The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. We are a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and marketing skills.  Check out thousands of cutting edge examples at our web site.  Join us on Facebook and Twitter.

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Graeme Newell
602 Communications
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In This Issue
Tips for Great Stand-up Teases
Conan's Condition: No Dissing Old Bosses
MSNBC Prez Cracks Down on Infighting
NBC Affiliates Board Meeting Optimistic
Leno to Headline WH Correspondents' Dinner
Fox Confident Stations Would Carry Conan
Koppel Not Headed To ‘This Week'
Judge Refuses Letterman Case Dismissal
SAG Awards Nearly Mirror Globes
News Corp. Flying High On Avatar
Alwaleed Backs James Murdoch as News Corp. Successor
Clinton Urges China to Investigate Google Case
Obama Slams Supreme Court Decision
NAB Praises Decision for Political Ad Spending Boon
FCC Seeks Ideas to Improve the News Media
Hope For Haiti Now's Preliminary Tally: $57M
Air America Signs Off
Michael Wolff's Solution to Electoral Advertising Inequities


Quotes

"I am sorry to think that you do not get a man's most effective criticism until you provoke him.  Severe truth is expressed with some bitterness."
- Henry David Thoreau

"The strength of criticism lies in the weakness of the thing criticized."
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

"That is what the highest criticism really is, the record of one's own soul.  It is more fascinating than history, as it is concerned simply with oneself.  It is more delightful than philosophy, as its subject is concrete and not abstract, real and not vague.  It is the only civilized form of autobiography."
- Oscar Wilde


Tips for Great Stand-up Teases
by Graeme Newell
602 Communications
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http://www.602communications.com
Twitter: gnewell
Facebook: facebook.com/gnewell

Stand up teases are meant to show your reporter is in the heart of the action.  They prove they're out in the community, actively searching for news, not waiting passively in the newsroom. Your stand up should whet the viewer's appetite for an engaging location with neat stuff to see.

Step one is to avoid the "postcard" stand up shot.  These stand ups are usually wide shots with either a building or a sign in the background.  The reporter is in the foreground; something static and uninteresting is far in the distance.  These shots are reminiscent of the standard Grand Canyon photo we all took on vacation as kids.  While they may be framed nicely, they reveal that our reporter is miles from any kind of actual news.  There is usually no one else in the shot, just a single reporter with picturesque architecture framed pristinely behind them.  It is the antithesis of story involvement.  If there's something interesting going on inside that building, your reporter missed it.  He has been banished to the front lawn.

The goal of a great stand up tease is to demonstrate and interact with the environment.  Give viewers a firsthand tour of the action.  That means the stand up should be more tight than wide.  It should move, and as much as possible, give an interactive experience of the location.

1) Don't wait until the end of the day.
Most reporters shoot their stand up tease AFTER they've shot the story.  Instead, be on the lookout for the most visually interesting component throughout the day.   A great stand up tease should be a part of the story process, not an afterthought.  Help me understand the story by taking me right to the action. If you wait until the end of the day, odds are,  you'll be forced to stand in front of a building.

2) Give me a small taste of the specifics of the location.
What is interesting or visual about this story?  Avoid the visual overview of the news location.  Think tight instead of wide.  When you arrive at the scene, take a moment to walk around the entire location.  Do a 360 of the scene.  Scout out visually interesting components and use those for your stand up tease.

3) Demonstrate and interact.
Instead of standing on the front lawn of the burgled home, take me down the alley and show me the window where the thief broke in.  Instead of standing in front of the snow drift, grab a big handful and throw a snowball.  Show exactly where the action took place.  Recreate the action for me.  If you find yourself standing in one place without moving, you probably missed an opportunity.  Concentrate on specific components of the story instead of describing an overview of the location.

More Stand up teasing tips next week….

Graeme Newell is a broadcast and new media marketing specialist.  He guarantees that his teasing seminar will immediately increase your news ratings or his workshop is free.  Find out more here.


Conan's Condition: No Dissing Old Bosses
How does a professional disparager honor a nondisparagement clause?  Conan O'Brien is about to find out.  Mr. O'Brien and his team are walking away from NBC with a whopping $45 million settlement, but there's a condition: "The Tonight Show" host can't bad-mouth the Peacock Network and its top brass.  "We wanted to give him a graceful exit.  Hopefully he will be graceful," Jeff Gaspin, chairman of NBC Universal Television Entertainment, said of Mr. O'Brien, whose last show is Friday.  Thursday night, with the ink barely dry on his exit package, Mr. O'Brien didn't spare his ratings-challenged employer.  "Have to watch at least one NBC show every weeknight in order to double ratings," Mr. O'Brien said.  People familiar with the matter said the nondisparagement provision kicks in when Mr. O'Brien leaves the network.  Being tactful has never been part of Mr. O'Brien's comedic repertoire.  While nondisparagement clauses aren't unusual in top-dollar settlements, this one raises obvious questions about how a comedian can go about his work when he is gagged from doing gags.

Taking shots at the "suits" has long been a sport of television comics.  Over his 30-year career, Johnny Carson gently ribbed his corporate bosses on "The Tonight Show," referring to parent company General Electric Co. as the "conglomerate with a heart."  Once Mr. Carson announced plans to retire from "The Tonight Show," he joked in 1991: "GE already sold my parking spot to Fotomat."  The targeting has become increasingly overt over the years, however.  After GE bought NBC's parent RCA in 1986, late-night host David Letterman strode to the then-GE building to deliver a fruit basket to his new owners, complete with a camera crew that filmed him being escorted out of the building.  "This is going to be fun to work with these people, isn't it?" Mr. Letterman said.  On NBC, the comedy "30 Rock" revolves in part around poking fun at GE.  Alec Baldwin's character, Jack Donaghy, manages television and microwave-oven programming.  An episode last January called "Retreat to Move Forward" made fun of the Six Sigma management practice used extensively within GE.  The pillars of the Six Sigma business philosophy, the episode said, stand for "teamwork, insight, brutality, male enhancement, hand shakefulness and play hard."  GE Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt has been a good sport about the ribbing.  During an interview with the Journal last year, he said "30 Rock" was his favorite show.  "We're the butt of every joke," he said.  "But it's a great show."  Insiders at GE say that the company doesn't mind self-deprecating humor but wants its anchors and comedians to show loyalty to GE and NBC, and be team players.  When it turns hostile, as they feel it has with Mr. O'Brien more recently, GE has a harder time finding humor in the situation, they said.  GE declined to comment.
WSJ


MSNBC Prez Cracks Down on Infighting
In an internal memo to talent and EPs obtained by the Huffington Post, MSNBC president Phil Griffin asked his on-air talent not to criticize one another publicly.  He acknowledged that the opinions expressed on his network can lead to "spirited, substantive disagreements," but called the infighting "unprofessional" and reminded everyone that they "are all on the same team."  "We have many strong personalities with differing, passionate opinions, but it is important to remember that we are all on the same team.  I want to reiterate my long-standing policy: We do not publicly criticize our colleagues.  This kind of behavior is unprofessional and will not be tolerated.  Let me be clear: I encourage you to keep doing what you do best.  Give the viewers your perspective and a vigorous debate on the issues they care about.  But do not turn substantive differences into personal ones."  The memo was in response to an incident earlier this week, in which Joe Scarborough criticized Keith Olbermann on twitter for his comments about Senator-elect Scott Brown.
MediaBistro


NBC Affiliates Board Meeting Optimistic
Both NBC and its affiliates board spoke positively of their annual meeting in New York today (Jan. 21), saying both parties are happy to move ahead after the recent Jay Leno-Conan O'Brien drama and work together on issues such as retransmission consent.  NBC affiliates board chairman Michael Fiorile said the board-and, presumably, most of the affiliate body-is looking forward to seeing Jay Leno back in his old Tonight Show role.  "I think everybody's pretty happy about that," he said.  "NBC went ahead and made the decision and made it quickly, and we're appreciative."  Fiorile also said the board is optimistic about a potential Comcast ownership.  Comcast has made a point of stating its commitment to local television as it endures the long wait for the massive deal to be OK'd in Washington.  "From what we see and what we hear about their commitment to over the air, to localism, to a continued affiliate-network system," he said, "we're feeling pretty good."
Broadcasting & Cable


Leno to Headline WH Correspondents' Dinner
Comedian Jay Leno will headline the annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner in May, the group said Friday.  Leno agreed earlier this month to appear at the event, before NBC announced his return to hosting "The Tonight Show," the group said.  The network's move was prompted by affiliates protesting the poor ratings of Leno's prime-time show.  The comedian will share the stage with President Obama at the correspondents' dinner at the Washington Hilton.  By tradition, presidents fire jokes at the news corps, political opponents and even themselves at the event, where politicians, journalists and celebrities rub elbows.  Leno headlined the 2004, 2000 and 1987 dinners during the administrations of both parties.  Ticket sales to the dinner help fund college scholarships for aspiring journalists. More than $130,000 in scholarships, as well as journalism prizes, will be awarded at the event.
CNN


Fox Confident Stations Would Carry Conan
Fox TV executives considering a late-night talk show with Conan O’Brien are confident 60 percent to 70 percent of their local stations would be free to carry it, a person with knowledge of the situation said.  Other stations may have program commitments that keep them from coming on board by September, when O’Brien, 46, is free to start working again, said the person, who wasn’t authorized to talk publicly.  O’Brien, who will consider all offers, would prefer to stay on broadcast TV and is interested in News Corp.’s Fox network, according to a person familiar with his thinking.  Shannon Ryan, a spokeswoman for Fox, declined to comment.  Rick Rosen, O’Brien’s agent at the William Morris Endeavor Entertainment talent agency, didn’t return calls and e-mail messages seeking comment.  Leslee Dart, O’Brien’s publicist, didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Bloomberg


Koppel Not Headed To ‘This Week'
Ted Koppel will not be making a return to ABC News-at least not as George Stephanopoulos' successor on This Week.  According to multiple sources, talks to bring the former Nightline anchor back to the network as the host of the Sunday program have ended without an offer.  Koppel was among several people network executives have been in discussions with about replacing Stephanopoulos, who left to replace Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America.  Sources say that ABC News President David Westin believed Koppel's camp had leaked reports of the talks.  Westin was overheard complaining that it was a pattern that had made negotiations with Koppel difficult in 2005 when ABC News was in talks with him about re-formatting Nightline, the program he founded as a nightly update on the Iran hostage crisis.  Earlier this month, Politico reported that Koppel had been offered a one-year, $1 million deal to host This Week three Sundays a month.  But ABC News denied that any offers had been made.  Westin told Politico in an e-mail message that he was considering "a number of options."  But he added, "I will pull back the veil to the limited degree of telling you--for the benefit of your readers--that just about every specific that you have is false."
Broadcasting & Cable


Judge Refuses Letterman Case Dismissal
A New York judge refused on Tuesday to toss out a case against a TV producer accused of a $2 million extortion attempt against David Letterman over the talk show host's sexual affairs with co-workers.  New York State Supreme Court Justice Charles Solomon rejected a bid by the producer's lawyer to have the charges dismissed, saying instead that "this is a classic example of an issue that is best left for a trial jury to decide."  Robert Joel Halderman, 52, a producer for the CBS news show "48 Hours," was indicted by a grand jury in October and pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted grand larceny.  Letterman admitted on his "Late Show with David Letterman" on CBS last year that he had sex with women who worked with him on the program after receiving a package threatening to reveal the details.  The case has been adjourned to March 9.  If convicted, Halderman faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.
Rueters


SAG Awards Nearly Mirror Globes
If you watched the Golden Globes, then the Screen Actors Guild Awards might have seemed more than a little familiar on the television side of the ledger.  SAG's top show honors, as well as the individual actor awards, essentially mirrored those handed out by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association on Jan. 17.  AMC's retro advertising series Mad Men, continuing to add to its haul of Emmys and Globes, brought home the SAG actor for the second year running for the outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series.  For its part, Fox's rookie Glee repeated its Globe win by capturing the outstanding performance by an ensemble in a comedy series.  Fox also got SAG props for outstanding performance by a stunt ensemble in a television series for serial thriller 24.  Julianna Margulies followed her Globe with the actor for outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series as Alicia Florrick in CBS's The Good Wife.  Beleaguered NBC also had to feel good as Alex Baldwin scored his fourth consecutive SAG win for outstanding performance by a male actor in a comedy series for his portrayal of Jack Donaghy in 30 Rock, while Tina Fey copped her third straight SAG award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a comedy series on the same show.  Fey's turn as Liz Lemon proved to be the only primetime SAG difference from the HFPA equivalents, where Toni Collette, who won the Emmy in September, was the Globe's top comedic actress last week for Showtime's United States of Tara.
MultiChannel


News Corp. Flying High On Avatar
The ongoing success of sci-fi epic Avatar and climbing newspaper profits will offset risks like MySpace lagging behind Facebook and the dwindling popularity of American Idol, prompting Soleil Securities to raise its rating and earnings estimates for News Corp.  Shares of News Corp. jumped nearly 2%, or 25 cents, to $13.31 in Thursday morning on the Nasdaq, where they have traded in a 52-week range of $4.95 to $14.39.  Soleil analyst Alan S. Gould boosted his price target to $16.50 from $16, and his rating to Buy from Hold, noting that the Street will discount Avatar results as nonrecurring.  News Corp. will make about $275 million on Avatar, with more than half the profits coming in the March quarter, Gould said, adding that the box office blockbuster will likely show a loss of about $40 million in the December quarter.  Based on a worldwide gross estimate of $1.85 billion and assuming 20 million global home units, Gould expects Avatar will generate more than $1.3 billion in revenue for News Corp.  He predicts financing partners, who assume 60% of the risk, and James Cameron will earn nearly $350 million.
Forbes


Alwaleed Backs James Murdoch as News Corp. Successor
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the billionaire Saudi investor, said his choice to succeed Rupert Murdoch at the head of News Corp. is son James Murdoch.  “If he doesn’t appoint him, I’ll be the first one to nominate him to be the successor of Mr. Rupert Murdoch,” Alwaleed said in an interview on the Charlie Rose program, to be shown tonight.  Alwaleed held a 7 percent stake in News Corp. as of an Aug. 20 proxy statement.  James Murdoch, 37, is the chief of New York-based News Corp.’s Asian and European operations and is the youngest of Murdoch’s three children from his second marriage.  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Rupert Murdoch, 78, is the founder of News Corp., the parent company of the Wall Street Journal, Fox broadcasting and HarperCollins Publishers LLC.  James Murdoch is “really a Rupert Murdoch in the making, and he’s almost there now,” Alwaleed said in the interview.  “I have full confidence in him, full trust in him, and he’s capable.”  A News Corp. spokesman, Jack Horner, declined to comment on any succession plans in an interview today.
Bloomberg


Clinton Urges China to Investigate Google Case
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Thursday urged China to investigate cyber intrusions that led Google to threaten to pull out of that country — and challenged Beijing to openly publish its findings.  "Countries that restrict free access to information or violate the basic rights of Internet users risk walling themselves off from the progress of the next century," she said.  Clinton said the U.S. and China "have different views on this issue, and we intend to address those differences candidly and consistently" as part of a cooperative relationship.  She cited China as among a number of countries where there has been "a spike in threats to the free flow of information" over the past year.  She also named Tunisia, Uzbekistan, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam.  Google said on Jan. 12 that it will remain in China only if the government relents on rules requiring the censorship of content the ruling communist party considers subversive.  The ultimatum came after Google said it uncovered a computer attack that tried to plunder its software coding and the e-mail accounts of human rights activists protesting Chinese policies.  Communications companies and industry association officials also welcomed Clinton's remarks.  "Allowing policies that chip away at Internet freedom is one of the biggest failures of the past decade," said Ed Black, chief executive of the Computer and Communications Industry Association.  "But it's not too late to reverse this course and the Obama Administration seems to be paying attention."
Yahoo News


Obama Slams Supreme Court Decision
President Barack Obama has shot back at the Supreme Court over its decision to lift the ban on using corporate and union treasury funds for electioneering communications and advocacy ads.  In a statement released Thursday, President Obama called the decision "a green light to a new stampede of special interest money in our politics."  He also said he would try to work with the Congress to answer that vote with a "forceful response."  "[This] is a major victory for big oil, Wall Street banks, health insurance companies and the other powerful interests that marshal their power every day in Washington to drown out the voices of everyday Americans.  This ruling gives the special interests and their lobbyists even more power in Washington -- while undermining the influence of average Americans who make small contributions to support their preferred candidates."
MultiChannel


NAB Praises Decision for Political Ad Spending Boon
NAB president Gordon Smith called the Supreme Court's decision to allow more corporations and unions to directly fund more on-air political spots "a good one for freedom of speech."  His remarks came during an interview for C-SPAN's Communicators series, in which he also weighed in on spectrum--broadcasters want to keep it and aren't sure they will be able to share it -- indecency and more.  Smith voted against campaign finance reform as a Senator, he pointed out.  But he also said he thought it could be good for the broadcasters coffers as well as the First Amendment.  "Ultimately you can't get on TV or radio without paying for it," he said.  "Broadcasters have lots of costs in production of content. The American people rely on their TV's and radios, and ulimately I expect it will mean there is more political advertising."  Smith said the best part of the decision was that there remains "full disclosure," so that the American people can figure out "who is for whom, and why.  But Smith is for broadcasters in particular.  "I think it does help [broadcasters].  At a time when advertising is down, perhaps political advertising will go up."
MultiChannel


FCC Seeks Ideas to Improve the News Media
Just a month after the Federal Trade Commission held hearings on the beleaguered news industry and what the government might do about it, the Federal Communications is getting into the act, too.  The agency has launched an investigation into the “Future of Media,” and released an 11-page request for information about the state of the news business.  It plans to examine the current state of the news industry, industry trends and what the agency could do to change its current rules.  FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said the agency wants to understand the “fundamental changes” in the media industry and examine “what impact such changes may have for (FCC) policies.”  In a press release Thursday, the FCC said that the initiative “will not include any effort to control the editorial content of any type of media.”  The agency said the project will “produce a report providing a clear, precise assessment of the current media landscape, analyze policy options and, as appropriate, make policy recommendations to the FCC, other government entities, and other parties.”  It started a new Web site, and sent a tweet asking people to “read the blog, share stories & submit ideas to improve media.”  Aside from further regulations on TV and radio stations, its not clear what the FCC or the Obama administration could require of newspapers or Internet news sites.  Some critics, including Republican FCC Commissioner Meredith Baker, argue there are significant First Amendment issues here.  Baker gave a speech at a Media Institute luncheon Thursday, and said the talk should be headlined, “Baker Says Government Should Stay Out of Journalism.”  “Market gaps are not necessarily market failures requiring government intervention,” Baker told the audience, mostly media and telecom lawyers. “As journalists search for their future identity, I urge that we leave journalists largely to their own devices to find a new sustainable commercial foundation.”
WSJ


Hope For Haiti Now's Preliminary Tally: $57M
With donations continuing to roll in from all parts of the globe, the Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief telethon on first count raised some $57 million.  Counting contributions from phone, online and mobile sources, the total marks a new record for donations made by the general public through a disaster relief telethon, according to MTV Networks officials.  The preliminary figure does not include donations by corporations and large private donors, or iTunes sales figures, all of which are still being calculated.  "The public has set a new standard of giving for a relief telethon with Hope for Haiti Now, and the donations continue to come in -- people can still contribute 24/7 via phone, Web and text," said Lisa Paulsen, president and CEO of the Entertainment Industry Foundation. That's the 501(c)(3) non-profit organization providing philanthropic support to Hope for Haiti Now to ensure proper fiduciary oversight and administration of all donated funds.  Moreover, the "Hope for Haiti Now" album is the biggest one-day album pre-order in iTunes history and currently ranks first iTunes album in 18 countries.

Hope for Haiti Now benefits Oxfam America, Partners in Health, the Red Cross, UNICEF, United Nations World Food Programme, Yele Haiti Foundation, and the newly formed Clinton Bush Haiti Foundation.  Proceeds from Hope for Haiti Now will be split among each organization's individual funds for Haiti earthquake relief.
Hope for Haiti Now will continue accepting donations for six months via the following methods: Online: www.hopeforhaitinow.org; phone: 877-99-HAITI; text: Text "GIVE" to 50555; and mail: Hope For Haiti Now Fund, Entertainment Industry Foundation, 1201 West 5th Street, Suite T-700, Los Angeles, CA 90017
MultiChannel


Air America Signs Off
Air America, the 6-year-old, left-leaning talk radio network that featured hosts like Al Franken and Rachel Maddow, is pulling the plug, citing the poor economy.  Air America, based in New York, was heard in the Washington area on AM-1050.  It had studio space on Idaho Avenue NW as part of a marketing deal with Bonneville International Corp., which owns WTOP.  “This very difficult environment has had a significant impact on Air America’s business,” Chairman Charlie Kireker said in a memo to employees that is posted on the company's Web site.  “This past year has seen a ‘perfect storm’ in the media industry generally.”  Air America had as many as 100 affiliates that carried its programming at its peak.  It ceased live programming Thursday afternoon and said it planned an orderly Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation.  For stations scrambling to find replacement programming, Air America is offering reruns until Jan. 25.
Washington BizJournal


Michael Wolff's Solution to Electoral Advertising Inequities
After all these years of trying to solve the most obvious problem in politics—that money creates terrible inequities—it’s back to square one: Yesterday’s Supreme Court ruling effectively means American corporations are free to spend as much money as they wanna spend to elect whomever they want.  Which, honestly, makes some amount of sense.  Campaign finance restrictions were always a little artificial—free speech, but not if you can buy it.

Still, the problem is absolute: The rich, with their enhanced free speech capabilities, can buy elections, creating a powerful democratic contradiction.

But I have the solution.  It’s been obvious since the earliest days of television.  In fact, the problem with the electoral system isn’t money, it’s television.

The overwhelming share of campaign money is spent on TV media time.  Therefore, if you eliminate the cost of that media, the problem of disproportionate free speech is solved.

Actually, this is so obvious that for it not to have been the central point of this debate suggests that nobody really ever wanted to truly level the playing field.  And that people in the media business, strongly influencing this discussion, were understandably having none of it.

It would have been easy enough for Congress or the FCC to have mandated free advertising time for political messages.  Every candidate, qualified in some more or less reasonable way, gets an equal amount of media time.  Why not?  Broadcasters would have lost money for sure, but, media being of intangible value, this giveaway would not have cost them money (what’s more, this is, after all, the public’s air time, or, in the case of cable, the public’s franchise).  How could this not have been an obvious and ideal solution for everybody but the television business?

Of course, some richies and their corporate allies might always buy more media on top of their allotted time, as Mayor Bloomberg surely would.  But if the basic allotment is large enough, the law of diminishing returns kicks in.  Also, everybody gets a fair chance to make their case and to raise more money on the basis of their message—rather than to raise more money on the basis of already having raised money.

Everything changes under this system.  Politics now is primarily about raising money (or begging for it), but with media bills covered, financing a campaign becomes an ancillary task.  The beleaguered and the cynical and those temperamentally disinclined to beg will be more apt to participate in the system.  What’s more, with television widely accessible, the quality of the message becomes more significant than the ubiquity.

It’s an easy fix and it would create a much less nutty country.

More of Newser founder Michael Wolff's articles and commentary can be found at VanityFair.com, where he writes a regular column.  He can be emailed at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . You can also follow him on Twitter: @MichaelWolffNYC.

Newser

------------------------------------

The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. We are a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and marketing skills.  Check out thousands of cutting edge examples at our web site.  Join us on Facebook and Twitter.

Sent via TVSpy's email servers. Visit TV Spy's Marketing Matters.

Graeme Newell
602 Communications
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(919) 217-4438
Web Site
Facebook
Twitter

The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. 602 Communications is a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and promotion skills. We teach workshops on teasing, marketing, reporting, producing, lighting, editing, internet and graphics.Get more information on all our workshops.

The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. We are a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and marketing skills.  Check out thousands of cutting edge examples at our web site.  Join us on Facebook and Twitter.

Sent via TVSpy's email servers. Visit TV Spy's Marketing Matters.

Graeme Newell
602 Communications
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(919) 217-4438
Web Site
Facebook
Twitter


In This Issue
Promo of the Day
Localism Key for TV Stations
NBC, Conan Settle on $40 to Walk Away
Talks Held Up Over Staff Severance
Conan's Last Shows are Sellouts
Obama Sets SOTU Date
Super Bowl to Air Pro-Life Ad
Colbert Sponsors US Speedskating
Army iPhone App Among Top Free News Apps
Kids are Completely Connected, Study Finds
Newsweek Taps Obama for Haiti Cover Story
Senator Is the Centerfold
'Tweet Me' Joins Sweethearts Candy
Mountain Bike Maker Seeks 'Oddvertisers'
Message From Michael
More Conan Quips


Quotes

"A city is a large community where people are lonesome together."
- Herbert Prochnow

"How does one keep from "growing old inside"?  Surely only in community.  The only way to make friends with time is to stay friends with people.  Taking community seriously not only gives us the companionship we need, it also relieves us of the notion that we are indispensable."
- Robert McAfee Brown

"The love of our neighbor in all its fullness simply means being able to say, "What are you going through?"
- Simone Weil


Promo of the Day
3 intense Storm Stories promos from The Weather Channel promise to show 'the worst of nature, the best of man.'

WGCL Atlanta claims that their talent Jennifer Valdez is 'The Most Interesting Morning Meteorologist in the World"...a fun parody of the Dos Equis beer campaign.

WTVJ Miami gets to gloat about their winter weather with this weather promo.

602communications.com/VideoExamples

Have a video clip to share?  Email it to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Flash (.flv) or QuickTime (.mov) files, size 320 x 240, are preferred, but WindowsMedia (.wmv) files will also be accepted.  Large files may be sent via http://www.yousendit.com.  You can also mail your clip on VHS or DVD to Graeme Newell at 1011 Lyndhurst Falls Lane, Knightdale, NC  27545.


Localism Key for TV Stations
TV stations need to embrace more of their localism to be successful in the coming years -- which could mean no more new court or tabloid magazine shows.  We're talking about the current failure of trying to cater to an entire DMA the same way. In the digital age, this is too much "broadcasting."  Stations need to go far beyond local efforts and focus much more on micro-localism.

TV consultant/analyst firm BIA/Kelsey says 2010 will be a watershed year.  It says stations need to use their resources -- well-known local brands, strong local content, and experienced sales personnel -- to get things moving.  When executives speak of local content, they are talking mostly about local news.  But this may not be enough. TV stations need to get much more targeted.  Take the New York DMA: What do teenagers in Staten Island want, women on the Upper East Side, or working class men in Garden City?  What if you had different programming for each?

It would seem that for TV stations to survive long-term, they need to think beyond sending a TV station's local newscast straight to your cell phone.  That alone isn't going to be the savior of TV stations.  What should change?  Perhaps there should be fewer nationally distributed syndicated talk shows, court shows, magazine shows, and off-network sitcoms.

This is not to say nationally syndicated programming doesn't have its place.  It brings decent rating to stations, which makes them great marketing platforms for local TV newscasts.  But TV stations may have relied too much on those shows, in a tactic fueled by the Financial Interest and Syndication Rules.  The FCC started up Fin-Syn in 1970.  But the intent was for stations to program "locally" in an attempt to increase program diversity and limit the market control of the three broadcast television networks.  (The rules were eliminated in the mid-'90s).  It didn't turn out that way.

It may sound crazy for a TV station to think about multiple programming options targeting different viewers in different neighborhoods.  But that may be what consumers want.  How can one TV station finance all of these options?  Maybe it comes from social media content; maybe user-generated video.

The National Association of Television Program Executives meeting is about to start up next week in Las Vegas, a much smaller conference than it was in previous decades -- smaller perhaps because of how the national program sales process gets transacted these days.  Considering the year TV stations had in 2009 and the last half of 2008, executives need to think well beyond just one 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. nationally distributed show.  Maybe that's something NATPE might see as an opportunity.

MediaPost


NBC, Conan Settle on $40 to Walk Away
Conan O'Brien is close to signing a nearly $40 million deal to walk away from his dream job hosting NBC's "The Tonight Show," bringing down the curtain on one of the entertainment industry's biggest debacles in years.  The comedian's exit agreement, which could be completed as early as Tuesday, bars Mr. O'Brien from bad-mouthing his former NBC bosses, according to people familiar with the matter, but paves the way for him to land another television gig within a year.
WSJ


Talks Held Up Over Staff Severance

With most of the television industry anticipating a formal announcement Tuesday of the widely expected exit of Conan O’Brien from NBC’s late-night lineup and the restoration of Jay Leno as host of the “Tonight Show,” the negotiations continued to be held up on one issue, according to representatives on both sides of the talks.  The issue is how much severance staff members of the current “Tonight Show” will receive once the show leaves the air – most likely after this Friday.  Gavin Polone, Mr. O’Brien’s manager, said the issue was causing understandable problems because “it’s the same thing that’s going on all over the country when people are put out of work.”  But he added, “We’re fighting to do better for them.”  A representative from NBC’s side of the negotiations confirmed that last-minute haggling over payouts to the staff members is the chief reason an announcement had been held up, with Mr. O’Brien’s representatives seeking as much as $12 million to cover those not under contract who will lose work once he leaves the show.  But like much of the rest of the negotiations, the wrangling over severance was becoming contentious late Tuesday. In reaction to how Mr. Polone characterized the severance discussions, an NBC spokesperson released a statement, which read:  “It was Conan’s decision to leave NBC that resulted in nearly 200 of his staffers being out of work.   We have already agreed to pay millions of dollars to compensate every one of them.  This latest posturing is nothing more than a PR ploy.”      Media Decoder


Conan's Last Shows are Sellouts
Looking to buy a TV commercial in the last episodes of "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien"?  You're out of luck.  "It's sold out," says one veteran media agency executive.  O'Brien's ratings have been soaring over the last two weeks, due to his ongoing verbal jousting with NBC executives about a proposal to shift the show to 12:05 a.m. -- an idea he has rejected.  The subject has dominated all his monologues.  Since that time, the show's 18-49 ratings have averaged a 1.9 -- around 50% above the 1.2 number he had been earning.  All this has pushed competitor "Late Show with David Letterman" well down into second place, to around a 0.7 to a 0.9 rating among 18-49 viewers.  Letterman had been regularly beating O'Brien before the late-night controversy started.  Executives say pricing for late-night talk-show programming, including "The Tonight Show," has ranged from $40,000 to $45,000 for a 30-second commercial.  Much of the hard-to-buy late-night program ad activity started up months ago -- before talk of the any programming changes began.  Late-night inventory has been tight in "Tonight" as well as "Letterman" and other shows for months.
MediaPost


Obama Sets SOTU Date
The White House on Monday set Jan. 27 as the date for President Obama's latest State of the Union address.  Because of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, broadcast networks are expected to firm up plans for covering the event Tuesday.  NBC is expected to stick with "Mercy" at 8 p.m., followed by coverage of the speech and news coverage from 9-11 p.m., preempting "Law & Order: SVU" and "The Jay Leno Show."  Fox would be making the biggest move as the address faces its Wednesday edition of "American Idol."  "Idol" probably would move to 8 p.m. that night, squeezing out new drama "Human Target," which airs during the hour. "Target" still would air an original that week, probably behind the Tuesday "Idol," bumping "Kitchen Nightmares."  CBS was mulling its options: keeping its Wednesday comedy block at 8 p.m. or possibly moving one of its high-rated Wednesday crime dramas, "Criminal Minds" or "CSI: NY," into the 8 p.m. slot. (The network has done that in the past with "CSI: NY.")  ABC probably will air a pair of its three Wednesday comedies, with family-friendly "The Middle" and "Modern Family" leading contenders, leading into political coverage.  The Jan. 27 date, which falls the day before the start of the February sweep, came as a bit of a surprise as dates previously floated by the White House were Jan. 26 and Feb. 2.  After "Lost" groupies mounted a campaign against a potential pre-emption of the ABC series' three-hour premiere event Feb. 2, the White House took the unusual step of reassuring fans through spokesman Robert Gibbs that Obama won't interfere with the show's season opener.
Hollywood Reporter


Super Bowl to Air Pro-Life Ad
Tim Tebow is taking his star power to sport’s biggest stage.  The former Florida quarterback and his mother will appear in a 30-second commercial during the Super Bowl next month.  The Christian group Focus on the Family says the Tebows will share a personal story centering on the theme “Celebrate Family, Celebrate Life.”  The group isn’t releasing details, but the commercial is likely to be an anti-abortion message chronicling Pam Tebow’s 1987 pregnancy.  After getting sick during a mission trip to the Philippines, she ignored a recommendation by doctors to abort her fifth child and gave birth to Tim.  The 2007 Heisman Trophy winner ended his college career with several NCAA, Southeastern Conference and school records, and two national championships.  Tebow also has been very involved in his family’s Christian-based ministry.  Jim Daly, president and CEO of Focus on the Family, said the commercial comes at a time when “families need to be inspired.”  Thirty-second commercials during the Super Bowl are selling for between $2.5 million and $2.8 million.  Daly said all the funds for the ad came from a handful of “very generous and committed friends,” and that no money from the group’s general fund was used.
Yahoo Rivals


Colbert Sponsors US Speedskating
Nearly 10,000 viewers of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report" have contributed more than $300,000 to sponsor the U.S. Speedskating team in the Winter Olympics, exceeding the money it would have gotten this year from its former backer, Dutch Bank DSB, which went bankrupt.  The sponsorship has had its challenges, however, reports Howard Berkes, although they are of the type that seem to generate even more publicity.  Stephen Colbert initially wanted his face to appear on the thighs of the skaters but, given the variables of anatomy and skin-tight material, "he'd have cheeks stretched wide like Silly Putty," Berkes says.  A Colbert Nation logo will grace skaters' thighs instead.  Then, apparently wary of the comedian's intentions, speedskating star Shani Davis called Colbert a jerk. Colbert responded by challenging him to a race.  Davis accepted the challenge and the results will be televised this week.
MediaPost


Army iPhone App Among Top Free News Apps
A United States Army iPhone application is charging up the Apple download charts.  Launched in December, the application has quick become one of the top free news applications in Apple's AppStore.  The application lets users access Army news, images from the Army's official Flickr stream, official Army videos, Army social media sites, podcasts, games and other Army-produced media.  Soldiers and loved ones can also use the app to save individual stories, images and videos to a list of favorites and share content via social media and e-mail.  According to the Army, since being released late last month, the application has been downloaded more than 20,000 times, placing it among the top 25 free news applications in the AppStore.
Information Week


Kids are Completely Connected, Study Finds
Outside of school and sleep, young people now spend "practically every waking minute" connected to one digital device or another, according to new research from the Kaiser Family Foundation.  Today, those ages 8 to 18 spend more than seven and a half hours a day with some sort of device.  By contrast, they were connected less than six and a half hours five years ago, when the study was last conducted.  What's more, those numbers do not even include the hour and a half that youths spend texting, or the half-hour they talk on their cellphones.  Overall, multitasking teens and pre-teens are packing an average of nearly 11 hours of "media content" into that seven and a half hours.  While most of the young people in the study got good grades, 47 percent of the heaviest media users — those who consumed at least 16 hours a day — had mostly C’s or lower, compared with 23 percent of those who typically consumed media three hours a day or less.  The heaviest media users were also more likely than the lightest users to report that they were bored or sad, or that they got into trouble, did not get along well with their parents and were not happy at school.  The study could not say whether the media use causes problems, or, rather, whether troubled youths turn to heavy media use.  The heaviest media users, the study found, are black and Hispanic youths and “tweens,” or those ages 11 to 14.  Of note, and contrary to popular wisdom, the heaviest media users reported spending a similar amount of time exercising as the light media users.
NY Times


Newsweek Taps Obama for Haiti Cover Story
Like at a lot of publications, Newsweek was forced to start its week over when the earthquake hit Haiti.  Give the magazine credit for an artful recovery.  The Washington Post Co.-owned publication has tapped President Barack Obama to pen a cover story on Haiti for the Jan. 25 issue hitting newsstands on Monday.  Newsweek was readying a story about the Google-China row when the earthquake hit.  Editor Jon Meacham scrapped his plans and hit the phones in search of the highest authority he could find to weigh in, according to a person familiar with the matter.  He reached David Axelrod, senior adviser to Obama, who asked his boss if he was game.  Getting Obama to write an essay about the Haiti tragedy is a coup for the struggling magazine and aligns squarely with its new strategy.  Newsweek lost $25 million in the first half of 2009, and the Post Co. last year reinvented the magazine, cutting its staff and shifting its focus from news reporting to commentary.  The list of contributors on many weeks reads like a who’s who of political operatives and academics weighing in on hot-button issues.  The most recent cover story, “The Conservative Case for Gay Marriage,” was written by Theodore Olson, who also represented George W. Bush in the Supreme Court case Bush v. Gore and later became President Bush’s first solicitor general.  Newsweek’s Obama-Haiti issue will hit newsstands a few days before the one-year anniversary of the inauguration of Obama, who’s getting mixed reviews in the polls.
WSJ


Senator Is the Centerfold
Long before he was a politician, the Republican candidate vying for Ted Kennedy’s U.S. Senate seat posed nude for the centerfold of Cosmo.  Scott Brown won our “America’s Sexiest Man” contest and appeared in the June 1982 issue.  In those days he was a 22-year-old law student at Boston College who was cramming for finals just days before stripping down for our photographer.  “Here at Cosmo we’ve had bachelors go on to be actors, models, and reality show stars, so we’re thrilled that one has gone on to become a politician,” says Kate White, Cosmo’s editor in chief.  Obviously we know how to pick ’em.  This particular bachelor has always had political ambitions and even admitted to being “a bit of a patriot” when we interviewed him.  Compared to some men in the GOP, this politician looks pretty damn good for his age.  We bet he still has an amazing body underneath his suit and tie.  There have been plenty of pics of our president running around without his shirt, so now that a precedent has been set, we’re hoping to see Scott shirtless again.
Cosmopolitan


'Tweet Me' Joins Sweethearts Candy
The familiar candy hearts from Necco that have been a Valentine's Day tradition since the Civil War will carry a new endearment this year: "Tweet Me."  The move accelerates recent commercial tie-ins for the 145-year-old Sweetheart brand, Bruce Horovitz writes, while it's a freebie public relations coup for Twitter.  Patricia Martin, author of Renaissance Generation: The Rise of the Cultural Consumer and What it Means to Your Business, sees the relationship as a harbinger of marketing hook-ups to come.  "It's a new way of advertising when two brands get together to create cultural meaning," she says.  "That's very different from creating a 30-second TV spot."  In the past, Sweethearts has used "Fax Me," "Email Me," and even "Bite Me" (a tie-in with the "Twilight" film last year).  But this year is this year, and Twitter is where the PR potential, as well as cultural meaning, is clearly at.
MediaPost


Mountain Bike Maker Seeks 'Oddvertisers'
High-end mountain and road-bike maker Titus Cycles, based in Tempe, Ariz., is doing something rather unusual to promote itself.  The company is combining a three-stage print and online campaign -- breaking serially this month -- in April and July, with a promotion that offers free mountain bikes, valued at $25,635, to the first four riders, which the company calls "oddvertisers" willing to get a tattoo, a branded wedding, or a name change reflecting the Titus Cycles name.  The effort, via Boulder, Colo.-based TDA Advertising & Design, encourages cyclists to submit an original Titus Cycles tattoo design, plus the size and place they are willing to have it inked, at titusti.com/humanbillboard.  The winner will be chosen by design via online vote, and then the company will film the tattoo process. When the tattoo is finished, the winner gets a $5,170 2010 Titus FTM Carbon bike.  The next element happens in April, when the first couple to opt in at titusti.com/spandexwedding, vowing to be wed in Titus racing jerseys, receive a video of the ceremony, and on completion, a men's and a women's 2010 Titus X Carbon, worth about $7,600 each.  And in the last element of the effort, in July, the first to sign, at titusti.com/rockstar29er, to have his or her name legally changed to Rockstar 29'er will, on completion, get a $6,265 2010 Titus Rockstar 29'er bicycle.  The tactic is unusual, but not unheard of.  Tiremaker Dunlop has had promotions inviting people to get their hair cut in a tire-tread design, get Dunlop tats, and in Canada, the company ran a promotion in 2003 inviting people with surnames that were the same as a tire brand to change it legally to Dunlop.  Four Canadians (their names were Goodyear) did so and split a $25,000 purse
MediaPost


Message From Michael
HAITI AND NEWS MEDIA:  In the Haitian Vodou religion there is a phrase – Sa Nou Pa We Yo.  It translates to – Those We Don’t See, or The Invisible Ones.  A belief, according to Goucher College professor and writer Madison Smartt Bell writing in The New York Times, that those who die inhabit a parallel universe close to the living.  With a history of poverty and neglect, that phrase could probably be applied to all Haitians.  Now though with the media coverage of the devastating earthquake, we are getting to see them in all their misery and hurt.  The question being asked by some is whether that attention will continue.  The answer to that may come in the form of social media and social networking.

As usual, there is the ‘standard’ coverage, with the networks scrambling to get their anchors and A-team correspondents there.  The TVNewsers section of the Mediabistro.com website has a running tally of some 30 reporters and anchors sent to Port au Prince.  Interestingly, just about every on-air person has said the same thing, it seems to me, that the cameras can’t catch the feeling or the magnitude of the devastation.  Major newspapers were also scrambling, especially since The Columbia Journalism Review reports that only the Associated Press had a foreign correspondent in Haiti.  Both Reuters and Agence France Presse employ Haitian-born reporters.  There are several Caribbean news sites, including website Radio Station World which lists 78 radio stations in Haiti broadcasting on the web.  Again, in what appears to be common place with such events, Twitter and most particularly Twitpic led the mainstream media coverage, according to an analysis by the Sydney Morning Herald with some of the first pictures and stories out.  In addition, less than five days since being created, Facebook site Earthquake Haiti has more than 264,000 members.  PC World cites a wordpress blog, Haitifeed, as one of the best sources for its steady stream of first hand accounts, mixed in with mainstream media accounts.  One of the better sites for getting an overview look at the media coverage of the Haitian tragedy is webjournalist.org, created by Professor Robert Hernandez of the University Of Southern California – Annenberg which shows a variety of multi-media displays of the earthquake, including before and after aerials of the area.  The website shows what some of the creative “mainstream media” can do, including CNN’s iReport section which Hernandez rightfully notes, “was made for a story like this.”

SLACKTAVISM AND FICLETS:  As much as the new media and social networking tools have played a big part in the media coverage, they may play an even bigger part in the thing they are named for – new and social – as in helping people in new ways.  For example, more than $7 Million has been raised by the Mobile Giving Foundation just over the weekend.  By simply texting the word “Haiti” to one of several different numbers, you could donate $5 or $10 to groups ranging from the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund, to The Salvation Army, UNICEF, American Red Cross – any one of 20 groups.  The amount is added to your monthly cell phone bill, meaning you don’t have to use your credit card.  The beauty of this, is that it is so easy that it overcomes people’s inertia in giving – what the Word Of Mouth Marketing Association called “slacktavism” – a term that refers to people with good intentions but closed wallets.  Also on Facebook, a guy named Stephen D. Chowrono has started a group called “for every person who joins I will donate $0.05” to the earthquake victims.  More than 260,000 people have joined and he has donated $3,200.  On community website, Live Journal, they’re holding an auction of items donated by members with the proceeds going to Haiti relief.  One of them is a Ficlet, which refers to really, really short, short stories and which, apparently, lots of people know about (no, not me.)

WASHING THE DIRTY LAUNDRY:  All right, I will admit I use the Don Henley song too often when talking about journalism, but there is one line in the song that really applies to a study released by Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism:  “When It’s Said and Done, We Haven’t Told You A Thing.”  Apparently that’s true, especially of so-called new media.  In a study of the ‘news ecosystem’ in Baltimore, designed to find out who really produces what in news, the authors say eight out of the ten stories (83%) were simply repeats or re-packaged versions of previous stories.  And of those stories that were actually and truly new enterprise stories, nearly every one (95%) came from so-called ‘traditional media’ – either newspapers or local TV, with newspapers (roughly 48%) outweighing local TV (28%) by a significant margin, followed by specialty newspapers (13%) and radio (7%).  At the same time, the report found that local TV produced more content than newspapers and that local TV was ‘more local’ with two thirds of its stories (64%) local compared to about half (53%) for newspapers.

Not that the traditional media have anything to be particularly proud of, according to the study.  The study found, for example, that The Sun newspaper produced a third less (32%) stories last year than it did in 1999 and three quarters (72%) less than in 1991.   Even less to be proud of, and running counter to everything we broadcast teachers teach and we consultants advise, the report found ‘official news’ dominates what it called the news ‘echo chamber’ with nearly two-thirds (62%) of all the news coming from government officials.  It was to the point that the official news releases were being ‘reported’ word for word.  In part the study says that was because of the emphasis on using the new technology to break news.

The report focused on Baltimore as a microcosm of what is happening in the news business, and although the authors were careful to say it is only one example, the implication was that what they found there was indicative of what is happening everywhere.  Interestingly, the study authors found 53 different news outlets in the city, ranging from the daily newspaper, weeklies, local television, news/ talk radio, blogs, websites by former journalists and even some news twittering.  Most of those new media efforts were more of an “alert system,” according to the study, with the Web in particular, clearly the first place of publication for all the media.  But those same websites also had some of the oldest news, including ‘numerous examples’ of other people’s work being carried without attribution and even old stories that were obsolete being carried well after events had changed and the original website having updated them.

BEECHWOOD 4-5-7-8-9:  More than one in five (22.7%) of American homes use ONLY wireless phones and have NO landline phones, according to a national health survey by the Centers for Disease Control.  That survey took a snapshot of the first half of last year, and the percentage has been rising a steady five points each year, according to the authors.  The one in five figure is double what it was in 2006 when one in ten homes had only wireless phones.  What the study called ‘wireless-mostly households’ in which there are wireless and landline phones but almost all the calls are made wirelessly make up a seventh (14.7%) of all households.  Not too surprisingly, younger people are more likely to go wireless, with, for example, nearly half (45.8%) of those adults aged 25 – 29 living in households with only wireless telephones.  It’s roughly a third (33.5%) for those aged 30 – 34, but more than that (37.6%) for those even younger – 18 – 24.  Men (22.5%) and women (19.8%) are about equally likely to live in a household with only wireless telephones.  People living in poverty are nearly twice as likely (33%) to be wireless only than higher income adults (18.9%).  In keeping with that, and the study’s focus on health, the report found that wireless-only adults are more likely (35.3%) to binge drink than landline households (19.3%); more likely to be current smokers; more likely to have been tested for HIV, and twice as likely (29.4%) to have no health insurance than landline households (13.7%).  Finally, a question, does anybody out there know what the headline refers to, and do any of you remember when phone numbers had word prefixes?

COCKTAIL CHATTER:  A 12-ounce cup of Starbucks coffee has nearly double the caffeine of a 16-ounce cup of coffee from either McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts.  That’s about 260 mg’s of caffeine versus the other’s 140 mg’s.  According to the article from Fast Company from which this is drawn, the Starbucks injection is only slightly short of that from a 12-ounce can of Jolt, at roughly 280mg’s which, in turn, is only slightly short of the 300 mg’s which is labeled “caffeine intoxication” or “the jitters.”   Just so you know, Coke, Mountain Dew and Diet Coke hover around the 50mg mark.  If you want to see the numbers for yourself, the link is http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ben-paynter/ben-paynter/caffeine-charting-your-morning-buzz.  In the category of whose-ox-is-being-gored decision making, when Americans were asked specifically which of 14 federal programs to cut, only two programs would be cut and, even then, only one in five would agree to those being cut.  Nine of the programs would actually get increases, according to the survey on the Pew Center’s Databank, and three would remain the same.  Oh, and in case you’re wondering, the programs Americans would cut are assistance to needy people around the world (ironic, considering the Haiti situation) and the State Department.  If you want to see the specifics, go to  http://pewresearch.org/databank/dailynumber/?NumberID=906 .  And, finally, in the category of OMG-I-wished-I-could-do-that, a one-time surfing bum has started a time share with a difference.  After sailing around the world in a 52-foot catamaran, Gavin McClurg put together a package of investors who bought shares in a much larger sailing vessel at $20,000 a share for the right to spend a week or two aboard the sailing ship.  According to the article in Forbes magazine, you can go to an archipelago, the South Seas, the tropics… you name it.  If you want to dream a little, here’s the link:  http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/0118/entrepreneurs-offshore-odysseys-timeshare-share-float.html.

Michael Castengera is an instructor at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia AND President of Media Strategies and Tactics Inc., a consulting firm that works with all media but primarily broadcasting.  You can visit his website at MediaConsultant.tv.


More Conan Quips

"I am Conan O'Brien, and I am just three days away from the biggest drinking binge in history."

"We've had so much nice support.  Yesterday, you probably saw this. There were rallies for me in cities across the country, including Chicago, which I thought was nice.  You can tell things are bad when even Cubs fans feel sorry for you."

"I've had a crazy time the last couple days.  Today was very busy.  I spent the afternoon at Universal Studios amusement park, enjoying their brand-new ride, the Tunnel of Litigation.  That's a crappy ride."

"Some papers are reporting that I'm legally prohibited from saying anything bad about NBC.  Yeah, for example, I am not allowed to say things like, 'NBC is headed downhill faster than a fat guy chasing a barrel of cheese.'"

"Some other stories in the press are saying that in the future, I may not be able to retain what is known as my show's intellectual property.  I may not be able to retain it.  Yeah.  No, look at the bright side.  Isn't it great to live in a country where a cigar smoking dog puppet and a bear that masturbates are considered intellectual property?'"

Politicalhumor.about.com


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The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. 602 Communications is a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and promotion skills. We teach workshops on teasing, marketing, reporting, producing, lighting, editing, internet and graphics.Get more information on all our workshops.

The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. We are a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and marketing skills.  Check out thousands of cutting edge examples at our web site.  Join us on Facebook and Twitter.

Sent via TVSpy's email servers. Visit TV Spy's Marketing Matters.

Graeme Newell
602 Communications
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(919) 217-4438
Web Site
Facebook
Twitter

The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. 602 Communications is a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and promotion skills. We teach workshops on teasing, marketing, reporting, producing, lighting, editing, internet and graphics.Get more information on all our workshops.

The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. We are a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and marketing skills.  Check out thousands of cutting edge examples at our web site.  Join us on Facebook and Twitter.

Sent via TVSpy's email servers. Visit TV Spy's Marketing Matters.

Graeme Newell
602 Communications
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(919) 217-4438
Web Site
Facebook
Twitter


In This Issue
Promo of the Day
Localism Key for TV Stations
NBC, Conan Settle on $40 to Walk Away
Talks Held Up Over Staff Severance
Conan's Last Shows are Sellouts
Obama Sets SOTU Date
Super Bowl to Air Pro-Life Ad
Colbert Sponsors US Speedskating
Army iPhone App Among Top Free News Apps
Kids are Completely Connected, Study Finds
Newsweek Taps Obama for Haiti Cover Story
Senator Is the Centerfold
'Tweet Me' Joins Sweethearts Candy
Mountain Bike Maker Seeks 'Oddvertisers'
Message From Michael
More Conan Quips


Quotes

"A city is a large community where people are lonesome together."
- Herbert Prochnow

"How does one keep from "growing old inside"?  Surely only in community.  The only way to make friends with time is to stay friends with people.  Taking community seriously not only gives us the companionship we need, it also relieves us of the notion that we are indispensable."
- Robert McAfee Brown

"The love of our neighbor in all its fullness simply means being able to say, "What are you going through?"
- Simone Weil


Promo of the Day
3 intense Storm Stories promos from The Weather Channel promise to show 'the worst of nature, the best of man.'

WGCL Atlanta claims that their talent Jennifer Valdez is 'The Most Interesting Morning Meteorologist in the World"...a fun parody of the Dos Equis beer campaign.

WTVJ Miami gets to gloat about their winter weather with this weather promo.

602communications.com/VideoExamples

Have a video clip to share?  Email it to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Flash (.flv) or QuickTime (.mov) files, size 320 x 240, are preferred, but WindowsMedia (.wmv) files will also be accepted.  Large files may be sent via http://www.yousendit.com.  You can also mail your clip on VHS or DVD to Graeme Newell at 1011 Lyndhurst Falls Lane, Knightdale, NC  27545.


Localism Key for TV Stations
TV stations need to embrace more of their localism to be successful in the coming years -- which could mean no more new court or tabloid magazine shows.  We're talking about the current failure of trying to cater to an entire DMA the same way. In the digital age, this is too much "broadcasting."  Stations need to go far beyond local efforts and focus much more on micro-localism.

TV consultant/analyst firm BIA/Kelsey says 2010 will be a watershed year.  It says stations need to use their resources -- well-known local brands, strong local content, and experienced sales personnel -- to get things moving.  When executives speak of local content, they are talking mostly about local news.  But this may not be enough. TV stations need to get much more targeted.  Take the New York DMA: What do teenagers in Staten Island want, women on the Upper East Side, or working class men in Garden City?  What if you had different programming for each?

It would seem that for TV stations to survive long-term, they need to think beyond sending a TV station's local newscast straight to your cell phone.  That alone isn't going to be the savior of TV stations.  What should change?  Perhaps there should be fewer nationally distributed syndicated talk shows, court shows, magazine shows, and off-network sitcoms.

This is not to say nationally syndicated programming doesn't have its place.  It brings decent rating to stations, which makes them great marketing platforms for local TV newscasts.  But TV stations may have relied too much on those shows, in a tactic fueled by the Financial Interest and Syndication Rules.  The FCC started up Fin-Syn in 1970.  But the intent was for stations to program "locally" in an attempt to increase program diversity and limit the market control of the three broadcast television networks.  (The rules were eliminated in the mid-'90s).  It didn't turn out that way.

It may sound crazy for a TV station to think about multiple programming options targeting different viewers in different neighborhoods.  But that may be what consumers want.  How can one TV station finance all of these options?  Maybe it comes from social media content; maybe user-generated video.

The National Association of Television Program Executives meeting is about to start up next week in Las Vegas, a much smaller conference than it was in previous decades -- smaller perhaps because of how the national program sales process gets transacted these days.  Considering the year TV stations had in 2009 and the last half of 2008, executives need to think well beyond just one 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. nationally distributed show.  Maybe that's something NATPE might see as an opportunity.

MediaPost


NBC, Conan Settle on $40 to Walk Away
Conan O'Brien is close to signing a nearly $40 million deal to walk away from his dream job hosting NBC's "The Tonight Show," bringing down the curtain on one of the entertainment industry's biggest debacles in years.  The comedian's exit agreement, which could be completed as early as Tuesday, bars Mr. O'Brien from bad-mouthing his former NBC bosses, according to people familiar with the matter, but paves the way for him to land another television gig within a year.
WSJ


Talks Held Up Over Staff Severance

With most of the television industry anticipating a formal announcement Tuesday of the widely expected exit of Conan O’Brien from NBC’s late-night lineup and the restoration of Jay Leno as host of the “Tonight Show,” the negotiations continued to be held up on one issue, according to representatives on both sides of the talks.  The issue is how much severance staff members of the current “Tonight Show” will receive once the show leaves the air – most likely after this Friday.  Gavin Polone, Mr. O’Brien’s manager, said the issue was causing understandable problems because “it’s the same thing that’s going on all over the country when people are put out of work.”  But he added, “We’re fighting to do better for them.”  A representative from NBC’s side of the negotiations confirmed that last-minute haggling over payouts to the staff members is the chief reason an announcement had been held up, with Mr. O’Brien’s representatives seeking as much as $12 million to cover those not under contract who will lose work once he leaves the show.  But like much of the rest of the negotiations, the wrangling over severance was becoming contentious late Tuesday. In reaction to how Mr. Polone characterized the severance discussions, an NBC spokesperson released a statement, which read:  “It was Conan’s decision to leave NBC that resulted in nearly 200 of his staffers being out of work.   We have already agreed to pay millions of dollars to compensate every one of them.  This latest posturing is nothing more than a PR ploy.”      Media Decoder


Conan's Last Shows are Sellouts
Looking to buy a TV commercial in the last episodes of "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien"?  You're out of luck.  "It's sold out," says one veteran media agency executive.  O'Brien's ratings have been soaring over the last two weeks, due to his ongoing verbal jousting with NBC executives about a proposal to shift the show to 12:05 a.m. -- an idea he has rejected.  The subject has dominated all his monologues.  Since that time, the show's 18-49 ratings have averaged a 1.9 -- around 50% above the 1.2 number he had been earning.  All this has pushed competitor "Late Show with David Letterman" well down into second place, to around a 0.7 to a 0.9 rating among 18-49 viewers.  Letterman had been regularly beating O'Brien before the late-night controversy started.  Executives say pricing for late-night talk-show programming, including "The Tonight Show," has ranged from $40,000 to $45,000 for a 30-second commercial.  Much of the hard-to-buy late-night program ad activity started up months ago -- before talk of the any programming changes began.  Late-night inventory has been tight in "Tonight" as well as "Letterman" and other shows for months.
MediaPost


Obama Sets SOTU Date
The White House on Monday set Jan. 27 as the date for President Obama's latest State of the Union address.  Because of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, broadcast networks are expected to firm up plans for covering the event Tuesday.  NBC is expected to stick with "Mercy" at 8 p.m., followed by coverage of the speech and news coverage from 9-11 p.m., preempting "Law & Order: SVU" and "The Jay Leno Show."  Fox would be making the biggest move as the address faces its Wednesday edition of "American Idol."  "Idol" probably would move to 8 p.m. that night, squeezing out new drama "Human Target," which airs during the hour. "Target" still would air an original that week, probably behind the Tuesday "Idol," bumping "Kitchen Nightmares."  CBS was mulling its options: keeping its Wednesday comedy block at 8 p.m. or possibly moving one of its high-rated Wednesday crime dramas, "Criminal Minds" or "CSI: NY," into the 8 p.m. slot. (The network has done that in the past with "CSI: NY.")  ABC probably will air a pair of its three Wednesday comedies, with family-friendly "The Middle" and "Modern Family" leading contenders, leading into political coverage.  The Jan. 27 date, which falls the day before the start of the February sweep, came as a bit of a surprise as dates previously floated by the White House were Jan. 26 and Feb. 2.  After "Lost" groupies mounted a campaign against a potential pre-emption of the ABC series' three-hour premiere event Feb. 2, the White House took the unusual step of reassuring fans through spokesman Robert Gibbs that Obama won't interfere with the show's season opener.
Hollywood Reporter


Super Bowl to Air Pro-Life Ad
Tim Tebow is taking his star power to sport’s biggest stage.  The former Florida quarterback and his mother will appear in a 30-second commercial during the Super Bowl next month.  The Christian group Focus on the Family says the Tebows will share a personal story centering on the theme “Celebrate Family, Celebrate Life.”  The group isn’t releasing details, but the commercial is likely to be an anti-abortion message chronicling Pam Tebow’s 1987 pregnancy.  After getting sick during a mission trip to the Philippines, she ignored a recommendation by doctors to abort her fifth child and gave birth to Tim.  The 2007 Heisman Trophy winner ended his college career with several NCAA, Southeastern Conference and school records, and two national championships.  Tebow also has been very involved in his family’s Christian-based ministry.  Jim Daly, president and CEO of Focus on the Family, said the commercial comes at a time when “families need to be inspired.”  Thirty-second commercials during the Super Bowl are selling for between $2.5 million and $2.8 million.  Daly said all the funds for the ad came from a handful of “very generous and committed friends,” and that no money from the group’s general fund was used.
Yahoo Rivals


Colbert Sponsors US Speedskating
Nearly 10,000 viewers of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report" have contributed more than $300,000 to sponsor the U.S. Speedskating team in the Winter Olympics, exceeding the money it would have gotten this year from its former backer, Dutch Bank DSB, which went bankrupt.  The sponsorship has had its challenges, however, reports Howard Berkes, although they are of the type that seem to generate even more publicity.  Stephen Colbert initially wanted his face to appear on the thighs of the skaters but, given the variables of anatomy and skin-tight material, "he'd have cheeks stretched wide like Silly Putty," Berkes says.  A Colbert Nation logo will grace skaters' thighs instead.  Then, apparently wary of the comedian's intentions, speedskating star Shani Davis called Colbert a jerk. Colbert responded by challenging him to a race.  Davis accepted the challenge and the results will be televised this week.
MediaPost


Army iPhone App Among Top Free News Apps
A United States Army iPhone application is charging up the Apple download charts.  Launched in December, the application has quick become one of the top free news applications in Apple's AppStore.  The application lets users access Army news, images from the Army's official Flickr stream, official Army videos, Army social media sites, podcasts, games and other Army-produced media.  Soldiers and loved ones can also use the app to save individual stories, images and videos to a list of favorites and share content via social media and e-mail.  According to the Army, since being released late last month, the application has been downloaded more than 20,000 times, placing it among the top 25 free news applications in the AppStore.
Information Week


Kids are Completely Connected, Study Finds
Outside of school and sleep, young people now spend "practically every waking minute" connected to one digital device or another, according to new research from the Kaiser Family Foundation.  Today, those ages 8 to 18 spend more than seven and a half hours a day with some sort of device.  By contrast, they were connected less than six and a half hours five years ago, when the study was last conducted.  What's more, those numbers do not even include the hour and a half that youths spend texting, or the half-hour they talk on their cellphones.  Overall, multitasking teens and pre-teens are packing an average of nearly 11 hours of "media content" into that seven and a half hours.  While most of the young people in the study got good grades, 47 percent of the heaviest media users — those who consumed at least 16 hours a day — had mostly C’s or lower, compared with 23 percent of those who typically consumed media three hours a day or less.  The heaviest media users were also more likely than the lightest users to report that they were bored or sad, or that they got into trouble, did not get along well with their parents and were not happy at school.  The study could not say whether the media use causes problems, or, rather, whether troubled youths turn to heavy media use.  The heaviest media users, the study found, are black and Hispanic youths and “tweens,” or those ages 11 to 14.  Of note, and contrary to popular wisdom, the heaviest media users reported spending a similar amount of time exercising as the light media users.
NY Times


Newsweek Taps Obama for Haiti Cover Story
Like at a lot of publications, Newsweek was forced to start its week over when the earthquake hit Haiti.  Give the magazine credit for an artful recovery.  The Washington Post Co.-owned publication has tapped President Barack Obama to pen a cover story on Haiti for the Jan. 25 issue hitting newsstands on Monday.  Newsweek was readying a story about the Google-China row when the earthquake hit.  Editor Jon Meacham scrapped his plans and hit the phones in search of the highest authority he could find to weigh in, according to a person familiar with the matter.  He reached David Axelrod, senior adviser to Obama, who asked his boss if he was game.  Getting Obama to write an essay about the Haiti tragedy is a coup for the struggling magazine and aligns squarely with its new strategy.  Newsweek lost $25 million in the first half of 2009, and the Post Co. last year reinvented the magazine, cutting its staff and shifting its focus from news reporting to commentary.  The list of contributors on many weeks reads like a who’s who of political operatives and academics weighing in on hot-button issues.  The most recent cover story, “The Conservative Case for Gay Marriage,” was written by Theodore Olson, who also represented George W. Bush in the Supreme Court case Bush v. Gore and later became President Bush’s first solicitor general.  Newsweek’s Obama-Haiti issue will hit newsstands a few days before the one-year anniversary of the inauguration of Obama, who’s getting mixed reviews in the polls.
WSJ


Senator Is the Centerfold
Long before he was a politician, the Republican candidate vying for Ted Kennedy’s U.S. Senate seat posed nude for the centerfold of Cosmo.  Scott Brown won our “America’s Sexiest Man” contest and appeared in the June 1982 issue.  In those days he was a 22-year-old law student at Boston College who was cramming for finals just days before stripping down for our photographer.  “Here at Cosmo we’ve had bachelors go on to be actors, models, and reality show stars, so we’re thrilled that one has gone on to become a politician,” says Kate White, Cosmo’s editor in chief.  Obviously we know how to pick ’em.  This particular bachelor has always had political ambitions and even admitted to being “a bit of a patriot” when we interviewed him.  Compared to some men in the GOP, this politician looks pretty damn good for his age.  We bet he still has an amazing body underneath his suit and tie.  There have been plenty of pics of our president running around without his shirt, so now that a precedent has been set, we’re hoping to see Scott shirtless again.
Cosmopolitan


'Tweet Me' Joins Sweethearts Candy
The familiar candy hearts from Necco that have been a Valentine's Day tradition since the Civil War will carry a new endearment this year: "Tweet Me."  The move accelerates recent commercial tie-ins for the 145-year-old Sweetheart brand, Bruce Horovitz writes, while it's a freebie public relations coup for Twitter.  Patricia Martin, author of Renaissance Generation: The Rise of the Cultural Consumer and What it Means to Your Business, sees the relationship as a harbinger of marketing hook-ups to come.  "It's a new way of advertising when two brands get together to create cultural meaning," she says.  "That's very different from creating a 30-second TV spot."  In the past, Sweethearts has used "Fax Me," "Email Me," and even "Bite Me" (a tie-in with the "Twilight" film last year).  But this year is this year, and Twitter is where the PR potential, as well as cultural meaning, is clearly at.
MediaPost


Mountain Bike Maker Seeks 'Oddvertisers'
High-end mountain and road-bike maker Titus Cycles, based in Tempe, Ariz., is doing something rather unusual to promote itself.  The company is combining a three-stage print and online campaign -- breaking serially this month -- in April and July, with a promotion that offers free mountain bikes, valued at $25,635, to the first four riders, which the company calls "oddvertisers" willing to get a tattoo, a branded wedding, or a name change reflecting the Titus Cycles name.  The effort, via Boulder, Colo.-based TDA Advertising & Design, encourages cyclists to submit an original Titus Cycles tattoo design, plus the size and place they are willing to have it inked, at titusti.com/humanbillboard.  The winner will be chosen by design via online vote, and then the company will film the tattoo process. When the tattoo is finished, the winner gets a $5,170 2010 Titus FTM Carbon bike.  The next element happens in April, when the first couple to opt in at titusti.com/spandexwedding, vowing to be wed in Titus racing jerseys, receive a video of the ceremony, and on completion, a men's and a women's 2010 Titus X Carbon, worth about $7,600 each.  And in the last element of the effort, in July, the first to sign, at titusti.com/rockstar29er, to have his or her name legally changed to Rockstar 29'er will, on completion, get a $6,265 2010 Titus Rockstar 29'er bicycle.  The tactic is unusual, but not unheard of.  Tiremaker Dunlop has had promotions inviting people to get their hair cut in a tire-tread design, get Dunlop tats, and in Canada, the company ran a promotion in 2003 inviting people with surnames that were the same as a tire brand to change it legally to Dunlop.  Four Canadians (their names were Goodyear) did so and split a $25,000 purse
MediaPost


Message From Michael
HAITI AND NEWS MEDIA:  In the Haitian Vodou religion there is a phrase – Sa Nou Pa We Yo.  It translates to – Those We Don’t See, or The Invisible Ones.  A belief, according to Goucher College professor and writer Madison Smartt Bell writing in The New York Times, that those who die inhabit a parallel universe close to the living.  With a history of poverty and neglect, that phrase could probably be applied to all Haitians.  Now though with the media coverage of the devastating earthquake, we are getting to see them in all their misery and hurt.  The question being asked by some is whether that attention will continue.  The answer to that may come in the form of social media and social networking.

As usual, there is the ‘standard’ coverage, with the networks scrambling to get their anchors and A-team correspondents there.  The TVNewsers section of the Mediabistro.com website has a running tally of some 30 reporters and anchors sent to Port au Prince.  Interestingly, just about every on-air person has said the same thing, it seems to me, that the cameras can’t catch the feeling or the magnitude of the devastation.  Major newspapers were also scrambling, especially since The Columbia Journalism Review reports that only the Associated Press had a foreign correspondent in Haiti.  Both Reuters and Agence France Presse employ Haitian-born reporters.  There are several Caribbean news sites, including website Radio Station World which lists 78 radio stations in Haiti broadcasting on the web.  Again, in what appears to be common place with such events, Twitter and most particularly Twitpic led the mainstream media coverage, according to an analysis by the Sydney Morning Herald with some of the first pictures and stories out.  In addition, less than five days since being created, Facebook site Earthquake Haiti has more than 264,000 members.  PC World cites a wordpress blog, Haitifeed, as one of the best sources for its steady stream of first hand accounts, mixed in with mainstream media accounts.  One of the better sites for getting an overview look at the media coverage of the Haitian tragedy is webjournalist.org, created by Professor Robert Hernandez of the University Of Southern California – Annenberg which shows a variety of multi-media displays of the earthquake, including before and after aerials of the area.  The website shows what some of the creative “mainstream media” can do, including CNN’s iReport section which Hernandez rightfully notes, “was made for a story like this.”

SLACKTAVISM AND FICLETS:  As much as the new media and social networking tools have played a big part in the media coverage, they may play an even bigger part in the thing they are named for – new and social – as in helping people in new ways.  For example, more than $7 Million has been raised by the Mobile Giving Foundation just over the weekend.  By simply texting the word “Haiti” to one of several different numbers, you could donate $5 or $10 to groups ranging from the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund, to The Salvation Army, UNICEF, American Red Cross – any one of 20 groups.  The amount is added to your monthly cell phone bill, meaning you don’t have to use your credit card.  The beauty of this, is that it is so easy that it overcomes people’s inertia in giving – what the Word Of Mouth Marketing Association called “slacktavism” – a term that refers to people with good intentions but closed wallets.  Also on Facebook, a guy named Stephen D. Chowrono has started a group called “for every person who joins I will donate $0.05” to the earthquake victims.  More than 260,000 people have joined and he has donated $3,200.  On community website, Live Journal, they’re holding an auction of items donated by members with the proceeds going to Haiti relief.  One of them is a Ficlet, which refers to really, really short, short stories and which, apparently, lots of people know about (no, not me.)

WASHING THE DIRTY LAUNDRY:  All right, I will admit I use the Don Henley song too often when talking about journalism, but there is one line in the song that really applies to a study released by Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism:  “When It’s Said and Done, We Haven’t Told You A Thing.”  Apparently that’s true, especially of so-called new media.  In a study of the ‘news ecosystem’ in Baltimore, designed to find out who really produces what in news, the authors say eight out of the ten stories (83%) were simply repeats or re-packaged versions of previous stories.  And of those stories that were actually and truly new enterprise stories, nearly every one (95%) came from so-called ‘traditional media’ – either newspapers or local TV, with newspapers (roughly 48%) outweighing local TV (28%) by a significant margin, followed by specialty newspapers (13%) and radio (7%).  At the same time, the report found that local TV produced more content than newspapers and that local TV was ‘more local’ with two thirds of its stories (64%) local compared to about half (53%) for newspapers.

Not that the traditional media have anything to be particularly proud of, according to the study.  The study found, for example, that The Sun newspaper produced a third less (32%) stories last year than it did in 1999 and three quarters (72%) less than in 1991.   Even less to be proud of, and running counter to everything we broadcast teachers teach and we consultants advise, the report found ‘official news’ dominates what it called the news ‘echo chamber’ with nearly two-thirds (62%) of all the news coming from government officials.  It was to the point that the official news releases were being ‘reported’ word for word.  In part the study says that was because of the emphasis on using the new technology to break news.

The report focused on Baltimore as a microcosm of what is happening in the news business, and although the authors were careful to say it is only one example, the implication was that what they found there was indicative of what is happening everywhere.  Interestingly, the study authors found 53 different news outlets in the city, ranging from the daily newspaper, weeklies, local television, news/ talk radio, blogs, websites by former journalists and even some news twittering.  Most of those new media efforts were more of an “alert system,” according to the study, with the Web in particular, clearly the first place of publication for all the media.  But those same websites also had some of the oldest news, including ‘numerous examples’ of other people’s work being carried without attribution and even old stories that were obsolete being carried well after events had changed and the original website having updated them.

BEECHWOOD 4-5-7-8-9:  More than one in five (22.7%) of American homes use ONLY wireless phones and have NO landline phones, according to a national health survey by the Centers for Disease Control.  That survey took a snapshot of the first half of last year, and the percentage has been rising a steady five points each year, according to the authors.  The one in five figure is double what it was in 2006 when one in ten homes had only wireless phones.  What the study called ‘wireless-mostly households’ in which there are wireless and landline phones but almost all the calls are made wirelessly make up a seventh (14.7%) of all households.  Not too surprisingly, younger people are more likely to go wireless, with, for example, nearly half (45.8%) of those adults aged 25 – 29 living in households with only wireless telephones.  It’s roughly a third (33.5%) for those aged 30 – 34, but more than that (37.6%) for those even younger – 18 – 24.  Men (22.5%) and women (19.8%) are about equally likely to live in a household with only wireless telephones.  People living in poverty are nearly twice as likely (33%) to be wireless only than higher income adults (18.9%).  In keeping with that, and the study’s focus on health, the report found that wireless-only adults are more likely (35.3%) to binge drink than landline households (19.3%); more likely to be current smokers; more likely to have been tested for HIV, and twice as likely (29.4%) to have no health insurance than landline households (13.7%).  Finally, a question, does anybody out there know what the headline refers to, and do any of you remember when phone numbers had word prefixes?

COCKTAIL CHATTER:  A 12-ounce cup of Starbucks coffee has nearly double the caffeine of a 16-ounce cup of coffee from either McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts.  That’s about 260 mg’s of caffeine versus the other’s 140 mg’s.  According to the article from Fast Company from which this is drawn, the Starbucks injection is only slightly short of that from a 12-ounce can of Jolt, at roughly 280mg’s which, in turn, is only slightly short of the 300 mg’s which is labeled “caffeine intoxication” or “the jitters.”   Just so you know, Coke, Mountain Dew and Diet Coke hover around the 50mg mark.  If you want to see the numbers for yourself, the link is http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ben-paynter/ben-paynter/caffeine-charting-your-morning-buzz.  In the category of whose-ox-is-being-gored decision making, when Americans were asked specifically which of 14 federal programs to cut, only two programs would be cut and, even then, only one in five would agree to those being cut.  Nine of the programs would actually get increases, according to the survey on the Pew Center’s Databank, and three would remain the same.  Oh, and in case you’re wondering, the programs Americans would cut are assistance to needy people around the world (ironic, considering the Haiti situation) and the State Department.  If you want to see the specifics, go to  http://pewresearch.org/databank/dailynumber/?NumberID=906 .  And, finally, in the category of OMG-I-wished-I-could-do-that, a one-time surfing bum has started a time share with a difference.  After sailing around the world in a 52-foot catamaran, Gavin McClurg put together a package of investors who bought shares in a much larger sailing vessel at $20,000 a share for the right to spend a week or two aboard the sailing ship.  According to the article in Forbes magazine, you can go to an archipelago, the South Seas, the tropics… you name it.  If you want to dream a little, here’s the link:  http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/0118/entrepreneurs-offshore-odysseys-timeshare-share-float.html.

Michael Castengera is an instructor at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia AND President of Media Strategies and Tactics Inc., a consulting firm that works with all media but primarily broadcasting.  You can visit his website at MediaConsultant.tv.


More Conan Quips

"I am Conan O'Brien, and I am just three days away from the biggest drinking binge in history."

"We've had so much nice support.  Yesterday, you probably saw this. There were rallies for me in cities across the country, including Chicago, which I thought was nice.  You can tell things are bad when even Cubs fans feel sorry for you."

"I've had a crazy time the last couple days.  Today was very busy.  I spent the afternoon at Universal Studios amusement park, enjoying their brand-new ride, the Tunnel of Litigation.  That's a crappy ride."

"Some papers are reporting that I'm legally prohibited from saying anything bad about NBC.  Yeah, for example, I am not allowed to say things like, 'NBC is headed downhill faster than a fat guy chasing a barrel of cheese.'"

"Some other stories in the press are saying that in the future, I may not be able to retain what is known as my show's intellectual property.  I may not be able to retain it.  Yeah.  No, look at the bright side.  Isn't it great to live in a country where a cigar smoking dog puppet and a bear that masturbates are considered intellectual property?'"

Politicalhumor.about.com


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The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. 602 Communications is a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and promotion skills. We teach workshops on teasing, marketing, reporting, producing, lighting, editing, internet and graphics.Get more information on all our workshops.

The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. We are a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and marketing skills.  Check out thousands of cutting edge examples at our web site.  Join us on Facebook and Twitter.

Sent via TVSpy's email servers. Visit TV Spy's Marketing Matters.

Graeme Newell
602 Communications
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The Marketing Ideanet is a free idea sharing newsletter published by 602 Communications. 602 Communications is a TV training and consulting company that specializes in improving front-line news and promotion skills. We teach workshops on teasing, marketing, reporting, producing, lighting, editing, internet and graphics. Get more information on all our workshops.

The Marketing Ideanet is sent via TVSpy's e-mail servers. Visit TVSpy's Marketing Matters online community.

Graeme Newell
602 Communications
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(919) 217-4438
http://www.602communications.com


In This Issue
Adding Immediacy to your Topical Promos & Teases
Cable Series Shine at Golden Globes
$30M Payout to Conan?
NBC Take Possession of Conan Comedy Bits
For Sale on Craigslist: One Used Talk Show
Newscasts Lose $22M with 'Leno', Study Finds
Couric's Palin Interview Wins Journalism Award
NBC Plans 835 Hours of Olympics Coverage
Post-Olympics, Seinfeld Returns to NBC
TV News Doctors Treat Haitian Wounded
Broadcasters, Cable Commit To Michelle Obama PSAs
Comcast Sending $1M to Help Haiti
Scripps to Run Telethons for Haiti Aid
MTV Organizes 'Hope for Haiti' Telethon
NFL Scores Best Viewership in Two Decades
New Discovery/Hasbro Kids Channel Named 'The Hub'
Poll Finds 77% Won't Pay for e-Newspapers
Top Ten Messages On Jeff Zucker's Voicemail


Quotes

"Compassion literally means to feel with, to suffer with.  Everyone is capable of compassion, and yet everyone tends to avoid it because it's uncomfortable.  And the avoidance produces psychic numbing -- resistance to experiencing our pain for the world and other beings."
- Joanna Macy

"I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain."
- James Baldwin

"The bosses of our mass media, press, radio, film and television, succeed in their aim of taking our minds off disaster.  Thus, the distraction they offer demands the antidote of maximum concentration on disaster."
- Ernst Fischer, Austrian editor, poet, critic (1899-1972)


Adding Immediacy to your Topical Promos & Teases
by Graeme Newell
602 Communications
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http://www.602communications.com
Twitter: gnewell
Facebook: facebook.com/gnewell

Building a sense of urgency is one of the most compelling components of a news promo.   On a big story, new facts often become available throughout the shift.  Our natural inclination is to solely promote the most prominent facts of the story.  Typically, this will be an account of past events, leaving out current developments. We promote the facts of the robbery, not the manhunt that's going on right now.

If you want viewers to recognize the immediacy and urgency of your coverage, it is important to write teases that focus on developing facts, not a history of the story.  This clearly showcases the immediacy of your coverage.

Show viewers that your coverage is an on-going effort. Don't forget to include events happening NOW.  While it may not be the primary focus of your tease, this kind of information lends a sense of urgency and demonstrates the tenacity of your team.  Go through your copy and see if you can change references to past coverage.

For example:
"We'll tell you how she was hurt in the car accident."
Instead:
"Tonight, a live update on her condition at this hour."
Avoid:
"The clues that led to the arrest of the suspect."
Instead:
"Where the suspect is right now and the critical clues police are using to build a case.”

Do the same with stand ups.  Cut stand ups that show your coverage as developing minute to minute.  Take full advantage of breaking news opportunities.  When stories pop up in the hours prior to a cast, use images and words showing your developing coverage plans.  Have reporters do quick stand ups.  Do live (but carefully scripted) promos from the news room.  Show the team going out the door, on their way to the breaking story.  "We’re headed out the door right now, on our way to a tanker explosion on the west side.  We’ll have live pictures of the huge blaze coming up at five."  This strategy builds excitement and clearly reinforces your news image.

For late-breaking news stories, promise facts that are SURE to be in the story. Breaking news coverage is one of the most compelling parts of a newscast.  The problem is that when reporters head out the door on a breaking news story, they typically have no idea what they'll find at the location.  There is no video.  There is no sound.  Writing a promo promising specifics is almost impossible in this situation.  The crew doesn't know what they'll find because they have not arrived at the scene.

In situations like this, promise coverage you're SURE to have.  Typically, promos and teases simply reiterate the facts of the story instead of focusing on the coverage of those facts.

Weak:
"We have breaking news about a huge fire in Smithburg."
Stronger:
"A huge fire in Smithburg.  We'll show you which buildings are on fire and what firefighters are doing to put out the blaze."

If your team gets to the fire, these are facts they are SURE to get.  While these general promises aren't as strong as more exclusive promises of coverage, they are better than simply telling the audience you have breaking news.

Weak:
Late-breaking news.  A water main break downtown."
Stronger: "Find out how much water is in the streets and how workers are trying to cap the leak."
These are details that ANY report is bound to gather. 

Using this technique, you can avoid vague promos that promise nothing. You can promise breaking facts with a reasonable assurance the answers will be in the report.

Graeme Newell is a broadcast and web marketing specialist.  He guarantees that his teasing seminar will immediately increase your news ratings or his workshop is free.  Find out more here.


Cable Series Shine at Golden Globes
It was a big night for cable at the 67th annual Golden Globes Awards, with AMC's Mad Men taking home best TV series drama, and premium networks HBO and Showtime garnering four and three wins, respectively.  AMC became the first cable network to win the best drama award for the third year in a row with retro advertising series Mad Men, which orbits the professional and personal lives of folks working at a fictitious agency in the 1960s.  Mad Men topped Fox's medical drama House and three other cable contenders: HBO's respective polygamy and vampire series Big Love and True Blood, as well as Showtime's serial killer skein Dexter.

But Showtime did score a pair of awards with the latter.  Michael C. Hall, recovering from a bout with cancer, grabbed a Globe for the best performance by an actor in a drama for his portrayal of the title character, Dexter Morgan.  Hall beat out Simon Baker in CBS's The Mentalist, Hugh Laurie for his misanthropic doctor in House, Bill Paxton for Bill Henrickson, the leader of polygamist clan in Big Love and Jon Hamm for his role as Don Draper, the troubled but brilliant creative ad executive in Mad Men.

Lithgow won the actor in a supporting role in a series, miniseries or motion picture made for television for his portrayal of Arthur Mitchell, the notorious "Trinity Killer" in Dexter's fourth campaign.  Lithgow topped Michael Emerson in ABC's Lost, William Hurt in FX's Damages, Jeremey Piven's crazed agent Ari Gold in HBO's Hollywood buddy series Entourage and Neil Patrick Harris in CBS's How I Met Your Mother.

Showtime made it a hat trick of top actor awards as Toni Collette scored laurels for best performance by an actress in a TV comedy or musical for her portrayal of the multiple personalities of Tara Gregson in the United States of Tara.  She prevented Tina Fey from three-peating for her Liz Lemon in NBC's 30 Rock, as well as Edie Falco in Showtime's Nurse Jackie, Courteney Cox in ABC's Cougar Town and Lea Michele in Glee, Fox's rookie series that took home the best comedy Globe.  Also on the women's side, Chloe Sevigny' won the best performance by an actress in a supporting role in a series, miniseries or telefilm for her role as Nicki Grant on Big Love.

HBO's Grey Gardens took home a pair of Globes: for best miniseries or telefilm, while Drew Barrymore scored the best performance by an actress in the same category.  HBO added a fourth Golden Globe for best performance by an actor in a miniseries or original movie with Kevin Bacon in Taking Chance.

Broadcast captured the other two TV Globes: Alec Baldwin won his second straight best comedy actor award for his portrayal of Jack Donaghy on NBC's 30 Rock; and Julianna Marguiles was voted the best actress in drama series by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.  Marguiles topped January Jones for Mad Men, as well as a trio of former category winners Anna Paquin in True Blood, Kyra Sedgwick in TNT's The Closer and Glenn Close in Damages.  All told, cable won eight of the 11 TV Golden Globes.

Full list here: www.goldenglobes.org/nominations/

MultiChannel

$30M Payout to Conan?
NBC has its way out of the Conan Crisis.  The network has agreed to pay O'Brien $30 million to vacate the 11:35 p.m. "Tonight Show," individuals involved in the negotiations have told TheWrap.  The deal, which may still be in the process of finalization, could be announced as early as  Friday. has to be formally signed,will be announced on Friday.  Update at 6:20 pm: O'Brien publicist Leslee Dart emailed "Nothing (is) signed yet. Those figures are not accurate."  But others described the negotiations in detail.  According to knowledgeable individuals, the deal was brokered by Universal President Ron Meyer, who was brought in on Tuesday after talks had reached an impasse and both sides were threatening to bring lawsuits.  Meyer, a former agent, brought both sides together in an attempt to reach a resolution to the programming crisis, having been sought out by Ari Emanuel, at William Morris Endeavor.  Key terms to the agreement - including the $30 million payout -- were worked out between Meyer and Rick Rosen, Conan's agent at WME, one knowledgeable individual said.  But many further details remained unresolved by Thursday. NBCU President and CEO Jeff Zucker, NBCU Television Entertainment Chairman Jeff Gaspin and Co-Chairman NBC Entertainment and NBC Television Studio Marc Graboff were involved in the final, all-night negotiations with O'Brien's representatives.
TheWrap


NBC Take Possession of Conan Comedy Bits
As a deal nears for Conan O'Brien's exit from NBC, one thing is certain: The characters and recurring comedy bits O'Brien originated during his 16-plus years on "Late Night" and "The Tonight Show" will not follow the host when he leaves NBC.  The Peacock owns the intellectual property behind such popular O'Brien characters as Pimpbot 5000 and Conando, as well as recurring segments such as In the Year 3000 and Desk Driving.  Sources involved in the settlement negotiations say NBC is keeping the copyrighted and trademarked elements of O'Brien's shows as part of the deal.  That means the bits and characters will likely never be seen after O'Brien's "Tonight" ends its run Jan. 22.  While the vast majority of the characters O'Brien introduced are said to owned by NBC, it's unclear who controls Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, the crass canine puppet that is perhaps O'Brien's most popular recurring bit.  Triumph was originated by writer and longtime O'Brien pal Robert Smigel, whose reps declined to comment on whether Smigel or NBC owned rights to the character.  In 1993, David Letterman got into a dustup with NBC when he departed "Late Night" for CBS' "Late Show."  NBC attorneys attempted to prevent Letterman from taking intellectual property originated on "Late Night" to the comic's new home.  Letterman responded by dropping certain bits and renaming other recurring segments -- "Viewer Mail" became "CBS Mailbag" and frequent guest Larry "Bud" Melman began referring to himself by his real name, Calvert DeForest.  Letterman mocked the dispute on his first "Late Show" when NBC anchor Tom Brokaw interrupted the monologue and stole cue cards in the name of securing NBC's intellectual property.
Hollywood Reporter


For Sale on Craigslist: One Used Talk Show
Whether this craigslist ad was actually the handiwork of Conan O'Brien and his staff or not, it's good stuff.  Mashable reports that after O'Brien joked about putting The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien up for sale on craigslist due to the late-night turmoil at NBC, the following ad actually appeared on the classifieds site:

    4 SALE: BARELY-USED LATE NIGHT TALK SHOW—MAKE ME AN OFFER!!! (Universal Studios)

    This is a chance of a lifetime to own your very own late night talk show—guaranteed to last for up to seven months!! Really must see to appreciate.

    Information for potential buyers:

    Measures 100' x 100' x 32'—plenty of room for a futon!

    Designed for 11:35 but can be easily moved

    Band can be sold separately

    Buyer must honor Barry Manilow booking next Thursday

    MAKE ME YOUR BEST OFFER!!!!! (Also willing to trade for Coldplay tickets.)

MediaBistro


Newscasts Lose $22M with 'Leno', Study Finds
No wonder the NBC affiliates have bellyached so much over the low ratings for "The Jay Leno Show."  As a weak lead-in, the program may have cost them $22 million in advertising during fourth quarter.  That's according to an analysis of Nielsen data and advertising prices released by Harmelin Media yesterday, which finds that NBC affiliates' 11 p.m. newscast ratings fell 25 percent in November among viewers 25-54 compared to 2008 across all 210 TV markets.  Put advertising dollars to those numbers, and it's a loss of a potential $22 million.  "I don’t think anyone expected this kind of devastating declines to be so universal and so steep,” says Bernie Shimkus, vice president of research at Harmelin, tells Media Life.  “I guess [NBC] didn’t factor [affiliates' newscasts] into the equation when they said Leno could be profitable with lower numbers.”  Affiliates in the top 20 markets averaged an estimated loss of $39,000 per week in late news revenue, and among them New York’s NBC affiliate had the steepest ratings decline.  In November the station's newscast was down 47.6 percent year-to-year among 25-54s.  Just two of those markets, Detroit (up 2.3 percent) and Denver (up 7.7 percent), actually saw late local news ratings increase.  After weeks of affiliate griping, NBC said Sunday it will move "The Jay Leno Show" out of the 10 p.m. slot and replace it with a mix of original scripted dramas, "Dateline" and repurposed cable programming.  "Leno" will move to 11:35 p.m. if the network can reach an agreement with Leno and current "Tonight Show" host Conan O'Brien, whose show would be bumped back half an hour.
MediaLife Magazine


Couric's Palin Interview Wins Journalism Award
Katie Couric's interviews with Sarah Palin have racked up another award: this time, the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.  The Couric-Palin award was just one of two coveted duPont-Columbia batons awarded to CBS News; the other was for its series on the children of the recession.  "CBS News is proud to be recognized with these prestigious awards, representing two very different and singular achievements," said Sean McManus, President, CBS News and Sports.  "One award is for a high-profile interview that has become an iconic moment in television journalism and a testament to Katie Couric's excellence.  The other is for a unique division-wide collaboration that presented an important story about the effects of the economic crisis on young people.  By honoring these stories, the jurors and Columbia University help ensure that important, innovative journalism continues, motivating reporters to dig deeper and reach higher in their mission to inform the public."  The awards program described Couric's interviews with Palin as "a series of influential and illuminating television interviews by a skillful veteran reporter" and said:  "In a political season full of interviews..., Katie Couric's apt and determined questioning of Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin prompted the most revealing remarks and had the greatest impact on the presidential campaign...Couric's nimble questioning and even tone elicited answers on the issues...these were the interviews heard around the world."
Huffington Post


NBC Plans 835 Hours of Olympics Coverage
The 2006 Winter Olympics were the lowest rated in history, and NBC expects to lose money on this year's Vancouver Games.  Nonetheless, the network is pushing ahead with wide-ranging coverage of the event, the most it has ever aired from the Winter Games.  NBC Universal said yesterday that it will carry 835 hours of coverage across five networks and its online home, NBCOlympics.com.  That's almost double the coverage it aired from Torino four years ago (419 hours) and more than the combined coverage from the 2006 and 2002 Winter Games (794.5 hours).  It will include an average of 50 hours per day over 17 days, and it will all be broadcast in high definition, another Olympic first. Online coverage will also be available in HD.  NBC will carry the big events, including heavy primetime coverage of men's and women's figure skating and alpine skiing. Speed skating, primetime and freestyle skiing will also get primetime coverage.  The Opening Ceremonies will air at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 12, kicking off 193.5 hours of coverage on the network.  USA Network will air mostly ice sports, with 41 hours concentrated on curling and ice hockey . The U.S. women's and men's hockey games will air live on the channel, and Universal HD will re-air all of USA's Games coverage.  MSNBC will air 100 hours of Olympics, including hockey, curling and speed and figure skating, starting at various times.  CNBC's 100 hours of coverage will consist of hockey, curling and biathlon, starting at 5 p.m. daily.  Of note, Bravo will not be airing coverage this year despite airing it in the past.  The online coverage should see huge gains over 2006.  It was a big draw for the 2008 Summer Games and allows users to customize their experience.  Since '08, live web video viewing has really taken off, driven by events such as President Barack Obama's inauguration and Michael Jackson's funeral.  The 2006 Winter Games averaged a 12.3 household rating and had the Olympics' worst-ever averages among total viewers and adults 18-49.  The network is still moving ad inventory for the Games. Though sales have picked up in recent months, NBC estimates it will lose $200 million on the event, mainly due to an exorbitant rights fee of $2.2 billion.
MediaLife Magazine


Post-Olympics, Seinfeld Returns to NBC
Finally, something NBC can celebrate out of this whole primetime debacle: Jerry Seinfeld is heading back to Thursday nights.  The new reality show "The Marriage Ref," produced by the comedian, will be one of the programs filling in for "The Jay Leno Show," which will no longer air in primetime after the Winter Olympics.  Though Seinfeld himself does not appear on "Ref," in which couples receive comedic counseling from celebrity guests to fix their marital woes, the network has been using his name in promotions and is expected to push the show heavily during next month's Games.  "Leno" had been airing weeknights at 10 p.m., but the network abandoned that approach earlier this week after an outcry from NBC affiliates that have seen their ratings in the timeslot plummet, pulling down their 11 p.m. newscast ratings.  Instead, the 10 p.m. slot will be filled by a mix of scripted and unscripted programming starting on March 1, with "Ref" one of two new shows airing in the hour.
MediaLife Magazine


TV News Doctors Treat Haitian Wounded
As Dr. Sanjay Gupta explained in an interview with TVNewser yesterday, he may be a journalist, but he's a doctor first.  Last night, Gupta once again went into medical mode during the 10pm edition of AC360.  Gupta, reporting from a field hospital in Port-au-Prince, watched as the few doctors who were there evacuated amid security concerns.  He and his crew stayed with the injured, some who'd just undergone surgery, all night.  Gupta monitored patients' vital signs, administered painkillers and continued intravenous drips.  He stabilized three patients who were in critical condition.  At 3:45 a.m., he posted a message on Twitter: pulling all nighter at haiti field hosp. lots of work, but all patients stable. turned my crew into a crack med team tonight.  Later he sent this message apologizing for not anchoring his 7:30amET weekend show, "Sanjay Gupta, M.D.:" So sorry to not anchor my show today. I was still busy at the field hospital.  And Dr. Gupta is not alone.  This morning on "The Early Show", CBS News medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton, an OBGYN, gave a compelling description of the medical conditions and relief efforts in Haiti.  She described it as "civil war medicine."  And just after landing in Haiti last night she assisted in an amputation on a card table under a tree.
MediaBistro


Broadcasters, Cable Commit To Michelle Obama PSAs
First Lady Michelle Obama is taping Haitian relief public service announcements at the White House this afternoon in conjunction with the Ad Council and the Red Cross, according to Ad Council spokesperson Ellyn Fisher.  The National Cable & Telecommunications Association, the National Association of Broadcasters and "all the major cable and broadcast networks" have all committed  to running the PSAs calling for donations to the Red Cross to help victims of the Haiti earthquake, said Fisher.  The 30-second TV and radio spots will be distributed to stations, nets and MSO's via satellite as early as today, she said, as well as being posted on YouTube.  Fisher said NCTA, NAB and the nets all volunteered airtime for the effort.  The Council puts donated creative together with airtime to get the message out on a host of social issues from drunk driving and teen dating to fire prevention.
Broadcasting & Cable


Comcast Sending $1M to Help Haiti
Comcast Corp. said Thursday night it is providing more than $1 million in cash and in-kind support for disaster relief to victims of the Haitian earthquake.  Comcast said its donations include cash contributions to the American Red Cross and Télécoms Sans Frontières, or Telecom Without Borders, a relief organization based in southern France.  Comcast of Philadelphia is the nation’s largest cable-television company with 23.8 million customers.  It also provides Internet and phone service and owns programming assets.
BizJournal


Scripps to Run Telethons for Haiti Aid
Media company E.W. Scripps Co. said Friday it is holding live telethons at all nine of its ABC and NBC stations to raise aid for victims of the Haiti earthquake.  The telethons will be held on Tuesday evening.  Depending on the market, they will begin in late afternoon and air for about 3 hours.  The company said the money raised will support the areas that the American Red Cross has identified as Haitians' greatest needs: food, water, temporary shelter, medical services and emotional support.
Yahoo News

MTV Organizes 'Hope for Haiti' Telethon
Viacom Inc.'s MTV Networks is organizing "Hope for Haiti," a global, commercial-free telethon that will be aired across all of the major networks, as well as some cable channels.  The two-hour telethon will take place on January 22 at 8:00 p.m. eastern, and will be broadcast from both Los Angeles, where George Clooney will be hosting, and New York, where Wyclef Jean will be hosting.  The telethon will also feature reports from Haiti from CNN's Anderson Cooper.
BizJournal


NFL Scores Best Viewership in Two Decades
There are still eight teams remaining in the NFL playoffs, but already the league is celebrating its best season of TV viewership in nearly two decades. NFL games this season averaged 16.6 million total viewers, according to Nielsen, up 2 million per game from last year and the most since it averaged 16.7 million during the 1990 season.  That even predates aging Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre, albeit barely (Favre joined the league in 1991); Favre's return from retirement is credited for some of those huge ratings.  Fox, NBC, ESPN and NFL Network all enjoyed their most-watched NFL regular seasons ever, and CBS had its best season since 1993.  On broadcast, NFL games accounted for 14 of the 15 most-watched programs of the year, with the 2010 Rose Bowl between Ohio State and Oregon (No. 12) the only exception.  Similarly, ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” accounted for the year’s top 14 programs on cable.  The Nov. 11 game between the Vikings and Favre’s old team, the Green Bay Packers, was the most-watched program on broadcast during the fall, averaging 29.8 million viewers, while the Oct. 5 “MNF” game between the Vikings and Packers was tops on cable with a record 21.8 million viewers.
MediaLife Magazine


New Discovery/Hasbro Kids Channel Named 'The Hub'
Cable programming giant Discovery Communications and Hasbro Inc., who are teaming up to launch a kids channel later this year, are calling the network "The Hub."  Margaret Loesch, a kids-programming veteran who was tapped last year to become president and chief executive of the channel, said she thought there was a significant opportunity for the network despite the strength of incumbents Nickelodeon, Disney Channel and Cartoon Network.  The Hub will target primarily the 6-12 age demographic.  Loesch said the other networks were focused either on teens or kids in preschool and that there was a niche for her network to exploit.  Loesch said the channel will have an eclectic schedule but did not provide details beyond saying it would be a mix of animation and live-action fare.  The Hub is taking over the channel space that was occupied by Discovery Kids and will launch in roughly 60-million homes in the fall.  There has been concern from children's advocacy groups that the connection with Hasbro will mean the channel will be focused more on selling toys than in enlightening children.
LA Times


Poll Finds 77% Won't Pay for e-Newspapers
In a world where only two in five people read a newspaper every day, walling off papers' content online may not be the answer, despite the current interest in the idea.  A new Harris Poll finds that just 43 percent of U.S. adults read a newspaper every day, whether in print or online.  It's not surprising, then, that 77 percent of those polled say they would not pay to read papers' content online.  Among those who are willing to pay, it's clear they won't shell out very much.  The study finds that a mere 19 percent would pay $1 to $10 per month, and just 5 percent would fork over more than $10 per month.  Those numbers, however, reflect a slight regional imbalance. Eighty-one percent of Northeasterners say they would not pay, while 24 percent of Westerners would pay $1 to $10 per month.  Those who still read newspapers, whether online or off, are an older bunch.  Sixty-four percent of people 55 and over still read the paper every day, while just 23 percent of 18-34s do.
MediaLife Magazine


Top Ten Messages On Jeff Zucker's Voicemail

10. "What the hell are you doing?"

9.  "This is Jay Leno. Conan seemed upset in the elevator. Everything ok?"

8.  "No seriously, what the hell are you doing?"

7.  "It's Burt Reynolds. Just so you know, I'm available"

6.  "Letterman here. Want to borrow one of my hairpieces?"

5.  "This is Mark McGwire. If you're looking to bulk up, I know a guy"

4.  "It's Jay again. All in all, I think it's going pretty well"

3.  "I'm from Comcast. Regarding the sale... Uh, I think we're ok"

2.  "Larry King here. Keep up the good work"

1.  "What the zuck?" 

The Late Show with David Letterman

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