TV industry reacts soberingly to the news of Ben Silverman's exit from NBC

NBC Universal doesn't exactly seem torn up over the departure of Ben Silverman. In announcing the exit, Jeff Zucker said Silverman "has many exciting things he wants to accomplish, and we applaud him as he sets off on his new endeavors." Zucker then went all ga-ga over Jeff Gaspin, who is being promoted to chairman of NBC Universal Television Entertainment. Zucker called Gaspin "an extraordinary media professional" with "an incredible record of success" and "a strong creative executive who also has the business acumen necessary to succeed in today's media environment." Translation: Don't let the door hit you on the tuchus, Ben! Noticeably absent from Zucker's spiel: any reference to Silverman's success at NBCU. That's because there hasn't been much during his two-year tenure. His string of flops includes (take a deep breath) Journeyman, Bionic Woman, My Own Worst Enemy, Crusoe, Kings, Merlin and Kath & Kim. Nary a hit in the mix! Others applauded Silverman's exit in a less roundabout fashion, with one commenter at PIFeedback.com posting three animated GIFs (including the one above) of NBC sitcom characters celebrating. Whatever Silverman's record, tapping Gaspin is a smart move by NBCU. The cable networks under his rule have flourished, especially mini-broadcast network USA, which keeps churning out hit after hit.

—Posted by Marc Berman and Michael Bürgi

HBO's 'True Blood' sinking its teeth into viewers during second season

Season two of True Blood is truly sucking the blood out of the summer TV schedule. HBO's Sunday-night vampire series has enjoyed a huge viewership surge over season one, helped by plenty of hot sex and nudity, a dizzying array of plot twists and no shortage of celery-stalk-breaking neck chomps (with that vegetable providing the sound effect of choice for the Foley artists). The preponderance of crap across the rest of the TV landscape doesn't hurt, either. But did we really need a Tru Blood beverage? In September, Omni Consumer Products will release a "real Blood Orange carbonated drink," which a press release describes as "boast[ing] a crisp, slightly tart and lightly sweet tang." During the first season of True Blood, HBO advertised an earlier version of the Tru Blood beverage as "synthetic blood nourishment," but it was never actually brought to market. And honestly, some things are better left on the imaginary shelves of the small screen.

—Posted by Michael Bürgi

'Men's Health' feels its Wheaties

With ad pages in freefall, magazines have been forced to find creative ways to lasso advertisers. But Men’s Health’s partnership with General Mills is pretty unusual, even by current standards. As The New York Times reported, Men’s Health is helping the breakfast cereal company launch a new Wheaties brand for guys by asking readers to help choose the final recipe and handing out samples. Men’s Health will even throw in an editorial mention about the deal in its October issue. Editorial purists may cringe, but Sid Holt, CEO of the American Society of Magazine Editors, while withholding comment until he sees the issue, said it’s not a violation of ASME’s guidelines for a magazine to cover its own promotional activities. It won’t be the first time Wheaties has gotten good coverage from Men’s Health. While the title once deemed another cereal superior to Wheaties, it also strongly recommends the cereal elsewhere (above video)., While some might call Men’s Health inspired, others might see concern; this year through July/August, its ad pages were down 22.8 percent, per the Mediaweek Monitor.

—Posted by Lucia Moses

Will someone save Marie?

Since the rumors are flying about the demise of Marie Osmond's proposed syndicated talk show from Program Partners, let me chime in here. Chances of Osmond's chatfest hitting the airwaves this fall are unfortunately very slim. And that is a true shame because she has experience, she could be a magnet for women 25-54 in daytime; and she certainly has a lot of star wattage to offer. Although stations in over 80 percent of the country have signed up for the talker, the troubled economy may have thwarted moving forward. There just may not be enough money to get Osmond on the air. Program Partners has promised to issue a statement about the future of the show in the near future. But my prediction is Osmond will be pushed backed to midseason in the hopes of the finding the green to get going. If syndication does indeed fall flat for Osmond, there is always cable. Lifetime, Oxygen, WE, have any interest?

—Posted by Marc Berman

To 'Hell's Kitchen' and back

Gordon Ramsay, like pork rinds or a Beatles Convention, is something you experience at least once in your life. I've tried two out of these three guilty pleasures, so that leaves me with one last thing on my Bucket List. I'm diving head first into Fox's sixth season of Hell's Kitchen. I’ve avoided the show for years, but Ramsay's Jekyll and Hyde persona fascinates me. The Tasmanian Devil impersonation you see in every episode would make Mel Blanc and Chuck Jones proud. In a 2007 podcast profile Bon Appetit introduces you to Ramsay: loving husband, doting father. He's an everyman who's allegedly had an extra-marital affair and has three Michelin stars! I admit that I'm also intrigued because this season's group of pan-toting punching bags looks pretty, well, sassy. I’m hoping the series will highlight skill and not just Ramsay frothing over. Either way, I’ll be trying something new and learning some colorful ways to berate people in the process.

—Posted by Cindee Weiss

So, what's the big deal about Yahoo!'s redesign?

It's probably unfair to make snap judgements before the thing is up and live for a few weeks, but Yahoo's newly redesigned home page—described by execs at the company as the biggest change to its core product since Yahoo was founded in 1994—seems uninspired. Integrating all your communications platforms in one place? AOL is already doing that. Is that really who Yahoo, with its Silicon Valley heritage, wants to follow? Apps? It remains to be seen what Yahoo will actually come up, but Apple's iPhone and Facebook have already provided a ton of innovation in the app space. Customization? Hasn't MyYahoo been all about that for years as it looked to be the first to bring RSS to the masses? Yahoo's presentation of Homepage 2009 is reminding some of Jerry Yang's poorly-received mantra from over a year and a half ago, when he pledged  to make Yahoo the key "starting point" for Web users. Let's hope when people start actually using it the new home page proves more compelling. But it was indeed strange to hear Yahoo executives taking about how this version would be all about the user. That from a company that declared users' needs drive nearly every decision it has made over the last decade. So what exactly is the big deal here? Plus, was it odd that advertising hardly came up during Yahoo's announcement?

—Posted by Mike Shields

There goes the judge: Will Paula exit 'American Idol'?

Every summer like clockwork rumors begin to circulate that ditzy American Idol judge Paula Abdul is not returning to Fox's top-rated reality competition. Abdul apparently was hoping to snag a cool $20 million next year to sit comfortably watching the contestants compete while offering little to no valid commentary (host Ryan Seacrest just signed a three-year deal for $45 million), but those nasty suits have apparently only offered her a measly $10 million. "Very sadly, it does not appear that she's going to be back on Idol," said Abdul's manager David Sonenberg in a published report. "I find it kind of unconscionable and certainly rude and disrespectful that American Idol production companies Fremantle and 19 Entertainment haven't stepped up and said what they want to do. She's not a happy camper as a result of what's going on," he continued. Poor thing. With talk already circulating that Abdul might be joining the fall edition of Fox's So You Think You Can Dance, here is a word of advice to the dizzy one: SYTYCD is no American Idol and freshman judge Kara DioGuardi can easily fill your shoes. In this case, greed is not good.

—Posted by Marc Berman

Emmy bestows guest-star gold on greats

True Blood was snubbed. Rescue Me was overlooked. And overrated 30 Rock is nominated for a record 22 trophies. Enough already! But what I love about the just announced 61st annual prime-time Emmy Awards was the recognition for three of my favorite television stars: Carol Burnett, Ed Asner and Betty White. All three made the grade as guest stars: Burnett for NBC's Law & Order: SVU, Asner for CBS' CSI: NY and the always busy Ms. White for the recently concluded My Name is Earl on NBC. Together, the trio has won a staggering 18 Emmys (Asner: 7, Burnett: 6, White: 5). And the three continue to prove that it is still possible to have a career north of 50. But if you think they are “seasoned,” also on the ballot is ageless 92-year old Oscar winner Ernest Borgnine for his role on the final episode of NBC’s ER. Nothing can stop the former Lt. Quinton McHale.

—Posted by Marc Berman

Emmy disses Battlestar and nerds everywhere cry out in pain

Once again, nerd/art gets no respect. Last winter, it was Oscar's dismissal of The Dark Knight for best picture that had fan boys threatening an Oscar boycott. Now, Battlestar Gallactica gets shut out of the major Emmy categories in its last shot (the SyFy show wrapped its final season in March). The show did nab several sound and special effects nominations, and one for best direction, But no best drama nod (despite six nominations up for grabs), and no acting awards. That was in spite of the show's continued brilliance this season, which culminated in a thrilling season finale. We're not talking about Sci Fi cheese like Xena or Hercules here. Battlestar won a Peabody award three years ago and inspired a discussion on human rights at the United Nations for God's sake. If not the show, didn't any of the shows performers warrant an Emmy nomination this year? Mary McDonnell, whose character battled cancer while holding onto the presidency wasn't worthy? Or James Callis, who was able to elicit empathy in his depiction of slimy and self-serving Gaius Baltar? What about Edward James Olmos, who broke down this past season when he found out his best friend of 30 years was secretly a robot? It's just tough for sci fi, even smart, sophisticated sci fi, to get respect. I guess Emmy voters—who tend to be on the older side—probably just can’t get past the original 1970s Battlestar and the dorky toys it inspired.

— Posted by Mike Shields

'Top Chef Masters' nourishes TV foodies

When Hosea Rosenberg won season 5 of Top Chef, I cried. The Hosea/Leah horror show was the lowest point in the history of this series. I had pretty much lost faith in Tom Colicchio and the show. I briefly contemplated a ban on the Glad family of products coming into my home. Foodies are demanding. But TV Foodies? Do not mess with us. We will cut you with our Santokus. But a few months ago an ad on a bus shelter stopped me cold with three words: Top Chef Masters. Ten Weeks, 24 well-known chefs, classic Top Chef challenges and the top prize? A $100,000 donation to the winner's favorite charity. How do you say no to watching culinary Kung Fu for charity? Still, I was wary as my Hosea rage continued to bubble like a toxic Puttanesca. But on Weds June 8, at 9:00, I flipped on Bravo and was introduced to Hubert. Hubert Keller, Top Chef Master contestant. For a full hour, he dazzled me with his food, his soft French accent, his flowing hair. It was heaven. Keller and his competitors were charming. There was camaraderie, and they cooked at the top of their game. Each week it gets better. I have a newfound appreciation for offal. A meal was even based around the Dharma Initiative pantry. This past week’s episode, my personal favorite, involved Neil Patrick Harris and magic. The Critic's table, consisting of Saveur editor-in-chief James Oseland, British restaurant critic Jay Rayner and the insatiably bizarre Gael Greene, give real critiques and not sound bites. My only complaint so far is the choice of host. Kelly Choi's singular talent is being thin. Not much else to report there. Overall, my faith has been renewed. Watching these chefs week after week is a pleasure. They are professional. They are comfortable in their own skin. And the best part? No one is named Hosea.

—Posted by Cindee Weiss