If there’s only one TV show you can watch this week I recommend that it be the “Hope for Haiti Now” telethon. The telethon is obviously meant to raise funds for Haiti.

Show schedule for the telethon is January 22, Friday, at 8PM ET/PT and 7PM CT. It will be shown simultaneously on the following networks: ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CNN, BET, The CW, HBO, MTV, VH1 and CMT. Since it will be showing on so many channels there’s no reason to miss it while channel surfing. However, what’s really important is not really watching the show but supporting the fundraising effort. It doesn’t matter if you give via the telethon or directly to charity organizations that are currently helping out in Haiti.

All proceeds of the fundraising telethon will be split evenly among the following: Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund, Oxfam America, Partners in Health, the Red Cross, UNICEF and Yele Haiti Foundation and World Food Programme.

And as if the cause is not enough reason to watch and give our support to they’ll have the yumminess of George Clooney as host in LA, my personal fantasy, Anderson Cooper to cover the story live in Port Au Prince, and Wyclef Jean in New York.

The show will be star-studded for sure with the music industry greats such as Jay-Z, Coldplay, Bono, Shakira, and Taylor Swift coming out in full force to lend their support.

Now it’s our turn to give ours.

Wait and see. That’s all we can do till Jay Leno, Conan O’Brien and NBC comes up with a compromise that will make them happy (or at least less unhappy).

Just a few months back I was one of the eager well wishers for Jay Leno’s move to primetime. I guess all that good luck and positive energy just didn’t work. Viewership for the Jay Leno Show did not go up (compared to his viewership for the last season of the “Tonight Show with Jay Leno”) and ended up disgruntling NBC’s affiliates, whose local late newscasts’ viewership depend a lot on the previous show. Compared to the viewership of the top show in the 10pm time slot, Jay Leno’s 5.8 million viewers is definitely a far cry from CBS’s “The Mentalist” viewers of 17.5 million. Guess how many people bother to change channels just to watch late news? Definitely not that much.

Because of this, even though talk shows are far cheaper to produce, it is obvious that NBC’s revenues are taking a big hit from the “mistake” of moving Leno from late night to primetime. Their problem now is how do they move Leno back to late night? What will they do with Conan (put him back to 12mn?) and what will they show for the 10pm slot?

According to Jay Leno, “NBC is working on a solution.” What that is, as I said, we’ll just have to wait and see. In the meantime, Conan promises that “We’ve got a great show for you tonight. I have no idea what time it will air — but it’s going to be a great show.”

Oprah isn’t set to say goodbye till September of next year but everyone’s already wondering who will inherit her throne in daytime TV. Maybe Geraldo’s time has finally come (*snort*)!

Seriously though, Scott Collins of LA Times says that the most likely contenders for the slot will be “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and “The Dr. Oz Show”. Of course, Dr. Phil might get it considering his on #2 spot in terms of viewership and like Oprah “made” him. Dr. Oz though is also doing really great considering that the show is but a year old, and like Dr. Phil, Oprah also made it. However, if Ellen decides to launch a campaign, like she did with the George Clooney where his poor staff got continuously harassed till he appeared on the “Ellen” or like when she wanted to be on the cover of “O Magazine”, maybe the TV execs will get pestered enough to cave in and give it to her.

Whatever happens though the question is likely moot because daytime TV hasn’t been the same for a long time and with Oprah gone, probably never will. As Steve Farella of TargetCast, an ad-firm, said, “Daytime TV as supplied by the networks is really all but dead. [But] It’s not because the talent isn’t there. It’s because the business isn’t there anymore.”

As for me I truthfully don’t care much who takes the slot because I can just watch reruns of Oprah on the Sezmi (Hopefully the service will be good and they’ll be everywhere by 2011!).

CBS News has reported that award-winning CBS News producer Bernard Birnbaum passed away this Thanksgiving Day at the age of 89.

Birnbaum died from a heart attack at Stony Brook University Medical Center in Long Island. He is survived by Deborah and Amy Birnbaum (Amy has followed her father’s steps and is currently a CBS producer) as well as four grandkids.

Birnbaum is best known for his documentaries some of which include legendary specials spanning controversial and important issues and events such as the Watergate scandal (, Kennedy assassination (“CBS News Inquiry: The Warren Report” and “Who Killed Kennedy?”), the Vietnam War (“Vietnam: A War That is Finished”), and the plight of miners in Kentucky (“Christmas in Appalachia”) for which he won an Emmy. Actually, Birnbaum won 7 Emmys in all.

Some of the CBS shows that Birnbaum produced, whether as associate or senior producer, included: “CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite”,”Adventure,” “Eyewitness to History,” “The American Parade”, and “Sunday Morning.”

During his stint as CBS he served as mentor to many aspiring producers and correspondents. According to Sean McManus, CBS News and Sports President, “He always had an encouraging word and was always available to help with a problem. No one who had contact with Bernie can forget his enthusiasm as he would present some little known or forgotten treasure from the CBS News Archives – many of which he had been responsible for filming or taping.”

Before finding his niche at CBS Birbaum studied cinema at Rome, served in Italy during the World War II, and worked as a photographer in MGM Italy.

If you’re one of those who are finding less and less time to watch TV but more and more time to go online, you’re probably one of those who are giving Comcast’s planned “TV Everywhere” test the thumbs up. “TV Everywhere” is Comcast’s answer to the growing number of people who are watching videos online and on mobile devices more and more. Instead of having to look for pirated version of TV shows online, “TV Everywhere” will allow cable subscribers to watch their favorite TV shows legally FOR NO EXTRA CHARGE. Since we love free stuff it is no surprise that 73% of Comcast and Time Warner cable subscribers surveyed by Solutions Research Group indicated that they think that “TV Everywhere” is an “excellent” or “good idea”.

So far 23 networks including HBO, TNT, and CBS, have signed up with Comcast. The online videos available thru “TV Everywhere” will generate income for Comcast and the networks via online ads. This is critical for the TV networks since greater competition among networks coupled with the recession has been hitting their ad revenue. They are counting on “TV Everywhere” to get more advertisers on board to supplement their current decreasing revenue. With the popularity of online videos it won’t be surprising if advertisers jump on the bandwagon. Of course, for us viewers, this can only be a win-win situation.

Comcast is expected to start testing this month. Only 5,000 households will be included in the test so cross your fingers and hopefully you will be included.

It’s a Monday today and TV-holics all across the land are preparing to watch the newest episode of the second season of Heroes.

Just like any TV addict and hardcore comicbook/sci-fi fan, I took to Heroes like Mulder took to sunflower seeds. The first season of Heroes was as dope as it could be. Tim Kring’s writers succeeded in writing the intricate subplots in such a way that it flowed effortlessly onscreen. It was not confusing and enough time was given to each and everyone to really tell their stories and for viewers to fall in love with the characters. I think the evolution of the Man with the Horn-rimmed Glasses as a character is one of the best examples of how well written that season was. continued →

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