BusinessWeek begins
yet more layoffs
O'Brien's 'Legally Prohibited From Being Funny On TV Tour'
By Louisa Ada Seltzer
Mar 12, 2010
BusinessWeek begins another round of layoffs
Word's already gotten out that the new Bloomberg BusinessWeek will feature more editorial content under its new owner. But it'll be doing so with a smaller staff. Another round of layoffs began yesterday at the title, which was bought by Bloomberg from McGraw Hill last year. According to reports, anywhere from 25 to 30 employees were dismissed. The magazine has confirmed the cuts but did not give a firm number, saying most of them were to eliminate redundancies between positions at Bloomberg and BusinessWeek. Roughly 100 employees, including high-profile contributors such as Jon Fine and others who had been there for decades, were laid off in November, but those cuts were made to save money for a magazine that's been millions of dollars in the red for some time. The revamped BusinessWeek is slated for release on April 23, and Bloomberg promises 20 percent more editorial content than before, as well as three more issues than last year.
O'Brien's 'Legally Prohibited From Being Funny On TV Tour'
The title of the tour pretty much says it all: “The Legally Prohibited From Being Funny On TV Tour.” One month from today, Conan O'Brien will kick off the 30-city tour, which begins in Eugene, Ore., and ends on June 14 in Atlanta. The name is, of course, a reference to O'Brien's exit deal with NBC. The short-lived former “Tonight Show” host isn’t allowed to have another TV show until September under the terms of that $30 million exit deal. The web site TeamCoco.com touts the show as “A night of music, comedy, hugging, and the occasional awkward silence,” and it will feature Andy Richter as well as the former “Tonight Show” band. In a statement, O’Brien said, “It was either a massive 30-city tour or start helping out around the house.” O’Brien of course left “Tonight” in January after NBC tried to move the show to 12:05 a.m. following a half-hour show hosted by Jay Leno. The red-haired comedian balked and Leno was reinstalled as the “Tonight” host. This is O'Brien's second major reappearance after his "Tonight" exit. He also signed up for a Twitter account last month, quickly acquiring more than double the number of Leno followers.
The word: Woods could be back for the Masters
Tiger Woods appears poised to make a comeback. The only question is whether it will happen before the April 8 Masters, as many have anticipated. Following last month's highly publicized mea culpa, Woods has now enlisted former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer, who now runs a sports communications and strategy firm, to run interference after heavy criticism of Woods' team's handling, or nonhandling, of the sex scandal. The New York Post claims Woods is aiming to return for the Arnold Palmer Invitational, which begins on March 25, while the Associated Press reports that he will remain absent at least until The Masters, which starts on April 5. Woods, of course, is in the midst of a lengthy hiatus from golf after admitting to cheating on his wife and becoming embroiled in scandal, losing three sponsors since. He's been largely MIA since November save last month's apology, but some have criticized that strategy, saying the notoriously guarded and private golfer should have been more accessible. Meanwhile, three of Tiger’s alleged mistresses have been quite accessible. They appeared on Sirius XM’s “The Howard Stern Show” on Wednesday, taking part in a beauty pageant that Stern wanted Woods’ wife to help judge. The contest was won by Jamie Jungers, who took home $75,000 and a diamond ring, while Jaimee Grubbs was the runner-up and Loredana Jolie finished third. In typical Stern fashion, the women took part in a swimsuit competition and answered questions about Woods’ sexual preferences.
Up for bid on eBay: A Michigan TV station
Got $500,000 and an eBay account? Then you can own your own television station. A western Michigan UHF station is up for bid on the online auction site at the starting price of just over half a million, and that's a bargain. When owner Bud Kelley first listed the Muskegon, Mich., station, he wanted $1 million, though he told the New York Times yesterday that he'd settle for $500,000 after getting mainly "tire-kicker" inquiries so far. So far 450 people have viewed the listing, though that will probably soar with the Times story this morning. WMKG-LP does not have a digital transmitter, but it's on-air 24 hours per day and has been running since 1990, when Kelley purchased it. Interested bidders can check out http://cgi.ebay.com/UHF-TELEVISION-STATION-THIS-IS-A-BROADCAST-TV-STATION_W0QQitemZ370347359373QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item563a6c3c8d, but a warning: The ad clearly states that no returns are accepted.
|
|
|
