Every weekday in 2014, I'll be keeping an eye on what's happening in the media. My focus will be on some of my favorite subjects...the moguls, the pundits, the broadcast news biz, and show business. (Read "$everance" if you want a crystallization of my positions on those subjects.) And, of course, I'll also keep tabs on Chicago's media.
The Moguls
~Meet The New Boss, Same As The Old Boss
Clear Channel's new CEO Bob Pittman is often hailed by Wall Street as an innovator, but his first order sure sounds exactly like the previous regime (the anti-innovators). Tom Taylor explains in his NOW newsletter today:
CEO Bob Pittman no doubt wants to look as strong as possible to his bosses at Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners – and thus the order to re-do the budgets that were just approved, and find yet another 5% in cost savings. It’s surprising and painful. It’s also beyond challenging, since years of cutting expenses have led to starved-supermodel-like budgets. Backroom costs have already been slashed through regional consolidation and networking, news is probably sourced from an outside market, and sports costs (some of them high) are fixed and hard to change on short notice.
~Bob Pittman's Compensation Package
When you read the details, his order to cut more money out of each budget is even more disgusting. The more that is cut, the more he will personally make.
~The Phone Hacking Trial
In today's episode of As The Rupert Turns, the prosecution presents evidence of Rebekkah Brooks' husband trying to sneak her laptop away to hide the hacking evidence. There's more at the link. There's always more.
The FCC
~FCC Loses Net Neutrality Case
I usually don't root for the FCC, but I was with them on this one. They were fighting to keep the internet open, free, and equal. After this ruling, providers can start charging more for faster service. The little guys who don't (or can't) pay, will no longer be equal to the big boys. The Wall Street Journal examines all the implications at the link above, but that's the bottom line as far as I'm concerned.
The Pundits
~Howard Kurtz in Hot Water
According to the report by Gawker linked above, the former Washington Post, Daily Beast, and CNN media critic (and current Fox News employee) Howard Kurtz was not completely truthful when he got in trouble last year about his financial arrangement with The Daily Download. Gawker has the paperwork to back up their claims.
Broadcast News
~Meredith Viera Concerned About Security in Sochi
Viera's concerns are detailed in today's Hollywood Reporter. This is the third or fourth member of the NBC broadcasting crew to publicly express concerns about this, which is pretty unusual.
~Cleveland TV-Station Sued For Being A Sexually Hostile Work Environment
The Cleveland Plain Dealer has the story, and it sounds pretty bad. The suit was brought by a saleman named Kevin Flanigan. From the article:
According to the lawsuit, Pando hired Flanigan in 2007, telling him she was "taking a risk" because men didn't normally perform as well as women. Flanigan said that despite being among the top performers in the department, he was pressured to engage in inappropriate sexual contact with other employees and clients and the use of drugs at corporate events involving clients. According to the lawsuit, the drug use and sexual favors were common and encouraged to "foster new business relationships."
~An amazing basketball story out of Minnesota
Reported at the link above by a Philadelphia morning television news program.
Showbiz
CBS Has 15 of Top 20 Rated Shows
The AP has the details. CBS television is absolutely crushing their competition these days.
The Grammy Awards
Looks like I'll be watching the Grammy Awards for the first time in years. From today's RAMP Newsletter:
Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are among the latest big names that have been announced to perform on the 56th Annual Grammy Awards®. Before you get too carried away and drag out your moth-eaten Beatle wig, we were told that the boys would be performing separately. Also inked to take the Staples Center stage are current Grammy nominees John Legend, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kacey Musgraves, Taylor Swift, and Keith Urban. Former (and forever) Beatles McCartney and Starr will be on hand as The Beatles receive the 2014 Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award. Other special performances include nominee Sara Bareilles with 2014 MusiCares® Person of the Year Carole King.
The Radio Biz
Why is Radio Listening Declining?
Whenever I read the radio trades, I get irked by their head-in-the-sand approach to declining audiences. They pat themselves on the back and say everything is fine. Of course it's not. Radio is in danger of becoming extinct, and there are some pretty obvious reasons for that. Chicago's own Kurt Hanson (a radio researcher and internet radio pioneer) has some very good points that I think get closer than anything else I've read to explaining the audience erosion. (One of them is addressed in "The Moguls" section above)
