What Are You Missing: November 7-14, 2009

November 14, 2009
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Ten things worth checking out online from this past week
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Ad Rant: Pizza Hut Tuscani Pizza

November 13, 2009
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Because nobody watches commercials anymore, Antenna keeps track of what you may have missed while pushing those three triangles rightward. This week’s ad:  Pizza Hut Tuscani Pasta It’s no secret we are, as Ali G so delicately put it, a nation of “fatty boom-booms”.   And anyone who’s flipped through that Michael Pollan book their...
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And You Thought We Didn’t Care

November 13, 2009
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Last week Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas announced his intention not to run for reelection (big) if and when a vote is held. This isn't the forum to discuss the political significance of this move, but I thought I'd throw out some quick observations on the international media side of the story.
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When less is more: LGBT characters and integrated television

November 12, 2009
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When less is more: LGBT characters and integrated television

In GLAAD’s recent report they mention that the total number of LGBT characters on television actually decreased this year. In part this was a result of the cancellation of the L-Word, the majority of whose character’s were LGBT. However, I believe that this year we actually saw an increase in the visibility of LGBT...
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Glee on Wheels

November 12, 2009
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Glee on Wheels

Last night's episode of Glee, "Wheels," focused on Artie and put the entire club in wheelchairs for a performance. It also attracted a lot of attention and some controversy. A number of actors with disabilities expressed disappointment that Artie is played by an able-bodied actor, Kevin McHale, rather than by an actor who does...
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What Do You Think? Mad Men Season 3

November 9, 2009
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What Do You Think? Mad Men Season 3

With Season Three drawing to a close this past Sunday night, what did you think of the finale and the season as a whole? Need I mention: spoiler alert
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Geekgazing at the stars of w00tstock 2009

November 9, 2009
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Felicia Day demonstrates that she is almost-famous, in at least one corner of the internet, with some help from Wil Wheaton.
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Bon Jovi Livin’ on NBC

November 9, 2009
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Bon Jovi Livin’ on NBC

A few weeks ago, NBC announced a new feature: the NBC Artists in Residence Program. Sounds fancy, but ultimately it's just a shiny name for an exclusive promotional deal they signed with Jon Bon Jovi. The artist himself attributes the decision to the "shrinking media environment," a phrase that he was applying...
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My Very Own Television Network

November 7, 2009
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My Very Own Television Network

As we begin our new blog, it seems an appropriate time to launch my new television station. Or, rather, my new primetime schedule. If I could have only one channel, yet had free claim on any and all current series, what would that network contain?
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“Is India ready to face its moment of truth?”: the hullabaloo over Indian reality TV

November 7, 2009
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“Is India ready to face its moment of truth?”: the hullabaloo over Indian reality TV

After family sagas and quiz shows hosted by Bollywood stars, it is now "voyeuristic" reality television that has the Indian television viewer hooked and the moral police rankled. The latest reality show to grab headlines and media attention is Sach ka Saamna, which not only bolstered Star Plus' ratings but also spawned debates about...
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NBC to Ruin Comedians You Once Loved

November 6, 2009
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Fans of comedy on NBC rejoiced last week Monday, then went into a deep funk around 10/9c, then rejoiced again after reports that the network had agreed to a pilot commitment with Reno 911! co-creators Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant. The program was a modest success for Comedy Central over the last six...
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Meghan McCain vs. Andy Warhol

November 6, 2009
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For the curious internet user, copies of the buxom self-portrait Meghan McCain snapped to accompany her twitter post last week (which read, “my ‘spontaneous’ night in is my Andy Warhol biography and takeout....I'm getting old”) will forevermore be mere clicks away.
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Ricky Gervais likes Girls and Girls Like Status

November 6, 2009
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So I'm not living in a place where my social life includes television or movie theaters or talking about things that aren't terrifying. As a result I was not reduced to watching Ricky Gervais' The Invention of Lying by myself; I was reduced to watching some guy on the Internet's camcorder recording of Ricky...
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