Tone Deaf…

Mediaite’s Colby Hall writes about Bill O’Reilly doing a very good impression of being tone deaf…

O’Reilly pointed out that other conservative commentators noted that it took three days for Obama to address the nation after the “underwear bomber” failed on Chrstmas day, and it took only three hours for Obama to address the Haiti disaster. Perhaps its worth noting that nobody died in the failed attack on Northwest 253, and estimates of death in Haiti range from tens to hundreds of thousands?

To O’Reilly’s credit he pointed viewers to his favored charitable organization in Haiti – The Haitian Health Foundation.

O’Reilly is going to get slagged for this and deservedly so. Whatever technical points he was trying to make, the utility for such antiseptic discussion is better suited for a time greater than a day after thousands of people were hurt or killed.

Exclusivity Wars…

Earlier today CNN billed Anderson Cooper’s interview with Bill Clinton as an exclusive. Johnny Dollar noticed that the exclusive wasn’t as exclusive as CNN had apparently hoped. Did FNC decide to grab Clinton after CNN announced its “exclusive”? To quote Bugs Bunny, “Mmmmmmmmmyeah….could be.”

Roger Ailes’ Status…

The LA Times’ Joe Flint writes about Roger Ailes and News Corp. President Chase Carey talking about the New York Times’ article where Matthew Freud tried to set off a bomb inside the company, so to speak…

We were curious about the brouhaha and reached out to Ailes. He said Freud’s remarks “didn’t make sense to me,” and added that stories that “I’m a dead man” are “being manufactured.” Ailes said he’s sure he has met Freud but, “I couldn’t pick him out of a lineup … most people who have a problem at least walk up to me and talk to me about it.” (But Ailes has cameras around his office and a driver, so the casual approach might be difficult.)

Company Town has learned that Ailes has communicated with both Elisabeth Murdoch and James Murdoch — the latter the only Murdoch sibling currently working at the company — since Freud’s remarks were published. “There is nothing to the idea that I have any problem with the children. The entire Murdoch family has been nothing but supportive.”

Update: Flint’s article was only part of the story. Variety’s Steve Clarke writes about John Ryley, the head of Sky News, backing Ailes…

John Ryley told the Cambridge Union Society he admired Fox News, which earlier this week was attacked by Rupert Murdoch’s son-in-law, Matthew Freud, for undermining journalistic standards.

The Sky News topper said, “At Sky News, we provide impartial and independent news. That’s not because Ofcom (the media regulator) tells us to but because it’s what our audience expects of us. In simple terms, it’s good business for us to be impartial.”

Ryley added, “That’s not to say there aren’t different ways of approaching television news. Whatever you think of Fox News, there is no denying that it has shaken up the sometimes staid world of U.S. TV news by using commentators like Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity alongside its core news output.”

Press Releases: 01/13/10

CNN (1)

In a cable EXCLUSIVE, Anderson Cooper will interview Former President William J Clinton via satellite. Cooper is in Haiti covering the aftermath of earthquake. Clinton is the United Nations Special Envoy to Haiti and will discuss relief efforts, the status of the unaccounted UN employees following the collapse of mission in Haiti, and the latest news from there.

Anderson Cooper 360° airs weeknights at 10pm ET on CNN and will be live tonight from Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Haiti: Deployment…

TVNewser has a list of broadcast and cable talent en route to Haiti. CNN Observations has a list of CNN’s deployment. Anderson Cooper is already on the ground in Haiti and reporting for the network…

Free for All: 01/13/09

What’s on your mind?

Earthquake in Haiti: Your coverage reactions…

Post your reactions to the earthquake in Haiti and the coverage thereof here…

Update 8pm: CNN still all over this. FNC went to O’Reilly and the Palin interview. MSNBC is getting ripped by Rachel Sklar on Twitter for low balling the coverage…

BTW Fox covering news live with Shep Smith….MSNBC rerunning Chris Matthews from 5 (have not seen news cutins on Haiti)

Is MSNBC live? Olbermann teased McGwire steroids heavily up top, started with Palin, McCain and Game Change. CNN still on Haiti.

Update 10:28 pm: Olbermann was live at 9 pm according to Sklar and never touched Haiti. Unbelievable. Anderson Cooper said that he’ll be flying to Haiti. I wonder who else will be going?

Update 11:15pm: CNN still live with Jessica Yellin/Tom Foreman, MSNBC live with Maddow and David Shuster, FNC running O’Reilly/Palin again…

Update 12:20am: CNN simulcasting CNNI, MSNBC live with Shuster. FNC airing Hannity repeat…

Update 1am: MSNBC re-airs Countdown. FNC in tape too. CNN drops CNNI for an AC360 repeat. Odd. CNN Observations notes that CNN Domestic is now missing out…

CNN International has a live intv with a man whose family is in the area and he hasn’t heard from them. You won’t see that on CNN Domestic!

Nicole Lapin joins CNBC…

CNBC announced that Nicole Lapin will be joinding the network.

NICOLE LAPIN TO JOIN CNBC AS ANCHOR OF “WORLDWIDE EXCHANGE” IN THE U.S.

CNBC’s “Worldwide Exchange,” the First Worldwide Daily Business News Program, Airs Weekdays 4AM-6AM ET with Anchors in the U.S., Europe and Asia

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., January 12, 2010—CNBC, First in Business Worldwide, today announced that Nicole Lapin will join the network as an anchor on CNBC’s “Worldwide Exchange” based in the U.S., effective mid-January.

CNBC’s “Worldwide Exchange” (M-F, 4AM-6AM ET) is the first worldwide daily business news program with anchors in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Each weekday Ross Westgate in London and Christine Tan in Singapore and Lapin in the U.S. will cover local stories with global significance. “Worldwide Exchange” is the networks’ most distributed show, simultaneously available in more than 100 countries across the globe.

Free for All: 01/12/10

What’s on your mind?

Palin: More write ups…

The LA Times’ Matea Gold and Mark Z. Baraback write about Sarah Palin signing with FNC…

Shine said he was not concerned that Palin would make false assertions on the air.

“Along the way, we’ll talk to her and have conversations and I’m sure everything will be fine,” he said, adding that the expectations that Palin will utter something controversial will likely drive viewership. “In the end, that’s probably going to help us in that that’s what people will want to watch.”

Republican strategist David Carney, a veteran of the George H.W. Bush administration, said Palin was canny to sign up for a limited role on Fox News. The occasional, selected appearance “is probably safer for keeping her presidential possibilities open than a daily show where she’d have to come up with something innovative and entertaining and provocative for 42 minutes, five days a week,” he said.

Still, Marty Kaplan, a former Democratic speechwriter and director of USC’s Norman Lear Center, which studies the effects of entertainment on society, said Palin’s new gig would not help her overcome her biggest vulnerability: limited experience in public office. When she left office, she had 18 months remaining in her first term.

“The narrative that hurts her the most is one that she herself began, which is she’s not interested in governing,” Kaplan said.

CNN to shut down Seoul Bureau?

Here’s a report, unattributed, that CNN may be shutting down its Seoul bureau. This seems inconceivable to me given the state of things with North Korea. (via J$)

CNN, the U.S.-based cable news network, may soon shut down its Seoul bureau or scale down its operation as part of restructuring efforts, an industry source said yesterday.

“CNN has been considering the closure of its Seoul office and the final decision is expected to be made later this month,” the source said, requesting anonymity.

The 24-hour news channel, with about 30 offices around the world, was hit hard by the latest global economic crisis and has been studying ways to cut costs, the source added.

CNN’s Seoul bureau chief, Sohn Jie-ae, will quit her job in the coming weeks. She has been named spokesperson for foreign media at South Korea’s organizing committee for the G-20 economic summit to be held in Seoul in November.

Update: A CNN spokesperson tells ICN there are “No plans to close our operation in Seoul”

Sarah Palin to FNC…

The New York Times’ Jim Rutenberg scoops that Sarah Palin has joined FNC as a contributor. What’s FNC’s policy regarding Palin if she decides to run in 2012?

The network confirmed that Ms. Palin would appear on the network’s programming on a regular basis as part of a multiyear deal. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Ms. Palin will not have her own regular program, one person with knowledge of the deal said, though she will host a series that will run on the network from time to time. This person would not elaborate, but the network does have a precedent for such a series. Oliver L. North is the host of an occasionally running documentary series on the military called “War Stories.”

Free for All: 01/11/10

What’s on your mind?

CNBC Doc Performance: Sex, Drugs, but not AOL…

The New York Post’s Peter Lauria writes about CNBC’s lackluster ratings for its AOL doc…

It turns out CNBC’s business-minded viewers aren’t as interested in the media as they are in sex and drugs.

Proving the adage that the only people who think the media is interesting and glamorous are those who work there, CNBC’s latest original documentary, “Marriage from Hell: The Breakup of AOL Time Warner,” garnered a measly 160,000 viewers during its premiere last week, according to The Nielsen Co.

Those ratings, which rank among the lowest for a CNBC documentary, are dwarfed by the premiere night audience of 1.2 million for the network’s drug-focused documentary, “Marijuana Inc.,” and the just under 500,000 viewers who checked out “Porn: Business of Pleasure.”

What’s Hot/What’s Not: 01/10/09

What’s Hot:

Senator Ed Schultz? Nah… – Ed Schultz announced that he had been approached to run for the Senate seat for North Dakota. The next day he said he wasn’t running.

FNC sued over “copyright infringement” – The fact that FNC was sued wasn’t that noteworthy. What was interesting was FNC’s claim of “fair use” which is something that News Corp. owner Rupert Murdoch has been publicly posturing against recently.

Rudy Geller to sue CNN? – This could get interesting depending on how serious Geller gets about his defamation claim.

Ali Velshi in, Heidi Collins and Abbi Tatton out. Erica Hill leaves for CBS – CNN made some in front of the camera moves this week announcing that Ali Velshi would become a M-Fr dayside anchor and Heidi Collins would be “not renewed”. Later in the week it was revealed that Abbi Tatton would be leaving CNN as well. On Friday Erica Hill announced she’d be leaving CNN for a bigger role at CBS.

Shepard Smith: Maverick – Some grumbling amonst the red blogs about Smith saying that Gitmo gave America a “black eye”…

News Corp. discord over Roger Ailes? – FNC let Ailes be interviewed by the New York Times for what should have been a positive profile piece on the FNC major domo. But the part of the story which took off like wildfire, to FNC and Ailes’ dismay (not to mention News Corp.), was when Matthew Freud said that Murdoch family members and parts of News Corp were not happy with what Ailes was doing at FNC.

Brit Hume vs. Tiger Woods – It was an odd moment when Brit Hume said that Tiger Woods should consider becoming a Christian. Odd to say the least.

What’s Not:

Creative Advertising – MSNBC taking out an ad in the New York Times including Hardball in its triumphant announcement that it beat CNN in the primetime Demo left the network wide open for criticism since Hardball neither beat CNN in 2009 nor was part of primetime. Worse, banner ads that appeared on websites like TVNewser didn’t have the space to even mention the word “primetime” but still left Matthews in the ad.

NRSC vs. MSNBC - The NRSC called for MSNBC to restrain Ed Schultz because of speculation that Schultz could run for the Senate. This was a bit presumptuous since Schultz hadn’t even declared as well as being rather selective since I don’t recall the NRSC screaming about Chris Matthews when Matthews was in play to run for the Senate in Pennsylvania last year.

Roger Ailes Profile: Update…

The Daily Beast’s Lloyd Grove has some inside reaction to yesterday’s NYT Ailes piece and the Murdoch Family discontent angle…

A spokesman for Ailes, who in a previous career was a brass-knuckled Republican media consultant who toiled for Presidents Richard Nixon and George H.W. Bush, had no response today to Freud’s charges. But a News Corp. insider told me the pugnacious Ailes, a self-made son of the working class who was paid $23 million last year, more than Rupert himself, is probably enraged at Freud and plotting his revenge. “Ailes would kill him if he thought he could get away with it,” the insider told me.

One thing is pretty clear: Freud’s opinions are much more than just his own. They undoubtedly reflect those of his wife Elisabeth Murdoch, 41, a former News Corp. executive who owns a television production company in London, and are very likely in sync with the views of James Murdoch, Elisabeth’s 37-year-old brother, who has been taking a larger role within News Corp. in recent years. Freud often maneuvers behind the scenes on behalf of his brother-in-law, who is chairman and chief executive of News Corp.’s Asian and European operations and widely seen as Rupert’s heir apparent.

Update: Mediaite’s Steve Krakauer has response from News Corp.

A News Corp. spokesperson tells Mediaite: “Matthew Freud speaks for himself only and his views in no way reflect those of Rupert Murdoch who is proud of Roger Ailes and Fox News.”

Interesting, but not exactly germane to Freud’s charge since Freud never mentioned Rupert Murdoch’s position.

Uri Geller to sue CNN over Michael Jackson Documentary…

The UK Independent’s Robert Verkaik writes about Uri Geller’s pending lawsuit against CNN. What is this? Cable News lawsuit week? First FNC got sued, now CNN? Hey MSNBC! Where’s your lawsuit? (thanks to fritz3 for the tip…)

Uri Geller is to sue America’s leading television news channel after it broadcast an allegation that he had betrayed his friend Michael Jackson for £100,000.

The legal action is the latest controversy to emerge from the claims and counter-claims arising out of the events that followed Jackson’s death last year.

In his case for defamation, the psychic entertainer says he was the victim of a vicious email campaign after Michael Jackson’s dermatologist publicly accused him on CNN of profiting from the controversial documentary of the pop star’s life fronted by Martin Bashir. Geller, a British citizen, is bringing a High Court action in the UK after failing to win an adequate apology from CNN for what he says are totally false and unfounded allegations. The case concerns a broadcast in July when Arnold Klein, the star’s former dermatologist, told veteran TV presenter Larry King that Geller had “sold Michael Jackson” to ITV for $200,000.

Douglas Kennedy: Attack machine or not?

When Johnny Dollar forwarded me this video clip from his site at showing Fox News Watch panelist Douglas Kennedy, a longtime FNC reporter, going somewhat on the offensive, at first I didn’t read too much into this. Then $ sent me a link to Behind The Break #2 where Kennedy makes a comment about what Brit Hume said about Tiger Woods to try and buttress his argument that Kennedy was really on a tear.

Well I still don’t really see what $ sees. But I’m putting this up so that the respectful discussion of the subject (hint, hint, hint) can begin…

Roger Ailes Profile…

In a must read that may give the folks at FNC more reason to hate the New York Times and Roger Ailes reason to wonder why he agreed to be interviewed, the Times’ David Carr and Tim Arango include in their profile of Roger Ailes a Murdoch family discontent angle…

Mr. Ailes’s approach has put him at odds not just with the Democrats but also with the more liberal members of his boss’s family.

He played a well-chronicled role in the decision in 2004 by Lachlan Murdoch, Mr. Murdoch’s eldest son, to leave the company; he thought Mr. Ailes was intruding on his corporate turf. Two other Murdoch children, Elisabeth, a television producer in London, and James, the only Murdoch scion employed at the company, are sympathetic to Democratic causes and frequently voiced concerns to their father during last year’s presidential campaign about Fox News’s coverage of Mr. Obama.

And those concerns have only grown.

“I am by no means alone within the family or the company in being ashamed and sickened by Roger Ailes’s horrendous and sustained disregard of the journalistic standards that News Corporation, its founder and every other global media business aspires to,” said Matthew Freud, who is married to Ms. Murdoch and whom PR Week magazine says is the most influential public relations executive in London.

In the interview, Mr. Ailes said that both Mr. Murdoch and the News Corporation had been consistently supportive of Fox News and its approach.

What’s Hot/What’s Not: Submissions…

Post your nominations for the first What’s Hot/What’s Not of 2010. I’ll post the finalists on Sunday night…

Erica Hill leaving 360 for CBS fulltime?

Twitter is buzzing about an announcement coming up during AC360 tonight. TVNewser scoops that Erica Hill is going to be leaving her AC360 duties on CNN for CBS full time…

Shepard Smith’s “Black Eye” Moment…

This apparently slipped under everyone’s radar this week. I only found out about it by reading David Forsmark ripping Shepard Smith on David Horowitz’s Newsreal site for saying GitMo gave America a Black Eye…

No wonder the Chris Matthews rerun at 7PM opposite Smith has about triple the ratings Harball has going up against Glenn Beck at 5PM!

Isn’t it about time Fox killed two birds with one stone? Stomp all over Chris Matthews’s best rated hour by giving ratings juggernaut Beck a better time slot at 7; by either swapping places with Smith or putting Beck at 5 and 7PM against both Hardballs and delivering the coup de grace to that floundering competitor.

With all the talent Fox has rounded up lately, the lame and extremely missable 7PM hour sticks out like a sore thumb, or a bad habit– maybe bad contract?– the network just won’t break– or maybe it’s Maybelline?

Talk about your black eyes.

Press Releases: 01/08/10

MSNBC (1)

“THE DAILY RUNDOWN” AND “THE DYLAN RATIGAN SHOW” PREMIERE MONDAY, JANUARY 11 ON MSNBC

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel Joins Chuck Todd and Savannah Guthrie For An Exclusive Interview on Monday’s “The Daily Rundown”

NEW YORK – January 8, 2010 – “The Daily Rundown,” anchored by NBC News White House Correspondents Chuck Todd and Savannah Guthrie, premieres Monday, January 11 at 9 a.m. ET on MSNBC. White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel will join Todd and Guthrie for an exclusive interview on Monday’s show premiere.

“The Daily Rundown” will showcase the depth and experience of the NBC News Washington bureau, led by Todd and Guthrie. The show will focus on the top political stories of the day, with reporting and analysis from Washington’s strongest White House team.

Nikki Egan is the executive producer of “The Daily Rundown” (weekdays 9-10 a.m. ET on MSNBC). Libby Leist will serve as senior producer from Washington, DC. For more information, please visit: www.rundown.msnbc.com

Free for All: 01/08/10

What’s on your mind?

E*TRADE Makes CNBC Live Video Available…

E*TRADE announced that it’s making live CNBC video available for its premium traders…(via Talking Biz News)

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– E*TRADE FINANCIAL Corp (Nasdaq: ETFC) today announced that E*TRADE Securities LLC has launched CNBC Plus on its newly redesigned premier desktop trading software for active traders, Power E*TRADE Pro.

CNBC Plus offers commercial-free live streams of CNBC TV from the U.S., Europe and Asia. The CNBC Plus video-on-demand archive provides the ultimate research library with more than 150,000 interviews, analysis and commentary, and more than 100 new clips added each day.

“Active traders want quick, easy, personalized access to the markets and the news that moves them, along with cutting-edge tools and technology to help them trade effectively,” said Michael Curcio, President, E*TRADE Securities LLC. “The latest Power E*TRADE Pro takes our active trader experience to a new level with real-time video from CNBC, improved layouts and features, and as always, competitive order execution and pricing.”

FNC sued over “Copyright Infringement”?

The Hollywood Reporter’s Matthew Belloni writes about FNC being the target of a lawsuit for airing footage of a Debbie Rowe interview on Geraldo at Large without permission…(via J$)

In a complaint filed today in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, F. Marc Schaffel claims Fox News aired an “extended portion” of his 2003 interview with Debbie Rowe on “Geraldo at Large” on July 5 without first obtaining permission.

Here’s where it gets interesting. Schaefel says when he complained to FNC the network’s lawyers claimed a “fair use” right to broadcast the footage because it was extremely newsworthy given Jackson’s high-profile death. If true, that wouldn’t quite gibe with News Corp. owner Rupert Murdoch’s recent crusade against media outlets “stealing” his company’s content online under the guise of fair use.

Anyone want to give the over/under on how long before this shows up on Countdown?

Bill Hemmer talks Bengals…

NFL Gridiron Gab’s Eric McMackin has an interview with FNC’s Bill Hemmer regarding the Cincinnati Bengals…

BG: What is your earliest Bengal memory?

BH: Probably that concrete field at the old Riverfront Stadium, and Paul Brown in that hat.

BG: How about the sweetest?

BH: I would have to say the “Freezer Bowl” game back in January of ‘82. I was a young high school kid at the time, and that win brought me a lot of joy, watching the game with my buddies. It was 72 degrees below zero. I remember standing on 8 inches of ice at our seats in the plaza level, the frozen river off in the distance, and my eyelids frozen shut from the wind.

Growing up in Maine…

Contessa Brewer is interviewed on WCSH6.com about growing up in Maine. Interview may not show up in Firefox with No Script running. Had to switch over to IE…

CNN’s new Atlanta Full HD Newsdesk due in Spring 2010…

Earlier today I speculated that with the simultaneous launch of Ali Velshi’s new anchor role and the debut of “Rick’s List” that maybe CNN would also take the wraps off of a brand new full HD Studio in Atlanta. I first wrote about the construction of this studio back in September of last year and it’s been four months since then so maybe it was due to be revealed.

However I’ve since learned that is not the case and there will be no surprise reveal on Monday. The new CNN studio is still being worked on and will debut in the spring of 2010. Assuming the studio was already under construction when I got tipped off last year, which unfortunately I don’t know for sure, that means it will have taken CNN 6-8 months to roll out the studio.

Some may think that’s a long time to convert a studio for a new set with HD. Yes and No. It all depends upon what goes into the studio. This leads me to believe that CNN will be swinging for the fences with this rollout. This would fit a pattern for the network. The original DC update which constituted The Situation Room was a high water mark, technologically, for the network. But that was subsequently surpassed by an even higher water mark when CNN’s New York studios were unveiled. So I’m expecting the new CNN Atlanta newsroom to surpass what’s in New York with state of the art gadgetry.

The NRSC vs. MSNBC?

CNN’s Political Ticker is noting that the Republican Senatorial Committee is none too happy with Ed Schultz as a prospective candidate and is threating MSNBC with legal action for it. Did Chris Matthews get this kind of treatment. I considered the chances of Mattews running more likely (but not by leaps and bounds) than Schultz.

“In discussing this matter on air, Mr. Schultz is soliciting and receiving feedback from his television audience regarding his viability as a federal candidate, raising his name recognition related to, and making a national audience aware of, his potential candidacy,” NRSC chief counsel Sean Cairncross had written in a letter to network president Phil Griffin Thursday that termed Schultz’s continued airtime a potential “in-kind” contribution.

“…We request that MSNBC immediately cease from continuing to provide prohibited corporate resources to underwrite Mr. Schultz’s U.S. Senate candidate exploratory activities. If you do not do so, we reserve the right to take appropriate legal action.”