PROGRAMMING
Hoping to goose ratings, producers of the annual "Miss America" pageant
are
cutting the telecast to two hours, down from the usual three. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo!
News
David E. Kelley, the man behind "The Practice," has named his new
production
team for the James Spader-helmed spin-off, "The Practice: Fleet Street."
Jeff
Rake and Scott Kaufer will run the show's day-to-day operations, while Kelley
will oversee. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo!
News
Uncommonly clear weather allowed thousands of Cubans to receive American TV
channels for a few days, prompting many Cubans to stay up way past their
bedtimes. [Dallas Morning News]
Dallas
Morning News
According to critics, Fantasia Barrino, the recently crowned winner of
"American Idol," may have more staying power than both previous Idols.
[USA Today]
USA
Today
CABLE
Walt Disney is planning to launch three channels in India which will be
financed by both cable fees and advertising. [Hindustan Times]
Hindustan Times
TECHNOLOGY
Motorola is rolling out a new line of flat-panel televisions, which will be
available in both the U.S. and Asian markets within the next few months.
[Yahoo! News]
Yahoo!
News
VOD
In Demand, the largest distributor of pay-per-view movies in the United
States, has reached a record 12 million homes thanks to the convenience of video
on
demand. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo!
News
CONTROVERSY
Larry David's hit HBO series "Curb Your Enthusiasm" helped free a
man wrongly
accused of murder when it was revealed that footage shot for the series
proved that Juan Catalan was at Los Angeles' Dodger Stadium at the time of the
killing. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo!
News
Ray Martin, host of Australia's "A Current Affair," defended taking
payment
for an exclusive interview with a Sydney woman who suffocated her 10-year-old
autistic son. [Daily Telegraph]
Daily Telegraph
Kwame Jackson, the runner-up in Donald Trump's NBC reality hit "The
Apprentice," was fired again--this time from his position as a judge at
the "Miss
Universe" pageant, after he waved at several participants in the lobby
of his
hotel.
Yahoo!
News
RADIO
Major changes may be in store for the Viacom-owned Infinity Radio after
veteran radio executive Mel Karmazin left the conglomerate last week. [Yahoo!
News]
Yahoo!
News
FESTIVALS
Reed Midem announced the launch of the MIPCOM DVD Awards, which will be held
on Wednesday, October 6 during the 20th annual MIPCOM in Cannes. The Awards
will reward creativity and innovation in DVD content. [MIPCOM.com]
MIPCOM.com
FILM
Children aren't the only ones excited about the imminent return of witchcraft
and wizardry in "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban." Adults
around the
world are also counting down the minutes until the children's film opens.
[Times of India]
The Times of
India
Michael Moore's controversial anti-Bush film "Fahrenheit 9/11," which
won the
top prize at the Cannes Film Festival, is set to hit U.S. theaters on June 25.
Yahoo!
News
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