In The News: Contaminated killer whales are saturated with flame retardants. TV writers want more money for selling out with product placements. Hong Kong hired 9000 new police officers to control protesters at the WTO meeting this week. Duke's corruption is a matter of national security as bribes led to military intelligence "black contracts" for clearly unethical companies. WireTap has gift ideas that are good for the planet. An overhaul of foreign aid programs would tie financial assistance to political expediency. Historians say quit whining: modern Americans live on easy street compared to other historical eras. Most FEMA funds go to upper-middle class families who are most likely to vote. Vloggers become superstars on tiny screens. The Dept. of Justice is blocking investigations into violations of the Voting Rights Act. And Disney plans to distribute media players in McDonalds Happy Meals and offer free downloads with purchase of french fries. (All Below)

 

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Super Bowl Ad Rates Have Plateaued

Here is an interesting indicator that TV is headed over the hill:

Spots in ABC’s telecast of the Super Bowl, the most-watched television program of the year, are going for $2.4 million. That’s the same as what FOX got for ads during Super Bowl XXXIX earlier this year. It’s also the third time since 2000 that prices for ads during the game haven’t increased; the going rate was $2.2 million per 30 seconds from 2000-02.

Huawei, ZTE and UTStarcom Share IPTV Deals

Soon enough, Chinese mobile users will be able to watch television on their cell phones. With the fast expansion of the IPTV market, local and overseas equipment suppliers have engaged in heated competition for business contracts with regional telecommunication companies. This article from Sina.com gives a recent example of the business competition.

"Given the fact that the biggest-ever IPTV deal, for China Netcom’s Beijing branch, will not be revealed until next year, industry analysts expect stiffer competition ahead, noting that there are a score of telecom equipment manufacturers competing in the fledgling IPTV field."
 

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Hollywood

TV Writers Must Sell, Sell, Sell
By David Cohn, Wired
TV networks are turning to product placements to fight back against ad-skipping technologies like TiVo, but now some writers are putting up a fight, demanding more pay in exchange for scripting product plugs into their shows. Read full article...

Geo-Politics

Canada Shrugs Off US Warning To Back Off
By Reuters, Stuff NZ
The United States made an unprecedented foray into Canada's election campaign today, warning politicians not to bash Washington in their bid to win the January 23 election. Read full article...

Techno-Environmentalism

"Save The World" Enviros Are Killing Millions Of African Kids
By John Stossel, Real Clear Polics
In Ntinda, Uganda, that country's vice president was calling on world leaders to help save human lives -- by supporting Uganda's use of a chemical the fear of which galvanized the environmental movement decades ago. Read full article...

Story Of A Recycler Bicycler
By Marina Penderis, IPS News
Charles Mbiza's bicycle is more than a method of transport. It's a metaphor for the state of rubbish collection in South Africa's commercial hub, Johannesburg. Read full article...

National InSecurity

Black Contracts
By Laura Rozen, American Prospect
In this Prospect exclusive, a reporter sheds light on the murky world of CIA contracts and the Duke Cunningham investigation. Read full article...

Funding Facts

Newly Bankrupt Raking In Piles Of Credit Offers
By Timothy Egan, New York Times
Under the new law, which the banking industry spent more than $100 million lobbying for, they may be even more attractive because it makes it harder for them to escape new credit card debt and extends to eight years from six the time before which they could liquidate their debts through bankruptcy again. Read full article...

Bush Plans Overhaul Of US Foreign Aid System
By Guy Dinmore, MSNBC
President George W. Bush's administration is drawing up plans to carry out the biggest overhaul of the US foreign aid apparatus in more than 40 years in an attempt to assert more political control over international assistance, according to officials and aid experts. Read full article...

FEMA Reimbursements Mainly Benefit Higher Income Groups
By Sally Kestin, Megan O'Matz and John Maines, Sun-Sentinal
A FEMA program to reimburse applicants for generators and storm cleanup items has benefited middle- and upper-income Floridians the most and so far cost taxpayers more than $332 million for the past two hurricane seasons. Read full article...

Shifting Politics

Farming Claims Almost Half Earth's Land, New Maps Show
By James Owen, National Geographic
Food production takes up almost half of the planet's land surface and threatens to consume the fertile land that still remains, scientists warn. Read full article...

The Future of Entertainment

Would You Like Some Fries With That Download?
By Julie Bosman, C-Net
If Walt Disney has its way, McDonald's Happy Meal toys could be replaced with portable media players that hold Disney movies, music, games or photos, according to a pending patent application. Users could add files to the devices by earning points with food purchases. Read full article...

TV Stardom On $20 A Day
By Robert Mackey, New York Times
In the right hands, vlogs, or video blogs, are microdocumentaries of surprising beauty, wit and intelligence, and are also increasingly lucrative. Read full article...

Rights & Laws

Bush Administration Guts 40 Year Old 'Voting Rights Act'
By Brad Friedman, Brad Blog
DoJ Staff Attorneys Now Barred From Offering Opinions in VRA Cases After WaPo Exposed Political Appointees Overruled Civil Rights Division Staffers Read full article...

C A L E N D A R

Print


December 12-18

MONDAY

TiVo GUIDE for Tuesday
3:00pm Lou Dobbs Report on CNN
7:00pm Scarborough Country on MSNBC
8:00pm Hardball With Chris Matthews on MSNBC
8:00pm The Daily Show on Comedy Central
8:30pm The Colbert Report on Comedy Central
11:00pm Tavis Smiley on PBS/KCET
11:35pm The Tonight Show on NBC
11:30pm Charlie Rose on PBS/KCET

The Matador
Reel Talk. Film critic Stephen Farber screens The Matador, starring Pierce Brosnan, Greg Kinnear and Hope Davis, and discusses the movie with director Richard Shepherd. Landmark Nuwilshire 1314 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica.
6:30pm

TUESDAY

TiVo GUIDE for Wednesday
7:00pm Hardball With Chris Matthews on MSNBC
8:00pm Lou Dobbs Report on CNN
8:00pm The Daily Show on Comedy Central
8:30pm The Colbert Report on Comedy Central
11:00pm Tavis Smiley on PBS
11:30pm Charlie Rose on PBS

Once You Put a Dead Guy in the Room, You Can Talk About Anything
A dialogue with Alan Ball, creator of HBO’s Six Feet Under, and Thomas Lynch, poet, essayist and Michigan funeral director, on life, death and letting go; an ALOUD at Central Library Event. Central Library, Mark Taper Auditorium, 630 W. Fifth St., dwntwn.; (213) 228-7000 or https://www.lapl.org.
7:00pm

Open Spoken-Word & Slam
Da Poetry Lounge in the Greenway Court Theater at Fairfax High, Fairfax & Melrose aves.; free (323) 655-7679
9:00pm

Sen. Hillary Clinton
Holds a campaign fundraiser where she will be introduced by Gov.-elect Jon Corzine, East Brunswick, NJ

DVD Releases
The 40 Year-Old Virgin
The Bad News Bears
The Island
Sin City (Recut & Extended Edition)
King Kong: Peter Jackson's Production Diaries
The Simpsons - Season 7

Music Releases
Beck Guerolito
Bo Bice (from 2005 American Idol) The Real Thing
Coheed & Cambria Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV: Volume 1. From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness
Lamb of God Killadelphia
Dave Matthews Band The Complete Weekend on the Rocks
Slim Thug Already Platinum
Snoop Dogg Presents: Welcome to tha Chuuch - Tha Album

WEDNESDAY

TiVo GUIDE for Thursday
7:00pm Hardball With Chris Matthews on MSNBC
8:00pm Lou Dobbs Report on CNN
8:00pm The Daily Show on Comedy Central
8:30pm The Colbert Report on Comedy Central
11:00pm Tavis Smiley on PBS
11:30pm Charlie Rose on PBS

An Evening with Culture Clash
Confused and Still Full of Rage Richard Montoya, Ric Salinas and Herbert Siguenza, otherwise known as Culture Clash, or, as I like to call them, the Chicano Kings of Comedy, speak on their two upcoming theater world premieres, Hollywood’s relationship (dysfunctional and otherwise) with Latinos, and the ever-widening gap between art and politics; an ALOUD at Central Library event. Central Library, Mark Taper Auditorium, 630 W. Fifth St., dwntwn.; (213) 228-7025 or https://www.lapl.org
7:00pm

C-SPAN Radio: Preserving the Presidency
Featuring former MPAA CEO Jack Valenti and syndicated columnist Richard Reeves. Museum of Television and Radio 465 N. Beverly Dr., Beverly Hills
7:00pm

THURSDAY

TiVo GUIDE for Friday
3:00pm Lou Dobbs Report on CNN
7:00pm Scarborough Country on MSNBC
8:00pm Hardball With Chris Matthews on MSNBC
8:00pm The Daily Show on Comedy Central
8:30pm The Colbert Report on Comedy Central
9:00pm Washington Week In Review on PBS
11:00pm Tavis Smiley on PBS
11:30pm Charlie Rose on PBS

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
2 Acoustic shows at The Hotel Café
8:30pm & 10:30pm

Republican National Committee holiday party
Washington, DC

FRIDAY

TiVo GUIDE for Saturday
6:30pm The McLaughlin Group on PBS/KCET

Joseph Wilson
Former Ambassador Joseph Wilson headlines a Minnesota DFL fundraiser, St. Paul, MN

Film Releases
The Family Stone
King Kong
Hoodwinked
Electric Shadows
The Producers
When The Sea Rises
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

SATURDAY

TiVo GUIDE for Sunday
8:30am Face The Nation on CBS
8:30am/7:00pm Meet The Press on MSNBC
9:00am Late Edition With Wolf Blitzer on CNN
11:00am Sunday Morning Shootout on AMC

A Jon Waters Christmas
The world’s preeminent auteur of dark, gross-out comedy, legendary filmmaker John Waters changed the cinematic landscape forever with such unexpectedly intelligent camp classics as Pink Flamingos, Hairspray and Serial Mom. Now, the sultan of sleaze returns to UCLA Live for his 2nd annual yuletide extravaganza, featuring electro punk, pro-sex feminist Peaches and more! UCLA Royce Hall https://www.uclalive.org
8:00pm

SUNDAY

TiVo GUIDE for Monday
7:00pm Hardball With Chris Matthews on MSNBC
8:00pm Lou Dobbs Report on CNN
8:00pm The Daily Show on Comedy Central
11:00pm Tavis Smiley on PBS
11:30pm Charlie Rose on PBS

Senator Barbara Boxer with John Dean
Writers Bloc presents a conversation between the Senator, author of the new novel "A Time to Run," and Dean, former White House counsel under President Nixon and author of "Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush." Temple Emanuel 300 N. Clark Drive, Beverly Hills
4:00pm

Forever Flamenco
This popular Sunday flamenco series continues with its rotating roster of dancers, accompanied by live singers and musicians. The finale encourages flamenco-istas in the audience to display their specialties. Fountain Theater, 5060 Fountain Ave., Hlywd.; $25. (323) 663-1525
8:00pm