News Briefs

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Thursday, Mar. 6, 2014

Bill Whitaker joins '60 Minutes' cast

This photo provided by CBS shows CBS News veteran, Bill Whitaker. (AP Photo/CBS, Michael Yarish)

By David Bauder, Television Writer

NEW YORK (AP) --

Veteran CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker, who has been with the network for 30 years and based in Los Angeles since 1992, is moving East to join the cast of "60 Minutes."

CBS said Thursday that Whitaker will begin on the Sunday night show this fall. He will be the first full-time black correspondent on "60 Minutes" since the death of Ed Bradley in 2006, although Byron Pitts was a regular contributor before joining ABC News in 2013.

Whitaker, 62, has reported for most of CBS' newscasts and contributed profiles on the likes of Barbra Streisand, Norman Lear and Mike Tyson to "Sunday Morning." He was also based in Tokyo and Atlanta after joining CBS in 1984. He was CBS' lead reporter on Mitt Romney's presidential campaign in 2008 and George W. Bush's 2000 campaign.

He'll join Scott Pelley, Steve Kroft, Lesley Stahl, Bob Simon and Lara Logan as regular correspondents. "60 Minutes" also has More

Thursday, Mar. 6, 2014

Isaiah Washington returning to 'Grey's Anatomy'

In this Jan. 15, 2014 file photo, cast member Isaiah Washington participates in "The 100" panel at the CBS Winter TCA Press Tour in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo by Frank Micelotta/Invision/AP, file)

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

ABC says Isaiah Washington will return to "Grey's Anatomy" for a guest appearance in May, seven years after he was fired from the medical drama.

Washington exited the series in 2007 after an on-set clash the year before, in which an anti-gay epithet was directed at another cast member at the time, T.R. Knight.

Washington's return as Dr. Preston Burke coincides with the announced departure of series star Sandra Oh at the season's end in May. Her character, Dr. Cristina Yang, was engaged to Washington's Burke at one point in the long-running drama.

The date of Washington's episode was not announced.

During the controversy involving him, Washington also used the epithet backstage at the 2007 Golden Globe awards. He publicly apologized and tried to make amends by meeting with gay-rights organizations.

Thursday, Mar. 6, 2014

Rob Rankin named president/CEO of Clarity Coverdale Fury

Rob Rankin

MINNEAPOLIS --

Rob Rankin has been named president and CEO of Minneapolis-based ad agency Clarity Coverdale Fury. He has been with the agency for 18 years in a variety of capacities, most recently as VP and director of brand development.

Founder Tim B. Clarity, who remains actively involved in the agency and manages a number of the shop’s key brands said, “Rob’s business acumen and marketing savvy make him a perfect fit for this role. Of equal importance is that in his 18 years here, Rob has not only developed a deep understanding of our culture, but has helped shape it.”

Wednesday, Mar. 5, 2014

TV series 'Manhattan' to begin production in NM

By Susan Montoya Bryan

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) --

A new television series set against the backdrop of the U.S. government's top-secret effort to develop the world's first atomic bomb will begin production in New Mexico later this month, state officials announced Wednesday.

The drama "Manhattan" will follow a group of scientists and their families as they attempt to navigate a world of secrets and lies. The cast includes John Benjamin Hickey as the professor charged with leading the Manhattan Project and Daniel Stern as a mentor to young scientists who knows how to wade through politics.

"I'm excited that this series will highlight New Mexico's celebrated history and our amazing, picturesque landscapes. I can't wait to watch it," Gov. Susana Martinez said in a statement.

The U.S. government's $2.2 billion Manhattan Project operated from December 1942 until September 1945 at a remote installation in northern New Mexico, which later became home More

Wednesday, Mar. 5, 2014

Cinematographers to hold candlelit walk and memorial for Sarah Jones on Friday

LOS ANGELES --

The International Cinematographers Guild (IATSE Local 600) will hold a candlelit walk and memorial on Friday, March 7 for 27-year-old Sarah Jones, the assistant camerawoman who was tragically killed on February 20, while on location in Georgia. Starting at the Directors Guild of America, 7920 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles at 7:00pm, Local 600 members will join fellow union and guild members and members of the production community in a walk to the memorial service at ICG's national offices, 7755 Sunset Boulevard.

Sarah’s parents, Elizabeth and Richard Jones, will fly in from South Carolina to attend.

Steven Poster, ASC, president of the guild, said, “I hope that the lesson the industry takes from this awful tragedy is that there can be no short cuts in the workplace. A person’s life is infinitely more important than a production’s schedule or budget. Safety has to be the number one priority in our More

Wednesday, Mar. 5, 2014

Calif. production company moves to NY to anchor new hub for nano industries

SYRACUSE, NY (AP) --

A California-based film and television company is moving its operations to a suburban Syracuse complex that will specialize in providing advanced visual production research.

Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney and Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the plan Tuesday night during Mahoney’s state of the county address in Syracuse.

Los Angeles-based Film House will be the first tenant at the DeWitt complex that will be led by the State University of New York’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering. Cuomo says the new hub will focus on using nanotechnology in film and TV production.

The governor says the company will move its headquarters, production and other operations to DeWitt. The project is expected to create 350 new high-tech jobs and 150 construction jobs.

Construction is set to start by April 1, with completion scheduled by October.

Wednesday, Mar. 5, 2014

“The Ellen DeGeneres Show” breaks ratings records

BURBANK, Calif. --

Monday’s live post-Oscar episode of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” was the highest rated episode in the series’ 11-year history, averaging a 4.8 Household rating/11 share in the overnight markets, a full ratings point higher than the series’ previous high 3.8, earned a decade ago (1/26/04). The episode was the highest rated with women, 18-49 (2.1/11) and women, 25-54 (2.7/13) in the LPM Era (which began in the 08-09 season) (NSI WRAP Overnights, Weighted market average, Live +SD where available).

DeGeneres also set records across the daytime talk show’s social media channels following her Oscar hosting duties on Sunday, March 2nd as the ultimate selfie temporarily shut down Twitter:
• The record-breaking selfie was retweeted 3.14MM times, a Twitter record previously held by @BarackObama with 782K retweets (Twitter).
• “Ellen” added 2.7MM new followers after the tweet, making for a total of 27.4MM Twitter followers (Twitter analytics). More

Tuesday, Mar. 4, 2014

Conan O'Brien to host MTV Movie Awards

In this Dec. 12, 2013, file photo, talk show host Conan O'Brien arrives for the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences awards in Moffett Field, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot, file)

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

Conan O'Brien will be serving up buckets of golden popcorn.

O'Brien announced Tuesday on his TBS talk show "Conan" that he's hosting this year's MTV Movie Awards. The annual movie celebration that honors winners with popcorn-shaped trophies is scheduled for April 13 at the Nokia Theatre in downtown Los Angeles.

"After eight years of intense negotiations, I am honored to announce I am hosting MTV's second most prestigious awards show," the comedian joked in a statement.

It marks the first time O'Brien has hosted the MTV Movie Awards. He previously hosted the Primetime Emmy Awards in 2002 and 2006.

Past hosts of the MTV Movie Awards have included Jimmy Fallon, Aziz Ansari, Russell Brand, Rebel Wilson and Sarah Silverman.

Tuesday, Mar. 4, 2014

Ex-Skype CEO, marketing officer out at Microsoft

REDMOND, Wash. (AP) --

Microsoft says former Skype CEO Tony Bates and Chief Marketing Officer Tami Reller are leaving the company.

New CEO Satya Nadella announced the news in a blog post Monday. It's his first big move since he took over from outgoing CEO Steve Ballmer last month.

Chris Capossela was promoted to executive vice president and chief marketing officer, while executive vice president of advertising and strategy Mark Penn was named chief strategy officer.

Nadella says in the post that the company needs to "drive clarity, alignment and intensity across all our work."

He said Microsoft's goal is to work in harmony like a team of rowers, citing a passage from "The Boys in the Boat," a book about the 1936 U.S. men's Olympic gold medalist eight-oar rowing team.

Tuesday, Mar. 4, 2014

Comcast to buy ad tech firm FreeWheel for $320M

By Ryan Nakashima, Business Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

Comcast is buying online ad technology firm FreeWheel Media for about $320 million in a move that supports both its media content and cable businesses.

That's according to a person familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal isn't final.

The purchase will help Comcast Corp. make money from ads placed on its content over a variety of platforms as FreeWheel technology evolves and gets better.

FreeWheel will also continue to help other media companies profit from their own digital content, which encourages them to make more shows available on demand and on other platforms that Comcast offers to its subscribers.

The person says San Mateo, Calif.-based FreeWheel will continue to operate independently. Its current investors include Disney's Steamboat Ventures and Time Warner's TBS.