Too Rich to Fail?

Budget shortfalls in many states have helped shine the spotlight on fiscal responsibility, but as we've seen in Wisconsin when there are political careers on the line rhetoric tries to muscle its way into the spotlight, too. There is no guarantee of objectivity left in commercial "mainstream" media in the U.S. anymore; the chase after "bottom line" success has also chased truth and journalistic standards into full retreat.

Now elected so-called leaders want to chase education into full retreat, too. With the full complicity of ratings-driven networks who will present any side of an issue if they make a buck today, the folks who can afford to pay as much for their kid to attend an elite private academy every year as the rest of us can justify for a graduate school have decided public schools and the people who teach them are no longer a priority.

"...in the derivatives market alone, $600 trillion is in play. That’s why the players, and the Chamber of Commerce, are lobbying so hard to be left alone..."

from "$6 Trillion in play: derivatives markets"
18 February 2011 at realitytax

We bailed out Wall Street bankers after the 2008 crash caused by years of risky business put our economy in a tail-spin, supporting their lavish lifestyles, sky-high salaries, and jaw-dropping year-end bonuses; in exchange they demand we reduce taxes on the ultra-rich while our bridges crumble, potholes proliferate, and we're reducing the modest paychecks and threatening the retirement benefits of public school teachers? In the land of opportunity? Seriously?


We've let corporations and lobbyists build a system where the rule is that some are not only being asked to pay less than their fair share, but they're also too rich to fail. What's next, taking away the collective bargaining rights that made this country great by building the middle class into the engine of the world's greatest economy? We can do better than this; on behalf of our children we must do better than this.

In 2009, "America’s top 25 hedge fund managers earned an average of $1 billion each — enough to pay for 20,000 teachers." Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich 3 May 2010

Political Correspondent Thomas Hayes is a former Congressional Campaign Manager; he's a journalist, photo/videographer, entrepreneur, and communications consultant who contributes regularly on topics ranging from economics and politics to culture and community, who incidentally stands in solidarity with the citizens and workers in Wisconsin refusing to let their Governor's self-created budget "crisis" and new spending priorities be re-cast as a reason to undermine contractual obligations and collective bargaining agreements.

You can follow Tom as @kabiu on twitter. Tweet

Academy Awards: Oscar Ratings, Re-Branding, and Sarah Silverman

The Academy Awards, the grand annual show presented by The Academy Of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, is in trouble. The Oscars have posted a dramatic 9 percent loss in total viewers over 2010, and seems to be trapped in a "movie-dependent" phase of viewership performance. It's not just that The Oscars drew just 37.6 million viewers in 2011, down 5.7 million viewers from 2010, but that the overall change in Oscar viewership over the last 20 years is down.

Between 1988 and 1998, the average per-show annual viewership was 49.612 million. This was a period when The Oscars had just four hosts, Chevy Chase, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, and David Letterman. During that period, Crystal was The Oscars host six of those ten years and viewership never dipped below 40 million; the best year was 1998, when the blockbuster The Titanic, drove numbers to a high of 57.25 million.

But there was another dynamic driving these good viewing numbers: the long-term loss of the primetime broadcast network viewing audience was continuing a pattern that started in the 1980s with the introduction of cable television.

According to my analysis of Nielsen data, during Oscars "high" period from 1988 to 1998, the primetime broadcast viewing audience dropped from 40 percent in 1988 to just about 30 percent in 1998. In 1988, 8 percent of the total primetime viewership was going to cable; by 1998, that jumped to 25 percent; today it's just over 50 percent.

The amazing success of Titanic that year, plus The Academy's use of a "rotation" of hosts, still including the popular Crystal and Goldberg, but adding Steve Martin in 2001 and 2003, arguably masked and delayed the impact these structural changes in viewership had on Oscars ratings. But in 2003, Steve Martin was the host for an Oscar telecast that was a ratings disaster, pulling in just 33.04 million viewers.

That was the first year The Oscars pulled in less than 40 million viewers since 1987, but it would not be the last year. For six of the past 11 years, Oscars viewership has been below 40 million and average per-show annual viewership between 1999 and 2009 was 44.165 million. The question is why?

Cable, the Internet, And Shifting Hosts

There are three reasons: first, the aforementioned impact of cable television in shifting primetime network broadcast viewers to cable, second, the growth of consumption of Internet-related content, and third, The Academy's break from having one host or "rotating hosts" and toward trying new hosts every year. Only Jon Stewart hosted twice during this period, and while Steve Martin served as a host again in 2010, the second time should be marked with an asterisk because he was paired with Alec Baldwin.

Over this time from 2003 to present, the Internet population, the number of people online, has grown dramatically. That has formed another alternative form of entertainment that arguably competes against primetime network broadcasts for viewers. According to ComScore, about 22 percent of the World is online at any one time, and in December of 2009, that number surpassed 1 billion.

What's Oscar To Do?

Over this time, viewing performance of the Academy Awards has been more and more guided by movie box office success.  So much so that two of the the last three best viewing years for the Oscars, 1998 and 2010, were paced by massive blockbusters in Titanic and Avatar; 2005 is an outlier, and can only be explained by the once-and-never-more appearance of comedian Chris Rock as The Oscars host.  That year had The Aviator bested by Million Dollar Baby for Best Picture.  Neither movie was a blockbuster; Shrek and Spider Man 2 were, taking in $441 million and $373 million respectively, and those films were not Best Picture nominees.

Mr. Rock was not retained as a host because he insulted some of the stars in the audience.  This is not to say that Chris Rock is the answer, only to frame the issue: how to form an overall brand for The Oscars that's beyond the host or the movie, and embraces technological change such that The Oscars can be viewed online, not just on television.

Selling The Oscars: An Approach

One thing missing from the "selling of the Oscars" is the presentation of the show as a lifestyle.  What draws viewers is just that: who's wearing what, and what parties are being held.  It's almost as if the actual telecast is taking a backseat to this interest in style.  And there's nothing wrong with that at all; it's just the way it's evolving.

The approach to meet this challenge starts with The Oscars host.  While I said that it's important to get beyond the host driving ratings, I did not say that switching hosts annually is the answer; it's not.  It communicates a lack of stability that's harmed The Oscars brand for the future, unless this practice is stopped.  The Academy must identify one host and sign that person to a five-year contract, thus stabilizing that part of the ratings flux problem.  Moveover, given that the most successful Oscars hosts have been comedians, that person should be a comedian.

Additionally, that person should be a known person, not an unknown.  The host should be such that the mere mention of the person's name causes buzz.  There are two people I think should be at the top of the list: Sarah Silverman and Dave Chappelle, two of the hottest comedians.   Silverman's social networking platform, featuring a Twitter following of 1.3 million, can help promote The Oscars during the weeks before the telecast.

Yes, help promote.

The other part of this new approach is a pre-show social broadcasting (not networking) effort, that looks to drive videos, blog posts, and photos in a package that presents the "Style Of The Oscars," which I'll discuss more below.  But the fact is The Academy's 20,000-plus Twitter followers are not large enough to drive needed buzz on their own; Silverman's 1.3 million, and that of other Oscars presenters, can help - if they're employed.  The Oscars host and presenters must help, and that has to start three-weeks before the telecast.  To help that effort, The Academy has to arrange for promoted Oscars-related hashtags over that period of time.

That this was done only on the day after The 2011 Oscars was a shameful waste of money, given that The Oscars were going to be blogged, written, and tweeted about anyway.

The Academy also failed to use videos on YouTube, Blip.tv (where The Academy lacks a channel), and other video-sharing sites in the pre-show marketing effort.  What must be shown is the set of commercials that will be used on television, along with selected "retrospectives" from past Oscar winners - this is where the lifestyle and tradition of The Academy Awards are communicated.  Some of those videos should be used in The Oscars telecast, and The Academy should have viewers vote online for the ones they want to see on Oscar Sunday.  

Finally, the telecast itself should reflect the fact that The Academy has "official Oscar parties" being held around the country.  The way to do this is to first announce that three special city locations will be randomly picked for Oscar Sunday.  Then, on that day, in a segment of about two minutes, The Oscars hosts connects the partygoers with the audience in the Kodak theater, where the patrons at the parties get to applaud the Oscar nominees live.

I don't think it's a good idea to have a spokesperson for each Oscars city party, just some way of letting them know a few minutes ahead of time that they are "the city" and for them to be ready to applaud on cue.

As silly as this may sound, it's something that, if it is continued, will become a hallmark event of The Oscars, as it helps to breaks down the "wall" between The Oscars and its audience, and keeps everyone engaged.   Moreover, its a way for The Academy to show the fans it appreciates their involvement.  It also accomplishes the objective of bringing the party into the telecast.

Finally, The Oscars must be live streamed.  People should, if they want, be able to see The Academy Awards on their smartphone.  ABC Television should not stand in the way of this, else, they hamper the long-term ad revenue success of The Oscars.   The Academy Awards must become "multi-platform" and be everywhere, not just on broadcast television.

The objective is to create an approach that helps move The Oscars beyond being driven just by the host or by movie box office performance.  Yes, that dynamic will remain, but my assertion is a full plan that includes one host for five years, a coordinated social broadcasting effort that includes the host and presenters, and the use of video, and methods to bring the "party" of the Oscars into the telecast without harming the flow of the show, will help improve ratings overall and maintain The Academy Awards as the premiere entertainment awards program.

Oscars To GDC (Game Developer Conference)

Game Developer Conference. Lobby Bar, originally uploaded by zennie62.

As this blog entry is written, the venue is the Moscone Center in San Francisco, site of the Game Developers Conference. And yes, having just retuned from the glitz, glamour, and gossip in Beverly Hills and surrounding the 83rd Annual Academy Awards, one would think this is a big change.

But it's not. It's all media. (And to be sure, more cocktails. There's the Lobby Bar on the main level of Moscone Center South, as shown above).

For example, on the screen next to the table I'm seated at are scenes from a sci-fi video game based on the television show and movie series Star Trek . And all around are games based on movie and television shows and various aspects of popular culture.

So really, if you think like I do, and you should, all of this is intertwined quite well.

The mainstream media doesn't get that. That's why you're not likely to see a massively multiplayer game based on the Libyan Revolution on a news website and an article or blog post about the Tripoli Takeover anytime soon.

(Oh, and I'm not done with the Oscars. More content soon.)

Meredith Baxter Confesses Domestic Abuse

USA TODAY reports that Meredith Baxter, 63-year-old actress, confessed today on the Today Show to Matt Lauer that her during her marriage to David Birney she was violently abused. The two were married for 15 years and were divorced in 1989 - they have three children together.

Baxter says that she coped with this abuse by drinking heavily. Birney has denied these allegations.

Even more confessions include that last year Baxter revealed she was a lesbian.

ABC goes into more details about Baxter's new book titled Untitled. The book is a memoir and an excerpt from ABC News includes:

In her memoir, Baxter alleges that Birney hit her more than once. "It was so sudden and unexpected, I couldn't tell you which hand hit me, or even how hard," she writes. "I do recall thinking, 'I'd better not get up because he's going to hit me again.' "

For some women her story is quite relatable - being trapped in an abusive relationship and not finding a way to get out. It's hard to leave even though to some it seems so simple. It's questionable as to whether her abuse in that marriage is what led her to come out as a lesbian - is it a cover up or is she truly a lesbian?


Although she came out but a year ago, ABC reports, "The actress said that after many failed relationships with men, she started her first relationship with a woman seven years ago, and her entire world view changed."

We'll see what the New York Times thinks about Untitled. -- or what her children have to say.

Christina Aguilera Arrested

TMZ has become the credible and reliable news source for celebrity news, and TMZ reports that Christina Aguilera and her new boyfriend, Matt Rutler. were arrested.

Before the two were arrested her boyfriend drank two bottles of expensive wine.

It is reported that her boyfriend was drunk driving and she was too intoxicated to take care of it. They were arrested at 2:45 this morning.

The Oscars, Michael Lohan At The Polo Lounge, Gary Busey, Dennis Haysbert

Last year's Oscars trip was fun; this year's Oscar trip was a total blast. For this blogger, it was four days of dinners, meetings, videos, interviews, and potential deals. But more important, it was meeting a lot of very cool people, like Michael Lohan at The Polo Lounge, and Richard Dreyfuss, Gary Busey, Ed Asner, Taylor Cole from The Event, Dennis Haysbert from The Unit, Tamara Connelly, Dennis Leisure, Josey Goldberg, and of course, what's becoming an annual event of my own: what happens after The Night Of 100 Stars Oscar Party.

But first, a great deal of thanks (again) to my team of friends: Marla Schulman of Life After Kids, Jen Friel of Talk Nerdy To Me Lover and Milena Merrill, Ama Jo Budge, and Suniil Sadarangani. Their combined talents gave us more media content than ever for the Oscars, and spread out over their blogs, too. That's the way it's supposed to be done!

Now, back to Michael Lohan and The Polo Lounge.

After our coverage of The Night Of 100 Stars Oscar Party at The Beverly Hills Hotel - where Dennis Haysbert talked about setting the tone for America electing the first black president before Barack Obama, and told Jen Friel that he's a nerd:



And Gary Busey of The Celebrity Apprentice and Ed Asner, best known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, held court on the Wisconsin Protests issue, and Asner told Frances Fisher from The Titanic that her kids were "artificially inseminated:"



And where Richard Dreyfuss talked with Marla, who's sons were best friends when both were two years old, and for whom I put in a plug for The Alley in Oakland:



And Taylor Cole ("Vicky Roberts") talked about her show The Event on NBC (after he friend talked about how she stays in shape by pole dancing):



We walked over to the bustling Polo Lounge, located just off the hotel's main lobby, and where I was for last year's "Night" Party, after the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. That was the time Alec Baldwin, last year's Oscars host, walked in to great applause. And while I'm sure this year's hosts James Franco and Anne Hathaway would have gotten the same treatment, they didn't walk in - at least while we were there.

We - Marla, Milena, and I - wound up cocktailing with a fun-loving, dirty-talking guy who shall remain nameless, his totally lovely and outgoing friend in the flowing green dress, Tamara Connolly who plays "Phyllis" on As The World Turns and her friend, who's a wealth of information about Beverly Hills life, and Michael Lohan.

Now, I had no idea the guy chatting-up my friend Marla was Michael Lohan. I was talking with Ms. Connolly, as Ms. Schulman was next to me (it was crowded), when I noticed this man exchanging business cards with this man dressed in black. No, not in a tux; he had on a black turtle-neck sweater, black coat, and black pants. He looked trim and tanned, but not overly so. What's more, he was nice, and fit right in to the overall vibe. That is festive and friendly.

Marla introduced the man and I, talking about my blog in general terms and about our Oscar coverage. So I followed up with a very brief explanation of what I'm doing in forming Zennie62Media.com and my game company SBS, but then said "So what do you do?"

No, I had no idea the man I was talking to was that guy.

It's just not me to get that into being able to recognize someone who's famous, but it's necessary to be able to do. My need to do this for obvious business purposes is countered by the fact that I just don't get caught up in it. "I'm an investment banker," he said. And pretty much left it at that. He and Marla were talking about the South Hamptons, where he just came from, and that he's from Long Island, as is she. Between all of us, it was a series of conversations that flowed between people, so I went back to talking about prayer with Ms. Lewis (I'm not kidding), and Lohan continued talking with Marla.

Then, Marla and "the man" started talking about kids, as both have them, and Mara made a comment that drew my attention.  She said "I don't want to be famous," or words to that effect, and I chimed in that it's actually something you need to be in the Internet business.  (Heck, it helps with traffic and revenue, you know?)

So, I turned and said to "the man," So what areas of investment banking are you in." He said "Well, for the last six year's my daughter was the number one actress in Hollywood." But rather than say "number one in what?" I waited for the punch line name. There was silence.  Then, it clicked in my stupid brain that I was talking to Michael Lohan.

So, I said "You're Michael Lohan." He said "Yes." I said "So you know something about being famous," and we laughed.

Michael Lohan is much trimmer in person that in the photos and videos I've seen.  So I didn't feel bad about not knowing who he was; just the opposite.  It made for some great conversation.

I told Mr. Lohan that I felt sorry for what he was going through - which he appreciated, saying it was "tough" - in essentially watching his daughter Actress Lindsay Lohan rack up a criminal rap sheet before the public's eye. I asked him how he was doing. "Fine," he said. Lohan was in the middle of setting up a new effort back East involving teens that he's not ready to fully talk about as of this writing.

After that, we talked about the Internet and how it works from a news standpoint.  No, we didn't talk much about his daughter, Lindsay Lohan, and he seemed happy to be with people who weren't peppering him with questions.

Lohan then left, saying he was headed to The Vanity Fair Oscar Party.

For the record, I had one cocktail and two glasses of water. Having not had a full meal all say, I didn't want to play with my sensitive system; after the second glass of water, I was ready for bed.

Marla and Milena wanted to go over to The Elton John Party. So, even though I told them the best place to be is The Polo Lounge. Nothing against Elton John, but his party's a pressure-cooker place to be, with people looking, craning necks, and not much real talking; at the Polo Lounge you talk with people and make friends. It's a great reminder that, in many different ways, and regardless of who you are, we're all just trying to get through this thing called life.

More To Come

There's a lot more video content from The Night Of 100 Stars Oscar Party to come between today and Wednesday, so stay tuned.

Zennie62.com Logo