Covering a Presidential Primary: Interview with C-SPAN Co-President and Co-CEO Susan Swain
In an era in which apps, social media and TV Everywhere have given us instant access to political events that we didn’t have before, how the media covers presidential candidates in the primaries has never been more important. With talking heads and pundits galore, a voter’s opinion can easily be swayed with a mere comment, camera angle, or video editing technique. That’s why a network like C-SPAN, which abstains from commentary, is all the more fascinating, as we explained on Friday. As we continue our bus trip today with the network around New Hampshire on the eve of the primary, we’d like to
Sunday Isn’t Just the Super Bowl of Football
Super Bowl 50. It has a nice ring to it. It’s the culmination of not only another grueling NFL season filled with highs, lows, hits, and wins, but of the immense efforts of both individuals and of teams. The Super Bowl is the best of the best versus the best of the best and over the last fifty years has earned its place (though unofficially) as an American holiday. But it’s not the only such paramount event happening this week. There’s another peak grueling battle that Americans are intensely focused on. It’s the New Hampshire Primary and for Democracy lovers and political wonks alike, it’s
LGBT Inclusiveness and Diversity Define Storytelling on Cable
The Oscars are coming up soon, but this year the headlines haven’t been all glitz and glam. The lack of nominations for people of color, women and LGBT groups caused quite a stir, and while the Academy responded by promising to increase the diversity of its board of members , the situation has reminded us about the message that comes across when underrepresented groups fail to be recognized in media and entertainment. In another recent headline, Disney Channel’s teen actress of Girl Meets World, Rowan Blanchard, also challenged the status quo on her channel earlier this month on LGBT
What Does the FCC Know that Apple, Netflix, and Roku Don’t?
TV today is trending for consumers. We’re experiencing an incredible programming renaissance where both the quality and quantity of shows is better than ever before and only improving. We’re also living through a tectonic technology shift that rivals the invention of broadcasting, leveraging rapidly expanding app marketplaces, ubiquitous connectivity and ever shrinking portable screens to deliver limitless television where, when and how we want it. We see these innovations almost daily, which is why it’s so strange that government feels compelled to insert itself in the mix in order to do Big
Boy, We Really Love Streaming Media
The East Coast is about to get pummeled by a monster snowstorm. After the messiness of digging out cars and clearing walkways, I’ll be getting down to the real business of surviving a blizzard – binging on TV. First Mr. Robot, then Orphan Black, and after that a little Game of Thrones season 5 refresher to prepare for season 6 in April. Take a look at the latest streaming statistics and stand back in awe. Not only do Americans stream a ton of media, but we do it thanks to remarkable speeds. Snowstorm or not, Americans love streaming media. Sources: http://www.emarketer.com/Article/US-Adults
Cable Triumphs at 73rd Golden Globes
Cable shows and their beloved celebrities shined in last night’s 73rd annual Golden Globes, claiming six out of the eleven accolades for television. USA Network came out with two big wins for Mr. Robot. Mr. Robot won for best television drama series in its first season debut, beating out usual favorite HBO’s Game of Thrones, and Christian Slater snagged the Golden Globe for best performance by an actor in a supporting role for his stint as Elliott Alderson. Cable superstar Jon Hamm closed out his career with AMC’s Mad Men on a high, taking the award for best performance in a television drama
VR Experimentation, Storytelling in 2016
I’ve heard it said from the mouths of many a speaker and exhibitor here at CES this week: 2016 will be a big year for virtual reality–in journalism, in film, in gaming, for high technology fiends down to the average smartphone user. A panel of pioneers experimenting with groundbreaking VR experiences convened on Thursday morning and shed some more light on how VR technology is changing the course of how people follow and engage with this type of entertainment and emerging storytelling platform. What particularly stood out to me was the account from the leaders at the New York Times who just
Are Better Wi-Fi Routers the Trick to 4k Streaming?
They sit dusty, untouched, crammed behind bookcases, slid under couches, forgotten in hallway closets. They don’t have screens, they don’t make sounds, and they don’t have apps. They’re Wi-Fi routers and they’re the unsung heroes, the silent workhorses, of broadband and they deserve a little attention – a little love. Without a good Wi-Fi router that’s not only properly rated for the amount of data it’s being asked to handle, but capable of working smoothly with multiple devices, you could be missing out on the full potential of your speedy Internet connection. Considering how quickly speeds
The Secret to Great TV is Pretend the TV Doesn’t Exist
Though CES and it’s expansive show floor didn’t technically open until this morning, the Las Vegas Convention Center was busy yesterday with a series of panels on ways to develop and support entertainment on novel platforms via unique partnerships. A surprising theme emerged out of a series of seemingly disparate panels: The secret to creating a great multi-platform premium TV-style content experience is to pretend TV never existed. That’s right – just work as if linear television had never been invented. This concept came up in a panel on multi-screen content strategies, on Hollywood-brand
Happy Holidays from NCTA
