television – News Stories About television - Page 45

Mar 19, 2009 10:10 AM CDT

Butt Out of Primetime, Prez: Networks

Execs complain Obama's addresses cost them money

(Newser) - President Obama is addressing the nation during primetime—again—and networks aren’t happy about it, notes the Hollywood Reporter. When Obama hits the airwaves Tuesday, he’ll bump American Idol's results show to Thursday, causing it to compete with the NCAA finals, and force the Big Four to cancel...

In Recession, NBC Page Gig Loses Luster

Mar 18, 2009 2:15 PM CDT

In Recession, NBC Page Gig Loses Luster

Once, $10/hour job launched careers; now, breeds bitterness

(Newser) - Stop by NBC’s Rockefeller Plaza headquarters for a tour, and you’ll be shown around by cheerful 20-somethings, cheerfully working 50-hour weeks for $10 an hour. Why? Because this is the NBC page program! Michael Eisner started as a page, as did Steve Allen, Willard Scott and others. But...

Relax, Parents: Tween Dora Still 'Wholesome'

Mar 17, 2009 2:52 PM CDT

Relax, Parents: Tween Dora Still 'Wholesome'

New doll of beloved character had sparked short-skirt concerns

(Newser) - Dora the Explorer is getting a tween update in a new doll, which trades her baby fat for a more girly, urban look, Hispanic Business reports. After concerns were sparked by a silhouette preview of the doll sporting a very short dress, parents can breathe a sigh of relief: the...

Sci Fi to Syfy:
Worst Rebranding Ever?

OPINION

Mar 17, 2009 7:28 AM CDT

Sci Fi to Syfy: Worst Rebranding Ever?

Channel's 'cutting-edge' new name ripped to shreds

(Newser) - The Sci Fi channel's decision to change its name to "Syfy" is a blunder of galactic proportions, Linda Holmes reports for NPR. The channel says it wants to show that it's about more than just traditional science fiction, notes Holmes, and has evidently chosen to do so by picking...

Sick of Booming Ads?
Help's on the Way From DC

Mar 16, 2009 7:07 AM CDT

Sick of Booming Ads? Help's on the Way From DC

Calif. rep introduces law for balanced volume

(Newser) - If you’re tired of being blasted by a loud commercial right after a quiet scene in your favorite TV show, a California representative hears you loud and clear—and wants to do something about it, Advertising Age reports. US Rep. Anna Eshoo introduced legislation in June to bar commercials...

Pakistan Blacks Out
TV Station Amid Protests

Mar 14, 2009 8:38 AM CDT

Pakistan Blacks Out TV Station Amid Protests

Info minister resigns as gov't bars 'anti-establishment' channel

(Newser) - A Pakistani TV station that criticized the government in recent weeks has had its signal blocked in some areas of the country on government orders, a station official said. The country’s media clampdown has driven its information minister to resign in protest, another official noted. The station shutdown occurs...

Kennedy Says
He, Love Hewitt
Are an Item

Mar 13, 2009 3:54 PM CDT

Kennedy Says He, Love Hewitt Are an Item

(Newser) - Jamie Kennedy and Jennifer Love Hewitt are dating, despite previous denials, Us reports. “She’s my Bella,” Kennedy said in an odd Twilight reference. “I don’t want to bite her neck, but I want her to live.” The two were rumored together since Hewitt called...

Stewart to Cramer:
'It's Not a Game'

Mar 12, 2009 8:36 PM CDT

Stewart to Cramer: 'It's Not a Game'

(Newser) - Jim Cramer took his lumps tonight from Jon Stewart in their highly anticipated Daily Show faceoff. "I understand that you want to make finance entertaining, but it's not a game," Stewart told Cramer, adding an expletive. "I can't reconcile the brilliance and knowledge that you have of...

For Daily Show Prep,
Cramer Consults Martha

Mar 12, 2009 3:27 PM CDT

For Daily Show Prep, Cramer Consults Martha

(Newser) - In anticipation of his visit with Jon Stewart on tonight’s Daily Show, an admittedly “nervous” Jim Cramer sought counsel today from another Stewart—Martha. “You should be nervous,” the lifestyle maven said on her syndicated show. “He’s fast as lightning.” The Mad Money...

Clooney Returns to ER Tonight

Mar 12, 2009 2:25 PM CDT

Clooney Returns to ER Tonight

(Newser) - Set your TiVo to stunned: George Clooney will make a return appearance on ER tonight, Entertainment Tonight reports. Clooney, who left the show in 1999, will star with his onetime on-screen love interest, Julianna Margulies. “I want their story to be very fulfilling in the end,” the episode’...

Stewart Ratings Soar
With Cramer Takedown

Mar 12, 2009 7:40 AM CDT

Stewart Ratings Soar With Cramer Takedown

Clip gets 1.5M views; week's site traffic surges

(Newser) - Jon Stewart’s attacks on CNBC host Jim Cramer have been ratings gold for the late-night satirist, Variety reports. An 8-minute rant has garnered 1.5 million views, Comedy Central says, and plenty of press attention. Unique usage for the Daily Show site has soared 65% this week amid a...

Wall Street's Woes Hit Sesame Street

Mar 12, 2009 2:51 AM CDT

Wall Street's Woes Hit Sesame Street

Drop in donations forcing round of layoffs at Sesame Workshop

(Newser) - The recession is pushing Sesame Street closer to Skid Row, reports the Financial Times. The educational foundation behind the TV show and a variety of community programs is laying off a fifth of its 355 staff. The Sesame Workshop has been hit hard by market turmoil eroding its investments and...

Idol Skirts Phone-Sex Number

Mar 11, 2009 8:32 AM CDT

Idol Skirts Phone-Sex Number

Show deals with scandal over phone-sex line

(Newser) - Tonight's American Idol includes changes that will turn “the entire theme and concept of the show” on its head, the AP reports. Last night's show, however, had all it could do to deal with the fact that 1-866-IDOLS-13—presumably the number to vote for the new 13th contestant—dials...

Cramer Going on
Daily Show Thursday

Mar 10, 2009 8:35 PM CDT

Cramer Going on Daily Show Thursday

(Newser) - This should be interesting: CNBC's Jim Cramer has agreed to go on Jon Stewart's Daily Show Thursday, notes the Business Insider. Stewart has been roasting Cramer, along with his CNBC cronies, for their market boosterism prior to the downturn. Last night, for instance, Stewart played a series of clips showing...

Real 'Cheers'
Bartender Laid Off

Mar 10, 2009 2:14 PM CDT

Real 'Cheers' Bartender Laid Off

(Newser) - For 35 years, Eddie Doyle has been the most famous bartender at Boston’s most famous bar, pouring drinks, signing autographs, and raising more than $1 million for charity along the way. Now, he’s unemployed. Cheers, the bar that inspired the TV show of the same name, has laid...

Beef With The Bachelor:
Men Should Do the Chasing

OPINION

Mar 10, 2009 12:12 PM CDT

Beef With The Bachelor: Men Should Do the Chasing

Men only appreciate what they fight for, author writes

(Newser) - You might view ABC’s The Bachelor as harmless fun. Think again. “It’s wrong. It’s just plain wrong,” Lisa Earle McLeod writes in the Huffington Post. “It violates the social order of the universe.” No, not because reality TV is evil or sexist. It’...

Brit's Dancers
Fired for Drugs

GOSSIP ROUNDUP

Mar 10, 2009 11:01 AM CDT

Brit's Dancers Fired for Drugs

Also: Jamie Lynn goes country, more

(Newser) - Sean “Diddy” Combs tells the Huffington Post that, yes, that is the sound of the Notorious BIG receiving—ahem—oral sex during his Ready to Die track. “I think Big would be alright with it,” Combs said of his admission. Elsewhere:

Britney Spears’ “beyond strict” handlers

...

Woz Could
Win Dancing
With Geek Power

OPINION

Mar 9, 2009 1:47 PM CDT

Woz Could Win Dancing With Geek Power

(Newser) - Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is competing on Dancing With the Stars, and with the right kind of support, he just might win, David Zeiler writes in the Baltimore Sun. Woz’s appearance on the show could animate the Apple faithful to actually watch and vote, and “win it for...

Ashlee Moves Into
Melrose Place

Mar 9, 2009 10:11 AM CDT

Ashlee Moves Into Melrose Place

Actress returns to TV after 4-year hiatus

(Newser) - Melrose Place has a new resident: Ashlee Simpson-Wentz. The Hollywood Reporter names the singer-actress—who got her start on 7th Heaven—as the newest addition to the CW’s Melrose remake, playing a small-town girl who moves to LA with a secret. For original show-watchers, Ashlee’s character, Violet, is...

Why a Dying TV Star
Became a Phenom

OPINION

Mar 9, 2009 8:14 AM CDT

Why a Dying TV Star Became a Phenom

Goody's death offers reality in an immaterial world: Bunting

(Newser) - A poll last week found that, after Barack Obama and Nelson Mandela, the public figure Britons most respected was Jade Goody—the British reality TV star dying, very publicly, of cervical cancer. Once dismissed as racist and ignorant, Goody has become "a parable of modern-day redemption," writes Guardian ...