Category Archives: Media & Culture

More TV on your iPod

Posted on by

NBC has inked a deal with Apple to become the second network to sell television shows a la carte on Apple’s online iTunes store. More than 300 episodes from about a dozen prime time, cable, late-night and classic TV shows are now available for $1.99 apiece, viewable on computers or downloadable on the latest, video-capable iPod.

The programming spans from the 1950s to the present, including shows from “Alfred Hitchcock Presents,” “Dragnet,” USA Network’s “Monk,” the Sci-Fi Channel’s “Battlestar Galactica,” and NBC’s hit series “Law & Order.” Sketches from “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” and “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” are also for sale.

I’m guessing that’s the toe-in-the-water list and we’ll quickly see last night’s stuff on iTunes in the morning. One more example of that Long Tail. Those programs were just gathering dust and now they’ll generate dollars.

Everything you ever wanted to know about the flu

Posted on by

Our little podcast experiment is rolling right along. In show #6, Henry talks about the flu. Who should get flu shots? Can they make me sick? Can I still get the flu, even if I get the shot? Is there a pill I can take for the flu? Are there different kinds of flu? Henry doesn’t tackle Avian Flu in this show because he thinks we are at much higher risk from the regular flu.

The good doctor is in Florida for a couple of weeks but we have three shows in the can. Next week the topic is Smoking; the week after, How to Start an Excercise Program.

Henry is having a lot of fun with this but wonders why more people aren’t downloading and listening to the show. I explain that we’re still kind of on the front end of the podcasting thing. According to a study by research firm Ipsos Insight, about 28 percent of web users know what a podcast is, but only about 2 percent of that group has actually listened to one. But that number is growing. iTunes lists more than 15,000 free podcasts.

Okay, now were talking more about podcasting than the flu but the segue was nearly perfect, so… I might have mentioned that four of my coworkers recently got iPods. These are all long-time radio people and I’m eager to hear their (user) experiences with podcasting. To what kinds of programs will they subscribe? When and where will they listen? What ideas –if any– will these new listening experiences spark?

Barenaked Ladies distribute on flash drives

Posted on by

Rather than distribute via CD, DVD or download, the Barenaked Ladies are making their newest selection of songs, videos and exclusive material available on a USB flash drive. Nettwerk Music Group is releasing “Barenaked on a Stick” beginning today, says the Hollywood Reporter. It plays on PCs, Macs and any other audio product with a USB port — like some car stereos — and costs $30. This 128 reusable drive contains 29 songs, including the band’s 2004 “Barenaked for the Holidays” album, in MP3 format along with live tracks, in-concert spoken quips, album art, photos, videos and more.

Living Healthy Podcast: Shows 6 and 7

Posted on by

We now have seven Living Healthy Podcasts online or in the can. We’ve been recording two shows at a time to get a bit ahead. Henry’s idea, and a good one. The most recent shows (Influenza and Smoking) are the best to date (IMO). I’m hearing some things for the first time and it’s all useful stuff you can put into practice (or not). And some of it’s just interesting. For example, people who succeed in quitting smoking attempted it seven times. The new shows go up on December 3 and 10.

100 Greatest Rock Songs

Posted on by

Radio Randy insists this list is not ‘his’ top 100 rock songs, just “the most familiar songs of our generations.” He promises to post his list later. Whatever the distinction, it’s a pretty good list. At least as good as Lucas Davneport’s list.

Randy’s daughter, Jessica, comments: I hate to say it, but you’ve got a list full of old white guys in recovery. Oh well…its only rock and roll.

Video iPods peg the cool meter

Posted on by

video iPodA video is part of most of our presentations to universities when bidding on the athletic multimedia rights. I’ve never been at one of the presentations but I’ve seen the videos. Lots of snap, crackle and pop. In a recent presentation, our guys loaded up some video iPods (the sexy black ones) with the pitch video and threw in some highlights (TV and radio); a bunch of still images and anything else they could get their hands on. Very high cool factor. The university folks can’t keep such goodies but they can auction them off for a charitable cause or something. The point is, something magical happens when people get these things in their hands. The ear buds go in and they are in…the…zone.

Speaking of iPods… I was in a meeting with some department heads recently where blogging and podcasting came up as marketing tools. I opined that you really need to have and use an iPod to understand the podcasting phenomenon. The head of the division was running the meeting and told each of the department heads to purchase an iPod and learn how to use it. Smart move.