For several weeks now I’ve been hearing reports about alleged macroblocking issues regarding the FNC HD feed on various providers. I know it’s happening on Verizon FiOS because someone emailed me about it. I saw it myself on DirecTV yesterday during America’s News HQ with Colby and Shawn. But J$ tells me he’s not seeing it on his Comcast HD feed. So the question is: Is it real macroblocking originating inside FNC or a retransmission issue involving the digital providers? Or something else entirely?

The case against an internal FNC macroblocking issue: The fact that it’s apparently not hitting every provider. That’s usually a big clue that the problem rests with the providers themselves, probably in their compression scheme. Furthermore, the length of time this has been going on (nearly a month according to reports I’ve gotten) would seem to me to fall outside the window of when something like this would have been spotted and fixed internally, unless it was due to some buggy new software which doesn’t have a patch available.

The case for an internal FNC macroblocking issue: The sudden rise in simultaneous complaints amongst various viewers on different providers is too coincidental to dismiss out of hand. Furthermore, what’s happening in the case of FNC’s HD picture is rather odd for macroblocking. Usually macroblocking is most easily visible when there’s a lot of motion on the screen, like a sports event (football, hockey, etc) or in an action movie with a lot of explosions or fast movement. This is because there’s more information being transmitted than the available bandwidth can handle so the CODEC “fudges” the picture. In TV news, aside from flashy graphic animations, this most frequently manifests itself in cross fade transitions and the first couple of frames after a jump cut. It usually effects the entire screen and then it goes away and you don’t see it anymore.

But what’s affecting FNC’s HD picture is happening in a different manner (excluding the graphic animations which will always be “noisy” given bandwidth restrictions). First, it’s not occurring during a transition or after a jump cut but in the middle of a camera shot. So far, I’ve only seen it in studio/remote studio shots. And it’s not always affecting the entire screen but only parts of it, and includes parts that either aren’t moving or are moving so slowly that macroblocking shouldn’t be a factor. And the picture will go in and out of macroblock mode several times during the shot. I’ve never before seen disruptions in the picture of the sort I saw on FNC HD yesterday.

What have you noticed? And what’s your provider?

Somewhere, Shepard Smith is nodding his head…

Hardball debuted with new graphics, open, and music today. One emailer was bummed out since Hardball had been using that theme for seven years…

Update: The use of the patented (well, ok not patented but should be definitely trademarked) Matthews’ “HA!” at the end of the Hardball Sideshow graphics open was a nice touch…

Update 2: Newscast Studio has screen grabs…

Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve noticed quite a drawdown in crossfire between MSNBC and FNC the past few months. Ok, it’s not just me because I’ve asked around and others have noticed it too. Not a complete cessation but a real throttling back in the cross network rhetoric between elements at MSNBC and elements at FNC. Maybe it’s just a lull in the action. But it’s been quite a protracted lull, going back to early June.

Anybody noticed Neil Cavuto has been off FNC/FBN for quite a while now. Weeks it seems. Could be an extended vacation. Or maybe something else?

The Globe and Mail’s Sarah Hampson profiles CNN’s Ali Velshi. (via TVNewser)

His ascendancy at the network began at the end of 2007, when economic deterioration started and the American electorate focused on its importance in the run-up to the presidential election. “What we realized is that we so effectively deployed resources to cover politics – such that ‘CNN equals politics’ became an accepted idea. So we wanted ‘CNN equals money,’ and we had the resources to do it.”

The decision lengthened his working day into as much as 20 hours at the height of the financial crisis. With his multi-platform presence – which also includes podcasts, a blog, radio, his own website and Twitter updates – he says he rarely works less than 12 hours a day. In his office in the New York CNN bureau, where he is based, he has a small IKEA bed. In October, he will marry Lori Wachs, a portfolio manager from Philadelphia, whom he met when she was a guest on his show.

The only drawback to his celebrity, he says, is that people see him as an expert who will dispense advice. “I still cringe when anyone at CNN or otherwise refers to me as an expert on anything.” He prefers to think of himself as a journalist.

Velshi is definitely getting a profile raise these days. He started sub-anchoring on CNN Newsroom recently. I wonder if this was just the first step in a larger career path trajectory at CNN?

What’s on your mind?

Post your comments about the Sotomayor hearings and the coverage thereof here…

Did CNN, FNC, or MSNBC do pre-confimation hearing specials on John Roberts or Samuel Alito? If not, why does Sotomayor merit a special by FNC?

It was a pretty thin week except for one thing…

What’s Hot:

Michael Jackson – Jackson’s funeral was, to coin a phrase that some might find in bad taste but I’m going to use it anyways, covered to death.

What’s Not:

Michael Jackson – No mas, No mas!

Post your nominations for this week’s What’s Hot/What’s Not. I’ll post the finalists on Sunday…

TVNewser has official CNN reaction to the story written up on Le-gal In-sur-rec-tion…

CNN had two teams on the ground. We were present throughout the march. CNN staff saw and heard the shooting. The blogger says he was not present at the time the shooting took place. We interviewed a bystander who said he had held a child who was dying. At no point in our interview did the witness allege he saw more than one victim. At the time there was confusion about the age of the victim, who was passed through the crowd, bleeding profusely from his fatal head wound. Many bystanders and journalists initially believed from the size and appearance of the body that the victim was quite young, consistent with the witness’s story.

CNN regrets that our report did not point out that we could not independently verify the man’s account. Note that CNN carefully reported the official Red Cross death tally of one, but included the assertions from protestors that the death toll may have been higher, as did the blogger.

Posted in CNN ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/cnn-falls-for-hoax-update/feed/ 0 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/free-for-all-071009/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/free-for-all-071009/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:05:38 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5955 ]]>

What’s on your mind?

Posted in Free For All ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/free-for-all-071009/feed/ 88 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/cnbc-europe-holds-entrepeneur-competition/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/cnbc-europe-holds-entrepeneur-competition/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:03:35 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5953 ]]>

World Business News writes about a new competition show launching on CNBC Europe…

The search has begun for Europe’s green entrepreneurs for a new series to be screened on CNBC across Europe later this year. Named “The Good Entrepreneur”, the competition is backed by CNBC and financial services giant, Allianz. It aims to find the entrepreneur with ‘the best eco-business concept which is sustainable, responsible and innovative’. The winner of “The Good Entrepreneur” will recieve a package worth more than E250,000 (approx £220,000) which includes financial support, advertising on CNBC and business support from Allianz. The competition closes on 31st July with three finalists named in August, with the winner announced in November. Read more for details on how to enter and more information.

Posted in CNBC ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/cnbc-europe-holds-entrepeneur-competition/feed/ 0 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/timothy-geithner-does-gps/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/timothy-geithner-does-gps/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:40:18 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5951 ]]>

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will be interviewed by CNN’s Fareed Zakaria this weekend on Fareed Zakaria GPS. Transcript highlights follow…

On Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke:

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST, FAREED ZAKARIA GPS: So you need a good fed chairman. Do you have any ideas?

TIMOTHY GEITHNER, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: We have an excellent fed chairman right now he is doing a terrific job and I think that this is important to underscore I think that what the Fed did in this crisis, which was without precedent, subject to enormous controversy, and important for people to look back over time and evaluate those judgments, was what the Fed did during this period was absolutely essential and helped stave off a much more catastrophic outcome.

I think what the fed did was not just essential but extraordinarily helpful in helping contain the risk, help slow, reduce the risk of a more catastrophic outcome.

ZAKARIA: That sounds like a vote for the reappointment of Ben Bernanke?

GEITHNER: Well again I said that the chairman has done an exceptional job and I think he deserves a lot of confidence.

On the strength of the Dollar:

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST, FAREED ZAKARIA GPS: Mr. Secretary, you are off on a trip, and you are going to Europe and other places. I have a quote here from Mr. Trichet, the Europe Central Banker, and it says: “I have one message: It is extremely important that the United States say that a strong dollar is in the interest of the United States.

TIMOTHY GEITHNER, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: It is my pleasure to say it: A strong dollar is in the interest of the United States. Of course I deeply believe that, and our commitment is to the world, and of course to the American People is to make sure we are putting in place the policies that can sustain confidence in this economy in this financial system.

ZAKARIA: You don’t worry that the dollar is going to weaken as a reserve currency of the world as the Chinese talk about wondering if there is some alternatives, as the Russians talk about it? The Arabs seem to be pointing in that direction.

GEITHNER: You know I actually don’t worry about that, Fareed, because if you look at the response of the world as we go through this period of time, when people are most concerned about risk, generally they want to be investing in the most liquid and safest market in the world which is still the market for our Treasury bills. And I think you have seen that pattern consistently over the period of time, and we want to make sure we can maintain that basic response.

On the new consumption:

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST, FAREED ZAKARIA GPS: You talked about the global imbalances that caused this problem, or at least a part of the backdrop of it. Part of the solution must be that we spend less, that we consume less, as you said, but partly, surely it is also that the Chinese, principally, save less. That is to say that the policies of the government that actually make it difficult for Chinese consumers to consume more are also changed. Have you made any head-way in getting the Chinese to stimulate private domestic consumption, not the government spending money, but the private Chinese consumer?

TIMOTHY GEITHNER, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: I think if you listen carefully to what the Chinese say, they believe even in that imperative. In, I think about two weeks, Secretary Clinton and I are going to host the first meeting of the strategic and economic dialogue with the leadership of China, and a core part of that discussion is for us to put in place a common framework that as we raise our savings in the United States, which is necessary and is already happening at a significant scale, that the world as a whole adjusts to that new reality.

On economic forecasts for 2010:

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST, FAREED ZAKARIA GPS: Your growth forecast for 2010 is 3.2%, economic growth for the United States. The IMF came out with its forecast which is 0.8%. If they’re right -

TIMOTHY GEITHNER, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: I actually haven’t looked at the IMF forecast.

ZAKARIA: Economists, I think, it would be fair to say a lot of economists think it’s likely to be lower than 3.2%. If that happens, my question to you is, the deficit as a percentage of GDP becomes much higher. Are you willing to do whatever it takes to keep the deficit as a percentage of GDP within the range that the president has suggested?

GEITHNER: He understands deeply, the importance of making sure that we put in place a stronger foundation for recovery as a whole, and part of that will be a return to living within our means as a country.

ZAKARIA: And that might mean higher taxes?

GEITHNER: Well it will –

ZAKARIA: There’s no magic, there’s only two ways to close the deficit.

GEITHNER: As a country, and there is no mystery in this, we’re going to have to bring our resources and our commitments closer into balance. It is a necessary thing for us to do.

Posted in CNN ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/timothy-geithner-does-gps/feed/ 0 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/advertising-jitters/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/advertising-jitters/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:22:30 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5949 ]]>

Mediate’s Steve Krakauer reports that CNBC’s upcoming Porn documentary has apparently spooked one of its sponsors…

According to multiple sources, Charles Schwab, a regular sponsor of the 5pmET Fast Money program (as well as others) pulled its sponsorship from the program after a preview segment made it seem like Schwab was associated with the sex doc. Melissa Lee, anchor of Fast Money, also hosts the “Porn” special.

One source tells Mediaite that Schwab did not pull its sponsorships from CNBC as a whole, just chose to move its sponsored segments to other programs.

When asked directly about Schwab’s decision to drop its Fast Money sponsorships, a CNBC spokesperson told Mediaite, “No comment,” but added, “‘The Business of Porn’ is a fantastic documentary which will give CNBC viewers insight into a 15 billion dollar industry.”

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Juliet Huddy…

GETTING READY FOR HAPPENING NOW ON FNC. AND YES, MY DRESS WILL BE THE ONE I WORE ON OREILLY MONDAY. SPILLED COFFEE JUST NOW.

SPILLED COFFEE ON MYSELF JUST NOW.

THANK YOU LAURA INGLE FOR THE LOANER DRESS

Posted in FNC ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/tweets-of-the-day/feed/ 3 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/john-zarella-pet-detective/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/john-zarella-pet-detective/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:10:29 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5943 ]]>

The New York Observer’s Felix Gillette profiles CNN’s John Zarella and his recent animal related stories…

Mr. Zarrella was still in Lakeland the next day, working on the story, when he got a phone call from the producers for CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360. They had a hot lead. Michael Jackson’s former pet chimp Bubbles, they told him, was living in seclusion at an animal sanctuary in the town of Wauchula. Could he back-burner the gators and go get Bubbles?

Mr. Zarrella hopped in his car. Wauchula is a rural hamlet located 40 miles due south of Lakeland that is best known for an infamous hospital mix-up in the late ’70s—an incident that eventually spawned the made-for-TV movie Switched at Birth. For the next hour, Mr. Zarrella drove through a torrential thunderstorm.

He eventually arrived at a wooded compound, surrounded by orange groves, called the Center for Great Apes. About a decade earlier, some kind-hearted souls had set the place up as a sanctuary for orangutans and chimpanzees who had retired from show business or been abandoned by pet owners—or, in Bubbles’ case, both.

Posted in CNN ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/john-zarella-pet-detective/feed/ 1 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/bret-duffer-baier/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/bret-duffer-baier/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:02:50 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5940 ]]>

Golfweek’s Martin Kaufmann profiles FNC’s Bret Baier…

Baier grew up in Atlanta playing American Junior Golf Association tournaments. In high school, he’d often play 36 holes per day at Dunwoody Country Club in Atlanta, then chip and putt well into the night, the lights of his Ford Granada illuminating the practice green. Though he fought a nagging hook, he arrived at DePauw with a fearless, Seve-esque flair – the sort who “would do or try anything,” says former teammate Rob McCormick, now the general manager at Crawfordsville (Ind.) Country Club.

“My coach at DePauw (Ted Katula) used to (say), ‘Baiersy, I can’t go out with you unless I have a flask of vodka,’ ” Baier recalls.

“His game matched his personality. He had a way of making something out of nothing,” says former teammate, Jon Stutz, head professional at Purgatory Golf Club in Noblesville, Ind.

“He was a scrambler, a grinder. He never seemed to be too taken aback by a bad shot. He just focused on how to make something out of the next shot.”

A self-described “ham,” Baier chased his television dreams in various small- and mid-sized markets after graduating in 1992.

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Gawker’s Ryan Tate writes about a going away party for the Wall Street Journal’s Dan Herzberg. That’s not what makes this story interesting. What makes it interesting is comments allegedly made by WSJ Managing Editor Robert Thompson in regards to a new room that has a lot of TVs in it…

The line that pricked up reporters’ ears was when Thomson joked that the real reason the Hub was built was actually to “double the viewership of Fox Business Network,” or words to that effect. Zing!

The Journal, like FBN, is part of the News Corp. empire so this alleged comment is the kind of thing that drives PR people crazy…

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The Hill’s Kris Kitto interviews FNC’s Shannon Bream…(via J$)

When did you become interested in politics?

I grew up in a household that was very politically involved and plugged in, and I feel like I was around that my entire life. I remember trying to watch returns to elections as a child … I just was wired that way as a kid. I was kind of like an Alex P. Keaton, female version.

What has been the most memorable Washington-based news story you’ve covered?

I think last year when we got the Second Amendment decision on the D.C. guns case. The court had actually extended the term for a couple of days … the day that it finally came, I was determined — I wanted to be the first person on the air with it. People from all over the country were here picketing … there was so much electricity there that day in the court. As I grabbed the opinion, it was really thick. I just went running for the camera, and I had no idea what I was going to say. I looked down to see that Justice Scalia had authored the opinion, and I knew that it would be a big win for the gun-rights advocates. And I was the first person to get on air with that.

What are your plans for August recess?

I’m going to try to get away and do some fly-fishing with my husband — if he remembers what I look like … We go to Colorado or Canada to fly-fish. It’s the antithesis of Washington, because I like to go where I can turn off my BlackBerry.

Posted in FNC ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/shannon-bream-qa/feed/ 9 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/another-conflict-of-interest/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/another-conflict-of-interest/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 01:09:33 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5933 ]]>

Gawker’s John Cook reports on an off the record get together between White House staffers and White House reporters on the 4th of July…

We reported yesterday that Politico’s Mike Allen was spotted milling about as a guest at the White House’s “backyard bash” by the pool reporter, who was allowed into the event for 40 minutes and kept in a pen before being ushered out. When Allen quoted from the pool report in his Playbook column the next day, he deleted a reference to his own name and didn’t bother to tell his readers that he was actually at the party.

Well, he wasn’t alone. Gawker has learned that the White House gave tickets to virtually every major news organization that covers the president—the New York Times, Washington Post, Newsweek, Time, ABC News, NBC News, CNN, CBS News, and so on, about 30 in all. The reporters were invited to attend on the following condition:

“You are being invited to attend this event as a guest. Blogging, Twittering or otherwise reporting on this event is not permitted. If you feel that you cannot agree to abide by these ground rules, please don’t claim a ticket.”

That’s right: Much of the White House press corps spent the Fourth schmoozing with White House staffers, catching performances by the Foo Fighters and Jimmy Fallon, and watching the fireworks from the most exclusive vantage point in the D.C. metro area, all off the record—not to mention off-the-Facebook and off-the-Twitter. These are the same people who just a week ago were whining in the press briefing about Obama’s malicious and dastardly attempts to “control the press.” (Well, not the self-same people—we’re not sure if Chip Reid and Helen Thomas, the primary antagonists in that exchange, were in attendance.)

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CJR Daily’s Ryan Chittum writes about the investment seminar and how it uses CNBC and Rick Santelli in its promotional materials. Chittum also has a response CNBC spokesman Brian Steel…

Steel told me CNBC policy prohibits its journalists from “accept(ing) appearance or speaking fees to participate in for profit seminars or conferences nor are they allowed to accept speaking or appearance fees to attend events sponsored by for profit companies or companies that engage in lobbying activities.” He says Santelli wasn’t paid for his appearance.

When asked if Santelli’s appearance was vetted by CNBC and if it approves of its reporters appearing at events like this, Steel said he doesn’t comment on internal discussions.

I also pointed out that CNBC’s brand name was being used to hawk Levin’s product and asked if that was okay with CNBC and was the product something it wanted to be associated with. Steel said “Larry Levin is in the process of removing any mention of Rick’s appearance or his likeness from his website nor will he be selling DVD’s that contains footage of Rick.”

As of right now, Levin’s entire website, sotseminar.com, has been taken down. I had already taken a couple of screen shots, so you can get a feel for the site:

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NewsBusters’ Kyle Drennen catches MSNBC’s David Shuster weighing in on Sarah Palin’s future and Tamron Hall taking one for the home team…

On Wednesday, MSNBC anchor David Shuster made a bold prediction about Sarah Palin’s political future: “I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, Sarah Palin will never recover from this…No matter what people say, no matter what these polls, she has no future.”

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CNN (1)

Anderson Cooper 360° with Exclusive Access to President Obama

Cooper joins the President during his trip to Africa

As President Barack Obama makes a historic visit to Africa, CNN’s Anderson Cooper sits down with the President for an extensive interview and joins him exclusively as he visits Cape Coast Castle, Ghana, the site of an overcrowded dungeon where slaves were held before they were shipped west. Interview topics will include domestic and international issues as well as the President’s own close connection with Africa and the significance of his trip for African-Americans today. CNN’s chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta will join Cooper from Haiti, where he will report on the slave trade that continues to thrive in that country. The interview will air on Monday, July 13th and Tuesday, July 14th. Anderson Cooper 360° airs weeknights at 10pm ET on CNN.

On Saturday, July 18th and Sunday, July 19th CNN will air a special titled President Obama’s African Journey, anchored by Cooper, which will explore the President’s personal history in Africa, and First Lady Michelle Obama’s African lineage and how her ancestors came to the United States. In addition, Cooper will lead a discussion with African-American leaders about the significance of the President’s trip. The weekend special will air at 8 and 11pm ET. The special will also air on CNN International.

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Here are CNN’s coverage plans for the Sotomayor hearings…

CNN Plans Comprehensive Coverage of Sotomayor Hearings

CNN’s Wolf Blitzer will anchor special coverage of the confirmation hearings on Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination to be associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court during the week of July 13. Beginning Monday at 10 a.m., CNN will provide comprehensive coverage during the opening statements as well as the days when Judge Sotomayor faces questioning from senators on Capitol Hill.

Blitzer will be joined by members of the Best Political Team on Television including senior political analyst Gloria Borger, senior political correspondent Candy Crowley, chief national correspondent John King, senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin, and national political correspondent Jessica Yellin. Senior congressional correspondent Dana Bash and congressional correspondent Brianna Keilar will report live from Capitol Hill to provide updates and reaction from members of Congress. In addition, CNN contributor Alex Castellanos and guest contributor Maria Echaveste will provide analysis and commentary throughout the coverage.

CNN’s coverage will allow viewers to simultaneously observe a wide variety of incoming live video feeds, relevant file video, graphics and other visual story-telling tools. In addition, King will use the Magic Wall to report on Sotomayor’s relevant decisions, legal briefs and other documents from her years on the bench.

A special edition of The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer will air at 4 p.m. on Monday, followed by regularly-scheduled programming of Lou Dobbs Tonight, Campbell Brown, Larry King Live and Anderson Cooper 360º, with a focus on the day’s happenings on Capitol Hill and a look ahead to the rest of the hearing.

Online, the Judge Sotomayor special report, located at www.CNN.com/Sotomayor, gives users access to an array of in-depth biographical information of the U.S. Supreme Court nominee, chronicling her life’s journey and career path. The special section features key case files from past rulings, sorted by topic so users can learn more about decisions she has made from the bench, as well as an interactive gallery of family snapshots that reveal her life in pictures.

When the confirmation hearings get underway, CNN.com will unveil a special series, which explores key aspects of Sotomayor’s life; from her roots in Puerto Rico to growing up in the Bronx, to entering the Ivy League and embarking on a career as prosecutor, to federal appellate judge and then becoming nominee to the highest court. Each weekday, CNN.com will publish a new story as well as special commentaries and video packages focused on one of these different parts of her life.

CNN.com Live, the Internet’s only live multi-stream video news service, also will stream the Sotomayor confirmation hearings live in their entirety.

CNN en Español will offer broad coverage of the Sotomayor hearings beginning on Thursday, July 9, with a preview special on Directo desde EE.UU. at 7:00 p.m. anchored by Patricia Janiot. This 30-minute special program, live from Washington, will review Sotomayor’s roots, her professional achievements and the facts that have made her a controversial candidate for the Court. On Sunday, July 12, at 1:30 p.m., correspondent Juan Carlos López will talk with a panel of experts to take a look at Sotomayor’s federal case rulings for clues on what judicial philosophy she may take to the highest court. Then, on Monday, July 13, the network will offer live coverage of the hearings with analysts weighing in throughout the day.

CNN International will also cover the live hearings and provide analysis from a global perspective.

CNN Radio will provide affiliates with special reports at the bottom of the hour beginning at 9:30 a.m. and running through the length of the hearing each day. There will be a one minute wrap-up at the end of the day, and this will also run in CNN Radio network newscasts. CNN Radio Capitol Hill correspondent Lisa Desjardins will be covering and providing affiliate live shots from Capitol Hill.

Posted in CNN ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/sotomayor-hearings-cnn-coverage-plans/feed/ 1 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/msnbccablevisionverizon-fios-update/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/msnbccablevisionverizon-fios-update/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:42:55 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5921 ]]>

As longtime readers know, for years I’ve been chronicling the MSNBC carriage deal with Cablevision and how it has blocked Verizon FiOS and ATT U-verse subscribers from receiving the network in areas where Cablevision serves. Well here’s the latest development. The Hartford Courant’s Lynn Dolan writes about the Connecticut Attorney General asking the FCC to look into the agreement.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal asked the Federal Communications Commission today to investigate an agreement between Cablevision and MSNBC TV that gives the cable provider exclusive rights to air the channel in its service areas.

Blumenthal, who described the agreement as “anticompetitive,” said it prevents cable competitors, like AT&T’s U-verse, from carrying MSNBC in Cablevision’s service areas, which include the Norwalk, Bridgeport and Torrington areas.

The exclusive partnership could violate a federal law that prohibits cable companies from coercing program providers into exclusive agreements or retaliating against them for refusing to do so, he said.

This will probably go nowhere. I think if the FCC was going to act on this it would have already given how long this has been going on. I first reported on the existence of this deal over two years ago.

Posted in MSNBC ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/msnbccablevisionverizon-fios-update/feed/ 2 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/dish-network-to-carry-msnbc-hd/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/dish-network-to-carry-msnbc-hd/#comments Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:41:47 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5914 ]]>

The Denver Business Journal reports that Dish Network will be carrying MSNBC in HD…

Dish Network Corp. said Thursday it was adding MSNBC HD to its channel lineup and would be the nation’s only pay-TV service to carry MSNBC’s high-definition channel across the country.

MSNBC HD is offered on the Dish Network’s Channel 209 in its Classic Silver 200 with HD package and above.

I saw this story via J$ which labeled it as an “exclusive”. The Journal’s headline calls the deal an “exclusive”. But what’s interesting is that the story itself doesn’t use the term “exclusive”. Exclusivity in this case should mean Dish has the only rights to air MSNBC HD nationwide and nobody else can. I have a feeling that’s not an accurate statement and that this is only “exclusive” because nobody else (read: DirecTV) has started carrying MSNBC in HD yet. If that’s the case, the Dish announcement will likely force DirecTV to start carrying it sooner than planned.

Update: It’s not an exclusive deal and the Journal was doing a bit of embellishing with that headline. Dish was just the first national carrier to air MSNBC in HD.

Update 2: After being shown the original Dish release, it’s readily apparent that the Biz Journal was not the source for the “Exclusive” characterization. It was Dish itself.

Posted in MSNBC ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/dish-network-to-carry-msnbc-hd/feed/ 6 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/free-for-all-070909/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/free-for-all-070909/#comments Thu, 09 Jul 2009 14:53:27 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5912 ]]>

What’s on your mind?

Posted in Free For All ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/free-for-all-070909/feed/ 34 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/gollust-upped-at-nbc-universal/ http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/gollust-upped-at-nbc-universal/#comments Thu, 09 Jul 2009 14:37:47 +0000 icn2 http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/?p=5909 ]]>

Media Post’s Wayne Friedman writes that Allison Gollust has been named Vice President of Corporate Communications at NBC Universal…

Gollust will become executive vice president of corporate communications for NBC Universal, reporting directly to Jeff Zucker, president and CEO of NBC Universal.

Senior vice president of NBC News Communications since 2005 and key to its communication strategy since 2002, she has worked with various shows, including “Today,” “Nightly News with Brian Williams,” “Dateline” and “Meet the Press.” Gollust also oversaw communications efforts at MSNBC, CNBC and The Weather Channel.

“Allison is an accomplished communications strategist who I’ve had the good fortune of working closely with for more than a decade,” Zucker said in a statement.

Posted in CNBC, MSNBC ]]> http://insidecablenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/gollust-upped-at-nbc-universal/feed/ 0 icn2