On The Occasion Of His New TV Show

Last week, mainstream media aired segments that looked back on the top stories of 2013. Often, when people “look back” they don’t connect the dots. They forget that one set of circumstances is not an isolated incident, so they can’t prevent these circumstances from happening again. Or even worse, they somehow convince themselves that the issues are too big to change.
Pope Francis is one person I was surprised to see look back, realize past wrongs, and decide that when he looks ahead, he wants to see change. Though I don’t share his beliefs, I am astounded to see the face of one of the biggest and most influential religious institutions talk about accepting others as equals:

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Posted on December 31, 2013

H-O-L-L-Y-W-O-O-D

“Kristin Cavallari says everything on her reality shows was fake, fake, fake!” RadarOnline reports.
“The MTV darling, who starred on Laguna Beach and then The Hills, sat down with Bethenny Frankel, herself a veteran reality star, and RadarOnline has the video where she revealed all the ways her shows were not real.”

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But here’s the thing.

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Posted on December 26, 2013

By Underwriters Laboratory via The Museum of Classic Chicago Television

A UL moment.
This aired on local Chicago TV early Monday, December 18, 1978.

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Posted on December 23, 2013

NSA Infomercial A New Low

Investigative giant has become hideous joke.

60 Minutes journalism: former DNI official & FBI spokesman – soon to be NYPD official – “interviews” NSA chief http://t.co/wvEGO9ducb

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) December 16, 2013

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60 Minutes journalist tasked to report on the NSA used to work for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. So there’s that.

— Andrew Blake (@apblake) December 16, 2013

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So 60 Minutes assigns a friend of the military to a military story & a friend to intelligence to an intelligence story. Great.

— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) December 16, 2013

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Posted on December 16, 2013

By Steve Rhodes

“MTV’s controversial show 16 and Pregnant [link mine] is unwelcome in Tinley Park, as village officials and school leaders have pushed back against possible filming in the community,” the Tribune reports.
“When Tinley Park Mayor Ed Zabrocki heard the show might be shooting at the 80th Avenue train station’s restaurant, he sent word to the owner of Parmesans Station that the show’s cameras would be unwelcome on Tinley property.

“I heard wind of it, and that’s when I went and said, ‘I don’t want any of our village buildings used in it,” Zabrocki said.

Memo to Zabrocki: Village buildings are public property.

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Posted on December 11, 2013

Plus: Aereo Launch Imperiled?

1. Aereo Stuck At Gate?
“A new lawsuit could keep Aereo out of the third biggest media market, and also complicates a confusing situation that makes it legal for Americans in some part of the country – but not others – to watch over-the-air TV via third party streaming services,” Gigaom reports.
“The lawsuit was filed [last month] by FilmOn, an Aereo-like service owned by eccentric billionaire Alki David. FilmOn’s complaint claims that a PBS station sent a letter accusing it of stealing its signal; FilmOn claims its service is a form of legal private copying, and asks the Chicago court to declare that it’s not violating the Copyright Act.
“The Chicago complaint amounts to a fresh courtroom stunt by David, a notorious provocateur who has repeatedly thumbed his nose at the court system. [A]ccording to reports, a judge in Washington held FilmOn in contempt of court and called David a ‘man who is missing couth.’ David, who was not in court, told the Wrap that his lawyers informed him that the judge was ‘p***ed.'”
Why is this relevant to Aereo in Chicago?
“[I]f Aereo goes ahead with the launch, the broadcasters would likely sue to add Aereo to the FilmOn case, forcing Aereo to work with David and his loosey-goosey legal team. As a result, Aereo may avoid the Windy City altogether.”

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Posted on December 3, 2013