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Here are the 10 most-read television stories published on Adweek.com in 2011:
- Facebook Pitches Social TV
Creating program guides based on what friends watch
By D.M. Levine
Facebook has a message for the television world: social TV is coming. Andy Mitchell, SVP of Strategic Partner Development at Facebook, pitched a crowd of media and branding honchos at the PromaxBDA conference on Wednesday on the various ways in which he thinks his company can help the broadcast media embrace the social world. An obvious starting point was program filtering. "If you look at the program guide [as it stands now], you're trying to figure out what to watch among five hundred channels. It's really hard," Mitchell said. "But think about a program guide where you see what your friends are watching, that changes the experience. "
- DirecTV Gets Retrans Blowback
Will the satellite service cave?
By Anthony Crupi
It may have seemed like a good PR move, but DirecTV's decision to set up a website to take its case in its carriage dispute with Fox Networks directly to the people has blown up in its face.
- NFL Network in Carriage Talks With Time Warner Cable
Goodell says league wants deal by opening kickoff
By Anthony Crupi
After a five-year stalemate that has kept the NFL Network out of millions of Time Warner Cable households, the two combatants are said to be actively pursuing a long-term carriage deal.
- Fox Fires Back at Gawker
Dismisses, but doesn't deny, story about Bill O'Reilly, his wife, and Nassau County cops
By D.M. Levine
Fox News is firing back at Gawker for its Bill O'Reilly story. Earlier today, Gawker posted what it billed as a major exclusive—a story by John Cook claiming that prime-time host Bill O'Reilly had attempted to coax the internal affairs unit of his hometown police department into investigating one of its officers, because O'Reilly believed an officer was having an extra-marital affair with his wife.
- 27 New Shows, But is There Anything Worth Watching?
Comedy makes a comeback with 11 new tries
By Marc Berman
By the numbers, there are 27 new series on the five broadcast networks overall – four more than last year. And two of those shows – dramas A Gifted Man on CBS and Grimm on NBC – happen to be positioned on Friday, so the networks are still trying to program the troubled evening. New dramas continue to outnumber new comedies (14 to 11), but 11 upcoming chucklers is the most we have seen in the category on a fall line-up in five years. So what was once considered "dead" is attempting a comeback, with ABC and NBC, in particular, are expanding to a second night of comedies.
- Most Likely to Succeed
Our picks for the most promising new shows on networks this fall
By Marc Berman
In the unlikely case you haven't heard, it's upfront week. But sometimes lost in the talk of dollars is the fact five broadcasters will unveil their fall prime-time lineups. NBC spills the goods first, followed by Fox, ABC, CBS, and The CW. Expect hyperbole to come in heaps.
- Crash and Burn: ABC's 'Pan Am' Is Another Downer
Three weeks into the new season, dramas are flailing
By Anthony Crupi
Heading into the third week of the 2011-12 TV season, the new crop of broadcast dramas appears to be dying on the vine.
- Time Warner Cable-NFL Network Talks Break Down
Despite optimism, carriage fight unresolved
By Anthony Crupi
Despite intensive efforts to broker a carriage agreement, talks between NFL Network and Time Warner Cable have ended without a deal. After having called off any future negotiations, it now appears that the two parties will not come to terms before the end of the 2011-12 NFL campaign.
- The 10 Most Powerful Women in Television
Actually, the most powerful people in television are women!
By Adweek Staff
For 50 years, television was a man's business. It was an industry about dominance—winners took all. Big egos, brilliant gamesmanship, great wealth characterized the men who shaped the business. They all played the role: Bill Paley, David Sarnoff, Leonard Goldenson, Roone Arledge, Michael Eisner, Barry Diller, Tom Murphy, Dan Burke, Larry Tisch, Bob Wright, Dick Ebersol, Mel Karmazin, Sumner Redstone, Jeff Zucker, and Les Moonves—perhaps the last real TV guy standing. Showmen and sharks. And then the business started to change.
- Meredith Vieira Waves Goodbye to 'Today'
Early exit for co-host; Curry to fill in
By Anthony Crupi
Meredith Vieira is preparing for an early exit from NBC's Today show, taking a bow some three months before her contract expires in September.
