NBC Announces: 'Rock Center' to Be Completely Derivative
In your misty Thursday media column: NBC's newsmagazine will be like every other newsmagazine show, a lawsuit against HuffPo goes forward, the WaPo's chairman leaves, the NYDN screws up, and a press release newswire war.
- Okay, in case you were wondering, here is the official word on the new NBC news-ish show Rock Center: "a combination of '60 Minutes' and ‘Nightline.'" So, completely revolutionary and never seen before, in other words.
- A judge has allowed a lawsuit by two Democratic political functionaries against Arianna Huffington to go forward, rather than throwing it out. The pair claim that Arianna "stole the idea" for HuffPo from them and didn't pay them. The idea being, I guess, "a huge linkdump concealing who knows what in its candy center." We'll watch this case closely.
- Washington Post chairman Bo Jones is leaving to become President and CEO of MacNeil/Lehrer Productions. Good luck, Bo!
- The NY Daily News ran the same exact story twice in one day. You're all fired.
- Press release distributor PR Newswire is being sued by rival Marketwire for allegedly "hiring away its workers and inducing them to divulge confidential information and trade secrets." SECRET: put out press releases, collect money. Repeat.