BET
Debut of "Somebodies" sitcom next week marks BET's move into scripted series
BET will join the growing list of cable networks launching scripted series when it debuts the comedy series Somebodies Sept. 9. The series is the first scripted project for the 28-year-old African-American-targeted network, which has been criticized for relying on music videos and reality programming.
Does BET promote racism?
Some members of the audience believe that BET does not influence the entire black community and that they're a channel created solely for the purpose of entertaining, not the voice of the black community. Others such as Bristan Childs vehemently disagreed. She believed that BET should be held accountable for the programs because they do have an impact on the community.
Reginald Hudlin exits BET post as president of entertainment
In an publicly released memo issued yesterday to staff, BET Networks CEO, Debra Lee, announced that Reginald Hudlin, president of the cable channel's entertainment division, was leaving his position after three years. Lee wrote that he was "returning to his entrepreneurial roots."
CW NETWORK
CW's 'Gossip Girl' Walks The Talk
All that gossip talk must have gotten around--CW's "Gossip Girl" delivered one of its strongest viewer performances ever for its season two premiere among virtually all key audiences.
FOX
4KIDS Entertainment Unveils '08-'09 Saturday Morning Lineups
4Kids Entertainment, Inc.a global provider of children's entertainment, unveiled its Saturday lineup of fall programs for FOX and The CW Network today. Debuting September 13th, the schedule reflects nine hours of national television programming on two broadcast networks.
MySpace, Disney Launch 'High School Musical' Contest
News Corp.'s MySpace and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures have teamed up to market the theatrical release of "High School Musical 3." The promotion markets the movie to school-age kids by engaging them in a series of tasks that tap into typical MySpace behavior such as uploading photos, changing status, connecting with friends and building a community
Rupert Murdoch's Newspaper Fantasy
In a revealing profile of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, we see how the man thinks and what new endeavors have captured his attention. Murdoch's latest passion appears to be buying The New York Times. Everyone tells him it would be impossible. "But The New York Times is obviously irresistible to him. I've watched him go through the numbers and fantasize about the staff's quitting as soon as he entered the sacred temple. It would be the realization of his destiny: because the Times represents the ultimate in newspaper proprietorship."
MTV
Is MTV Being Hypocritical?
Green bloggers everywhere are raving about the network's latest ad in the Switch campaign, where a funny little monster points out the hypocrisy of corporations that paint their products green and call them ecofriendly. But is MTV one of them?
MTV Enters Crowded Ad Network Sector
MTV Networks yesterday said it would develop ad networks called "Tribes" anchored by sites in the MTV universe. Pepsi will participate as the charter sponsor of the MTV Generation Tribe.
MTV Hits the Streets with Three Cool Tours this September
Tomorrow, the LifeStyles(R) Condoms Love Fest(TM) tour begins a road trip to 14 cities across Canada with MTV Live's DJ Dopey spinning the hottest music for club goers. Hosted by Paris
Hilton at the Toronto stop, the LifeStyles(R) Condoms Love Fest(TM) Tour hits the hottest night clubs and campus venues in Canada, to spread the word about safe sex. "We want to engage young people everywhere they are and create experiences," said Brad Schwartz, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Much MTV Group, CTV Inc. "We're taking MTV on the road, giving them MTV's
unpredictable daily show; talking with them about prevalent social issues; and rocking out with Mobile."
MTV to 'rest' flagship TRL show
MTV is to drop its flagship US show Total Request Live in November after 10 years on the air. Executive producer Dave Sirulnick said he wanted to "rest" the show, which comes live from New York's Times Square, after a two-hour special. "We want to close this era of TRL in a celebratory way, and 10 is a great number," he said.
MTV to roll out global hi-def channel
The channel will show a mix of music programs from MTV and children's programming from Nickelodeon and will launch Sept. 15th to Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Poland and Sweden. It will add distribution in France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, the U.K. and Spain by the end of the year, also adding six Latin American markets including Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Columbia and Venezuela by the end of 2008.
Rapper TI Lands MTV Reality TV Show
MTV will be following the rapper as he gives fans a personal look into his career and personal life. The reality TV show will also show T.I. performing community service and other day-to-day activities stemming from the rapper's legal obligations which T.I. hopes will show others how not make his same mistakes.
UNIVISION
Univision Salutes Hispanic American Heroes
Univision Communications, Inc., the nation's leading Spanish-language media company, announced today the launch of a comprehensive initiative in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month to salute Hispanic American veterans and those serving in the armed forces. "Nuestros Heroes" (Our Heroes) features an extensive series of moving vignettes designed to recognize the valor and achievements of Hispanic men and women who have distinguished themselves in the U.S. Armed Forces throughout American history.
VIACOM
Viacom-Owned Paramount Buys Game Developer ScreenLife
Paramount Pictures, the Viacom-owned movie studio, has made its first gaming related acquisition: it has bought Seattle-based game developer ScreenLife, the creator of the popular DVD game "Scene It?".
AFRICA
AFRICA: Make circumcision safer, say researchers
The HIV prevention benefits of rolling out large-scale male circumcision programmes could be lost due to a lack of training and resources to carry out the procedure safely.
An HIV/AIDS adviser calls for more education
The Presidential Adviser on HIV/AIDS and Reproductive Health, Professor F. T. Sai has challenged leaders of political parties to include in their campaign messages of HIV and AIDS education. He said the fight against HIV/AIDS deserves a priority in the National Development Agenda.
Multi-faceted health programme on HIV/Aids needed
The author of a book on Aids research, Jonny Steinberg, has urged government to put into place a multi-faceted health strategy programme to fight the prevalence of HIV/Aids. Steinberg says the 18 months research work he conducted in Lusikisiki village in the Eastern Cape, focused on the civilian understanding of government's HIV/Aids programme.
CARIBBEAN & LATIN AMERICA
Lions Attend First Cabinet Meeting in Jamaica
A number of workshops were held during the 14-17 August meeting in Kingston. The workshop covered HIV/AIDS Risks, Sexuality and Gender; Investment and Securities and the use of Technology in Lionism, specifically for preparation of required reports and a Leo (youth arm of the Lions Club) Forum.
Scotiabank launches 3rd Red Ribbon Campaign
Scotiabank has launched its third annual Stronger Together Red Ribbon Campaign, a joint initiative with St. Maarten AIDS Foundation to combat the spread of the disease both locally and internationally.
Think Safe, Act Smart campaign: Partying safely in Antigua
At this year’s Carnival, the Caribbean HIV/AIDS Alliance reached more than one-fifth of the island’s population with its Think Safe, Act Smart campaign. From 25 July to 3 Aug., a Carnival bus took the campaign’s messages to the streets and partygoers were provided with pouches of HIV information that doubled as useful bags for holding keys, money and condoms.
Tufton lauds newest batch of US Peace Corps
"We are very pleased that on this occasion the volunteers will be focusing on health (HIV/AIDS), youth and the environment, including agricul-ture. These are among the Government's top priorities and areas of focus, as we seek to build human capacity, while transforming and growing the Jamaican economy," he said.
ADVERTISING NEWS
AOL Dials Up iPhone-Specific Ads
AOL will let advertisers serve iPhone-specific ads through its Platform-A digital ad division, the Internet company said Wednesday. The move marks the latest effort by AOL to expand its mobile ad offerings after acquiring mobile ad company Third Screen Media last year. In August, AOL began letting publishers offer inventory across multiple mobile ad networks via Third Screen through "partitioning" technology.
Google Shifts To 'Real Time' Scoring, Will Reap Hundreds Of Millions In Incremental Search Ads
A tweak Google announced Monday to the so-called "quality score" it uses to manage its AdWords program is expected to result in hundreds of millions of dollars in incremental ad revenues for the online search giant. The changes, which Google said it would begin implementing over the next several days, is expected to boost average click-through rates for AdWords advertisers, and increase Google's advertising yield by moving to a "real time" valuation.
Google Studies Self-Serve YouTube Platform, Display Ad Quality Scores
Google's advertising teams are working on a self-serve ad platform for YouTube and a system for measuring the effectiveness of display ads akin to the Quality Score system for paid search.
Privacy Key As Mobile Ads Continue To Grow
Mobile advertising in the U.S. will hit $1.9 billion in 2012, according to a new forecast by market research firm Frost & Sullivan. The report warns operators against sharing subscriber information with overzealous marketers.
HIV/AIDS AND SEXUAL HEALTH NEWS
All types of sexual activity carry some STD risk
Writing in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, the panel advises doctors to ask patients -- adults and teenagers -- about all of their sexual activities, and to counsel them on how to reduce their STD risks. Although this "is a sensitive issue to address for both patients and physicians, it's important to discuss sexuality frankly and without judgment so that we can help our patients fully protect themselves against STDs," Guido added.
Dear Next President: A national HIV/AIDS policy, please?
We desperately need a national strategy for fighting this disease here at home. Such a policy should use strategies that are already being implemented in some of the countries the U.S. government supports, such as providing more health access and treatments methods for those living with HIV, as well as more support for agencies and grassroots organizations working towards HIV prevention.
Disproportionate HIV rates found among African immigrants
Jeanne Tshibungu imparts her lessons wherever African immigrants agree to listen — at apartments, hair braiding salons, taxicab stands and, on one particular rainy morning, inside a steamy garage at a Silver Spring day-labor center packed with Cameroonians. Standing with a plastic bag filled with condoms, she began explaining in lilting French how they could contract HIV and especially how not to.
Gay men of all ages remain a priority for HIV prevention in the US
HIV prevention needs to be targeted at gay men of all ages, a close analysis of HIV incidence figures from the US published in the September 12th edition of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report shows. The figures also show that African Americans as well as Hispanic and Latino individuals are also disproportionately affected by HIV.
Online-mediated syphilis testing shows promise
The Internet has "emerged as a medium where people can find information on sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) or any other medical topic," Rik H. Koekenbier, of GGD Amsterdam, the Netherlands, noted in an interview with Reuters Health. "With interventions like ours, men can take direct action to address their health concerns and in this way participate in their own wellness."
Palin Daughter's Pregnancy Spurs Sex Ed Debate
The revelation Monday that the 17-year-old unmarried daughter of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is pregnant has reignited debate over whether sex education programs focusing primarily on abstinence are effective in keeping teen pregnancy rates down.
Sex (ed) and the city
Using role play, kids are taught to recognize social pressure and anticipate risky situations; abstinence and pregnancy prevention; refusal and delay tactics; getting and using protection; and how to manage relationships with their peers and communicate with parents.
Your teen ready to date? Don't panic!
Famed sex therapist Dr. Ruth has written a new book to help parents address the uncomfortable subject of their teens becoming sexually active. In this excerpt, Dr. Ruth provides advice on what to expect when you teen is dating for the first time, and how to create an atmosphere for open communication and honesty.
Washington Post Examines HIV/AIDS Outreach Efforts Aimed At African Immigrants
The Washington Post on Tuesday examined HIV/AIDS outreach efforts aimed at African immigrants in the U.S. According to the Post, some health researchers say that the "message" that HIV/AIDS also affects Africans in the U.S. is "growing in importance as they become increasingly concerned that the AIDS epidemic ravaging sub-Saharan Africa is following migrants from that continent to America."
MOBILE NEWS
Mobile social networking will be huge but revenues not so certain
It's not an uptake problem: mobile versions of the popular Web 2.0 networking sites, Facebook and Myspace, are expected attract 140 million users by 2013, all regularly checking their mobiles for the latest buddy posting. But the carriers' share of this new revenue has been pegged at a lukewarm US$410 million dollars, says ABI research - somewhat on the low side for a set of services that has been taking the Internet by storm.
More Money Means More Mobile Web Use
A new study from Ipsos Mendelsohn finds that as the rich get richer, they surf the Web more. Affluents, defined as those who earn more than $100,000 per year, are "highly wired" Mediaweek says, with almost all owning and using a desktop, laptop and cell phone, according to the survey. The group represents about 20% of U.S. households and goes online an average of 26 times per week using a computer, and 17.6 times via mobile devices.
T-Mobile's Android Phones To Launch In Late October
T-Mobile USA plans to begin selling the first smart phone powered by Goggle's new mobile software late next month, according to people familiar with the matter, facing off against Apple Inc.'s iPhone and Research In Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerry with a device that blends aspects of both.
MULTI CULTURAL NEWS
African-American Market Comes of Age
Within religion publishing, it's hard to miss the surge in growth over the last several years of the African-American market. Industry professionals of all stripes—agents, authors, editors, PR gurus—will tell you the market demand is there, the desire to reach the market is there, and strong sales records of heavy-hitting backlist authors and new literary voices promise to keep demand high.
ANA extends deadline for Multicultural Excellence Awards to Sept. 15
The ANA (Association of National Advertisers) announced today that they have extended the submission deadline for their Multicultural Excellence Awards until September 15. Entries are now being accepted, and winners will be announced at the ANA's 10th Annual Multicultural Marketing Conference, November 16-18 in Boca Raton, FL.
Black media face balancing act with historic candidacy of Obama
Covering the historic candidacy of Barack Obama, journalists with the African-American media face particular challenges. They must address their readers' and audience's concerns, which are often ignored by the overwhelmingly white mainstream media. But they also strive to present a broader perspective while holding both candidates and both parties accountable -- even when it's not popular.
Glam Media debuts online black women's network with Lexus as lead sponsor
Glam Media, Inc., a pioneer of vertical content networks, today announced the launch of Glam Black Life (blacklife.glam.com), a new vertical providing brand advertisers with access to the largest network of African American woman-focused sites
Gorilla Nation signs four African-American sites to GNMulticultural ad rep deals
Gorilla Nation one of the largest online ad rep firm, has announced that it has been selected to exclusively represent to selected advertisers the online ad inventory of four African-American web properties, including BlackPeopleMeet.com, a leading website for black singles, through its GNMulticultural division.
Home Depot Mag Builds Hispanic Following
Looking for a hot magazine title that reaches Hispanic men? You may want to skip the newsstand and head to The Home Depot. One year after launching in Home Depot stores, Constru-Guía al Día (Up-to-date Construction Guide), a Spanish-language quarterly for construction contractors, has emerged as a rare media conduit to Spanish-speaking, under-the-radar male immigrants.
Interactive One debuts three sites for news, entertainment, women's interests
Interactive One, LLC the digital connection for Black America and the new digital division of Radio One, Inc., the largest African-American multimedia company, has launched three new content-driven websites: NewsOne, TheUrbanDaily and HelloBeautiful. The three sites will join BlackPlanet, the social networking site for African-Americans, acquired by Radio One earlier this year, making it the largest online media entity for African-Americans reaching more than 6 million unique visitors monthly.
Lee Moss Media acquires more domains for planned black social networks
Lee Moss Media, a joint venture between entrepreneurs Dante Lee and William Moss, has recently added two more valuable domain names to their portfolio -- BlackPhD.com and BlackDoctors.com. They will join a network of Internet destinations the company plans to introduce in late 2008 as social networks and online directories.
NAMIC announces winners of Excellence In Multi-Cultural Marketing Awards
Winners of the 2008 Excellence In Multi-Cultural Marketing Awards (EMMA) competition were announced today by NAMIC (National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications). Recognizing the cable industry's campaigns that demonstrate best practices in multi-cultural marketing, the awards will be presented on Monday, September 15, 2008 at a special session of the 22nd Annual NAMIC Conference, Diversity: Pipeline to Innovation. Taking place at the New York Marriott Marquis, the three-day conference is scheduled for September 14-16, 2008.
Study: Bank accounts opened by African-Americans and Hispanics growing slowly
Despite growing use of financial services and products, and more targeted communications, U.S. Hispanics and African-Americans continue to be 'unbanked' and 'underbanked' according to Synovate's 2008 U.S. Diversity Markets Report.
The critically acclaimed documentary, The Black List, premieres on HBO
This film is part of a multimedia initiative titled "The Black List Project," conceived by Greenfield-Sanders and Mitchell and comprised of the HBO documentary, a museum exhibition of photographic portraits, a book of those photographs, and an interactive educational program.
The Future of Hispanic-Latin Entertainment, Media and Technology
The 2008 Convergence Conference is the premier event for Latin Media, Entertainment, and Technology CEOs and Executives looking to grow their business and explore new opportunities with Latin audiences and to reach the mainstream which spotlights the constant state of creation and evolution required of business leaders in today's rapidly changing digital landscape.
UPTOWN Magazine unveils study on spending by affluent African-Americans
UPTOWN Magazine, the luxury lifestyle company targeting the growing Affluent African American market, and Diversity Affluence, a marketing research and consulting company specializing in affluent ethnic markets, have released groundbreaking research on the behaviors, attitudes, opinions and spending patterns of Affluent African Americans.
Zoom launches multicultural division to tap growing audience for indoor venues
Zoom Media & Marketing, a leading provider of targeted out-of-home media and promotional programs, announced today the launch of Zoom Forward, a multicultural initiative dedicated to serving the growing Hispanic and African American markets. With a focus on helping advertisers more effectively reach multicultural audiences via Zoom�s unique media and experiential marketing assets
PHILANTHROPY
Vanity And Philanthropy
In an effort to play down its usual parade of vapid celebrities and private-jet-owning business moguls, Vanity Fair has shaken up its annual list of the 100 most powerful people in the world by including leaders in the nonprofit world.
SOCIAL MEDIA NEWS
BBC launches radio social networking website
The BBC has launched a social networking website for radio listeners, letting audiences to its 10 national radio stations share recommended output with their friends. The service, called Radio Pop, allows listeners to tune in to the BBC's online radio streams, tag, or "pop", their favourite programmes and share their preferences with others in their network.
LiveWorld Launches LiveBarTM, Enabling Brands To Seamlessly Overlay Social Networking on Any Web Page in Minutes
Interactive online conversations and social networking can take place on any web page quickly and easily thanks to a new product announced today by LiveWorld, Inc., a leading social media marketing agency. LiveBar's patent-pending technology brings online community to any web page in minutes, without costly web site redesign and without forcing consumers to leave the web page to connect with others.
What is Social Networking? 58% Still Have No Clue
The survey of more than 13,000 people in 17 developed nations also asked if users were losing interest in social networks. According to the report, 36% said “yes,” with interest fading fastest in Japan, Slovakia, and Canada, with 45% of US users supposedly losing their appetite for social networking.
OTHER NEWS
Cision Launches International Website for Media Releases
Cision is launching CisionWire, a news portal that increases the visibility of news releases and reports. Users will be able to easily find media releases and reports from all of the publicly listed companies in the Nordic region in the portal. The service is integrated with Cision's CisionPoint service platform.
Digital Signage Grabs, Engages, and Informs
A study released in 2008 by SeeSaw Networks, conducted by OTX, to better understand how digital out-of-home media can be used to reach mobile consumers, shows that digital signage advertising engages people, has high awareness, and is a compelling media that advertisers an use to effectively reach people with their message.
Journalist Discuss New Media and Impact on Election
"This is a historic election in more ways then one," says WVU School of Journalism Dean Maryanne Reed. "One way that its historic is that new media the internet, blogs, YouTube, Facebook, are all having a major impact on the campaign probably more than any other campaign in history," says Reed.
Nielsen Reveals First Out-Of Home TV Ratings
The first out-of-home TV ratings have been released by a previously announced venture between The Nielsen Company and Integrated Media Measurement Inc., with NBC's Olympics and Fox's summer shows dominating all comers.
Queer Experiments: October Edition - All about the 'Down Low'
''Men reported risk behavior more often with steady female and steady male partners (e.g., wives, girlfriends, boyfriends) than with more casual male and female partners (regular uncommitted partners, one-night stands). Men, especially African American/Black men, were significantly less likely to report receptive sexual behaviors with men than insertive behaviors.
Sony Helps Sponsor Educational Series at BlogWorld & New Media Expo
BlogWorld & New Media Expo, the first and only conference dedicated to blogging and new media, announced that Sony, a BlogWorld Expo exhibitor, has agreed to loan 10 portable recording devices for the purpose of recording all educational seminars
