Category: media

“Closely mirroring last year’s findings, a coalition of minority advocacy groups Tuesday concluded that the four [American] major TV networks had made some progress in increasing ethnic diversity in front of and behind the camera but still fell short in demonstrating an overall commitment to cultural diversity in their prime-time lineups.”

“The fractious negotiations have prompted major studios to prepare for the first writers strike in nearly two decades. Guild leaders have obtained authorization from their members to call a strike if they can’t reach an agreement on a new three-year deal by midnight tonight. Although the two sides could extend the current contract, that’s unlikely. Union leaders have signaled that they will be ready to walk out as early as Friday.”

“It hasn’t been a very good year so far in the TV season – viewership is down, the freshman shows are mostly unappealing, and even some returning favorites seem to lack spark. But the Writers Guild of America contract runs out at midnight tonight – trick or treat? – and a strike would make everything exponentially worse.”

“The reasoning goes: Film reviews are available through wire services, and local news isn’t. So the film critic goes. We could discuss the pros and cons of this – believe me, I have – but it’s happening throughout this troubled newspaper business. In Florida it’s already claimed critics (fine ones) in Fort Lauderdale and Tampa. Now it’s happening here.”

The regulatory agency wants to end exclusive apartment building contracts that allow cable companies to be the exclusive providers in buildings. “The FCC needed to do something to offset a 93% increase in cable rates during the last decade. Although rates for other telecommunications services, such as long-distance calling and cellphones, have dropped since Congress and the FCC loosened regulations in 1996, cable rates have gone in the other direction.”

“The BBC’s commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, is to launch a further 30 channels internationally, as well as a high-definition outlet and an on-demand service in the United States, as part of the next stage of its aggressive expansion plan… The launches come as Worldwide, which has been given the task of doubling the profits it pumps back into the BBC to at least £222m within five years, is pushing for rapid growth across its businesses.”

“As counterintuitive as it may seem in this age of iPods and digital downloads, vinyl — the favorite physical format of indie music collectors and audiophiles — is poised to re-enter the mainstream, or at least become a major tributary… Why do so many people still love vinyl, even though its bulky, analog nature is anathema to everything music is supposed to be these days?”

Ah, Paris. The mere mention of the city is enough to bring to mind any number of sights, sounds, and smells, even for the large percentage of Americans who have never actually been there. How is it that we have such vivid “memories” of an unfamiliar city? Hollywood, baby, Hollywood.

2007 may go down as the year of the hard-to-watch war movie, as Hollywood puts out film after film dealing with the same conflicts that fill today’s headlines. “Jihad; torture; suicide bombings; terrible things done by and to American soldiers; official secrets and government lies; the failures and responsibilities of journalists, politicians, law enforcement officials and ordinary citizens in the face of terror — such matters will be hard to avoid in movie theaters between now and Christmas.” But to what end?

Those in the arts love to bemoan profit-obsessed America’s ignorance of culture, and to imagine what could be if only some big corporate TV network would trumpet the cause of serious art, music, and literature to the unwashed masses. Well, guess what? They are, says Peter Dobrin, at least on the Discovery Channel, and the culturati might want to take notice.