Archive for August, 2008
Topic Pages to Be Hub of New BusinessWeek Site
Tuesday, August 19th, 2008
BusinessWeek magazine is about to introduce a site that hosts hundreds of topic pages, on subjects as broad as the housing market and as narrow as the Boeing 787.
Fox Is Allowed to Press Warner Over Rights to ?Watchmen?
Tuesday, August 19th, 2008
The dark heroes of Warner Brothers? ?Watchmen,? set for release next March, have a new problem on their hands: A federal judge has ruled that they may belong to 20th Century Fox.
Leroy Sievers, 53, Journalist Who Wrote of Cancer Battle, Dies
Tuesday, August 19th, 2008
Mr. Sievers was a television news producer who covered more than a dozen wars but became best known to the public as he chronicled his illness for NPR in a blog called ?My Cancer.?
Olympic Star Is Sidelined. Will His Ads Be, as Well?
Tuesday, August 19th, 2008
When China?s star hurdler, Liu Xiang, limped off the field late Monday morning, it dealt a blow to the marketing plans of some marquee brands.
Advertising: For 60 Years, the Ad Game Has Been Fodder for Scripts
Monday, August 18th, 2008
The popularity of the AMC series ?Mad Men? is renewing interest in efforts to portray the advertising business on TV and in film.
Television Starts to Court the Young Voter
Monday, August 18th, 2008
With polls showing a surge in primary-season ballots cast by voters under 30, media outlets are out to convert the newly energized voters into viewers.
Los Angeles Times Announces Hiring of New Publisher
Monday, August 18th, 2008
Eddy W. Hartenstein, a former head of DirecTV, will become publisher of The Los Angeles Times, the newspaper reported.
A Surprise Winner at the Olympic Games in Beijing: NBC
Sunday, August 17th, 2008
The Games have become the hottest event of the summer, drawing an average audience of about 30 million a night on NBC, far beyond the network?s expectations.
Media Talk: Fox News Joins a Social Network, but Not Its Parent?s Site
Sunday, August 17th, 2008
Fox News Channel wants more friends. But instead of using the News Corporation?s own social network, it?s choosing to network on the site?s chief rival, Facebook.
Media Talk: Serving 3 Brands: Burger King, Google and Seth MacFarlane
Sunday, August 17th, 2008
Seth MacFarlane, creator of the ?Family Guy,? is teaming up with Google and Burger King to animate both an online series and ads to go with it.
Media Talk: ?Gossip Girl? DVD Extra Tries to Steer Buyers to the Books
Sunday, August 17th, 2008
The DVD set ?Gossip Girl: The Complete First Season? includes a free electronic version of the original novel on which the show is based. But ? OMG! ? it?s an audio book.
In Kenya, Mobile Growth Also Benefits Ad Agencies
Sunday, August 17th, 2008
Telecommunications companies are expected to spend about 4.7 billion Kenyan shillings (or $72 million) on advertising this year, according to a Nairobi-based newspaper.
Link by Link: Like Politics? Broadcast Your View for Only $6
Sunday, August 17th, 2008
Saysme.tv didn?t invent the loudmouth, but, as the company?s logo indicates, it sure hopes to sell him a megaphone.
The Media Equation: The Enquirer: Even Scandal Can Be News
Sunday, August 17th, 2008
To those who look at American tabloid culture and say ?good riddance,? I say, not so fast.
Some Media Companies Choose to Profit From Pirated YouTube Clips
Saturday, August 16th, 2008
After years of regarding pirated video on YouTube as a threat, some major media companies are starting to treat it instead as an advertising opportunity.
Cablevision to Pay Its First-Ever Dividend
Saturday, August 16th, 2008
The Long Island-based cable operator said it would pay a quarterly dividend of 10 cents starting in September.
Home Equity Frenzy Was a Bank Ad Come True
Saturday, August 16th, 2008
Home equity loans, once seen as the borrowing of last resort, have grown a thousandfold since banks began spending billions of dollars to advertise them.
Company Pitches a Television Production, and Nonprofit Groups Are Wary
Saturday, August 16th, 2008
Concerns have been raised by PBS because the production company seems to be suggesting a relationship with the broadcaster while making its sales pitch to nonprofit groups.
SearchDay: More Killer Keyword Techniques: Personas and Buckets
Friday, August 15th, 2008
Today's search engine marketing news and opinion: More Killer Keyword Techniques: Personas and Buckets; Cuil New Search Engine Launches; and more.
Radio Alert: It?s Now Mike Minus Mad Dog
Friday, August 15th, 2008
On Thursday, WFAN?s ?Mike and the Mad Dog? became just Mike, when Chris Russo left the station abruptly, ending the most formidable duo in sports-talk radio.
Advertising: You Are Here (and Probably Seeing an Ad)
Friday, August 15th, 2008
The ardor to reach consumers outside the home ? and outside the realm of traditional media like television ? continues to grow among marketers.
Memo Re Tom Cruise: The Star Is Staying Here
Friday, August 15th, 2008
The head of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios says he wants Tom Cruise to remain closely involved with United Artists after the departure of Paula Wagner, a friend of Mr. Cruise.
2 Backed by Icahn to Join Yahoo Board
Friday, August 15th, 2008
Yahoo said that it would add the former chief executives of Viacom and Nextel Partners to its board as part of the company?s deal to avoid a proxy fight with the investor Carl C. Icahn.
L. Rust Hills, Fiction Editor at Esquire, Dies at 83
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
Mr. Hills was a staunch advocate of contemporary American literature who, as Esquire?s curmudgeonly fiction editor, published work by scores of the country?s finest writers.
TV Sports: New York-Based Crews Just Call It as They See It
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
Announcers are calling many sports using HD monitors and headsets without seeing more than what viewers see.
Arts, Briefly: Couric?s Online Coverage
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
When Katie Couric concludes her one-hour prime time broadcasts during the national political conventions, she will continue hosting coverage on the Internet, CBS said.
The Classic Rock Magazine Is Switching to a Smaller, Rack-Friendly Size
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
With the Oct. 30 issue, which will go on sale Oct. 17, Rolling Stone, published by Wenner Media, will adopt the standard size used by all but a few magazines.
Ruling Is a Victory for Supporters of Free Software
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
The federal appeals court in Washington said that just because a software programmer gave his work away did not mean it could not be protected.
SearchDay: Trademarked Terms: Guaranteed Conversions, Guaranteed Controversy
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
Today's search engine marketing news and opinion: Trademarked Terms: Guaranteed Conversions, Guaranteed Controversy; The Local Advertiser of Today and Tomorrow; Microsoft's BrowseRank Aims for Better Results than PageRank; and more.
Advertising: Woman to Woman, Online
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
The rapid growth in advertising and traffic to Web sites aimed primarily at women has attracted the attention of major media companies.
Chief of United Artists Is Negotiating a Departure
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
Paula Wagner is in talks to leave as chief executive of United Artists, less than two years after spearheading an effort to revive the studio with her partner, Tom Cruise.
Advertising: For Retired Olympians, Marketing Is the Game
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
Even for alumni, the ability to cash in on one?s former fame comes only once every four years, because corporate sponsors prefer to work with athletes when their signature sports are in the news.
TV Networks Rewrite the Definition of a News Bureau
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
CNN, which will assign to 10 cities journalists who will borrow office space and use laptops, is hardly alone in its approach.
SearchDay: Creating PPC Campaigns: the ‘Live or Die’ Settings
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
Today's search engine marketing news and opinion: Creating PPC Campaigns: the 'Live or Die' Settings; Another Microsoft Offer, Another Yahoo Rejection; Now States are Investigating Yahoo-Google Deal; and more.
Advertising: A Film on the Trucking Life Also Promotes a Big Rig
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
A documentary film about truck drivers is being underwritten by a division of the Navistar International Corporation to help promote a new long-haul truck.
Thomson Reuters Reports Lower Profit on Costs of a Merger
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
Thomson Reuters said that second-quarter earnings had fallen 54 percent as costs to buy and integrate Reuters cut into profit.
Thomson Reuters Revenue Growth Slows
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
The news and information publisher reported slower revenue growth in its key Markets division as the U.S. credit crisis took a heavy toll on global investment banks.
Ex-HBO Chief Quits Latest Job
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
Chris Albrecht, the former chief executive of HBO, said that he had stepped down from his role running IMG?s media and entertainment business.
TV Decoder: CNN’s Strategy: Bureaus Out, Flexible Journalists In
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
CNN announced it would ?double its domestic news-gathering presence? by assigning journalists to 10 additional cities across the United States.
A Summer Break of Comedy for the Web
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
The cast and crew of ?SNL? take their talents to the Web for the summer, with straight-to-Internet videos starring members of the New York comedy scene.
SearchDay: Link Building via Word-of-Mouth
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
Today's search engine marketing news and opinion: Link Building via Word-of-Mouth; Has Facebook Found the Key to Making Money via Search?; Yahoo Launches BOSS: Build your Own Search Service; and more.
SearchDay: What Can TV Learn from Search?
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
Today's search engine marketing news and opinion: What Can TV Learn from Search?; Olympics 2008: Which Search Advertisers Get the Gold?; 24 iPhone Applications That Accelerate Mobile Search; and more.
SearchDay: What’s on your Mind?
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
Today's search engine marketing news and opinion: What's on your Mind?; Coherency in Landing Page Testing; Google Lively: Comprehensive Guide to Getting Started; and more.
Magazine Sales Fall 6.3% at Newsstands
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
Newsstand sales of magazines fell 6.3 percent in the first half of 2008, an industry group said Monday, as rising gas and food costs led consumers to cut back on nonessential spending.
Groups Call for Boycott of ?Tropic Thunder? Film
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
Citing what they described as the movie?s disregard for people with intellectual disabilities, several groups called for a boycott of the film.
Reticence of Mainstream Media Becomes a Story Itself
Monday, August 11th, 2008
For almost 10 months, the story of John Edwards?s affair remained the nearly exclusive province of the National Enquirer.
Show Skewers Martha Stewart, With Her Blessing
Monday, August 11th, 2008
Can Martha Stewart take a pie in the face -- even one she baked? Fine Living Network, about to unveil a new comedy series -- ?Whatever, Martha!? -- is about to find out.
Holy Cash Cow, Batman! Content Is Back
Monday, August 11th, 2008
As Jeff Bewkes whittles away at the Time Warner empire, it?s become clear that the company will have unraveled the two great megamergers that created its current shape.
Is Google a Media Company?
Monday, August 11th, 2008
Knol, Google?s new site where experts share knowledge on a variety of topics, has rekindled fears among some media companies that Google is edging in on their turf.
Advertising: Top New York Theatrical Agency Is Combining With London Counterpart
Monday, August 11th, 2008
A New York agency, SpotCo, agreed to be acquired by the British firm First Artist Corporation in a deal that points to the growing interest in entertainment marketing.
