Valleywag
great moments in journalism
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online advertising
ABC swapping broadcast ad buys into digital streams
"Makegoods," where a television network fulfills its inventory obligations for ads that were purchased but not aired, are of particular interest this year in the wake of last fall's WGA strike — where lots of prime-time inventory was lost because new episodes of shows were delayed or cancelled. ABC's solution has begun to offer advertisers digital inventory instead of broadcast inventory, which is smart for two reasons. More » -
stats
ABC tops online, with CBS a comer
ABC has the most popular television network website, just a shade more popular than NBC.com among the six broadcasters sampled by HitWise. But both websites are down in their relative share of the online audience, while CBS has greatly increased visits. Why? Well, for starters, CBS is ahead in the year-to-date ratings race for actual television. The top draws to the network sites are, once again, competitions and other game shows — American Idol was the top draw for Fox, Deal or No Deal for NBC and Dancing With the Stars for ABC. Almost every site, however, kept users on longer, with the average user spending three more minutes on CBS. Only visits to NBC got shorter, probably because some users are going to Hulu to watch full episodes of shows like The Office and 30 Rock -
internet famous
Amanda Congdon returns to Web video with video on Web about Web video
Videoblogger Amanda Congdon, who was once famous on the Internet for being famous on the Internet, has returned from a noncareer at ABC and an as-yet invisible development deal with HBO to introduce Sometimesdaily.com, a series of Web videos about, as far as we can tell, making Web videos. At least Rocketboom, on which Congdon's bosom won her many fans, was about something, though we can't quite remember what. -
ABC to test more ads in online shows
For those of you who get your McDreamy fix by watching Gray's Anatomy at ABC.com, you'll soon have to start putting up with more advertisements. Now viewers will simply switch browser tabs instead of changing the channel. [Hollywood Reporter]
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nerdspotting
Kevin Rose wants to be a millionaire
How did we miss this in December? Kevin Rose, the cofounder of Digg, served as the answer to a question on ABC's Who Wants to be a Millionaire, and the show in which his name appeared is rerunning now on KGO. Sarah Lacy, the BusinessWeek columnist whose upcoming book prominently features Rose, spotted the mention. If you didn't tune in, YouTube has a replay: More » -
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megan wallent
Transgender Microsoft exec on ABC's "Nightline" tonight
Megan Wallent, the Microsoft executive who first revealed her plans to become a woman on Valleywag, has told her story to ABC's Nightline. The segment airs tonight at 11:35 p.m. on KGO. Wallent rarely speaks about her relationship with her wife Anh. But in the TV profile, Wallent explains how he first confided his discomfort with his birth gender to her. "It felt like a betrayal," Anh told Nightline. "In 38 years he couldn't find someone who he felt comfortable enough to open up to and share this." Until Wallent met her, that is. The couple, who have a young child born before Wallent's transition, say they are staying together. When I first met them last December, shortly after Wallent's first surgery, the two spent most of lunch flirting with each other like newlyweds. -
mysteries
Whatever happened to Amanda Congdon?
We are growing concerned. After her career as an ABC nonjournalist fizzled, the formerly famous, generously-racked host of Rocketboom has been absent from her own blog since November 27. An "under development "show with HBO has gone nowhere. On January 23, Congdon Twittered that she was "writing monster blog post reflecting on ABC and talking about what's next." Amanda, 28 days is more time than even Scoble puts into a post. Just press Publish, ok? -
social networks
Facebook, ABC get political
Perhaps taking a tip from Stephen King about America's youth and its lack of political knowledge, ABC is partnering with Facebook to create a political-coverage headquarters. You know, so between Wall posts and status updates, we can all get our daily Mitt fix. The deal will establish a U.S. Politics category on Facebook, allowing users tostalkfollow ABC reporters, view reports, participate in polls, and carry on debates. ABC News, having recently discovered the notion of interactivity, says it will use Facebook as a platform to both share information and learn from its users. It's also likely the first time most of Facebook's users will learn that ABC has a news broadcast. -
online video
Web compensation holding up TV writers contract
The contract between film and TV producers and the Writers Guild of America expired at midnight Wednesday. If a new contract isn't signed soon, Hollywood production could grind to a halt. One of the bigger holdups? According to reports, the two sides can't agree on how much writers should be compensated for Web versions of their content. More »
