Posted on 02/27/2006 3:13:23 AM PST by abb
Host to Appear in Every Ad For Sunday Awards Telecast; A Year With No 'Titanic'
Faced with an Academy Awards program featuring few blockbuster movies and a host who is more niche than mainstream, ABC is trying some new advertising tactics to attract viewers. For starters, it's giving the host an unusual amount of advance screen time.
ABC has created more than two dozen Oscar promo spots that will air hundreds of times this week, and host Jon Stewart will be in every one. Mike Benson, senior vice president of marketing at ABC, says this is the first time the Walt Disney Co. network has put the Oscar host in all of the plugs. Although the cable-TV personality is a best-selling author in addition to being the acerbic host of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show," he isn't a star with the profile of Chris Rock, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg or David Letterman, all previous Academy Award hosts.
"You still don't want to take it for granted everybody knows him," Mr. Benson says.
Promos for the awards ceremony, to be held Sunday, will emphasize the stars of the nominated movies more than the movies themselves.
ABC also is changing how it links the Oscars with promotions for its regular lineup of shows, with the actors playing their TV characters in the spots. For instance, the female characters in "Desperate Housewives" will be seen holding an Oscar party while watching the awards show.
"We're trying to do a lot of things differently," says Mr. Benson, especially since even once-invulnerable marquee shows such as the Oscars have been losing viewers. "The ratings of the Olympics bear that point out," he says, referring to the less-than-stellar audiences who tuned in to the Turin Games on NBC.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
This is hilarious. I hope nobody watches.
I thought the Oscars were already over.
What you can take for granted is that nobody cares.
The more they put John Stewart, the more people will go 'huh'? What are they trying to accomplish, actually? Getting as many as 'blue-staters' to watch? (They knew that about half of the people may avoid Oscar on purpose).
The Academy has decided that some things are more important than selling tickets. Now they will continue to pay the price.
It was inevitable that the children, nieces and nephews of the greats who built Hollywood would fritter away the collosus that was handed to them. Today's crop of Hollywood Glitter is a pale imitation of previous times. That sort of thing is just not passed along with the genes, with rare exceptions.
scoop ping
What are the "Oscars"?
Lousy comedian hosting lousy award show honoring lousy films.
The potential for Schadenfreude is very high.
It is ironic that hollywood libs are allegedly always on the side of the little people getting a fair shake in life vis a vis their politics. Yet, when it comes to their own little fiefdom, nepotism absolutely rules the day. I propose they hire more muslims in the movie business, but they never will.
I think it's similar to the Felixes.
The main movies this year are enough to make me take a pass, as if I'd watch the program even if they weren't so bad. These awards nauseate me. There's paractically one every week for the first three months of the year. I've never seen an industry that is so prone to slap itself on the back almost hourly.
The Oscars has been a horrible show for decades. I used to watch but I don't think I have watched this over-hyped Hollyweird indulgence in self-aggrandizement since the 70s. It is astonishing that the show that "honors" what are supposed to be the best that Hollyweird has to offer, typically ends up as one of the worst stinkeroos of the year.
Besides, I'm sick of the leftists having this platform to bash America and Bush. I won't support their spoiled lifestyle and "me, me, me" crapola. They have fouled their own nest and are too dumb to recognize it. Mainstream Americans are sending Hollyweird a HUGE message - that's why box office receipts are down. We're just plain tired of these 2 dimensional cardboard cutouts and we aren't going to support their lavish lifestyle and hate America attitude.
Sorry, C---BS, but a whole lot of us here at Freepers have better things to do that watch old tired lame ACTORS spouting how much they hate America and Bush and the troops.
Yawn.
Geesh..got my alphabet channels mixed up. Meant hay--BC. Sorry!
Not until they have otherwise-unemployable Muslim children, nieces and nephews...
I don't care either.
"This is hilarious. I hope nobody watches."
I haven't watched them for many years. I couldn't get more UNinterested. Boring, boring, BORING.
I haven't watched since the seventies. When Burt Reynolds failed to win for Cannonball Run II I gave up.
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