TelevisionWeek back issues from March 2008:
With Media Always On Everywhere, What's Next? New 4A's President-CEO Hill Sees Group Confronting Changes in Media Use, Reach.(Special Report: The 4A's Media Conference)(Nancy Hill)(Interview)
Mar 03, 2008 ... TelevisionWeek: We wanted to talk to you a little bit about this conference and the phenomenal growth it has had since it started 15 years ago. Did you come up through the media side of the business? Nancy Hill: No, I did not come up in the media side. However, what's ...
Putting a Price on Station Programs; Post-Newsweek, Bright House Deadline Nears.(News)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Michele Greppi With two weeks to go before a deadline, Post-Newsweek Television stations and Bright House Networks are trying to strike a deal that will keep programming from WKMG-TV in Orlando, Fla., and WDIV-TV in Detroit on the cable operator's menu. ...
Staying a Step Ahead of the Pack; Initiative USA's Tim Spengler Wins Kudos for `Turning Media Idea Into Marketing Result'.(Special Report: Media Buyer of the Year)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Jack Feuer Special to TelevisionWeek Initiative USA President Tim Spengler knows about the industry's past. His father was the longtime head of advertising for Bristol-Myers and every night around the dinner table, the younger Spengler would soak up talk ...
Looking Back to 1st Gathering; O. Burtch Drake Reflects on the Success of the Media Conference He Launched 14 Years Ago.(Special Report: The 4A's Media Conference)(Interview)
Mar 03, 2008 ... TelevisionWeek: Well, Burtch, you'll be able to see everyone down at the 4A's media conference in Orlando once more before you retire. Burtch Drake: It's funny, I wasn't even going to come to this one. As you know, my replacement is essentially in place. But I think I might ...
tapping the inner geek.(Special Report: Media Buyer of the Year)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Initiative will leave no stone unturned looking for ideas. Staffers and their leaders will go anywhere and talk to anyone in their ongoing search for what's new, what will engage, what will connect. They'll even journey deep into geekdom if that's what it takes. One of their ...
Selling a serial killer.(Special Report: Media Buyer of the Year)("Dexter")(Television program review)(Brief article)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Showtime Network's highest priority of 2007 was the launch of original series "Dexter,'' a criminal drama about a Miami forensics expert by day and vengeful serial killer by night (but you'll like him). The launch plan leveraged the cable net's free preview weekend sampling ...
Innovative Campaigns Make Most of Media; Initiative's Activations Seek to Engage Consumers in Relevant Promotions, Ads.(Special Report: Media Buyer of the Year)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Jack Feuer Special to TelevisionWeek With its adventurous leader Tim Spengler steering the ship, Initiative has created some of the more innovative activations of recent years. Here is a quick glance at a few of them. Sharp Strategy #1 ...
Networks Greenlight Eco-Content; Cashing in With Promos, Shows.(News)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Jon Lafayette The amount of green in eco-friendly programming is growing, and even networks whose stock in trade is irreverence are trying to do well by doing good. Comedy Central has signed Honda as a sponsor of its "Address the Mess'' public service ...
Nets Wrestle for Hot Reality Shows; Genre Still Has Prominent Place on Schedules After Strike's End.(News)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Chris Pursell While scripted series may be returning to TV with the resolution of the Writers Guild of America strike, the networks haven't given up on reality shows. The proliferation and ratings success of unscripted shows during the recent strike has ...
TV Central in Mixology of Multimedia; Medium Generates Most Consumer Response, Triggers Online Search.(Media Planner)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Adam Armbruster Special to TelevisionWeek Are you a media multitasker? You are if you need to watch the TV news at the same time you read a newspaper. Or if you can't drive your car without checking e-mails on your BlackBerry. Or if you're ...
Sports Programming Surges; Ratings Rise Across the Board; Networks Seek to Capitalize.(News)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Chris Pursell Networks may have taken their hits during sweeps, but a perfect storm of opportunity has propelled one programming genre to broad ratings gains: sports. Since November, sports programming has, simply put, been on a tear. Almost every league has ...
Blink.
Mar 03, 2008 ... `Light' of Realism Shines on Veteran Soap Opera Last Friday, CBS' "Guiding Light'' began bucking some 56 years of tradition by switching to handheld cameras, using more exterior shots and installing four-wall sets in order to give the show a more cinematic feel. Ellen Wheeler, ...
Marketers, Agencies seek End to tv Integration fees.(Media Planner)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Brian Steinberg Advertising Age The price of a TV commercial routinely runs into the tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars. And if that wasn't enough, the three oldest broadcast TV networks have for decades required another fistful of cash known as an ...
AAAA Media Conference.(Special Report: The 4A's Media Conference)(Conference news)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Who: American Association of Advertising Agencies What: 2008 Media Conference and Tradeshow Where: Rosen ...
2008 Media Conference & Tradeshow Agenda.(Special Report: The 4A's Media Conference)(Calendar)
Mar 03, 2008 ... WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5 Golf Tournament at Shingle Creek Golf Club: 8 a.m. Registration Desk Opens: 8:30 a.m., Sebastian Foyer in Convention Center; Sponsored by Donovan Data Systems Exhibitors May Begin Set-Up in Exhibit Hall: 9 a.m., Sebastian K/L ...
FCC Chairman Must Reorder His Priorities; Editorial.(Press Room)(Editorial)
Mar 03, 2008 ... A little more than a month ago, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin proposed fining ABC and its stations $1.43 million for airing an episode of "NYPD Blue'' in which an actress bared her buns momentarily. Last week, the FCC backed off plans to force TV stations to air ...
media draws focus at 4A's Event; New Technology Making Its Mark.(Special Report: The 4A's Media Conference)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Chuck Ross The media marketplace, circa March 1994: Times Mirror Magazines, publisher of Outdoor Life and Field & Stream, is seeking partners among the country's top five cable operators to start a new outlet called the Outdoor Channel. The media executives ...
Cable Providers Seek Growth Outside TV; Major Operators' Earnings Show TV Is Slowest-Growing Division.(Deals)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Danny King Special to TelevisionWeek If cable operators are looking to boost returns for their investors, they'll have to do it without much help from, well, basic cable. Of the four largest publicly traded cable companies reporting this month ...
Roving Eye.
Mar 03, 2008 ... 1. Congratulating honoree Anne Sweeney of Disney-ABC, second from right, at the Feb. 25 Golden Mike gala at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel were ABC News President David Westin, left, "The View's'' Barbara Walters, gala host Tom Bergeron and ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson. ...
Sweeps Sag, Nets Looking Forward; Oddball Ratings Period Shows Effects of Strike.(News)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Andrew Krukowski This year's February sweeps period might carry a writers strike-related asterisk, but networks are still left wondering how to clean up the mess of an abysmal ratings period. With the exception of Fox and MyNetworkTV, whose ratings rose, the ...
Weekly Prime-Time Ratings - Week of Feb. 18-Feb. 24.(Ratings Wizard)(Brief article)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Sergio Ibarra Monday, Feb. 18-Sunday, Feb. 24, 2008 TV Season Week No. 22 Fox won the week in adults 18 to 49 with a 5.7/15. Fox won in total viewers with 15.0 million. Top Shows For the Week Adults 18 ...
Clicks; How We Feel About Online Video and Ads.(Brief article)
Mar 03, 2008 ... 50: The percentage of online video users who do not watch online video ads in their entirety 41: The percentage of heavy online video users who don't mind watching ads in front of their favorite shows online ...
Digital dealmakers; In focus: Tom Frank.
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Daisy Whitney The player: Tom Frank, CEO of Akimbo The play: Akimbo changed business strategies last week to become an Internet television technology and solutions provider. That's a change from the last five years, during which Akimbo operated as a set-top ...
A Shift in Strategy; Digital Nets Try In-Front Instead of Upfront.(News)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Daisy Whitney After trying their hands at upfront dog-and-pony shows last year, most digital networks-including search engines, Internet TV sites and video-on-demand networks-have scaled back their upfront strategies this year. They're opting instead for one-on-one ...
Viral video pick of the week; TVWeek's pick: Oscar Madness.(Viral Video)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: DAISY WHITNEY The setup: By now we all know about Jimmy Kimmel and Ben Affleck. But what about Jennifer Garner and Gary Busey? Did you know the eccentric actor Mr. Busey sort of lunged at her during her red-carpet interview with E! host Ryan Seacrest before ...
DISS `N' DAT.(The Insider)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Michele Greppi A Little Writin' Vote Despite the pocket-book issues that led to their 3 1/2-month strike, fewer than half of the estimated 10,500 eligible Writers Guild of America members actually voted on the agreement that settled the dispute. ...
FCC Has Chilling Effect on Shows; By Punishing On-Air Indecency, Agency Affects What Airs.(News)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Ira Teinowitz Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin may be winning the fight he has picked with TV networks that air racy programming. Mr. Martin's agency lost the last major indecency court case in federal appeals court and he's awaiting ...
Is There an Afterlife? Demise of "Quarterlife' on NBC Won't Dim Hopes for a Web Crossover Hit.(News)(Television program review)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Daisy Whitney "Quarterlife,'' the first Internet series to leap to broadcast television prime time, cratered-but it won't be the end of Web-to-TV programming experiments. The show flopped in its Feb. 27 network debut, pulling in the worst ratings NBC had ...
Obama's Spending a Boon to Stations; Texas, Ohio Outlets Get Unexpected Windfall From Dems.(News)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Ira Teinowitz The continuing fight for the Democratic presidential nomination is fueling record-setting ad spending as it approaches Tuesday's primary elections and potentially its last stops in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont. As of last week, the 2008 ...
News Briefs.
Mar 03, 2008 ... Viacom Digital Revenues Reach $500 Million Viacom, which announced its earnings Thursday, said it has reached its goal of generating $500 million in digital revenues for the year. When Philippe Dauman replaced Tom Freston as CEO, the company was criticized for moving too slowly ...
The Digital Transition Is Cable's Big Opportunity; guest commentary.(Press Room)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Patrick Baldwin Stop me if you've heard this one: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times ...'' OK, so maybe the cable industry isn't exactly "A Tale of Two Cities,'' but it sure feels that way lately. At a time when viewership numbers have never been ...
QuickTakes.(Press Room)(Brief article)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Andrew Krukowski Have the Oscars lost their luster? "They are still a major broadcast television event for which viewership can be increased in years when films like `Titanic' are the frontrunners. The Academy Awards will always be the Super Bowl of fashion ...
Web Search Engines Lead Way to Video; Shift May Give Smaller Providers an Advantage in Battle Against YouTube.(Media&Tech)
Mar 03, 2008; ... Byline: Daisy Whitney For the first time, people are finding more videos on the Web using search engines than through other means, such as referrals on MySpace. That change in audience behavior will force established media companies and Internet upstarts to adjust how they ...
Video Search From a TV Network Perspective.(Media&Tech)
Mar 03, 2008 ... Byline: Daisy Whitney As consumers increasingly use and search for video online, some television networks are refining how they structure their Web sites so they can optimize video viewing. For instance, Lifetime layers video throughout its Web site rather than just ...
quote of the week.(Blink)(Quotation)
Mar 03, 2008 ... "NBC has proven that content that no one watched online can also be watched by no one on TV." ...
Returning Series Premiere Dates.(News)(Correction notice)(Brief article)(Calendar)
Mar 17, 2008 ... ***** Correction: In the "Returning Series Premiere Dates" chart accompanying "The Point of No Return?" (TelevisionWeek, March 17), The CW's "Supernatural" is returning with new episodes April 24. The network's "Girlfriends" is not returning with new episodes. ***** ...
High Court Should Avoid Indecency Trap; Editorial.(Press Room)(Editorial)
Mar 24, 2008 ... It is irresistible to observe that comedian George Carlin and Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin J. Martin are now odd bedfellows. It was Mr. Carlin's legendary "Filthy Words'' monologue that spurred the Supreme Court to take up the subject of broadcast obscenity 30 years ...
QuickTakes.(media coverage of health care issues)(Brief article)
Mar 24, 2008; ... Byline: Andrew Krukowski Do you think television adequately covers health care issues? "Television covers the clinical aspects of individual health well, but has not yet fully explored proven public health interventions that protect and improve the health of whole ...
TBS Gears Up for MLB Season; Turner Net Prepares to Launch First Full Season of Coverage.(News)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Chris Pursell With his company now boasting four of the top draws in sports, Turner Sports President David Levy is hoping TBS' new showcase for baseball can do for the channel what basketball did for TNT. TBS, which dropped a longstanding run of airing Atlanta ...
Game Genre Stokes Syndie; 'Deal' Sells, Building on Contest Trend.(News)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Chris Pursell With two game shows set to hit the syndicated airwaves in a matter of months, and at least three more bubbling in development for fall 2009, the genre appears to be harkening back to its 1980s glory days, when the category dominated station time slots with ...
`healthline' helps baby boomers take control of care; Providing Reliable Information Is Key Aspect of RLTV Show.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Allison J. Waldman Special to TelevisionWeek In the digital age, many people, including seniors, turn to the Internet for health care advice. Even more, they look to television for medical counsel and to augment doctor visits. That's what Retirement Living ...
doctor on call for nbc news; Snyderman Works Across Media Platforms to Explain, Interpret Health Care Stories.(Special)(Interview)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Allison J. Waldman As NBC News' chief medical editor, surgeon Dr. Nancy Snyderman is on call for whatever medical or health issues need to be discussed on the air. Since joining NBC News in September 2006, after a 17-year tenure on ABC's "20/20'' ands its other news ...
DIAGNOSES OF THE RICH AND FAMOUS; Celebrity-Related Medical Stories Can Be Teaching Moments.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Hillary Atkin Special to TelevisionWeek Whether it is the recent revelation that actor Patrick Swayze is battling pancreatic cancer, the bipolar diagnosis of singer Britney Spears or the sudden deaths of Heath Ledger and Kanye West's mother, Donda, celebrity- ...
AHCJ Awards: 2007 winners; Excellence in Health Care Journalism.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Awards will be presented at a luncheon March 29 at Health Journalism 2008. TV/Radio: Top 20 Markets First place: "Where's Molly?'' Elizabeth Cohen, Jennifer Pifer, Amy Morelly, CNN Second place: "Nick's Choice,'' Joe Fryer, Brett Akagi, KARE-TV, ...
HEALTH JOURNALISM 2008.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... What: Annual conference of the Association of Health Care Journalists Where: Washington, D.C. When: March 27-30 ...
confidentiality confrontations; Privacy Regulations Set Hospitals, Journalists at Odds.(Special)(Reprint)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Phil Galewitz Special to TelevisionWeek Editor's note: The Association of Health Care Journalists has been examining hospitals' practice of requiring journalists to sign confidentiality agreements, a trend that has been increasing since the patient privacy ...
Recovering from crisis mentality; Environmental News Requires Long-Term Perspective as Well.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Hillary Atkin Special to TelevisionWeek Like so much other news coverage, the intersection of environmental and health/medical journalism often takes place at a crisis point, such as an oil spill or a leak of radiation from a nuclear plant, or in relation to ...
Frequency Is Still Key to a Good TV Plan; The Correct Amount of Exposure Depends on Product, Competition.(Media Planner)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Adam Armbruster Special to TelevisionWeek Probably the most over-discussed and misunderstood topic in television advertising is the subject of frequency. "Frequency'' means the appropriate number of times that a given amount of television viewers see a ...
Cable News Elections Race by the Numbers.(News)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Michele Greppi Data from Nielsen Co. for 2008 shows that Fox has maintained its first-place position among cable news networks with an average of 1.83 million total viewers in prime time, a 14% increase from the comparable period in 2007. An average 440,000 of Fox's ...
politics meets health in D.C. Election Invigorates Annual Gathering of Health Care Media.
Mar 24, 2008; ... Byline: Allison J. Waldman Special to TelevisionWeek While the candidates for the presidency criss-cross the nation talking about the American health care system and how they plan to deal with it if elected, the health care broadcasters, journalists, reporters and ...
America's Disease: obesity; Our Increasingly Overweight Nation Is Always a Story.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Hillary Atkin Special to TelevisionWeek It's an enormous story, pardon the pun, that has made huge headlines in recent years. The number of Americans considered obese has more than doubled in the past 30 years, from 15% of the population to nearly 33% by some ...
A banner year for recalls; Tainted Products Were Among Health Care's Biggest Stories in 2007.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Debra Kaufman Special to TelevisionWeek Fifteen thousand pounds of sausage contaminated with Listeria, 21,000 packages of trail mix containing glass fragments, 326 million pounds of salmonella-infected peanut butter, 376,000 bottles of mineral water with ...
Connected to the community; KNBC's Longtime Medical Reporter Hensel Wants Information to Empower Viewers.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Hillary Atkin Bruce Hensel, M.D., is one of the rarest hyphenates in broadcast journalism-a practicing physician who is also a full-time medical correspondent for a major-market television station. Dr. Hensel has been on the air at KNBC-TV in Los Angeles since 1987. As ...
Many Happy Returns; Strong Ratings for CBS Comedies May Bode Well for Nets.(News)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Andrew Krukowski If the ratings for CBS' Monday night comedies last week are any indication, things might be looking up for the return of scripted television after the Writers Guild of America strike-but don't uncork the champagne just yet. "The Big Bang ...
Digital dealmakers; In focus: Knopper & Heller.(Doug Knopper and Jon Heller)(Brief article)
Mar 24, 2008; ... Byline: Daisy Whitney The players: Doug Knopper and Jon Heller, co-CEOs and co-founders of Freewheel, based in Palo Alto, Calif. The play: Freewheel manages online advertising campaigns for Web video publishers and content owners, including Next New Networks. "Let's ...
on the trail of deadly drugs; `Dateline's' Report Tracked Counterfeit Pill Manufacturers.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Hillary Atkin Special to TelevisionWeek Sometimes it takes a yearlong investigation, including setting up hidden cameras halfway around the world, to expose a health threat that most people didn't know existed. That's what happened when "Dateline NBC'' aired ...
Medicine gets personal; `America's Doctor' Tailors Information to `Oprah' Viewers.(Special)(Interview)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Allison J. Waldman Dr. Mehmet Oz isn't a wizard, but to many TV viewers, his no-nonsense, clear answers to medical questions make him more valuable than a wizard. That's how he earned the title "America's Doctor.'' Dr. Oz is a regular contributor to "The Oprah Winfrey ...
`the doctors': responsibility to inform; `Dr. Phil' Spin-Off Enlightens Viewers Using Real-Life Cases.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Jarre Fees Special to TelevisionWeek Terry Wood, president of creative affairs and development for CBS Television Distribution, says the company's new medical talk show is "not so much journalism as personal information in an entertaining format.'' ...
broadcaster takes cancer personally; Husband's Death Informs Couric's Crusade for Coverage of Colon Screenings.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Allison J. Waldman The issue of health care journalism is important to Katie Couric, anchor and managing editor of "CBS Evening News.'' More than almost any other high-profile television news professional, she has taken the lead in medical news coverage. ...
questioning authority; Journalists Must Clearly Indicate Sources of `News'.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Jarre Fees Special to TelevisionWeek Everybody does it. Whether they're selling baby food or Botox, vaccines or vacation spots, it's common practice for newsrooms and marketers to get in bed together. In fact, they've already been in bed together for several ...
Rushing to the scene; Television Journalists and Programmers Scramble to Satisfy Demand for Health News.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Debra Kaufman Special to TelevisionWeek For attendees flocking to the March 27 opening of the annual convention of the Association of Health Care Journalists in Washington, D.C., it's a good time to reflect on the hot-button topics of the past year. ...
the world at our fingertips; MSNBC.com Is Health Advocate for Users.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Hillary Atkin Special to TelevisionWeek With the click of a mouse, consumers can find all kinds of information about health and medical issues ranging from treatments for diabetes, heart disease and cancer to fitness, bioethics and sexuality. The ...
The `sicko' effect; Criticized But Unbowed, Moore Says His Documentary Put Topic on National Agenda.(Special)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Allison J. Waldman Special to TelevisionWeek Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore has been called everything from a seer to a charlatan. Is he a committed truth-teller and professional muckraker, or is he a shameless self-promoter who uses important issues for ...
Standards, Content Falling Into Place for Mobile TV; guest commentary.(Press Room)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Bilal Saleh Mobile TV-it could have 210 million viewers and global earnings of $11.7 billion by 2011. But while transforming promise to profit is acknowledged to be a challenge, the service characteristics of personalization and convenience, driven by video convergence ...
NBC Selling Miami, Hartford Stations; Company to Focus on Top 10 Markets and 'Growing' Its Digital Platforms.(Deals)
Mar 24, 2008 ... Byline: Michele Greppi NBC is selling two of its owned stations, WTVJ-TV in Miami and WVIT-TV in Hartford, Conn. "We've taken a hard look at our portfolio and made some difficult decisions about what's best for our business going forward,'' NBC Local Media Division ...