Category: media

What could possibly interest liberal Americans in a costume drama about British nobility before the Great War? Start with the complex women. Plus, it reminds people of “West Wing.” Really.

“Some public television executives, who would not publicly comment on a sensitive issue, said they believed that PBS did not want to realign itself with Mr. Moyers, a longtime target of some conservatives, as it was fighting to keep its federal financing.”

“On Tuesday, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in FCC v. Fox Television Stations, the networks’ challenge to the FCC’s current indecency regime. Broadcasters not only want the high court to throw out the FCC’s W-era hardline on so-called fleeting expletives and images, sanctions for a stray f-bomb or shot of a woman’s behind, but to reconsider the landmark 1978 Pacifica decision that upheld the FCC’s authority to regulate indecent content on the airwaves.”

“Netflix isn’t a cable company; Netflix is a video channel, with aspirations to become a first-rate video channel at the level of HBO, if they’re not there already. And HBO badly wants Netflix to stay out of that business. In fact, HBO would have no particular problem watching Netflix bleed to death, just on general principle.”

“Beijing has allowed such private companies to flourish with fewer of the controls imposed on China’s entirely state-owned newspapers, TV and radio, possibly to avoid stifling what is seen as a promising high-tech industry. Their surging popularity threatens to erode viewership for state TV, which Beijing sees as a tool to mold public opinion. That raises the threat communist leaders might tighten controls to protect their media presence.”

“Almost every adult in the industrialized world (and many in developing economies) now uses some sort of electronic device daily, and all of those devices offer some sort of game. As games become ubiquitous, they are not only content but also context, context for mundane human relationships among people who don’t even consider themselves gamers.”

“We were thrilled to deliver more than two billion hours of TV shows and movies across 45 countries in the fourth quarter.”

“Sales of DVDs in the UK slipped by 7.2% in 2011, according to new figures from the British Video Association. More than 207 million discs were sold, while downloads and digital rental transactions went up by 12%.”

“The proposed year-long pilot to insert advertising into World Service English output on the Berlin FM frequency would see advertising extended to BBC radio broadcasts for the first time.”

“Almost every adult in the industrialized world (and many in developing economies) now uses some sort of electronic device daily, and all of those devices offer some sort of game. As games become ubiquitous, they are not only content but also context, context for mundane human relationships among people who don’t even consider themselves gamers.”