Who wins and loses when Oprah Winfrey moves to cable in 2011?

Now that Oprah Winfrey has confirmed rumors that she plans to end her mega-successful syndicated talk show when her contract expires in September 2011, the next question is simple:

Who wins and who loses?

Winfrey herself is expected to announce the move during her live show today, though she isn't expected to say where or whether her program will reappear elsewhere. She's leaving to focus on the cable channel she's been trying to develop from the ashes of Discovery Health Network, known in shorthand as OWN, or the Oprah Winfrey Network.

It means something when one of the most successful TV hosts in history chooses to depart broadcast television for cable. And the woman who launched a thousand books will leave a slew of winners and losers in her wake.

WINNER: Ellen DeGeneres

As longtime blog reader and FlNewsCenter.com webmaster Chris Blanton points out, Winfrey competes against DeGeneres in many markets, including Tampa, because all of Winfrey's syndicated TV kids are prohibited from airing against her. So when Winfrey takes off in 18 months, guess who is best poised to scoop up the viewers who won't watch Judge Judy?

LOSER: News broadcasts, including Tampa's WFLA-Ch. 8

Winfrey's talk show has been a successful lead-in for local news broadcasts -- including WFLA's 5 p.m. broadcast -- for years. Without her massive audience sticking around for news shows, the ratings game in many markets, including Tampa's, could shift significantly. Winfrey's show also appeared on lots of ABC affiliates across the country, which could affect ratings for the network's flagship evening newscast, World News Tonight.

WINNER: Winfrey's TV kids -- Dr. Oz, Rachael Ray, Dr. Phil

With big mama Winfrey gone, TV stations will need to fill lots of programming holes. And who better to use for holding onto some of Winfrey's massive audience than hosts who already have the Queen of All Media's seal of approval?

LOSER: Syndicated TV industry, especially CBS Television

Already on life support, this industry -- where TV shows are sold individually to each market instead of aired at once on a network -- has just seen its biggest star tell the world her future lies in another playground.

In particular, Winfrey's syndicator -- CBS Television Distribution, once known as King World -- will take a hit. The giant company, which sells everything from Inside Edition to Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, and Everybody Loves Raymond reruns, will see the show which is the linchpin of its success go away.

WINNER: The Oprah Winfrey Network

Struggling with a revolving door of executives and pushed back start dates, OWN's biggest problem may have been that it seemed a gigantic side project for its superstar namesake. But when Winfrey's show leaves the air in 18 months, OWN will be the only place in television where you might see her -- which just elevated its status tremendously.

LOSER: Oprah Winfrey?

It is never a good idea to bet against someone as wealthy, savvy and talented as Winfrey. Still, cable TV is by definition a niche medium that reaches a smaller sliver of the audience than the big broadcasters. It hard to imagine how she will retain the influence, audience and income she has enjoyed until now.

Though, if anyone can turn cable TV into a broad megaphone, it's Oprah. And we'll all have great fun watching her try. 

 

Glenn Beck reveals major announcement coming about future of his show at rally Saturday in Florida

Most of conservative pundit Glenn Beck's book signing events in Florida this weekend will be seriously brisk affairs; he's scheduled to hit seven different cities on Friday and Saturday, culminating with a noon stop in Tampa and a 3 p.m. rally/singing at The Villages retirement community.

But his stop at The Villages promises to be a special event. There, Beck says he's going to reveal details on The Plan -- a future direction for his Fox News Channel show, which is now the third most-popular program on the most-watched cable TV news channel.

"Coming this January, my whole approach changes on this program," said Beck in a clip from his Fox News Channel show widely circulated on the Internet. "Personal responsibility is dead in this country; it's time that we got the little paddles -- poof! -- and bring the body back."

Organizers in Tampa expect about 800 people to show for his stop there, as the host barrels between locations in a huge bus emblazoned with his logo -- whipping through a tight schedule arranged by a team of planners with the precision of a political campaign. Store staffers have already been told there won't be time to personalize his signatures or to talk with many people from the local press.

But his stop at The Villages may be different. The retirement community is a favorite for conservative politicians and authors -- former Arkansas governor-turned Fox News host Mike Huckabee drew a crowd of about 1,000 Monday to sign copies of his book A Simple Christmas. Former Alaska gov. Sarah Palin drops by Tuesday to sign copies of her new book, Going Rogue.

See Beck's announcement below:

Fox News slips up on video again, while Daily Show welcomes Lou Dobbs and explains Palin-hatin'

The Sarah Palin book tour continues to be the gift that keeps on giving for media watchers.

First, Fox News had to apologize today for telling viewers Wednesday that video from a campaign appearance by Palin last year before adoring throngs was footage from a recent book tour stop.

The flub highlights the ongoing controversy over whether outspoken conservatives such as Palin are widely popular or appeal to an excited niche. And its the second time in as many weeks that Fox had to apologize for leading viewers to believe old footage was new.

It also highlights something I said Sunday on CNN. The problem with having opinionated news networks isn't necessarily showcasing opinion, it's the lack of transparency and accuracy when programmers are actively and deliberately bending reality to fit their preconceived ideas.

I actually think this was an honest mistake -- mostly because Palin is drawing crowds at her book signings, so deception wasn't necessary (in fact, as I write this, MSNBC is broadcasting from a crowded Palin book signing). But when you've had your finger on the scale in the past, it's hard to argue innocence in the future.

The Daily Show also had several great segments Wednesday; particularly a bit where host Jon Stewart explains that critics object to Palin because her positions on issues are mostly conservative-friendly code words and phrases strung together in rambling sentences which sometimes don't even make sense. 

Later, he complimented former CNN host Lou Dobbs for his consistency in upholding abhorrent and wrong views.

Check some of the video below:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Exclusive - Lou Dobbs Extended Interview Pt. 2
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

Creative Loafing sells its cover, critics review and news pages for charity

At a time when some critics insist that content in newspapers is unofficially for sale, Creative Loafing's Tampa edition is about to put that notion to the test.

To raise money for The Children's Home charity, Creative Loafing in Tampa has opened an online auction allowing the highest bidder to provide content and make editorial choices for its Jan. 20 edition.

The items for sale include: its lead cover image, a five-star review from its restaurant critic Brian Ries, a local band profile and photo shoot, the chance to write a music review of your choice and a chance to add your questions in person to an interview   political editor Mitch Perry will conduct with a politician for a story in the newspaper and Perry's podcast.

These items involving the newspaper's actual content are sprinkled among more conventional bid items such as an indie record shopping spree and acting classes at the Venue Actors Studio. The suggested opening bids are rather low -- the one for the cover is $100 -- and the possibilities for problems seem plentiful.

What if a group of white supremacists want to buy the cover? Or that guy who swears Stephen King helped kill John Lennon? Can Creative Loafing say no if the image suggested isn't definitively offensive?

And doesn't the whole business, coming as the six-newspaper chain is climbing out of bankruptcy, reinforce the notion that their editorial product is unsteady enough to be bought out?

"This is our way of saying 'This is not how we do business,'" said Creative Loafing editor David Warner, clearly digging how vaguely disquieting this whole episode was for me. "just this once, you'll see what you get if our content actually is for sale. It's ironic, unchartered territory."

Based on an annual auction held by the Seattle alt-weekly The Stranger, it's also an interesting bit of irreverence coming as the chain's new owners hire more conventional newspaper types to run its properties -- from former St. Pete Times publisher Marty Petty joining as CEO to former Chicago Tribune managing editor Jim Warren becoming publisher of the chain's Chicago Reader.

The auction started this morning and concludes in December; the newspaper expects to maintain editorial control over the material provided by winning bidders. Warner wasn't sure, but believed The Stranger raises somewhere around $50,000 with its auctions. 

And yes, I realize auctioning the newspaper's content is mostly a bid for free publicity, which I'm providing. 

But I'm thinking I just might get a posse together here at Times Publishing and  buy a big cover ad for our free weekly newspaper, TBT.

Hey, it's all for a good cause and free publicity, right? 

Nielsen delivers ratings information today, expects normal operations to resume

I've been waylaid for much of today by problems with a virus in my office computer, so apologies for the lack of posts today.

But Nielsen has begun reporting TV ratings reports again after a power outage in Oldsmar during the wee hours Wednesday morning disrupted data collection efforts. Some local data was made available to clients last night, while national ratings were rolled out today, according to spokesman Gary Holmes.

There's still no word on why a transformer blew out at about 2 a.m. Wednesday, but the failure sent a power surge through Nielsen's systems which required them to restart much of their equipment over the day Wednesday, Holmes said. The disruption left clients without ratings for the better part of a day and revealed that their backup power systems might not be enough to halt disruptions in TV ratings during an emergency. 

Nielsen says Oldsmar power outage will prevent release of TV ratings today

When I toured The Nielsen Company's $80-million, 475,000-square-foot data processing center in Oldsmar a few years ago, officials presented a facility poised to withstand just about anything the Tampa Bay area could dish out.

A fortified data collection area was built to endure a hurricane. Backup power generators were available to take over if Tampa Electric's power were interrupted. Tests had been performed to ensure lightning strikes would not disrupt service.

So how did a power transformer which blew out at 2:05 a.m. this morning, disrupt Nielsen's systems so badly that they could not release any ratings data today to clients?

"We have very good safeguards....but this was an unforeseeable, unprecedented event," said Nielsen spokesman Gary Holmes. "We don't even know all the information (about what happened)."

Holmes said a blown transformer sent a surge through Nielsen's systems which knocked out power at the Oldsmar complex. About 60 customers were affected by the outage, which lasted five hours; repair crews don't know yet what caused it, according to Tampa Electric Company. Nielsen's backup generators kicked in after an hour, Holmes said.

But the delay -- which occurred early in the morning, when Nielsen generally downloads data from thousands of households in its survey samples -- pushed back the company's process enough to scuttle overnight and weekly ratings reports to be released today. And officials can't say with certainty whether the data will be available tomorrow.

Nielsen took lots of criticism back in May, when computer server problems caused a delay in releasing ratings data for days, just as the networks were deciding on which series to keep for the next TV season.

 Then, in September, 14 heavyweight media companies united to create the Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement, an incubator for new techniques of audience measurement that some called a less-than-subtle challenge aimed at spurring Nielsen to work harder on new innovations.

With the economics of a multi-billion-dollar industry riding on its data processing abilities, Nielsen may face additional criticism -- particularly if the release of TV ratings is delayed by more than a day.

Former WFTS-Ch. 28 general manager Bill Carey hired as news director in New York City

There have been rumblings for a while that former WFTS-Ch. 28 general manager Bill Carey might land a job as news director at New York CW affiliate WPIX.

The station made it official today, announcing Carey as its new news director, importing him to his New York hometown from a job as station manager and news director at WQAD in Moline, Ill.

Carey resigned his job at WFTS six months after he was arrested and accused of burglary and battery following a hit-and-run crash. Police said Carey initially didn't stop after the accident and struggled with the other driver to take back his license after she announced plans to call law enforcement. Carey maintained he was the victim of a misunderstanding.

Hillsborough County prosecutors decided not to file charges against Carey, after the victim in his case signed a waiver of prosecution and reached a civil settlement with him for an undisclosed sum.

Now he's taking the reins at a TV station in the country's largest market.

Click below to read the press release:

"Uncle Stevie" King wows sold-out crowd of hundreds at Van Wezel Hall in Sarasota

The cool kids may never admit they read his books.

But I'm not ashamed to say I have been a Stephen King fan since his second book, 1975's Salem's Lot, led me to keep the lights on at night -- every night! -- while in junior high school.

So joining a sold-out crowd of hundreds at the Van Wezel Hall in Sarasota Monday to genuflect before "Uncle Stevie" -- as he calls himself in his most-excellent pop culture column for Entertainment Weekly -- felt just fine.

Turns out, King in person is a lot like his books; funny, down-to-earth, given to entertaining and meandering asides and capable of occasional bursts of profanity.

He took questions from Susan Rife, arts editor at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, who was refreshingly playful and relatively at ease with the  superstar novelist. Which made for a pretty fun conversation with a local hero (he and wife Tabitha King have a home in nearby Casey Key).

The highlights:

--His new book, Under the Dome, was first conceived in the mid-'70s, put aside for a long while, and eventually reworked over a few more years. And after finishing an initial manuscript even bigger than the current 1,074-page behemoth, his sister heard the plot and said "Oh, you mean like The Simpsons Movie?" (which is what my wife said when she heard about it, too). Uncle Stevie swears he never saw it.

--He doesn't outline or plan out his books much before writing. To him, writing is more like excavating, pulling out a story which already exists, told to him by a cast of characters he loves. He said many books start with an image in his mind -- Under the Dome began with a press conference featuring emaciated, starving people facing a well-fed press corps. When he heard John Irving talk about knowing the final chapter and final scene of every book when he starts writing, Uncle Stevie said "What fun would that be?"

-- He's going to write new installments of both the Dark Tower series and the Talisman series. I never really got into those books, but the fanboys and girls around me squealed like little children when they heard the news.

-- He's got a PDF version online of his manuscript featuring a version of Under the Dome that was his second try at the book, written in Pittsburgh while director George Romero was filming Creepshow, featuring folks trapped in an apartment building. He's also got a way-cool Web site. 

--For the umpteenth time, he confirms that he's a pretty normal guy who had a pretty normal childhood. The master of the modern horror novel also confided that the only time he saw a ghost was out of the corner of his eye while searching for his coat in a room while preparing to leave a party. It is to Uncle Stevie's credit as a storyteller that he managed to make even this underwhelming story sound compelling.

--But while he claims to be a normal guy, he also talked about taking a motorcycle ride across Australia just before writing Under the Dome and collaborating on a music-drenched audio play which will feature Kris Kristofferson, Sheryl Crow, Elvis Costello and Roseanne Cash with music by John Mellencamp. So he keep some pretty amazing company.

By the time a couple of city officials came out to hand him the key to Sarasota, you were left in awe by a major talent and publishing dynamo -- he estimated authoring something like 70 books under his various pen names -- who somehow managed to maintain a regular-guy spirit and joy for what he had.

In a business rife with tortured artists and giant-sized egos, it was a welcome discovery, indeed.

Handling Sarah Palin week: What to do when a major newsmaker with credibility problems blitzes the media

As Sarah Palin kicks off a media blitz this week to hawk her new book, Going Rogue, you have to wonder how the national media got hornswoggled into this mess.

Even as major interviews with infotainment figures such as Oprah Winfrey and Barbara Walters air in syndicated TV and on ABC, reporters from the Associated Press have fact-checked Palin's quickly-written memoir and find it to be full of misleading, sometimes inaccurate statements.

Palin also makes claims about how she was treated by the campaign of then-running mate John McCain during their bid for the White House which have been denied by others who worked there. In particular, former officials there refute her claim that she was billed $50,000 for expenses related to her vetting at a vice presidential candidate -- saying the McCain campaign did not bill her and was not asked to help cover any expenses she might have incurred on her own. (See the St. Pete Times' fact checking Web site PolitiFact's area on Palin here)

So how will journalists treat Palin when she sits down? If, for example, Barbara Walters' pre-taped interviews don't address these issues, should ABC News feel hoodwinked? (Click here for a summation of Palin's Oprah appearance by the Chicago Sun-Times; the interview airs here at 4 p.m. on WFLA-Ch. 8)

Jonathan Martin of Politico summed up the issue in an appearance today on MSNBC: "Should we in the media treat Sarah Palin like a conventional politician, who may run for office someday, or a political personality -- somebody on par with a Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity?"

My question: What's the difference? Especially given that media personalities such as Lou Dobbs and Glenn Beck are inspiring and/or promoting politically active advocacy groups and movements?

Palin seems to have avoided hard news environments in her initial interviews for the book, rightly concluding that those who love her will believe whatever she says and those who dislike her won't be swayed by an interview with a hard news reporter.

But anybody who interviews her without bringing up the numerous inconsistencies already revealed about Going Rogue risks their own credibility while furthering Palin's rather opportunistic media strategy.

Former St. Petersburg Times publisher Marty Petty named CEO of Creative Loafing newspaper chain

Former St. Petersburg Times publisher Marty Petty has been named CEO of the Tampa-based chain of alternative weekly newspapers, Creative Loafing.

Petty, who left a position as the Times' publisher and executive vice president last month, takes the job once held by Ben Eason, whose family founded the chain 30 years ago. Eason lost an auction for the company in August to Creative Loafing's largest creditor when the chain's crushing debt forced it into bankruptcy.

Since taking ownership, New York hedge fund Atalaya Capital Partners has aggressively moved to hire executives with extensive experience in mainstream newspapers for key positions, hiring former Chicago Tribune managing editor Jim Warren as publisher of Creative Loafing's Chicago Reader, drafting former Los Angeles Times editor Jim O'Shea for its board and hiring former Des Moines Register president Richard Gilbert as its initial, interim CEO.

Click here for a link to the story by Creative Loafing's Tampa newspaper on the hire, which they said was announced this morning in their new Ybor City offices.

Click below to read Creative Loafing's full press release: