TVSquad

The Beatles Rock Band video game came out yesterday. The only way you couldn't have known that is if you took your head off your neck, preserved all of the necessary blood vessels and spine connections, and then placed said head (heh) in cryogenic storage for the last two days.

That's because my TV was filled with not just advertisements, but personal appearances, morning show demos, and even news stories about the release of the game.

Even Jesus doesn't get this much attention in the media. Oh crap.

Walter Cronkite is a tougher act to follow than letting Metallica open for William Hung.

But now that the news legend and former most trusted man in America has passed on to that big newsroom in the great beyond, America needs someone else to trust. They need someone they can depend on to get the hard, cold facts about the important stories that truly affect their lives. They need someone to cut through the political haze of misdirection and mediocrity that cloud almost every major news story like a lingering beer fart.

That man is ... Jon Stewart. Don't like it? Blame the rest of the news media for not doing a better job.

If you asked the average TV watcher what celebrity makes the funniest late night interviews, news anchors would probably be the furthest answer from their minds. It would also just be after physicists, felons convicted of violent crimes and Joaquin Phoenix.

Lately, however, one dedicated newsman has become the most entertaining guest on the late night talk show circuit with the kind of timing, humor and comedic gravitas that even some so-called "professional" comedians have trouble displaying. It could with the greatest of ease turn his own news program into the most hilarious show on television, if the news he reported didn't make us want to jab a corkscrew in our eyes.

That man is NBC's Brian Williams.

TV Newser reports that NBC News will begin shooting in HD beginning sometime next year, and that NBC Nightly News will be going high def starting next month. The other major networks, including NBC, also offer select shows in the HD format, and some local news affiliates also broadcast in HD.

I don't consider myself a technophobe, but all this talk of high definition ties my head in knots. I actually found a decent primer for HD virgins like myself on CNET, which is worth checking out if you're interested in making the jump to HD, which involves a lot more than simply purchasing an HD or plasma television set.

I also know a lot of our readers rock the HD, so share your wisdom in the comments for those of us who aren't quite so hip to this crazy new technology.

[via Lost Remote]

Brian Williams and Tina Fey are old friends, and that's why he decided to take part in last week's episode of 30 Rock, which showed Kenneth cleaning up Williams' (supposedly) office. Besides all the empty booze bottles and porn scattered around the office, the words "Katie Couric Sucks" was written on the office wall.

But the NBC Nightly News anchor says that when Fey showed him the script weeks before the episode was filmed, the "Katie Couric Sucks" part wasn't in it. He was kinda shocked by it, and wants to make sure everyone knows that he likes Katie and does not, repeat, does not think that Katie sucks in any way, shape, or form.

[via TV Tattle]

I watch a lot of television, but one thing I'd hate to do is to actually keep track of what stories are talked about the most on the three networks (ABC, CBS and NBC) every night during their newscasts. Luckily, The Tyndall Report does it for me.

What were the three news stories that got the most coverage during the past year? Obviously, the war in Iraq was the No.1 story, followed by Israeli-Hezbollah fighting and the Hurrincane Katrina aftermath. The report lists the top 20 stories of 2006 (and I was very happy to see that Britney Spears' crotch is nowhere to be found on the list).

The report also lists the reporters that had the most airtime. The top three were NBC's David Gregory, ABC's Martha Raddatz and CBS' Jim Axelrod. I thought Lara Logan would be higher on the list, because I always watch her on CBS. The way her hair cascades down and her accent makes me shiver I think she's a first-rate journalist.

To follow up on what Keith mentioned earlier today, Brian Williams has a lot of good quotes in this interview with Ed Bark from The Dallas Morning News, including this one:

"If my folks have a new slogan loaded up, they have not shared it with me. I think the feeling in this building is we'll do the best by being the best. I don't plan to change this newscast. We don't need to. Let's do the best newscast instead of the best commercials."

That last part seems to be an indirect nod towards the CBS commercials for Katie Couric taking over the CBS Evening News, and if you don't believe that, there's this quote, when asked why he's in Dallas, as Couric was earlier this summer:

"I'm not coming to address a rally or whip up large crowds of people."

Williams keeps track of the competition, and has been in the business long enough to know what would work on the show and what wouldn't.

"I could load up the Nightly News with crap and probably get a higher rating. We know how to do that but we won't."

NBC Nightly News continues to be the #1 network news program.

[via TV Newser]

With the announcement that she will take Katie Couric's place on NBC's Today show, Meredith Vieira becomes one of those rare personalities who has been employeed by all three major networks; ABC, CBS and NBC.

Vieira began her career in the newsroom of WCBS-TV in New York City. From there, she moved onto the network level as a reporter for the CBS Evening News and a contributor to newsmagazines 60 Minutes and West 57th Street. After a long stint at CBS Meredith moved to ABC as a reporter, but eventually changed careers and became one of the hosts on The View starting in 1997 (Good Lord! That show has been on for almost 10 years now!). 

There are others who have jumped networks. For example, Brian Williams of NBC Nightly News was also on WCBS-TV in the late 80's and early 1990's before moving to NBC in 1993. Former 20/20 partners Hugh Downs and Barbara Walters both began their careers with NBC and then moved to ABC.