NBCU airing late-night encore of "Smash"
(Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:11:17 GMT)
Reuters - NBCUniversal cable networks will join together tonight for a late-night encore of NBC's new musical drama "Smash," following up on its strong debut Monday.

ESPN falls to third in online sports site rankings
(Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:10:29 GMT)
Reuters - Yahoo Sports remained the most popular U.S. online sports site in January, but the most eye-catching news was ESPN.com falling to third place behind FoxSports.com.

Billy Connolly to play dwarf warrior in "The Hobbit"
(Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:09:34 GMT)
Reuters - Peter Jackson has chosen Billy Connolly to play a great dwarf warrior in New Line's two "The Hobbit" movies, thus completing the casting of both films, the director said Wednesday.

Univision, ABC seek to launch Hispanic news network
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 23:11:07 GMT)
Reuters - A joint venture by ABC and Univision to launch an English-language cable news channel catering to the growing Hispanic market is expected to launch before the fall election, individuals with knowledge of the deal told TheWrap.

Viacom, Taylor Swift partner for "Hunger Games" launch
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:23:07 GMT)
Reuters - Viacom and Taylor Swift have partnered for MTV's first global music video premiere, presenting the debut of Swift's "Safe & Sound" music video from "The Hunger Games" soundtrack across the Viacom Music Groups' many channels and platforms.

CNN suspends Roland Martin over anti-gay tweets
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 20:36:01 GMT)
Reuters - Cable TV network CNN said on Wednesday it has suspended commentator Roland Martin over a series of Twitter remarks during the Super Bowl game that offended America's gay community.

Washington Post to reduce newsroom headcount: memo
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:11:42 GMT)
Reuters - The Washington Post Co will offer voluntary buyout to some of its newsroom employees as it seeks to reduce headcount and save costs, an internal memo showed.

Meryl Streep Oscar email angers voters, but it's legal
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:22:55 GMT)
Reuters - A Weinstein Company email that appears to skirt AMPAS campaign rules by using a third party to reach Oscar voters has stirred up anger among Academy members and rival campaigners.

News Corp reaches more phone hacking settlements
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:07:40 GMT)
Reuters - A further 15 politicians, sportsmen and celebrities reached settlements with the British newspaper arm of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp on Wednesday over a phone hacking scandal that has rocked his global media empire.

Berlin film festival aims for cutting edge in 2012
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:51:55 GMT)
Reuters - The Berlin film festival, which last year set Iranian drama "A Separation" on the path to global fame, has selected an edgier line-up than normal in 2012 with several up-and-coming directors in the main competition.

Amazon, Viacom close to Web video deal
(Tue, 07 Feb 2012 22:51:02 GMT)
Reuters - Amazon.com Inc is about to announce a Web video deal with Viacom Inc in what sources said was one of the last steps in a plan to launch a standalone subscription service to compete with Netflix Inc.

Sundance film "Bachelorette" picked up by Weinsteins
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 02:21:01 GMT)
Reuters - The Weinstein Company's new video on demand label, Radius-TWC, has picked up "Bachelorette," a Sundance movie starring Kirsten Dunst, the company's co-presidents, Tom Quinn and Jason Janego, said Tuesday.

Golden Globes trial: judge pushes settlement
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 03:25:44 GMT)
Reuters - A U.S. district court judge pushed Dick Clark Productions and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association to end their bitter legal scuffle and reach a settlement.

McClatchy ad rev decline slows, shares jump
(Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:35:14 GMT)
Reuters - Newspaper publisher McClatchy Co's quarterly results handily beat expectations, as the pace of decline in advertising revenue reduced sharply and expenses fell about 8 percent.

Wolfe Releasing acquires Sundance movie "Mosquita y Mari"
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:39:33 GMT)
Reuters - Wolfe Releasing has picked up North American rights to "Mosquita y Mari," a coming-of-age tale that focuses on a love between two Latinas in Los Angeles, Wolfe said Tuesday.

IMDB "Jane Doe" case gets a court date
(Tue, 07 Feb 2012 23:35:08 GMT)
Reuters - Junie Hoang, the actress suing the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) for revealing her age, will see her day -- and perhaps two days -- in court next year.

Verizon, Redbox plan Netflix challenge
(Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:24:46 GMT)
Reuters - Verizon Communications Inc and Coinstar's Redbox unit have formed a joint venture to sell video services aimed at competing against video rental giant Netflix Inc.