Free streamers continue growth with new channels

New offerings include devoted channels to Wheel Of Fortune, Jeopardy!, and Judge Judy; National Geographic, and Canada’s CBC as business continues to grow The growth of free, ad-supported streaming television channels – or FAST for short, isn’t just blooming – it’s exploding. On Monday, Paramount Global’s Pluto TV announced the addition of channels dedicated to classic Jeopardy! and Wheel of […]

Abortion ruling could shake up media business

Roe v. Wade dissolution will have impact from New York to Hollywood, and from Washington D.C. to Chicago. If you think Friday’s decision by the Supreme Court to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling legalizing abortion won’t have an impact on media…you’d better think again. The landmark decision to appeal the woman’s right to choose will have a ripple […]

Nexstar and The CW: Where things stand now

  CW cancellations fuel speculation of deal forthcoming Five months ago, The CW – the joint venture between Warner Media (now Discovery Warner Bros.) and ViacomCBS (now Paramount Global), created by the merger of UPN and The  WB in 2006 was up for sale, with Irving, Tex.-based Nexstar the leading suitor.  So where does things stand now?  A glimpse of […]

“Drew” returning for third season as CBS stations expands local news

  Show will have new format to accommodate local news expansion The struggling Drew Barrymore Show has been renewed for a third season. Making it official, CBS Media Ventures announced Friday that the show is returning for the 2022-23 season, but with a twist – Drew is being split into two half-hours stations can run separately or together as an […]

ViacomCBS rebrands as Paramount Global

The “V of Doom” officially dies as Viacom name is retired after 51 years as focus shifts to streaming During an investor event conference call on Tuesday, ViacomCBS announced a rebrand of its entire company as it becomes Paramount Global, though its being referred to as simply Paramount (the name and website domain of Paramount Global was already taken by […]

CBS Television Distribution rebrands as CBS Media Ventures

New name reflects additional responsibilities in addition to selling to TV stations After fourteen years as CBS Television Distribution, ViacomCBS’ syndication arm announced Monday it was rebranding as CBS Media Ventures. The decision to rebrand comes as the company feels it’s more than just a syndicator serving traditional TV outlets but also to streamers and creating digital content and running […]

Mountain Movers: CBS All Access rebrands as Paramount Plus

A mountain of entertainment awaits the home viewer As the streaming wars continue to heat up, ViacomCBS announced Tuesday it was ditching the CBS All Access name and rebranding as Paramount Plus, or Paramount + beginning in early 2021, with a dedicated website already launched. The move to freshen up the streaming service comes as other big conglomerates have jumped […]

FCC Chairman to lawmaker on racist TV show: Not our problem, ma’am

FCC punts on racism allegations In a marked departure from the last time the FCC dealt with this issue, the agency has rejected a complaint regarding racial and homophobic content on a TV show. The content in question comes from a Puerto Rico TV show called La Comay, where as FCC Chairman Ajit Pai rejected a complaint from New York […]

Reunification: CBS and Viacom get back together

Split in 2005, both companies re-merge in order to compete with other entertainment giants In news that was expected for several months, it is now official: CBS Corporation and Viacom, Inc. are re-merging after nearly fifteen years apart. The company will be known as ViacomCBS. The reunification returns several well-known properties to one roof: CBS, with its top-rated broadcast network, […]

“Roseanne” revival hits a home run

Premiere is highest-rated of the season A few weeks ago, a writer from Mediapost said the return of American Idol on ABC “saved” the television industry. He might want to revise his article. In stunning news, the revival of Roseanne won big time in the ratings for ABC – averaging a 5.2 rating in the adults 18-49 demo for ABC […]

“Star Trek” returns – for a price

                The legendary series returns to the airwaves – but on CBS’ SVOD service The Starship Enterprise is back in business. But if want you get on board, it’s going to cost you. CBS announced Monday it was rebooting Star Trek, which would be the seventh television incarnation of the franchise. But there […]

The return of Arsenio Hall

Bethenny, The Test also make their debuts in syndication today When Arsenio Hall debuted his late-night show in syndication on January 3, 1989, consider this: Johnny Carson was still the king of late-night at NBC; David Letterman still appealed to a cult audience; CBS was about to debut Pat Sajak as a late night talk show host; and ABC and […]

Comic-Con is back for another round

It’s that time of year again as people in superhero costumes and stormtrooper suits invade San Diego. Yep, I’m talking about Comic-Con. For the 44th consecutive year, fanboys and fangirls descend on the home of the Padres, Chargers, and Aztecs to see their favorite comic book artists, video game developers, and TV stars – especially TV. As you should know […]

Retro Friday: Happy “Friday the 13th”

Straight from the vaults of the T Dog Media TV Hall Of Shame (or more specifically, YouTube): A true TV… um, “horror”: In honor of Friday the 13th, let’s celebrate by watching the opening theme of this forgotten 1987-90 weekly syndicated television series of the same name that had nothing to do with the movie of the same name. Instead […]

Let’s get busy…again. Arsenio Hall returns to late-night

Move over Frank Woolanski, here’s comes someone who packed a lot of bark in late-night back in the day – and is looking to woof again. CBS Television Distribution and Tribune Broadcasting announced today it will launch a new late-night talk show with Arsenio Hall beginning in September 2013, returning him to the daypart that made him famous and reuniting […]