Category: media

“Gone are the days when academia and television were from opposite ends of the intellectual spectrum. Instead, TV studies are now enjoying a newfound respectability and prominence in the academic world. The maturing of the medium, recording technology that has allowed previously ephemeral TV work to remain accessible in archival form, and students’ comfort level with video texts rather than written ones have all come together in the last few years to give new impetus to a discipline once derided as not serious enough to merit scholarly study. It’s a rich vein for study, offering a virtually unlimited terrain due to the sheer amount of TV programs on screens, something film doesn’t offer.”

“The folks at MTV Networks decided some months back to relaunch their TNN – once the Nashville Network and more recently the National Network – as Spike TV, the first channel build specifically for men. At least that was the plan. But before Spike could unveil its new lineup of shows today, the network was faced with a man-sized problem. On June 5, filmmaker Spike Lee filed an injunction against MTV’s owner, Viacom, saying the public associates the name ‘Spike’ with him.”

It’s so easy to blame TV for all the ills of the world. What dreck! But “contrary to the scolding alarmists who’ve launched withering attacks, blaming TV for everything from youth violence to dulling and lulling the masses into a bloated stupor, television remains the most ubiquitous, educating, egalitarian, affecting and powerful medium the world has ever known.”

It’s a touchy question. Such a momentous and terrible event as the Holocaust surely deserves to be memorialized on film. But with so many new documentaries being released every year, is the supply outstripping the demand? More importantly, is the sharpness of the message dulled by such a glut of messengers? That notion is starting to make it more difficult for filmmakers wanting to focus on the Holocaust to win financial backing.

The US/Australia free trade deal was made primarily for agriculture. But Australia’s film and TV industry is upset because it fears American products will overwhelm the home-grown industry. “The Australian film and television industry is small by world standards and protected by a raft of local media content rules. Some 55% of commercial television primetime viewing must be Australian made. At upwards of $250,000 an hour for quality drama, that’s no small investment. In contrast, top rating US shows can be bought in for as little as a tenth of the cost of the homegrown version.”

Microsoft has constructed two model homes packed full of computers, sensors, digital media player/recorders, and scanners, all designed to showcase the technology of the near future. But “these two homes represent two futures. The first is what consumers want: digital media their way, in whatever form suits. The second is what Hollywood wants: media lockdown, with every use subject to permission and often then only for a fee. In the middle stands Microsoft, determined to navigate these extremes.”

A new fund has been set up in the UK to help filmmakers promote and market their work without risking insolvency in the process. The fund, which will be administered by the Film Council, will make £1 million per year available for distribution, with no one film eligible to receive more than £300,000. The amount a film receives will be in inverse proportion to how well it does at the box office, making the fund less an incentive to succeed than a hedged bet against failure.

A Canadian actress on a plane to Los Angeles takes off her jacket to reveal a Toronto T-shirt and the people sitting next to her ask to be moved to other seats. The paranoia about SARS has killed the movie business in Toronto. And for those production that are still shooting in Canada, life on the set has changed…

“Although Latinos make up the fastest growing segment of the U.S. moviegoing population, recent attempts at luring them to Latin-themed movies have met with mixed results. ‘We are just getting to know the market and how it works. We are trying to develop the market in those communities where the movies will have the most success…. There is a lot of risk. But there are a lot of people who see the opportunity and want to try’.”

What’s the top-rated radio show in New York? Howard Stern you say? That’s sooo yesterday. No, the city’s No. 1 show is on Spanish-language radio – Luis Jimenez on ‘La Mega’ (WSKQ/97.9-FM), whose ‘El Vacilón de la Mañana’ (which roughly translates to ‘The Morning Party’) beats Stern at his own style. “What gets me is that people think that just because the show is in Spanish, [our ratings] somehow don’t count. But we see it as an even bigger victory for a Spanish show to be No. 1 over a Howard Stern.”