyzes the state of the cable units within the major media conglomerates.
News Ethics
The New Yorker story of an ABC News documentary in the 1990s that inadvertently covered the shooting of a man in Zambia raises ethical questions about journalistic responsibility.
Gateways, Not Set-Tops
The FCC broadband plans calls for gateway devices for TV, not set-top boxes. Leslie Ellis explains what that means.
Rebranding Guide
Running a cable channel that has too many old people watching it? Grego and Atkinson tell you how you can fix that by rebranding your network.
WrestleMania Reaction
Noel Kirkpatrick shares his thoughts from a newbie perspective on the big WrestleMania event that aired last night.
Ad Oops
Turner Classic Movies, a commercial-free cable channel, accidentally ran a Toyota ad between movies Sunday night.
Scheduling Problems
Tim Goodman wonders if the long hiatuses for FlashForward and V have hindered those shows' chances of survival.
Viewing Stats
Media Life presents some TV viewing and advertising stats from Nielsen in anticipation of the upcoming upfronts.
Women on TV
Eric Deggans asks: "Has there ever been a time when we've had more interesting women on cable television?"
Miami Medical Profile
The New York Times profile of Jerry Bruckheimer's latest offering to network TV, Miami Medical, has a few good bits on procedural storytelling and production.
New In Media Res Issue
In Media Res this week:
- Monday – Sue Sallinger (Rollins College) presents: “Code Red: When (plat)Form and Content Collide”
- Tuesday – Dan Leopard (Saint Mary’s College of California) presents: “The Documentary Method of Interpretation”
- Wednesday – Enrica Picarelli (Università degli Studi di Napoli "L'Orientale") presents: ““I’m hoping that it comes true”: FlashForward's marketing campaign”
- Thursday – Noel Kirkpatrick (Georgia State University) presents: " Anime's (Post)Human Instrumentality Project”
- Friday – Casey Brienza (University of Cabridge) presents: “Categorizing Manga by Standardizing the Paratext”
DirecTV 3D
DirecTV will carry ESPN's new 3D channel, plus a pay-per-view and an on-demand channel. Glasses not included.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Hulu Debate
Michael Learmonth summarizes the latest in the discussion over whether Hulu should erect a paywall or not.
Prime-Time Ratings: Saturday
Saturday night's overnights: a typically lackluster evening led by basketball at the start.
Italy & New Media
Time magazine presents a look at how the internet has affected Italian television and the control of traditional media wielded by Silvio Berlusconi.
Daily Show Behind-the-Scenes
Ryan Koo has posted his notes from a discussion with Daily Show head writer Steve Bodow, and there's a lot of great info here about how the show is written and produced.
Family TV
Mary McNamara considers the return of family television: "Between the recent renaissance of the family comedy and the increasing popularity of kinder, gentler crime-solving shows, the long-lost family hour has quietly reconstructed itself. After years of being dominated by shows about graphic police work, medical procedurals and the sexual antics of friends and colleagues, the television landscape is once again dotted by homesteads, ringing with the sound of multigenerational and mostly non-profane voices."
Co-Viewing Apps
MTV is trying to take advantage of our apparently growing urge to use social media while watching TV with a special iPad app.
House and Grey's Problems
A recent Johns Hopkins study has shown that House and Grey's Anatomy don't depict ideal health care industry procedures. For instance, the study found 58 instances of sexual misconduct in Grey's Anatomy...in the second season alone. (Think the other med students were jealous of the one who got to co-author this study?)
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Smallville Suit
A group of Smallville producers have sued Warner Bros. for breach of fiduciary duty, arguing that the studio failed to maximize licensing revenue when it sold the show into syndication to its corporate partners.
If retrans bores you, this will probably put you in a coma, but it's just as relevant as that as far as determining where programming revenue should fairly go, and it points to a larger issue, the 1990s revocation of the financial interest and syndication rules, which dramatically changed TV programming.
If retrans bores you, this will probably put you in a coma, but it's just as relevant as that as far as determining where programming revenue should fairly go, and it points to a larger issue, the 1990s revocation of the financial interest and syndication rules, which dramatically changed TV programming.
New Flow Issue
- "How Chatroulette Taught Me Everything I Need to Know About the Internet" by Tama Lever: A consideration of the social networking video chat site Chatroulette as a microcosm of today's Internet.
- "Gourmet Drama: A Tasty Case of Narrating the Nation" by Jiwon Ahn: Why has the genre of gourmet drama not translated to American television that nonetheless relishes reality food-based drama?
- "The Spelling Bee, Model Minorities, and American Citizenship" by Shilpa Dave: A consideration of media narratives of spelling bee winners.
- "Logorama's Chaotic Critique of Corporate Rule" by Esteban del Rio: Logorama: risky corporate trademark satire or straight product placement marketing via the doctrine of "fair use"?
- "Buffy Failed: True Blood and the Accommodation of Vampires" by Jon Stratton: An examination of the notion of race in HBO's True Blood.
Prime-Time Ratings: Friday
Friday night's fast nationals: basketball won again, but the surprise of the night was that Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution did as well as it did.
TV Character Sweet 16
RedEye's TV Character bracket tourney heads on to the second round. Sue Sylvester takes on Stewie!
Treme Possiblities
Many are extremely hyped for David Simon's new TV project Treme (which premieres on HBO Sunday, April 11) but Aymar Jean Christian makes us stop and think about the ways in which Treme could possibly go awry.
UK Ratings
TV By the Numbers has just started covering TV ratings in the UK, which I think are intriguing to see, so I'll link to the first entry: you'll see that their soap operas dominate the ratings, Glee's a hit, The Good Wife isn't, and FlashForward's going over no better there than it is here.
By the way, if you want more on this, Britain's ratings measurement service is called BARB (Broadcasters' Audience Research Board) and their website is chock full of good info.
By the way, if you want more on this, Britain's ratings measurement service is called BARB (Broadcasters' Audience Research Board) and their website is chock full of good info.
Anti-Spoiler
This is another article I missed while at SCMS, but it's a good read: TV studio employee and pop culture writer Annie Stamell gives you some reasons not to spread or read spoilers.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Big Love Big Mess
Chloë Sevigny recently gave an interview in which she said that the recent season of Big Love was awful. A crapstorm resulted, and now she has apologized, blamed exhaustion, as well as the interviewer, and claimed the quote was taken out of context. That has irritated TV critics, though they mostly seem bothered that she felt she had to apologize for merely offering an honest opinion. The original interviewer Sean O'Neal has responded to the absurdity of the context claim, while Daniel Fienberg has penned a stirring essay lamenting that actors and celebrities aren't allowed to be honest and journalists get ripped for trying to report honest quotes. Myles McNutt also comments.
24 Done
It's now official: this is 24's final season on TV. Lots of coverage already (and I'll add more here as I come across it): an official Fox statement, articles from the LA Times, Variety, New York Times, New York Times again, and B&C, and an interview with showrunner Howard Gordon.
The Masked Scheduler has an awesome essay about the development process of 24, the Teri Bauer season one finale, and the decision to go no-rerun, each of which involved crucial decisions that changed the course of the show and even TV history.
The Masked Scheduler has an awesome essay about the development process of 24, the Teri Bauer season one finale, and the decision to go no-rerun, each of which involved crucial decisions that changed the course of the show and even TV history.
David Simon Profile
This is an article from ten days ago, but I missed it due to being out of town, and it's too good to not post now: a lengthy, in-depth profile of David Simon.
Truth in Branding
Speaking of programming and demographics, James Hibberd has a humorous graphic mocking History, Discovery, and TLC for their line-ups and making a larger thoughtful point about truth in network branding and audience targeting.
Oxygen Goes After Lifetime
Oxygen is marketing its channel to advertisers by characterizing Lifetime viewers as older, poorer, dumber, and with a boring mom's fashion sense.
International Education
US showrunners and writers will be lending their expertise to international channels under a new joint venture.
3D Cost
Even if 3D TV is aesthetically viable, Ryan Lawler is skeptical about its financially viability.
Prime-Time Ratings: Thursday
Thursday night's fast nationals: Not too much to get excited about; CBS took the night with basketball, but ratings were soft all-around. And looks like FlashForward can start packing its bags.
Retrans Solutions
Sheila Seles concludes her retrans education series with suggestions for how both cable and broadcasting can forge a more secure future for themselves rather than staying stuck in neutral and fighting over dwindling traditional revenue.
More Friday Fun: Siskel & Ebert
Take a break from lamenting the demise of At the Movies by watching ten of Siskel and Ebert's snarkiest movie takedowns. And here are seven classic At the Movies moments.
Nick Producer Profile
The New York Times profiles Dan Schneider, producer of Nickelodeon shows like Drake & Josh and iCarly.
CW Ad Double
The CW is doubling the amount of ads that accompany its online programming in an attempt to better monetizing internet viewing. (The Wall Street Journal has a piece on this, but it's subscription only.) Joe Flint has more.
Spike Site
Spike TV is trying to better exploit the web in connection with its Ultimate Fighting Championship programming.
CBS & iPad
Some blogger detective work has uncovered evidence that CBS.com is testing out video files that will play on the iPad.
Friday Fun: Actor Ads
TV.com highlights five commercials featuring great TV series supporting actors before you knew they were great TV series supporting actors, including Francois Chau from Lost and Joshua Gomez from Chuck.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Character Tournement
Can't get enough of filling out tourney brackets? RedEye invites you to participate in their TV character tourney. Sue Sylvester versus Chuck Bass: How could that be a first-round match-up?! That's darn near a final-worthy pairing there.
Henry Jenkins Interview
The LA Times features an interview with transmedia (and other things) scholar Henry Jenkins.
The Extended and the Ankled
Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly's contract has been extended, while Private Practice showrunners Robert Rovner and Jon Cowan have ankled their posts. (Pardon the Variety speak there, but someone has to keep their great slang alive when they die, which will probably be pretty soon.)
South Park's Edge
Joshua Alston wonders if South Park has lost its edge; Jaime Weinman offers his thoughts on the matter.
Public TV Helpers
The FCC Chairman says public TV stations won't have to give up spectrum space for broadband reallocation, while a Frontline producer says PBS needs funding reinvention and deeper partnerships.
Canadian Retrans Links
Jaime Weinman has links to more info on Canada's adoption of retransmission fees.
Pilot Development Roster
The LA Times has a good rundown of the pilots currently in development and the latest casting news.
Comedy Pilot Advice
Emmy winning writer Ken Levine has some suggestions for how to write a good comedy pilot.
Comcast/NBCU Diversity Problem
Megan Tady highlights a key problem with both Comcast and NBCU: a lack of diversity on the air and in executive suites.
Discovery Apps
Discovery is figuring out ways to exploit mobile applications for its shows, the latest being a Mythbusters app. Can't wait to see what they come up with for Sarah Palin's TLC show. I'll let you generate your own jokes for that.
Prime-Time Ratings: Wednesday
Wednesday night's fast nationals: Despite what sounds like a horrible season (I'm not watching, just following the TVittering of it for now), Idol outdid last week's result show. A March Madness-displaced Survivor helped CBS take second for the night.
Cable v. Broadcast
Turner Networks has released ratings numbers showing cable's viewing share exceeding broadcast's, but the latter has at least closed the gap slightly over last year.
Network News Praise
An anonymous Mediaite article argues that broadcast network news today is far superior to cable network news, despite proclamations of the former's fade. Excellent in-depth info in this piece supporting the claims made.
Nielsen Competition?
Starcom Media Group Exchange might use a deal with media researcher Rentrak Corp. to position themselves as a competitor to Nielsen, offering viewing data from 15 million set-top boxes versus Nielsen's 12,000 meters.
Palin Reality
Sarah Palin will have a reality/documentary series about Alaskan life on TLC. Wayne Friedman has more.
22 Short Films About Springfield
As part of his ongoing quest to analyze television episodes that "exemplify the spirit of [their] time and the properties that make television a unique medium," Noel Murray features The Simpsons' brilliant "22 Short Films About Springfield" and its artful pop culture references.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Leno-Conan Emmy Watch
Could Leno end up facing off against Conan not only in the same category but for the same show at the Emmys?
State of the Miniseries
Cory Barker writes about the current state of the network miniseries, which is pretty much encapsulated by this sentence: "A broadcast miniseries hasn’t been nominated for the Best Miniseries Emmy since CBS’ Elvis in 2005."
Social Media is the Future
Brian Solis argues that social media is the future of broadcast media. And something about a Golden Triangle. And a chart. (Sorry, just about linked out at this point.)
TV Everywhere
A group of technology executives discussed the future possibilities for TV Everywhere, and among those possibilities is HBO's involvement.
Nickelodeon Ads
Movie ads have surpassed food ads on Nickelodeon, though both still trail toy marketers.
Top Hulu Videos
Chadwick Matlin has the list of top Hulu videos from last week, with Family Guy at the top and Katherine Heigl's Wardrobe Mishap (?) in second place.
Cable Rating Demos
Joe Flint has first quarter cable ratings info: Lifetime and History are getting younger; E! is up in good demos; CNN and Hallmark Channel have some work to do.
Out of Home Viewing Habits
In perhaps their least surprising finding ever, Nielsen determined that 18-34s watch more TV outside of the home than older demographics do. But even predictable findings become compelling when put into chart form, and that and additional demographic and genre breakdowns of outside viewing percentages are available in the full report entitled "Out of Home Television and Other Video Viewing Behaviors of U.S. Adults."
Cable Stimulus
Cable companies are getting in on the stimulus action (and maybe trying to do something good? I'm sure!) through supporting broadband development for low-income housing.
At the Movies Canceled
The legendary At the Movies has been canceled. Josef Adalian blames "simple neglect from local stations across the country, most of whom probably couldn't be bothered to give the show a decent time slot, let alone any promotion." The Chicago Tribune's Phil Rosenthal has more. James Poniewozik considers the reality judging show context, Ken Tucker reminds us that Siskel and Ebert weren't always beloved for their method of TV-based movie criticism, and Dave Itzkoff reflects.
Roger Ebert himself offers his thoughts and announces that he has plans in the works to launch a new movie reviewing show for TV that will also have a strong online presence.
Roger Ebert himself offers his thoughts and announces that he has plans in the works to launch a new movie reviewing show for TV that will also have a strong online presence.
Web-TV Hybrid
B&C's Marisa Guthrie points to WNET's web-TV hybrid Need to Know as a model for the digital future: "Stories will be presented online first, where they will be developed throughout the week via multimedia content from staff and freelance contributors as well as a small pool of member stations; audience input will also be in the mix. The Web content will culminate with a linear television broadcast Fridays at 8:30 p.m., co-anchored by Alison Stewart and Jon Meacham."
Global Syndication & Formats
B&C highlights some of the factors that encourage international syndication versus format licensing of daytime shows.
Cable is Doomed Response
Paul Rodriguez really didn't like Max Fisher's "Cable is Doomed" article from The Atlantic, and he offers his informed response. Matthew Lasar also has a response.
Business Killer
Ben Grossman argues that CBS streaming March Madness for free is madness: "Learn from what happened to print publications and Hulu: Giving the milk away for free is a wonderful way to put great people out of jobs."
UPDATE: B&C offers an overview of streaming sports.
UPDATE: B&C offers an overview of streaming sports.
Studying The Wire
Slate's Drake Bennett looks at why so many college courses on The Wire have launched and outlines how professors are teaching it.
Retrans News
Your latest in retrans news:
- Cablevision's agreement with Disney to carry ESPNU and other Disney-owned channels in HD could be related to the WABC deal, but no one will say for sure.
- Retrans dollars could be leveling off
- Sheila Seles has an excellent series on why we should care about retrans; check out the introduction, a post on battles for the TV audience, and a post on regulation, and the conclusion.
- Citadel and DirecTV are in the latest retrans showdown