Felix Gillette | The New York Observer

Doc Maker, Moore Collaborator, Shopping Film on Bush's Murky Military Service

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:31:39 -0500

Documentary filmmaker and longtime Michael Moore collaborator Meghan O’Hara is currently working on a feature-length documentary about George W. Bush’s military service in the Texas Air National Guard, The Observer has learned.

Ms. O’Hara, who field-produced Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11, is in the early stages of getting the project off the ground. According to a source with knowledge of the situation, Ms. O’Hara’s New York–based production company, HonestEngineTV, does not yet...

Oprah's Exit: Milepost on the Road to the End of Broadcast TV

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:08:53 -0500

Last night WABC (ABC's owned-and-operated station in New York) broke the story that Oprah Winfrey will be ending her broadcast talk show in 2011. She's decamping to cable, where she will run OWN, a cable network, jointly owned by her and Discovery Communications.

The Oprah Winfrey Show is the most successful syndicated daytime talk show in history. And the news that its days are now numbered sent...

Morning Joe, Piping Hot a Year Ago, Steadily Loses Steam

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:01:04 -0500

Joe Scarborough held up a copy of The New York Times. It was Monday, Nov. 16, and earlier in the morning The Times had published a piece about Newsweek, which had recently laid off 13 staffers. Quarterly ad revenue at the newsweekly was down 48 percent versus last year. That said, according to The Times, things were looking up. In the third quarter, The Washington Post’s magazine division, largely comprised of Newsweek, lost only...

NBC's Adventurous Foray into Repurposed Local News

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:07:02 -0500

"The beauty of this show is that it's got content from all over the NBC Universal platforms," said Matt Glassman.

It was Wednesday afternoon, and Mr. Glassman, a senior producer of content at NBC's local owned-and-operated station in Washington D.C., was on the phone with The Observer talking about a newfangled, pioneering-type show called Daily Connection.

The program, which soft-launched on WRC-4 on Sept. 14 and currently airs every weekday at 3 p.m, is arguably the...

In Wake Of Dobbs' Abrupt Departure, CNN Names John King New 7 p.m. Anchor

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:37:06 -0500

Today, CNN executives announced that John King will be the network's new 7 p.m. anchor. Mr. King will take over the time slot sometime early next year. For the time being he will continue to anchor CNN's Sunday morning public affairs show, State of the Union. According to a press release, Mr. King's yet-to-be-named program will focus on "key political movements in Washington and across the nation."

The announcement came in the wake of Lou...

David Letterman's Alleged Blackmailer Headed to Court; Sources Say Halderman Intent on Trial, Raising Money For Defense

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:14:37 -0500

Joe Halderman, the CBS News producer accused of attempting to extort $2 million from CBS Late Show star David Letterman, will be headed to a Manhattan court on Tuesday morning for the first hearing in the criminal case against him.

Will Mr. Halderman, as it is widely assumed, try and reach a hasty plea agreement with prosecutors, beginning with Tuesday's motions hearing?

That's unlikely, according to a source close to Mr. Halderman.

Over the weekend, Dr. Bob...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: World Series Packs a Wallop

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:24:03 -0500

Once again, the Yankees' championship run dominated the top 10 in New York. Credit Matsui.

(1) FOX-5....World Series Game 4....3,442,000

(2) FOX-5....World Series Game 1....3,346,000

(3) FOX-5....World Series Game 2....3,112,000

(4) FOX-5....World Series Game 3....2,931,000

(5) FOX-5....NFL: Vikings beat Packers....1,322,000

(6) WABC-7....Dancing with the Stars....1,272,000

(7) WABC-7....Dancing with the Stars....992,000

(8) WCBS-2....60 Minutes....987,000

(9) WCBS-2....NCIS....934,000

(10) WABC-7....Desperate Housewives....767,000

Top 10 shows in New York, October 26 to November 1, according to Nielsen Data (total viewers, time shifting/DVR not...

Furloughs Hit WNET

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:15:04 -0500

Everybody wants to take off the days between Christmas and New Years Eve. So long as you get paid for them.

Staff members at WNET.org are out of luck on the second count.

The Observer has learned that senior managers at the WNET.org, PBS's flagship media provider in New York, which runs channel 13 and channel 21, told staff members yesterday that they would be required to take three days of unpaid leave at the end...

30 Rock's Hard Rocker

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:56:26 -0500

Jon Bon Jovi kissed Ann Curry on the cheek. It was a chilly morning in mid-October outside the Today studios at Rockefeller Plaza. Ms. Curry was wearing a peacoat and dark stockings. Mr. Bon Jovi had on jeans and aviator sunglasses. Matt Lauer stood between them. They had news!

Mr. Lauer explained to the guests on the plaza and the viewers at home that, henceforth, Mr. Bon Jovi would be serving as the first...

Sue Simmons Admits to Drinking-and-Anchoring During the '80s

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:07:36 -0500

On Thursday evening, on live TV, longtime WNBC-4 news anchor Sue Simmons made a somewhat surprising confession. Back in the '80s, she said, she would on occasion drink cocktails before anchoring the news. Eventually she stopped, she continued to explain, because she noticed the alcohol was making her eyes red.

The admission came during an interview on WNBC-4's new 5 p.m. show LX New York, on which Ms. Simmons was making a guest appearance alongside...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: Yankees Keep Winning

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:54:26 -0400

The Yankees path back to the World Series burned a trail right through last week's top ten, claiming the top four spots in the rankings. Grand Slam.

(1) FOX-5....MLB ALCS Game 6....2,956,000

(2) FOX-5....MLB ALCS Game 5....2,331,000

(3) FOX-5....MLB ALCS Game 4....2,101,000

(4) FOX-5....MLB ALCS Game 3....1,735,000

(5) WCBS-2....60 Minutes....1,153,000

(6) WABC-7....Dancing with the Stars....1,139,000

(7) FOX-5....House....1,077,000

(8) WNBC-4....Cardinals beat Giants, 24-17....1,013,000

(9) WABC-7....Dancing with the Stars....980,000

(10) WCBS-2....NCIS....965,000

Top 10 shows in New York, October 18 to October 25, according to Nielsen Data (total...

From High Chairs to Anchor Chair

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:00:47 -0400

For 18 months following his abrupt departure from WNBC-4, courtesy of a buyout in the summer of 2008, Rob Morrison, the station’s erstwhile morning news anchor, wrestled with the question of life after journalism. He wrote a children’s book about his wife’s cat, Happy. He started a blog, “Daddy Diaries: Confessions of a Stay-at-Home Anchorman,” on the Huffington Post. And he begrudgingly explored becoming one of those vaguely confusing media PR-consultant types, which are...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: Jets Losing on the Field, Winning in the Ratings!

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:30:02 -0400

J-E-T-S. Jets! Jets!

*choking sound*

Last time we checked in with the Jets, they were winning games yet struggling to crack into the Top Ten in the TV ratings.

Now, all that has changed.

This week, in a dramatic reversal, the Jets made our list, not once, but twice! And in true Jets-like fashion, they did so with a familiar style, dropping both games in teeth-gnashing, last second, are-you-kidding-me heart breakers.

While losing twice in one week on national...

In Recession, Money Honeys Get Company From Grumpy Old Dudes

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 19:19:24 -0400

In mid-October, the morning after the Dow Industrial Average topped the 10,000 mark for the first time in ages, a young, energetic TV reporter for the Fox Business Network (FBN) named Sandra Smith briefed Don Imus and his viewers on the state of the markets. She does this a couple times an hour, every morning. Stock index futures were up, she said. Ditto various earning reports. Things were banging.

“In about 15 minutes, we’ve...

Dobbs Cancels on Imus; Are CNN and MSNBC Banning Talent from Imus in the Morning?

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 11:50:21 -0400

Today, a little after 7:30 a.m., Don Imus told his listeners on WABC and viewers on the Fox Business Network that one of his top scheduled guests this morning, Lou Dobbs, had cancelled at the last minute.

Why?

Mr. Imus wasn't entirely clear. But he suggested that Mr. Dobbs' cancellation had to do with a broader phenomenon--namely that CNN and MSNBC executives were banning their talent from appearing on his show.

Have MSNBC and CNN executives, in...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: Yankees Win

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:40:09 -0400

The Minnesota Vikings' victory over the Green Bay Packers on Monday, October 6, featuring Brett Favre's payback against his former franchise, generated cable's all-time biggest audience. But in New York, it was no match for the Yankees' thrashing of the Twins, which scored a hat trick at the top of last week's rankings.

(1) TBS....Yankees over Twins, 4-3....1,836,000

(2) TBS....Yankees over Twins 7-2....1,480,000

(3) TBS....Yankees over Twins 4-3....1,439,000

(4) WCBS-2....NCIS....1,066,000

(5) WCBS-2....Good Wife....1,022,000

(6) WABC-7....Dancing with the Stars....971,000

(7) ESPN....Vikings over...

It's On: CBS News Investigates Letterman Scandal

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 19:08:43 -0400

Over the past year, Armen Keteyian, the chief investigative correspondent for CBS News, has reported on cyber-thieves in New Jersey, murder-for-hire plots in Wisconsin and teenage bomb-makers in Atlanta. But these days, Mr. Keteyian is hard at work on a story much closer to home—namely, alleged blackmail plots within his own newsroom.

On Oct.3, two days after news broke of the alleged blackmail attempt of David Letterman by 48 Hours producer Joe Halderman, CBS...

60 Minutes Football Piece Is Quite Rather-esque

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 19:04:51 -0400

Last week, on Friday, Oct. 9, Wayne Nelson, the executive producer for Dan Rather Reports, was sitting in his office at HDNet’s headquarters in New York when an incredulous staff member ran in. Have you seen the promos for this weekend’s 60 Minutes, producer Meredith Ramsey asked? The clips touted an upcoming piece by Bob Simon on the long-term danger of repeated head injuries in sports. Mr. Nelson and Ms. Ramsey felt like they...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: 60 Minutes Triumphs Over Entire CSI/NCIS Diaspora

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:34:01 -0400

When it comes to putting up strong ratings, nothing beats a good old fashioned wildebeest migration. This past week on 60 Minutes, Scott Pelley traveled to Kenya for the mother of all wildebeest migrations, and the results were predictable. A first place finish.

(1) WCBS-2....60 Minutes....1,376,000

(2) WABC-7....Dancing with the Stars....1,179,000

(3) WCBS-2....NCIS....1,063,000

(4) WCBS-2....Good Wife....1,020,000

(5) WCBS-2....NCIS:LA....965,000

(6) WABC-7....Dancing with the Stars....935,000

(7) WABC-7....Grey's Anatomy....915,000

(8) WCBS-2....CSI:Miami....896,000

(9) WCBS-2....CSI:NY....851,000

(10) Fox-5....House....828,000

Top 10 shows in New York, September 28 to October 4, according to...

Bizarre Late Night Love Triangle

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 19:49:03 -0400

You can’t be victimized by criminals, explained David Letterman on the Late Show Monday night. You have to push back.

Outside the fortified walls of the Ed Sullivan Theater, a full moon hung in the sky. Mr. Letterman must have been tired. For the past several weeks, not only had he been pushing back, he’d been putting his back into it, straining against an apparent outbreak of villainy. Along the way, he had...

Letterman's Alleged Blackmailer Is a Guy's Guy, Sort of Like Vince Vaughn

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 16:42:39 -0400

What would you think if you found out one morning that your golfing buddy was trying to shake down David Letterman?

That's the surreal position that a number of CBS News employees found themselves in earlier today, following the stunning cascade of events that began Thursday night when the host of Late Night said on national television that he had been at the center of a recent...

CBS News President Sean McManus on Network's Upcoming Afghanistan Initiative

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 14:02:59 -0400

"We're not doing it for ratings," said Sean McManus.

It was the afternoon of Friday, Sept. 25, and Mr. McManus, the president of CBS News and Sports, was on the phone with The Observer talking about an upcoming, multi-day initiative at CBS News, which will focus on the state of the war in Afghanistan.

For three straight days, beginning Monday, October 5, Katie Couric will essentially toss aside the...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: Dancing with the Stars Waltzes Past the Competition

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:17:53 -0400

Who doesn't want to watch Kathy Ireland dance the foxtrot?

Last week, ABC's tuesday night rendition of Dancing with the Stars, featuring the likes of Ms. Ireland, Kelly Osbourne, and Debi Mazar, did the Viennese waltz all the way to the top of the charts.

Sorry, NCIS. Better work on your cha-cha.

(1) WABC....Dancing with the Stars (T)....1,213,000

(2) WABC....Dancing with the Stars (W)....1,159,000

(3) WCBS....NCIS....1,143,000

(4) WCBS....60 Minutes....1,120,000

(5) WCBS....The Good Wife....1,078,000

(6) WABC....Dancing with the Stars (M)....1,050,000

(7) WABC....Grey's Anatomy....1,048,000

(8) Fox-5....House....1,035,000

(9)...

Watch Your Backs, MSNBC! Imus Can See You!

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:43:24 -0400

Not long ago, shortly after dawn, Don Imus sat behind a live microphone and let his mind linger for a moment on Hillary Clinton’s wardrobe. The day before, he had watched Harry Smith on CBS’s Face the Nation interview Secretary of State Clinton about such things as Iran’s nuclear ambitions. What, Mr. Imus now wondered, was with her red pantsuit? “I don’t know if I would have worn it,” said Mr. Imus. “It was...

Appeals Court Rules in Favor of CBS--Tosses Out Dan Rather's $70 Million Suit in Its Entirety

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 13:51:59 -0400

An appellate division of the New York Supreme Court ruled today in favor of CBS over Dan Rather, dismissing Mr. Rather's $70 million suit against his former employers in its entirety.

"For the reasons set forth below, this Court finds that the motion court erred in denying the defendants' motion to dismiss the claims for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty, and therefore we find the complaint must be dismissed in its entirety,"...

'Meet the Press' Wins Sunday Obamathon

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:40:51 -0400

This past Sunday morning, President Barack Obama was on everywhere you looked on TV--except, of course, on Fox (sorry, Chris Wallace!).

So with the booking advantage effectively neutralized, who would triumph in the ratings?

In the end, it was David Gregory who came out on top.

On Sunday morning, NBC's Meet the Press attracted 3,290,000 total viewers and 1,070,000 in the 25 to 54 demo, narrowly topping ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos (3,080,000 total viewers; 1,010,000...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: Giants Beat Cowboys, Emmys, Leno

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:26:12 -0400

J-E-T-S. Jets. Jets.

Jets?

Despite all the joyful delirium surrounding the arrival of Mark Sanchez and Rex Ryan in New York and despite a stirring come-from-behind home victory over the detestable New England Patriots, the Jets once again failed to crack the weekly top ten.

New York City, it would seem, still belongs to the Giants.

And sure enough, NBC's Football Night In America, featuring the Giants' own stirring come-from-behind victory over the detestable Dallas Cowboys, put up...

Sumner in Hot Seat: Redstone Will Be Deposed in Dan Rather Lawsuit

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 16:36:43 -0400

On the afternoon of Monday, Sept. 21, Justice Ira Gammerman of the New York Supreme Court ruled that Viacom chief Sumner Redstone will have to sit for a deposition in Dan Rather’s ongoing $70 million lawsuit against CBS.

Mr. Rather and his lawyers have been seeking to depose Mr. Redstone, whose company oversees CBS, since the outset of the suit. For months, CBS lawyers have been working to block the deposition. But after prolonged...

Justice Rules in Favor of Dan Rather: Sumner Redstone Will Be Deposed

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 07:55:20 -0400

Today, Justice Ira Gammerman of the New York Supreme Court ruled that Viacom chief Sumner Redstone will have to sit for a deposition in Dan Rather's ongoing $70 million lawsuit against CBS.

Mr. Rather and his lawyers have been seeking to depose Mr. Redstone, whose company oversees CBS, since the outset of the suit. For months, CBS lawyers have been working to...

CNBC Cancels Dennis Kneale's 8 PM Run

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:35:30 -0400

CNBC executives have cancelled their prime-time Dennis Kneale experiment.

For the past five months, Mr. Kneale, the former managing editor of Forbes, has been anchoring the cable news network's 8 p.m. hour.

Not long ago, we caught up with the 52-year-old business reporter to talk about his lively on-air campaign against anonymous bloggers. While the war of words generated lots of buzz for Mr. Kneale, ratings were for the most part lackluster. CNBC...

The Week in Interviews: What are Your Feelings, Mr. Spitzer, Towards Ashley Dupre?

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:51:11 -0400

The Best of the Best from TV news interviews, September 12 to September 17:

CBS' Steve Kroft interviewed President Obama on 60 Minutes. “I have no interest in having a bill get passed that fails," said Mr. Obama. "That doesn't work. You know, I intend to be president for a while and once this bill passes, I own it."

CNBC's Becky Quick caught up with Warren Buffett, who was apparently...

Frank Rich and Tina Brown Continue to Consult for HBO

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 15:38:17 -0400

Recently we sat down with Sue Naegle, the president of entertainment for HBO, to talk about the state of scripted series at the premium cable network.

At one point, we asked Ms. Naegle about Frank Rich and Tina Brown's role at the network.

Last time we checked in with HBO, in the first half of 2008, both Ms. Brown, the founder and editor of the Daily Beast, and Mr. Rich,...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: NFL Routs VMAs, Health Care

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:20:38 -0400

Are you ready for some football?

Why, yes. Thank you for asking! We are.

In the first week of the season, professional football trampled everyone else on the small screen, running up the score with 5 of the top 10 spots in the rankings.

Kanye who?

(1) Fox-5....Redskins vs. Giants....1,512,000

(2) Fox-5....NFL Sunday 7:15 to 7:45 p.m.....1,001,000

(3) WNBC-4....NFL Steelers vs. Titans....959,000

(4) MTV....2009 Video Music Awards....929,000

(5) WCBS-2....60 Minutes....873,000

(6) WNBC-4....NFL Thursday Pre-Game Show....859,000

(7) WNBC-4....Bears vs. Packers....795,000

(8) WABC-7....Prime Time Obama Press Conference....690,000

(9)...

HBO, The Writers' Network

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 19:00:29 -0400

Not long ago, in the spring of 2009, Colette Burson and Dmitry Lipkin, the husband-and-wife writing team, were running late on a crucial project. In a few short weeks, their half-hour series, Hung, would be premiering on HBO. At the time, they were busy cutting the all-important title sequence. On the morning it was due, the final product still needed more polishing. The deadline came and went.

It was around then that they...

NBC Universal Seeking Another Round of Voluntary Buyouts from News Staff

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 17:36:32 -0400

Looks like the buyout offers are coming early this year at 30 Rock.

The Observer has learned that in recent days NBC Universal executives have approached a large number of employees across its news divisions and bureaus, announcing that the company is looking for unspecified number of staffers to take voluntary buyouts. In a series of meetings with human resource managers, staffers at NBC News and MSNBC were told that if targets weren't met voluntarily,...

The Week in Interviews: President Obama, Jon Gosselin Speak

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:37:14 -0400

The Best of the Best from TV news interviews, September 5 to September 11:

President Barack Obama sat down for a pre-speech interview with Robin Roberts of ABC's Good Morning America.

On Morning Joe, Time's Joe Klein talked about a town hall health care meeting he attended last week in Arkansas. "Most of them thought that the president was some sort of subversive," said Mr. Klein.

Jon Gosselin...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: Baseball. Baseball. Baseball.

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:57:36 -0400

When the definitive history of New Yorkers' viewing habits finally gets written, the chapter on the summer of 2009 is going to have a lot to say about talent competitions and baseball. You people are insatiable.

(1) WNBC-4....America's Got Talent (Wed)....665,000

(2) YES....Yankees Baseball....612,000

(3) WNBC-4....America's Got Talent (Tu)....608,000

(4) WCBS-2....60 Minutes....575,000

(5) WCBS-2....Two and a Half Men....554,000

(6) YES....Yankees Baseball....539,000

(7) WCBS-2....CSI Miami....536,000

(8) YES....Yankees Baseball....524,000

(9) YES....Yankees Baseball....523,000

(10) WCBS-2....Big Brother....482,000

Top 10 shows in New York, August 31 to September 6, according...

Bill Clinton, Jimmy Buffett, Barack Obama, Katie Couric and Others Remember the Life of Walter Cronkite

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 10:33:11 -0400

Bill Clinton stood on stage at Avery Fisher Hall in Manhattan's Lincoln Center and gazed out over the expansive auditorium. Not too long ago, Mr. Clinton told the audience, Walter Cronkite had extended a great act of kindness to his family. It was the summer of 1998. The Monica Lewinsky scandal was at a fever pitch. Mr. Clinton and his family were on vacation in Martha's Vineyard, hiding from the press and feeling like...

She's Headed to Prime Time, and She's Solo

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 19:31:49 -0400

It was Tuesday morning, the day after Labor Day, and Diane Sawyer was smiling brightly and wearing black. Toward the top of the hour, Chris Cuomo, one of her co-anchors on Good Morning America, looked at the camera and ran through the morning’s headlines. There was swine flu spreading rapidly through American schools, an alleged serial killer arrested in Milwaukee, great white sharks off the coast of Cape Cod, bombings in Afghanistan, cracks in...

The Week In Interviews: Chris Brown Tells Larry King That Nobody Taught Him and Rihanna 'How To Love One Another'

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 13:02:12 -0400

The Best of the Best from TV news interviews, August 28 to September 4:

On CNN, Larry King asked Chris Brown about assaulting his ex-girlfriend Rihanna. "What do you think caused you to be violent?" said Mr. King. "I mean, that's—that's relationships," said Mr. Brown. "I wouldn't say it's O.K. I think in—just in relationships in general, there's—there's chances where you lose your temper or like arguments get heated or whatever the case may be...

Fox Business Network To Simulcast Don Imus; Chief Critic Not Amused

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:03:57 -0400

This fall, Don Imus will make a big return.

And when he does, rest assured, his most vocal public critic will be there to cry foul.

This morning, executives at the Fox Business Network officially announced that they will begin simulcasting Mr. Imus' WABC morning radio show, weekdays from 6 to 9 a.m., beginning on October 5. In the new arrangement, a handful of FBN reporters, including Jenna...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: Disney's Lil Wizards Dominate Mark Sanchez

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 17:01:24 -0400

On the night of Friday, August 28, The Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie attracted the biggest average audience in all of cable television thus far in 2009, racking up some 11.4 million total viewers nationally. In New York, the movie version of the hit TV series also claimed the top spot, attracting more than a million viewers and trouncing the annual Jets vs. Giants preseason football game along the way. Sorry Mark Sanchez....

Diane Sawyer to Become Next Anchor of ABC's "World News"; Charles Gibson Retiring

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:48:23 -0400

In January, Diane Sawyer will become the next anchor of ABC's World News, replacing Charles Gibson, who will be retiring.

The move, first reported by The New York Post this morning, will make Ms. Sawyer the second woman to solo anchor an evening broadcast news show.

Ms. Sawyer's contract as one of the anchors on ABC's Good Morning America was reportedly expiring in the next year and what she would do next has been a source...

AMC Renews Mad Men for 4th Season

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:02:41 -0400

AMC executives announced today that they have greenlit a fourth season of the cable network's hit series Mad Men.

Since its first season, Mad Men has been catnip to critics. And recently, the series has been putting up big numbers. Its third season debut on Sunday, August 16, attracted some 4.5 million viewers--some of whom appear a tad obsessive about the series.

Karen Scott, Longtime News Director at WPIX-11, Resigns (UPDATED)

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:51:50 -0400

The Observer has learned that Karen Scott, the longtime news director at WPIX-11, is resigning from the newsroom after some 16 years at the station.

WPIX-11 is the flagship station of the CW network. It is owned by the Tribune company, which last year filed for bankruptcy.

The news was announced this afternoon by management in a group email to station staffers.

The advent of the Internet has been particularly tough on traditional outlets for local TV...

Jenna Bush Hager Joins NBC's Today as a D.C.-based Correspondent

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 10:19:38 -0400

NBC News executives announced today that Jenna Bush Hager, the daughter of former President George W. Bush, will be joining the Today show as a D.C.-based contributing correspondent.

Ms. Hager, who graduated from the University of Texas, Austin, in 2004, is currently teaching elementary school at a public school in Baltimore, Maryland.

Why is NBC News hiring Ms. Hager now?

Jim Bell, the executive producer of Today, said in the announcement that he was moved to hire...

The Week in Interviews: Plaxico Burress Cries on Camera

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:31:27 -0400

The Best of the Best from TV news interviews, August 21 to August 28:

On CNN, Larry King asked Kate Gosselin of Jon & Kate Plus 8 if Jon was a good father. "He is," said Ms. Gosselin. "Why the pause?" said Mr. King. "His decisions right now are not ones that I would necessarily make," she replied.

Rush Limbaugh called in to Fox News to speak with Glenn Beck about, among other things, President...

On Morning Joe, Chris Matthews Praises His Old Nemesis Mark Leibovich. Sort of.

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 10:25:27 -0400

On Thursday morning, Jill Abramson of The New York Times appeared on MSNBC's Morning Joe to talk about the life of the late Ted Kennedy. She was joined by Chris Matthews and Savannah Guthrie. Towards the end of the segment, Mr. Matthews couldn't help but take the opportunity to pick at an old wound.

"By the way, congratulations on Mark Leibovich's piece," Mr. Matthews said to Ms. Abramson, referring to...

NYC's Weekly Top Ten in TV: Don Hewitt Says Goodbye

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 18:11:11 -0400

More than 40 years ago, Don Hewitt created the perennially top-rated news-magazine 60 Minutes. On Sunday, 60 Minutes gave Mr. Hewitt one last top 10 finish, placing third in the New York market with an hour dedicated to remembering his life.

(1) ESPN....MLB Sunday Night....1,065,000

(2) YES....Yankees Baseball....757,000

(3) WCBS-2....60 Minutes....581,000

(4) UNI-41....Manana es para siempre....569,000

(5) WNBC-4....America's Got Talent (Wed)....556,000

(6) TNT....The Closer....545,000

(7) WNBC-4....America's Got Talent (Tu)....528,000

(8) WCBS-2....The Mentalist....523,000

(9) USA....Monk....518,000

(10) WABC-7...Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?....516,000

Top 10 shows in...

Bernard Goldberg's 'Lost' Fact About Mary Mapes Had Already Been Revealed Publicly By....Mary Mapes!

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:45:06 -0400

Before Bernard Goldberg gets any more excited about the "secret" revelations on page 130 of the 2005 Boccardi-Thornburgh report, he should really check out another page in the whole Dan Rather vs. CBS vs. President Bush saga.

Mr. Goldberg, please turn your attention to page 65 of Truth and Duty, by Mary Mapes.

Let us explain.

Last night on the O'Reilly Factor on Fox News,...