Jan
04
George Goodman, Who Demystified the World of Money, Dies at 83
Posted in: UncategorizedMr. Goodman was probably best known as the amiable but intellectually rigorous host of “Adam Smith’s Money World,” seen on PBS from 1984 to 1997.
     |
Jan
03
TV Sports: Delivering an Opinion Is Tebow’s New Test
Posted in: UncategorizedESPN introduced Tim Tebow as a college football analyst Tuesday, but in a conference call he showed a knack for providing more nonanswers than insight.
| |
Jan
02
21st Century Fox Sells Stake in Chinese TV Company
Posted in: UncategorizedThe move was the latest step that the company has taken to reduce its position in China.
| |
Jan
02
How Gay News Anchors Broke Their Own Coming Out Stories
Posted in: UncategorizedA look at how Robin Roberts of “Good Morning America” and other news anchors broke the news that they are gay.
| |
Dec
31
ESPN to Debut First Spot for 2014 World Cup Tomorrow
Posted in: UncategorizedIt’s time to start getting excited about the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. With the opening game about six months away, ESPN is set to debut their first spot in their campaign promoting the event during tomorrow’s telecast of the 2014 Rose Bowl.
Set to “Festival” by Icelandic maestros, Sigur Rós, the spot is, somewhat predictably, a mixture of footage of Brazil and historical World Cup moments. But then, what more could you want to begin stoking anticipation for the world’s biggest sporting event? The spot ends with the crop of current superstars who seek to win thier place in the ranks of World Cup history this summer: Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Mario Balotelli, Robin van Persie, and Neymar.
For those of you super World Cup buffs, here’s a partial list of the historical moments featured in the spot:
- Pele and his triumphant celebration in 1970
- Germany’s Franz Beckenbauer and Dutch captain Johan Cruyff exchanging flags moments before the 1974 Final
- Diego Maradona and his brilliant performance for Argentina in 1986
- Zinedine Zidane, whose epic performance for France led the host country to win the Cup in 1998
- Andres Iniesta, whose beautiful strike sealed Spain’s first World Cup title in 2010
- Cameroonian striker Roger Milla’s famous dance in 1990
- Dutch legend Johan Cruyff’s immortal turn in 1974
- England striker Geoff Hurst’s record-setting three-goal performance in a World Cup title match in 1966
- Dutch striker Dennis Bergkamp’s memorable touch against Argentina in 1998
- Carlos Alberto’s wonder-strike for Brazil in 1970
- Paolo Rossi hoisting the cup for Italy in 1982
ESPN’s full World Cup campaign will roll out gradually over the next couple of months. Stick around for the extended, 90 second online version of the ad, along with credits, after the jump. continued…
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
Dec
30
Michael Caine Stars, Bores in New Ad for Sky Broadband
Posted in: UncategorizedMichael Caine makes what is, to the best of our knowledge (feel free to chime in if you know better), his UK commercial television debut in a new ad for Sky Broadband, a unit of Rupert Murdoch-owned broadcasting conglomerate, BSkyB. Unfortunately, it’s not exactly something to write home about.
The rather blase spot features the famous British actor touring a lighthouse that is for sale and centers around Sky Broadband’s free wi-fi booster that “makes your signal reach up to 100% further,” a selling point for Caine. It’s unfortunate that Caine’s talents weren’t better utilized (someone resurrect Alfie, or hell, even Alfred for that matter), as the writing falls flat and the acting — aside from Caine’s, obviously — is strained and unnatural. The ad feels very familiar (in a “not another one of these” kind of way) and is, ultimately, extremely forgettable. I’ve pretty much already forgotten it, and I just watched it several times. Stay tuned for brief credits after the jump. continued…
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
Dec
28
Bowing to Pressure, A&E Revokes Suspension of ‘Duck Dynasty’ Star
Posted in: UncategorizedA&E has changed its mind and will not suspend Phil Robertson, the patriarch of the family at the center of the show, over comments he made in GQ magazine.
| |
Dec
27
John Miller, CBS Correspondent, to Join New York Police Dept. Again
Posted in: UncategorizedAfter a career spent toggling between television and law enforcement, Mr. Miller is leaving CBS News to work in counterterrorism, the network announced on Thursday.
| |
Dec
26
Publicis Kaplan Thaler Creates First-Ever National Ad for Edmunds.com
Posted in: UncategorizedPublicis Kaplan Thaler created the first ever TV spot for car shopping destination Edmunds.com to receive a national release. The spot, “Edmunds Price Promise,” debuted on Christmas Day during NBA programming on ABC and ESPN and “will remain in regular rotation on several networks through at least the next three months.”
“Edmunds Price Promise” highlights the price promise Edmunds offers its customers, “an instant, locked-in price that the dealer will honor,” while positioning Edmunds employees as “car people” — quite literally. While the humor falls flat, the national campaign will likely bring the company newfound exposure and the Edmunds Price Promise should be a selling point with its audience.
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
Dec
20
This Year’s Grammy TV Campaign Is Actually Pretty Great
Posted in: UncategorizedRight about this time every year, TBWA\Chiat\Day LA debuts its TV spots for the Grammys. And, every year, they’re pretty underwhelming. A few years back, we got a swirly, graphics overload with CGI re-tellings of artists like Eminem’s life story. Last year, we got the hashtag-happy #TheWholeWorldIsListening, which aimed to put viewers into the shoes of stars like Rihanna while trying to convince them that the awards show was still in any way relevant.
This year’s first spot, “Anthem,” looked more like a VH1 commercial than anything else, and it seemed we were in for yet another year of mediocrity. But then, dare we say it, the Grammys and Chiat LA ctually surprised us. The latest spot in the Music Unleashes Us campaign, “Drive” (above), does a fantastic job of convincing viewers that they owe it to the artists who get them through times of sorrow and heartbreak to watch their performances on the Grammys.
From Pink and fun., we move to Macklemore and “Doughnut Shop,” another well-produced and compelling spot filmed outside of Inglewood’s famous Randy’s Donuts. Again, these spots excel at following through with what the campaign promises – portraying the affect that popular music has on the average TV viewer. It both ignites and unleashes, an important sentiment for the Grammys to glom onto as the show still figures out its approach to celebrating an industry that doesn’t know what to do next. One more Katy Perry-tinged spot, and credits, follow after the jump.
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
Dec
20
The 10 Most Epic TV Show Promos of 2013
Posted in: Uncategorized
It was a mixed bag for TV generally in 2013, but not a bad year for TV promos—in fact, some of the most inventive ads on the dial (or the Web) were from folks promoting new or returning shows.
For the most part, good marketers eschewed parades of "Our show is so great!" quotes, cliffhangery snippets of dialogue and trying to unironically mimic movie trailers—and just let a few powerful images, or sometimes a single powerful image, speak to the viewer. Sometimes it was a clever in-joke, sometimes a stylish montage, sometimes the sheer chutzpah of the idea. But we picked 10 of the promos that wowed us the most from a surprisingly large pool of good creative.
From edgy cable fare like Archer to a broad network series like Community, there was plenty to love before the show even started. Tell us what you think (and what we missed) in the comments.
| |
Dec
19
Couric Talk Show to End in June After Two Seasons
Posted in: UncategorizedKatie Couric’s syndicated talk show, which began with enormous fanfare in September 2012, will cease production at the end of the current season.
| |
Dec
19
F.C.C. Seeks to Do Away With Sports Blackout Rule
Posted in: UncategorizedThe Federal Communications Commission has asked Congress if it has the authority to repeal a 1975 rule that required sports stadiums to be sold out before broadcasting a game.
| |
Dec
18
ABC Viewers Tilt Female for a Network Light on Sports
Posted in: UncategorizedFor ABC, every important ratings measure in prime time is qualified by what amounts to a footnote: “not counting sports.”
| |
Dec
18
Frank Darabont, Creator of ‘The Walking Dead,’ Is Suing AMC Over Payouts
Posted in: UncategorizedFrank Darabont claims in his suit that he has been cheated out of millions of dollars by the network that is the producing studio for the show, the most successful ever on cable.
| |
Dec
17
‘S.N.L.’ to Add Black Female Performer
Posted in: Uncategorized“Saturday Night Live” has been subjected to a barrage of criticism over what seemed a glaring absence on the iconic comedy show.
| |
Dec
10
Conan O’Brien Fails to Learn How to Audition for TV Commercials
Posted in: Uncategorized
America's gangliest talk-show host takes on TV-commercial auditions in this skit. With the help of Killian's Workshop, Conan O'Brien—not always the most comfortable commercial endorser—reads some copy about shrimp that sounds like Jerry Seinfeld's stand-up act ("Is it 21 shrimp, or 21 shrimps?"), turns the Bite and Smile into an exploration of possibly being gay, and drives an invisible car—all while trying not to look like a total spaz. Which is to say, he tries very hard to look like a total spaz.
Thirteen minutes is a bit long for the concept they're running with here, but Conan's ruthless derision of corny ad tropes strikes gold more than once; the shrimp/shrimps-induced mental breakdown and naming the invisible car the "Ford Delusion" are two highlights. And for the record, both "shrimp" and "shrimps" are acceptable plurals.
| |
Dec
09
A Network Is Buoyed by ‘Sound of Music’ Ratings
Posted in: UncategorizedRatings for “The Sound of Music” have encouraged NBC to consider making live musical productions a holiday tradition.
| |
Dec
09
ESPN Taps ‘Santa Snoop’ to Narrate New NBA Christmas Spot
Posted in: UncategorizedESPN has a new in-house effort promoting their NBA Christmas lineup, and Calvin Broadus has yet another name. Santa Snoop narrates the effort, which riffs off the classic poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (better known by its first line, “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”).
The NBA Christmas spot is about as straightforward as it gets, supplementing Snoop’s narration with highlights of the teams featured in the Christmas day matchups. It all works, thanks mostly to Santa Snoop’s immediately recognizable voice. Who doesn’t love to hear this this guy? He could narrate a shopping list and make it sound intriguing. Beyond that, I really like the idea of Santa Snoop. He’s probably skinny enough to actually fit down a chimney, and I imagine he brings the kind of treats Santa normally wouldn’t feel comfortable trafficking in. So keep an eye out for Santa Snoop this Christmas morning and if you’re a hoops fan, tune in to the NBA on ESPN and ABC. The opening game between the Brooklyn Nets and the Chicago Bulls tips off at noon, followed by a doubleheader on ABC (Knicks/Thunder, then Heat/Lakers), and capped off with a prime-time doubleheader on ESPN, with the San Antonio Spurs hosting the Houston Rockets at 8 p.m., followed by the Golden State Warriors hosting the Los Angeles Clippers at 10:30 p.m. Credits after the jump. continued…
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
Dec
09
SpongeBob Is Coming to a USPS Mailbox Near You in Nickelodeon’s Holiday Push
Posted in: Uncategorized
All right, it's been done before, but not for a while: Nickelodeon is partnering with the ever-embattled U.S. Postal Service to promote its long-running children's series SpongeBob SquarePants, in which a member of the order dictyoceratida opts for business casual dress to spend time with a slow-witted echinoderm and a squirrel of incredibly advanced brain function with a penchant for scuba diving.
The show's hero will appear in mailbox form on street corners around the country, and postage-paid SpongeBob postcards will be available gratis at about 25,000 post offices. If you want to see a MailPants yourself, you'll need to travel to Atlanta; Boston; Charlotte, N.C.; Chicago; Dallas; Hollywood and Orlando, Fla.; Kirkwood, Mo.; Los Angeles; Miami; New York; Philadelphia; or Washington. So really, you have no excuse.
Nick has a series of videos on the letter-writing process that ties into the campaign as well as printable stationery; the whole shebang is in effect through the month of SpongeBob-related Lego and stuffed-animal buying, formerly known as December. So, by the time the last MailPants disappears on Jan. 5, you may actually have convinced your kid to write that thank you note to Nana.
| |
Who's in charge here?
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.