Keith Olbermann on Prosecuting the Bush Architects

I'm a huge fan of three political opinion shows on MSNBC - Hardball with Chris Mathews, Countdown with Keith Olbermann and The Rachel Maddow Show. Here is Keith Olbermann's commentary on Obama's decision to release the Bush Department of Justice memos torture but hold nobody accountable. He makes some great points and the argument .... strong.

TV in Transition: Dorm Life and 3D

Television has changed. When I was growing up, the family watched TV together in the evening because there was often one TV in the home. Then cable emerged and everyone had a TV in their room. Now kids growing up don't need a TV box to watch; they can access everything they want on their computer screen, and the source is often user gererated content on YouTube or broadcast content on Hulu.

The past several weeks I've been working with Attention Span Media, a social media production studio whose credits include the mega online hit TV series, Dorm Life.
Dorm Life hilariously chronicles the experiences of ten college students residing on "5 South," a dorm floor on a fictional campus. It's the most popular web TV series on Hulu with 6+ million views and often called...NBC's "The Office" goes to college.

Attention Span Media is one example of a small, indy studio producing content that rivals the big ones and reaches mass audiences via a savvy social networking model. In a recent California Chronicle article that my firm placed, Dorm Life was called "a taste of whats to come." I agree.

Dorm Life is a great Long Tail example of a niche audience (college and high school students) growing so large that the show could easily migrate its audience to another platform; Dorm Life could find a home on traditional broadcast or cable TV and also monetize itself through sales and branded merchandise (shirts) and DVDs.

On the other side of the spectrum -- the big box TV -- AMG TV has just announced the first 3-D network, and their plans to deliver 3-D content to some 200 terrestrial station affiliates. That makes sense. I'm thinking the big box HD TV in the living room will never go away. The big screen at home will be used for big events like sports and 3D while the rest of us will continue to view our niche content on hand-held devices and computers. And don't be surprised when your local TV stations go out of business or consolidate as a result ... because viewership is shifting online. And advertisers will go where the audiences are.

Witness the recent demise of several of the most successful print newspapers in the world. I wrote about the publishing industry in transition last year. TV is also in a major transition. Watch for exciting new shows from Attention Span Media. And stay tuned!

Obama: Rebuilding the Engines of America

Watching President Obama tackle his job makes it clear to me that he is rebuilding the political, economic and social engines driving America in ways that will elevate our place in the world and enable a more productive and sustainable future for our people.

He is not playing at the edges of the vast problems facing us. He is taking apart and rebuilding these engines at the core of a flawed and mismanaged ecosystem. And Obama is wise and wide enough to understand the complexities therein so that we come out the other side of this mess a better nation and a stronger people. Welcome to the greatest adventure of our lifetime. One I'm proud to join.

Barack Obama - taking on all the challenges of today and tomorrow...at the same time. And he's challenging us to do the same.

And you know what? He's going to succeed and we're going to succeed in spite of the Republican goons who offer few solutions but only harsh critique as they reverberate the harsh negativity that is at the core of what was once their immense power. I'm not sure anyone would have imagined a united Democratic party and a Republican party so wounded and factured with few true leaders at the core, and where the most powerful and influential voice is a hateful drug abuser named Rush Limbaugh.

Share the Wealth

For years Bruce Springsteen has invited non-profit groups to raise funds for the homeless and hungry during his concerts, and he announces the names of those group near the end of his shows. Few artists follow his generous lead, and I give him his props for this great work, and for his heroic effort supporting the election of President Barack Obama.

You may be aware that the E-Street Band / Bruce Springsteen tours are among the most popular in the world earning Bruce and his band truckloads of cash. In 2003, the Boss earned $116 million dollars, according to Yahoo. In 2005, Bruce Springsteen earned $55 million, according to Forbes. Over his lifetime, Bruce has earned perhaps more than $250 million dollars.

I would wager a bet that the Boss needs not a penny more to remain one of the most successful and wealthy touring musicians of all time! And while I appreciate his donation of real estate to non profit groups that raise funds in the lobby of his shows, how about if the top 10 performing artists donated 1/3 of their profits to the charities in the areas of their shows?

I don't begrudge wealth. But these are tough times and I just saw disconnect at a recent show when reps of a charity were struggling to attract the attention of fans who were more interested in the Boss than sharing with them a shiny nickle.

It might put tons of good money - your money - towards causes other than simply enriching the bands....most of whom are plenty wealthy - because we buy their records, their T-shirts, and concert tickets, etc.

Food for thought?