Category: media

“Irritated by loud commercials, Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., drafted the measure after discovering it was a common complaint with the Federal Communications Commission.
Right now, the government doesn’t have much say in the volume of TV ads. It’s been getting grievances about commercial loudness for decades.”

“The first such gathering ever held, it included cabinet secretaries, the government’s ‘copyright czar’ Victoria Espinel, as well as studio chiefs, media lobbyists, union leaders and legal experts.” The vice president “said he continues to raise the issue of copyright theft and its impact on economies with every foreign leader he meets.”

“When 12 major areas, including New York and Los Angeles, switched to [measuring ratings with Portable People Meters] last year, classical radio’s market share fell 10.7 percent in those areas, a significant drop, according to a study by Research Director, a ratings consultancy.”

Jason Reitman’s film about a perpetually traveling consultant whose job is laying people off received six nominations, including one for star George Clooney. Actors Matt Damon and Sandra Bullock received nominations in two categories; Meryl Streep will be competing against herself for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical.

ParamountClips.com, available initially only to businesses interested in licensing but slated to open later to the public, will allow “films to be quickly searched by specific actor, line of dialogue, location, genre or product, among other criteria.”

“[A]ffection and respect are different things, and it is perhaps only now–70 years after its initial release on Dec. 15, 1939–that this film is acquiring a patina of venerability.” Which doesn’t mean the complicated emotions the movie raises have diminished.

“The great ‘Twilight Saga: New Moon’ movie-taping ruckus concluded quietly Friday when prosecutors dropped charges against a Chicago woman who had captured a bit of the film on her digital camera. It wasn’t exactly a Hollywood ending, but a sequel might be coming soon.”

“You may not know his name — Don LaFontaine (also known as ‘The Voice’) — but you certainly know his work. He’s the guy with the ominous voice of doom who introduced thousands of previews by saying things like … ‘In a world of blood. In a time of plague. In a land of death. In a house of pain . . . ‘” Now that he’s dead, fewer of us are going to the movies.

“This lack of recognition for ethnic actors is especially notable in light of Hollywood’s growing interest in non-Western narratives, as well as the kudos breakthrough that African-American thesps have experienced this decade. … But while Hollywood may have largely atoned for Mammy and Stepin Fetchit, the legacy of Long Duk Dong and Mr. Yunioshi has yet to be counterbalanced.”

“[I]n an Academy of almost 6,000 voting members, it takes fewer than 100 votes to secure [an Oscar] nomination in every category except best picture and the four acting categories.” In some branches, like costume design and cinematography, two or three dozen would be more than enough.