All Articles Tagged "cable tv"
Once You Go Cable, You Never Go Back: Fewer Blacks Watching Network TV
iStockphoto
Who’s watching network television these days? Fewer blacks are.
Instead they are turning to cable TV, according to recent Nielsen data. It all started when African Americans tuned in to cable during the football and political seasons. And they haven’t turned back. Though blacks did turn the dial to CBS more than any other network, watching 60 Minutes, and crime shows such as CSI and Criminal Minds, reports Target Market News.
African Americans remain the largest minority segment of the U.S. television household population, comprising approximately 13 percent of the 109.6 million TV households.
The most popular shows on cable television for African-American households include: NFL football on ESPN; VH1′s T.I. and Tiny, Basketball Wives LA 2, and Chrissy & Mr. Jones; and TBS´ For Better or Worse. The only BET series on the top 25 list is Keysha & Daniel: Family First. Maybe this is yet another sign, BET needs to revamp its programming.
Tags:
Basketball Wives, BET, cable tv, cbs, Keyshia & Daniel, network TV, TI & Tiny, TV-watching habits, VH1Salim and Mara Brock Akil Ink Major BET Deal
(Variety) — “The Game” exec producers Mara Brock Akil and Salim Akil are deepening their ties to BET, inking a mega-production deal with the cabler. Three-year overall pact encompasses a series commitment and multiple pilot commitments for the hyphenates, who are married. The deal with Akil Prods. is highly unusual for BET. It’s another sign that the Viacom-owned net is serious about expanding its scripted programming slate. ”This is a very important deal for us. It reflects our belief in (the Akils) as storytellers and creators and our commitment to the world of scripted TV in general,” said Loretha Jones, prexy of original programming for BET Networks. “Mara and Salim are going to play a very important role in our strategic planning for this channel going forward.” ”Game” has led the charge into scripted comedy for BET this year. The sitcom delivered a boffo opening of 9 million viewers for BET in its January bow, which came more than a year after the show was canceled by the CW. “Game” was renewed for another 22 episodes that will roll out early next year.
The Business of Being a Tween Queen
(New York Times) — China Anne McClain, 12, was taping a scene for her new Disney Channel comedy here recently, when fiction and fact collided. As the cameras rolled, her character — heading off to start big, bad high school — got some parental advice. “Just be prepared, Sweetie,” her television mom warned. “There’s going to be a lot of temptations here.” The same counsel applies to Ms. McClain in real life, as she prepares to make a full-tilt, Disney-backed charge for the title of Next Tween Queen. Pretty and talented yet nonthreatening, Ms. McClain, as an actress and singer, clearly has the potential to commandeer prepubescent culture. “A.N.T. Farm,” the series Disney tailor-made for her, will have a preview on May 22; the premiere is in June. She also has a record deal.
Children’s television is at a transitional moment when it comes to female stars. At Disney, the Big Three — Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato — have all moved on. Miranda Cosgrove, the star of “iCarly” on Nickelodeon, turns 18 this month. Both companies are feverishly trying to mint new headliners capable of drawing the attention of tweens, roughly defined as viewers 9 to 14. But the manufacture of child stars is not as easy as it used to be. There was a time when all it took was a perky personality, a little talent and a slot on the Mickey Mouse Club. Now child stars have to anchor TV series and movie spinoffs, churn out hit songs, write books and headline global concert tours — when they’re not introducing their signature line of clothing at Wal-Mart.
Pharrell Takes on Creative Lead for New TV Network
(AP) — Rapper-producer Pharrell Williams is expanding his focus to include a new cable TV network aimed at the online generation. Karmaloop TV said Monday that Williams has been named creative director for the network scheduled to launch later this year. Karmaloop will feature original productions along with movies that have shaped the 18-to-34-year-olds who grew up with the Internet.
Small Cable Networks Get Original
(New York Times) — Stacy Littlejohn worked her way up in network television like so many other writers and producers — she was a writers’ assistant on a Fox show, a joke writer on a CW show, a writer-producer on a half-hour ABC show. Now, for the first time, she is in charge of a one-hour drama, but it is not for any network she envisioned earlier in her career. It is for VH1, the older-skewing version of MTV. Niche cable channels like VH1 that have depended solely on unscripted programs or repeats of others’ scripted programs are now trotting out their own comedies and dramas. Their aim is diversification. When Ms. Littlejohn’s drama, “Single Ladies,” has its premiere late this month, “it’ll distinguish VH1 amid their steady diet of reality shows,” she said. Top-tier cable channels like USA and TBS have been creating dramas and sitcoms for more than a decade, but now relative small fry are doing the same. The shows are a way to stay competitive. “I think the bar has been raised in scripted,” said Jennifer Caserta, the general manager of IFC, the Independent Film Channel, which may be better known now for the sitcoms “Portlandia” and “The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret.”
TBS Expands Tyler Perry Franchise
(Media News International) — TBS has ordered 10 episodes of the new series Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse from Tyler Perry Studios. The dramedy, based on Perry’s hit Why Did I Get Married? films, marks the third Tyler Perry series to come to TBS, which is also home to Tyler Perry’s House of Payne and Meet the Browns. As with House of Payne and Meet the Browns, syndication will be sold by Debmar Mercury.Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse follows the ups-and-downs of married life for Marcus and Angela, two characters who originated in the feature films Why Did I Get Married and Why Did I Get Married Too? Michael Jai White (The Dark Knight) and Tasha Smith (Couples Retreat) are set to reprise the roles of television anchor Marcus and salon owner Angela. Additional cast members to be announced.
Oprah’s Network Gets a $50 Million Boost
(Eurweb) — Discovery Communications on Friday said it will invest an additional $50 million in OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network this year, particularly in programming, which it said will mean the company will break even on the channel this year instead of turning a profit as it had previously predicted. According to the Hollywood Reporter, President and CEO David Zaslav said on an earnings conference call that Discovery expects to increase funding to help drive the network, a joint venture with Oprah Winfrey, to longer-term profitability and growth with stronger content. CFO Brad Singer said Discovery invested an additional $46 million in OWN in the fourth quarter and expects to spend an incremental $50 million on added funding this year beyond its original $189 million commitment to the network. Programming investments will be the focus.
Is Oprah’s Network Too White?
(Newsweek) — Farah J. Griffin’s 82-year-old mother, Wilhelmenia, hasn’t missed an episode ofThe Oprah Winfrey Show since it debuted nearly 20 years ago. So when Winfrey’s 24-hour Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) debuted on Jan. 1, Griffin upgraded her mother’s cable package so she could watch from her Philadelphia home. Only now, Griffin wants more for her money. “I know it’s still early in the process,” says Griffin, a professor of English and African-American studies at Columbia University. “That said, I really want to see more variation. I’m not saying she should just focus on black shows or black programming. But I’d like it to have shows that are interesting to women of all ages, backgrounds, and races, not just white women.”
What Does the NBC-Comcast Merger do to Black Media Ownership?
(BASN) — The recent merger between Comcast Corp. and NBC Universal is considered one the most significant events in the history of modern media. Comcast is going to buy 51% of NBC Universal from General Electric for $13.8 billion. The merger got the attention of the Justice Department and advocates for black media ownership, who feel that such a massive concentration of power is not good for the industry.
Tags:
african american media, BET, cable television, cable tv, comcast, mergers, NBC, television, TVSheila Johnson Says OWN Needs More African Americans
(Journalisms) — Critics who suggest that Oprah Winfrey’s new OWN network could use a little more racial diversity found a gentle supporter in Sheila Johnson, co-founder of Black Entertainment Television. Johnson, who counts herself as Winfrey admirer, said Thursday on NPR’s “Tell Me More”: “The only advice that I say, let’s open up your circle a little bit more. You know, we love the Dr. Phils. We love the Suze Ormans. Let’s open up. There are other people. And there’s also African-American experts out there that I think she should start bringing on her show that can reach even a wider audience.”
