US Recession Looms As Growth Heads For Zero The US economy is on the brink of recession, with growth grinding to a halt because of what will probably be America’s worst housing slump on record, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation ... Read Full Article The Prize That Even Some Laureates Question Dismay with the kind of work that has often been honored by the Nobel prize in economics has led even a couple of its winners to suggest it be abolished.... Read Full Article British Airways And Korean Air Fined Millions For Fixing Prices Two major airlines were fined $300 million each Thursday after admitting that they had conspired to fix prices on international flights.... Read Full Article Bitter Bush Remains ’the Last Of The Texans’ A surly George Bush accepts he needs to shed all distractions. And those distractions include his confidant of 12 years, Attorney-General Alberto Gonzales.... Read Full Article Market Values: Amgen Finds Growing Up Isn?t So Easy After troubles with its anemia treatment Aranesp, which accounts for more than half of profits, Amgen seems to be suffering through a midlife crisis.... Read Full Article |
Court TV Tilts To Tabloid Side In Ratings QuestFounded in 1991 by the lawyer and journalist Steven Brill, Courtroom Television Network introduced the genre of gavel-to-gavel coverage of live courtroom trials, punctuated by sober legal analysis of the proceedings. It caught its wave in 1995 during the O. J. Simpson murder trial. Today, Court TV still broadcasts trials, but tilts more toward juicy tabloid fare. A new show, Video Justice, had a segment last week about a fight in a Nevada casino between Hells Angels and Mongols. Knives flash. Gunshots ring out, a voice-over said, breathlessly describing the footage caught by security cameras in the casino. Two minutes of bloody mayhem, and then, its over. Reflecting its new emphasis on reality shows, the cable network is taking on a new name as of Jan. 1: truTV. It is not just a marketing makeover, but an overhaul of the networks programming, with the aim of drawing in younger male viewers, said Steve Koonin, president of Turner Entertainment Networks, a division of Time Warner. Media is a business of demographics, Mr. Koonin said. With cable television, you have to have a brand. The new brand, truTV, came about from reversing the last three letters in the word court, Mr. Koonin said. He added that the network did extensive research and found that first-person accounts, one-on-one interviews and lots of action would help attract the desired audience. From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the network will broadcast its staple offerings of live court cases (now playing: the trial of the record producer Phil Spector, accused of murdering the actress Lana Clarkson). Gone is Catherine Crier Live, a daily news show that focused on legal issues. During prime time, the lineup will feature new programs whose working titles include Ski Patrol (about people whose job includes busting unruly snowboarders looking to party on the slopes) and Bounty Girls (about female bounty hunters in Miami). The company has even invented a brand name for its target audience: a highly coveted psychographic known as Real Engagers, according to its press release. Clay Calvert, author of the book Voyeur Nation and a professor at Pennsylvania State University, said that based on the new lineup, the network should attract the intended audience.We really learn precious little, however, from these shows about the law that we didnt already know going in, he said.PRADNYA JOSHI Tag CloudExternal InformationAdditional InformationAsset Sales by Limited...EBay Will Buy StubHub for $310 Million... Market Place: Acquisition of Lender Is Possibly in Jeopardy... Capital One Financial to Quit Residential Mortgage Business... Where Am I?News Main Page - Business - Court TV Tilts To Tabloid Side In Ratings Quest |
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