cnn

Layoffs, Closings & The Birth of New Network

cityfile · 07/01/09 12:36PM

• Cablevision is planning to launch an entire cable network devoted to nothing but wedding shows. So now you'll be able to watch Bridezillas 24/7. Yay. [B&C]
• It may not be over for Vibe. Quincy Jones, who founded the magazine in '93, says he's looking into buying it back and keeping it alive as a website. [Ebony]
Spin reportedly laid off 20 percent of its staff yesterday. [Gawker]
• Gannett Co., the largest newspaper publisher in the U.S. by circulation, is reportedly cutting between 1,000 and 2,000 jobs at the company. [WSJ]
• More bad news for CNN: MSNBC is now in front on weeknights and Campbell Brown's nightly show continues to plunge in the ratings, too. [NYT, TVBTN]
• CNBC's Dennis Kneale doesn't like it when bloggers mock him. Will acting like a nut on TV fix that? No, but it sure makes for amusing TV. [Dealbreaker]

The End of Vibe, Wall-to-Wall Jackson Coverage

cityfile · 06/30/09 11:45AM

• The urban/music magazine Vibe is shutting down. [Daily Finance]
• Media coverage of Michael Jackson's death is now "receding." Not that there was any other place for it to go but down: A report finds that 93% of the coverage on cable late last week was Jackson-related. [AP, Journalism.org]
• Or maybe not. Katie Couric anchors a big Jacko special on CBS tonight. [NYO]
• Fired Fox News columnist Roger Friedman has filed a wrongful termination lawsuit in New York State Supreme Court against Fox News, News Corp, 20th Century Fox and Rupert Murdoch. He'd like $5.2 million, please. [HuffPo]

Twitter-Addled CNN Refers to Tweets as a 'Source'

John Cook · 06/30/09 08:41AM

Everyone's coverage of the uprising in Iran has been Twitter-centric, for obvious reasons. But CNN, in an apparent attempt to look like they have real, non-Twitter newsgathering capabilities, has been regurgitating Twitter posts and attributing them to unnamed "sources."

Watch Joe Jackson Stoically Use His Son's Death to Plug a DVD

The Cajun Boy · 06/28/09 09:11PM

This is just awful. Earlier tonight CNN's Don Lemon interviewed Joe Jackson on the red carpet at the BET awards, where Jackson displayed indifference over the recent death of his son and then plugged some Blu-Ray disc he's peddling.

Farrah, Late Night Ratings & Anderson's Mea Culpa

cityfile · 06/25/09 12:55PM

• ABC and NBC will face off on Thursday night with competing tributes to Farrah Fawcett, who died today. But you probably expected that, no? [NYT]
David Letterman beat out Conan in the ratings last week, the first time the Late Show has dominated the weekly ratings since 2005. [THR]
Rosie O'Donnell will debut a new show on Sirius XM this fall. [NYDN]
• Rumor has it Ben Silverman's tenure at NBC may be ending soon. [DHD]
• Fox News now averages the same number of viewers as CNN, MSNBC, and HLN combined. Cue an evil grin across Roger Ailes's face. [THR]
Wired editor-in-chief Chris Anderson's new book contains material he ripped from Wikipedia. But he's really, really sorry about it, okay? [NYP]

'Anderson Cooper's Big Fat Coming Out Party' (Updated)

Hamilton Nolan · 06/25/09 09:28AM

What will Anderson Cooper be doing tonight? Unvogue Magazine says he'll be attending a party at the Sapphire Go-Go Lounge for their men's issue. It's been informally dubbed "Anderson Cooper's Big Fat Coming Out Party." [UPDATED: AC's denial below]:

Great Moments in Unprofessionalism: Covering Mark Sanford

Pareene · 06/24/09 05:00PM

So a live, rambling, out-of-left-field admission of adultery by a sitting US Governor is big news, and it is just the sort of thing our 24-hour news networks should love. Except Fox, which cut the feed.

Scientology Hates Psychiatry, Loves Its Ads

John Cook · 06/16/09 10:29AM

The Church of Scientology has launched a deeply creepy advertising campaign. They're buying spots on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360, and seem to have stolen the ad playbook from their arch-enemies in the pharmaceutical industry.

Late-Night Ratings, Ari Emanuel & The Crisis at Condé

cityfile · 06/10/09 12:04PM

• It's only been a week since Conan took over the top-rated Tonight Show, but David Letterman has already passed over him in the ratings. [NYT]
• Also: Dave Letterman's new contract will keep him at CBS through '12. [LAT]
• Yesterday the Boston Globe's largest union rejected the New York Times Co.'s proposed package of cuts. The NYT responded by implementing a 23 percent pay cut anyway and now the union is taking the matter to court. [NYT]
• Ratings are down for CNN's Lou Dobbs. And thank God for that. [NYO]
• It's official: Ari Emanuel is the new Mike Ovitz! Both the New York Times and The Daily Beast invoke Ovitz's name in lengthy pieces on "the pre-eminent power player in Hollywood" and "Hollywood's new don." [NYT, TDB]
• Sound the alarms! Swine flu has returned to Condé Nast! [Daily Intel]

Colbert, Conan & Cable News Ratings

cityfile · 06/03/09 11:34AM

Stephen Colbert will be Newsweek's guest editor next week. [NYO]
• Conan O'Brien's second Tonight Show dropped 30 percent from Monday's record-setting premiere, although that was probably to be expected. [THR]
• For the third straight month, MSNBC bested CNN in the cable news ratings. Fox News remained in first place, as usual. [Daily Finance]
• More bad news for CNN: Campbell Brown returned from maternity leave this week and immediately returned to fourth-place in the ratings. [THR]
• A new Harvard Business Review study reveals that 10 percent of Twitter users account for more than 90 percent of Twitter messages sent. [AdAge]
Jon & Kate Plus 8 is still generating obscene ratings, sadly. [AP]

Conan, Jay, Bravo & Condé Nast

cityfile · 06/01/09 12:07PM

• Conan O'Brien makes his debut this evening as Tonight Show host. [BN, EW]
• Bravo is ditching its tagline "Watch what happens" and replacing it with "By Bravo." We'll just have to watch and see what happens with that. [AdAge]
• More on the recent ratings meltdown at CNN. [Politico]
• The Times Magazine will be 9 percent smaller starting in two weeks. [E&P]
• DirectTV chief Chase Carey is in talks to join News Corp. as Rupert Murdoch's second-in command, taking over for Peter Chernin. [THR, BN]
• Disney's animated pic Up was No. 1 at the box office this weekend. [THR]
New York's cover story on Condé Nast, in case you missed it. [NYM]