Dumb post of the day

A poster on Radio-Info.com wrote the following: Since most TV & cable networks have declined in morale & the liberal biases & the big corporations & the reality programming that are ruining quality television today, here’s how congress should act in the way we watch television or listen to the radio. Because 25 years ago, there was nothing but quality […]

I was right!

But I wish I wasn’t… Chicago Sun-Times columnist Jay Mariotti has signed a multi-year contract extension with the paper. Thought: I guess the Reader Alienation Plan continues at the Sun-Times. Read the Think Tank I wrote last week. Didn’t I tell you? And to think the FCC is ready to bail out the newspaper industry by axing the cross-ownership rules. […]

MRC unveils CW Sunday slate

Independent studio Media Rights Capital unveiled its Sunday night schedule for The CW, and is as follows (all times Central:) – 5:30 p.m.: In Harm’s Way, a reality show in the mold of fare seen on Discovery and TLC. – 6:30 p.m.: Surviving Suburbia, A new sitcom whose creator wrote a script, tucked it away, and forgot all about it […]

T Dog’s Think Tank: Can you smell what the mayor is cookin’ ?

Usually, the T Dog Media Blog doesn’t devolve into local politics since this is a media blog (it says that in the name!) and not a political one. But yours truly can’t pass up an opportunity to take this on since it involves the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times. Last Friday, Mayor Richard M. Daley of Chicago blasted the Tribune […]

And another thing…

And on a personal note: The comments section in the Tribune over the Channel 2 layoffs has turned into a free-for-all, with yours truly joining in the fray (scroll way down. Flame war, baby!) Don’t know how Family Guy and Adult Swim came up in all of this… but if yours truly is one of those responsible for sending the […]

WCIU fined for kids’ ad violations

This dates way back when WCIU-TV carried Kids’ WB programming, and this is the price they paid for it: The Weigel-owned independent station was fined $16,500 for kids’ ad violations by the FCC, regarding Pokemon product placement on Eggo waffles and Fruit By The Foot fruit roll-ups (perhaps this is one of reasons why WCIU dropped Kids’ WB from the […]

Pols not happy with DOJ approval of XM-Sirius merger

Some in Washington are not happy with XM-Sirius merger, with the FCC all but certain to approve the deal (Republican majority… hello?) Some politicians are angry with the Department of Justice’s decision, while others think it is good deal.Here is a Think Tank I wrote last year regarding the approval of the deal, and my support of it at the […]

Real or rumor: New San Diego Fox affiliate?

This Sam Zell video posted on Trib-owned Baltimore Sun’s website (click on “Sam 5” to see video) may hint at a possible affiliation switch for KSWB, going from CW to Fox (why are they still called KSWB to begin with?) So what happens to current Fox affiliate XETV based in nearby Tijuana, Mexico? It could be deja vu all over […]

High Court to hear indecency case

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the fleeting profanities case, with pits the major networks against the FCC. So we’ll finally see if we truly live in the home of the free and the brave or if we live in China.

South Bend PBS station may go all-digital

WNIT, a PBS station in South Bend, is asking the FCC permission to broadcast only in digital after the station’s broken-down analog transmitter sputtered out for good on Wednesday. The transmitter broke down last month, when one of two tubes which fed the station’s audio and video feeds stopped working. The feed was rerouted to the station’s other tube, which […]

FCC winning war on indecency?

If this article in TV Week is any indication, the major broadcast networks are in for more audience erosion – but read my latest Think Tank and I’ll give you even more reasons why they are. Meanwhile, the relentless assault on the First Amendment continues from the FCC and PTC groups, though its too bad the government (and the PTC) […]

T Dog’s Think Tank: Thank you, Jim

Last week, two programs reminded us how much the words “vertical integration” meant to the TV business. The possible renewals of tired sitcoms According to Jim and Scrubs. Both come from the same studio (ABC Studios) and both are being considered for pickups by ABC next season, despite the fact both have drawn less and less viewers over the last […]

Ladies and Gentlemen – the 1,000th post.

The T Dog Media Blog has reached its 1,000th post. And in those one thousand posts, what has we learned? Well… – Jim Belushi still has no talent whatsoever. – Chicago celebrities in Hollywood can be just as much as a jerk as anyone else – except the one who won the Oscar last year. – If you a guy, […]