PROGRAMMING
The networks' fall season's schedules, which were revealed during last week's
upfronts, are pure escapist entertainment--perhaps as a reflection of the
complex war times during which we reside. [New York Times]
The New York Times

"American Idol" finalist Diana DeGarmo, 16, says that whether or not she is
crowned the "American Idol" on Wednesday night, she plans to capitalize on her
fame and record an album. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo! News

TECHNOLOGY
Movielink, a company that authorizes users to download films online, signed
an agreement with U.S. cable provider Charter Communications to offer
customized movie service to Charter's high-speed Internet subscribers. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo! News

WEB SITE
Gideon Horowitz, one of the star's of NBC's reality TV hit "The Restaurant,"
is launching a new reality Web site, www.realityrewind.com. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo! News

CONTROVERSY
A Utah man is suing Viacom, claiming that the conglomerate falsely advertised
a Super Bowl halftime show that would feature marching bands and music, and
not Janet Jackson's exposed nipple shield. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo! News

Iran's supreme leader appointed a former hostage-taker in the 1979 hostage
crisis to head the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting company, the state-run
radio and television station. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo! News

Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya have aired footage of an Iraqi wedding party that
was apparently hit in a deadly U.S. air raid last week. The U.S. claims that
the target was a staging post for foreign fighters entering Iraq. [Financial
Times]
Financial Times

AWARDS SHOWS AND FESTIVALS
The L.A. Screenings got off to a great start last week with indie distributor
Alliance Atlantis racking up deals for the third installment of its highly
successful "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" franchise. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo! News

The fifth annual International Indian Film Academy Awards, known by most as
the Bollywood Oscars, was held last week in Singapore. "Kal Ho Naa Ho" ("If
Tomorrow Never Comes"), a tangled romance, won the award for best picture. [The
Independent]
The Independent

Though the Bush administration calls Michael Moore's new film "Fahrenheit
9/11," "outrageously false," Moore still won the Palme d'Or prize at the Cannes
Film Festival. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo! News

Ellen DeGeneres' daytime talk show picked up the trophy for best talk show at
last week's Daytime Emmy Awards ceremony. [Yahoo! News]
Yahoo! News

FILM
"The Notebook," the newest film based on a Nicholas Sparks novel, is the lone
sappy romance during a season of big budget blockbuster bonanzas. [Yahoo!
News]
Yahoo! News

Young girls erupted into screams as the teen stars of "Harry Potter and the
Prisoner of Azkaban," the third film based on J.K. Rowling's phenomenally
successful book series, arrived in New York for the world premiere of the film.
[The Herald]
The Herald

Dave Meyers, who has directed music videos for such powerhouses as Mick
Jagger and Jennifer Lopez, is in negotiations to direct the 20th Century Fox heist
movie "Breaking the Box."
Yahoo! News

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