Whoopi For The View!!

Actress, comedian, critic Whoppi Goldberg is the newest moderator on ABC's The View. Barbara Walters tapped Goldberg to replace the infamous Rosie O'Donell after her very public spat with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck.

Whoopi, who has appeared as a guest of the show 13 times and has co-hosted 14 times, will make her official host debut on September 4th, at the start of the show's 11th season.

For more info on the show go to http://www.abc.com/

Google News: Google Expands Print Ad Program

Google said that it has widely expanded its pilot program to sell advertising within major newspapers across the U.S., as the search leader now boasts of relationships with more than 225 newspapers, up from 50 when the program kicked off last November.The company said the Google Print Ads now can deliver advertisers entry into 32 or the top 35 DMAs, reaching a total circulation of nearly 30 million readers.

To date, many of the biggest companies in the newspaper world have signed on to participate in the program, including E.W. Scripps, Hearst Newspapers, Gannett, The New York Times, Tribune Publishing, and the Washington Post.Like Google’s AdWords platform, advertisers large and small can bid for ad placement in print via Google Print Ads using an automated Web-based interface, where brands can conduct both local and national ad buys. The benefit to newspapers, according to Google, is that many smaller or non-traditional newspaper advertisers can gain easy access to the medium through the product, which is open to hundreds of thousands of the company’s existing client base.That’s exactly what is happening, according to several newspaper executives. "Google Print Ads has brought in new advertisers who were either too small to consider advertising in a national newspaper or who hadn't tried print advertising because their business was largely online said Todd Haskell, vp of business development, advertising, The New York Times. “And Google Print Ads gives us the flexibility and control to set our own pricing, so there is never a conflict."

Source: www.Mediaweek.com - Author Mike Sheilds

Media Evolution: Time Inc. Weeklies to Embrace Social Networking

AUGUST 01, 2007 -

Time Inc. will roll out online social networking to some of its weekly magazine sites by the end of this year or early ’08, following Sports Illustrated’s success in that area, said John Squires, executive vp, Time Inc.Since Sports Illustrated bought upstart site FanNation.com earlier this year, the site’s number of unique users has climbed to 4 million, said Paul Fichtenbaum, managing editor, SI.com. The site lets sports fans express their rants, check out real and fantasy sports news, and engage in structured debates over the issue of the day.“It’s like sports talk radio online, without the commercials,” Fichtenbaum said, speaking at a Time Inc. Digital Showcase today. “It’s really a very engaging community.”Squires wouldn’t specify which sites would add a social networking component, but Time and People magazines are likely candidates.

Social networking is key to attracting young viewers, who want more from an online experience than just having content pushed at them, Squires explained.“Every site that wants to draw repeat usage from readers has to have a social engagement technology of some sort, not just message boards,” he said, speaking after the showcase. Content has been the focus of Time Inc.’s online efforts, based on the belief that high-quality content can help even mass-reach Web sites achieve high engagement levels. To that end, People.com has added a variety of video channels in the past three weeks, and Myrecipes.com, the new food portal from Time Inc.’s Southern Progress Corp. division, will add daily cooking how-to videos starting Aug. 8, executives said during the showcase.“We believe we have to invest in our big reach properties, as well as [in] incredible vertical opportunities around home, health and fashion,” Squires said. Meanwhile, Time Inc. said it continues to explore options for Business 2.0, its troubled monthly. With ad pages down 37.7 percent this year through August, per the Mediaweek Monitor, the title was believed to be on the brink of folding.Squires said Time Inc.’s Business and Financial Network, the umbrella for its business titles, plans to keep publishing Business 2.0, but added, “we’re considering our options.” He wouldn’t elaborate.

The network recently had a leadership shakeup, with digital exec Vivek Shah replacing Chris Poleway as president, and Squires also pledged announcements in the next six to eight weeks of investments in the group.“You’ll see the launch of some significant new activities that we believe can grow these brands,” he said.

Source: www.mediaweek.com -Author Lucia Moses