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Writers and Hollywood studios wrangle to avoid a strike

Apr 18, 2017
Negotiations continue between the Writers Guild of America and TV and movie producers as the May 1 expiration date of the writers’ contract looms. Writers have struggled with changes in content production and distribution.  Click the audio player above to hear the full story.

Live vs. on demand: the battle ahead

Apr 17, 2017
Netflix will report earnings when the market closes on today. As ever, analysts will be keeping a close eye on subscriber numbers. They’ll also be considering all the new players jumping into streaming TV. But these are mostly new services planning to offer livetelevision over the internet. Will that hurt Netflix? Click the audio player […]

Meet 'Sesame Street’s' Julia: A muppet character who’s autistic

Apr 10, 2017
It’s part of an outreach and education program that Sesame Workshop has launched with researchers and autism advocates.
Front row, from left to right: Sesame Street characters Julia (a 4-year-old muppet with autism), Abby Cadabby and Elmo.
© 2017 Sesame Workshop. All rights reserved. Photo Credit: Zach Hyman

But wait, there’s more! Ronco now wants to sell you company shares

Apr 3, 2017
The enterprise that brought you the Chop-o-Matic is offering 5 million slices of the business.
Photo by Express/Getty Images

FCC vote could let companies that own lots of TV stations buy even more

Mar 30, 2017
The Federal Communications Commission cares a lot about who controls what you see on TV. Some companies that own dozens of TV stations have been blocked from merging or buying more, because the FCC limits how much of the audience any one company can control. But next month, TV conglomerates may get to buy up […]

Telemundo actors vote to unionize

Mar 9, 2017
For the first time in 65 years, actors at a major TV network have held a union election. The actors? Stars of the wildly popular telenovelas airing on NBC Universal’s Telemundo network. The vote still needs to be certified, but assuming that happens, the performers will be joining Hollywood’s SAG-AFTRA union with the hopes of […]

If MLB and Facebook team up, the home run would be ad dollars

Feb 22, 2017
Reuters reports that Facebook is in talks to stream Major League Baseball games. That would make the MLB the latest professional sports league to seek a social media audience. But what’s in it for Facebook? Well, potential advertising dollars. Since Facebook can track who’s watching and what they’re doing while they watch, it can offer […]

For public good, not for profit.

SNL brings in highest ratings in over 20 years

Feb 10, 2017
The post-election political climate has meant big business for 'Saturday Night Live.'
Melissa McCarthy as press secretary Sean Spicer in last week's episode of Saturday Night Live.
NBC Universal

Trump's love of cable TV creates an opportunity

Feb 6, 2017
President Donald Trump is a big fan of cable TV shows. That makes it more likely that advocates will try to reach him through advertising, which in turn could drive up ad rates.

Cable news benefits from a Trump Effect

Jan 25, 2017
Another winner of the 2016 election.