Category: media

“Six leading independent record companies, including those representing Rush and Sarah McLachlan, have left the Canadian Recording Industry Association over a disagreement about radio content rules and grant programs for emerging artists.” Specifically, new government requirements on the amount of Canadian music required on the radio seem to have precipitated the split.

“As the nation nears the fifth anniversary of the terrorist attacks, a growing debate is emerging in Internet chat rooms and elsewhere over Hollywood’s decision to tackle elements of that day in “United 93,” set for release April 28, and Oliver Stone’s planned August release of “World Trade Center”… The key points of contention: whether the films are coming too soon for a nation still trying to sort out its emotions and whether Hollywood is guilty of callousness in using victims’ stories for studio gain. Yet both movies were produced with the help and support of those most closely affected, suggesting that the families of those who died that day could be farther along the healing path than some of the rest of the nation.”

“Entertainment-industry veteran Dave Forget has been appointed Telefilm Canada’s newly minted go-to and fix-it man for national television. As the federal funding agency’s first director of Telefilm’s Television Business Unit, the 45-year-old Forget will be the main point man/overseer of the millions handed out annually through the Canadian Television Fund. His appointment is part of an effort by the CTF and Telefilm to cement a union that started a year ago to become a one-administration funder for TV and film projects — a move designed to get rid of the red tape that has frustrated producers and broadcasters for decades.”

Luxuries are few for America’s prisoners these days, but in Louisiana, radio station KLSP caters exclusively to their needs. It’s only natural: the station, which a 100-watt signal and a $48 weekly payroll, “is the nation’s only licensed prison radio station, [and] finds its most dedicated audience and inspiration for its core mission: spreading the word of Jesus (and an occasional message from the warden) to men doomed to die behind bars… The prison’s Christian-based message has been so successful at keeping the peace that other states have referred to it as a model.”

As traditional TV viewership (especially for the Big Four broadcast networks) continues to decline, networks are scrambling to find alternate methods of delivering content to consumers. “Six months after ABC struck the first deal to sell commercial-free TV episodes online, networks are rushing to offer everything from individual programs to season subscriptions. Web viewers can even watch some shows for free — with advertising.”

Trailers for the new film, United 93, have been playing in major cities for some time now, and from the outraged reaction of some, it’s clear that not all of America is ready for a fictionalized account of one of the darkest days in the country’s history. But for those who worked on the film, it was a tribute to bravery, and nothing like the callous exploitation some fear it will be. “If this is a horror movie, it is an edifying one, a history lesson with the pulse of a world-on-the-line suspense film.”

Think there have been a lot of message movies lately? You ain’t seen nothin’ yet…

TV producers are rushing to get shows to the web. “Analysts say networks have little choice but to try multiple strategies as viewers watch less TV in primetime and embrace technology that lets them watch shows whenever and wherever they want, including on computers and portable devices, such as an iPod. Studios also want to offer a legal alternative to the many file-swapping services that offer pirated copies of shows.”

“A year ago, co-founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen were in between jobs, a pair of twenty-something geeks running up big credit card debts as they tooled around a garage trying to develop an easy way for people to share homemade videos on the web. Now they’re flirting with fame and fortune, budding media moguls in a new entertainment era that relies on unconventional channels like YouTube — by some measures, the leading video-sharing site, one that has cultivated a huge audience while testing the bounds of creativity, monotony, copyrights and obscenity.”

When Tom “The Hammer” DeLay announced last week that he would resign from Congress in the wake of multiple scandals (and a few indictments), liberals across the country rejoiced. But for one leftist filmmaker putting the finishing touches on a new documentary slamming DeLay, the timing couldn’t have been worse.