A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM SCRIPPS NETWORKS

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Today’s Premieres
CBS: How We Roll at 9:30p
discovery+: Inventions That Changed History
HBO Max: Julia; Brene Brown: Atlas of the Heart
MTV: Ex on the Beach at 8p
Netflix: Super PupZ
Paramount+: The Fairly Oddparents: Fairly Odder
Sundance Now: Wisting
TBS: Rat in the Kitchen at 9p
Travel: Paranormal Caught on Camera at 9p
WE tv: Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars at 9p, Brat Loves Judy at 10p

IN THE NEWS

Cox Media Group plans to sell TV stations in 12 markets to Imagicomm Communications, an affiliate of cable net INSP. “We are excited to be entering the broadcast television market with this strong collection of brands that are integral to informing and entertaining the communities they serve,” said David Cerullo, Chairman and CEO of INSP. “This acquisition is part of our broad corporate strategy to expand our media ownership across multiple entertainment platforms.”

ABC has renewed “The Rookie” for season five, and “The Good Doctor” for season six. The cop drama is averaging 9.4 million total viewers across platforms after 35 days of viewing, while “The Good Doctor” counts 10.5 million. One show that didn’t make the cut is competition series “The Ultimate Surfer,” which washed out after one season.

Black News Channel, shuttered last week after two years on the air, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The network listed $10 million to $50 million in liabilities.

Judith Sheindlin, CBS Studios and others sued over profits from the sale of the “Judge Judy” library won a major court battle this week, when a judge granted their motion for summary judgment. The lawsuit, filed in 2018 by Kaye Switzer and the trust of the late Sandi Spreckman, sought $5 million.

Meta paid a Republican consulting firm, Targeted Victory, to undermine Facebook rival TikTok via a media and lobbying campaign that portrayed TikTok as a danger to American children and society, reported The Washington Post. “Get the message out that while Meta is the current punching bag, TikTok is the real threat especially as a foreign owned app that is #1 in sharing data that young teens are using,” reads an email from a Targeted Victory employee obtained by the Post. Other emails urged partners to report on local “bad TikTok trends/stories.” Asked about the campaign, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone told the Post, “We believe all platforms, including TikTok, should face a level of scrutiny consistent with their growing success.”

“When we don’t see women in leadership roles, it’s so easy for doubt to creep in and for women to feel like they don’t belong,” says Marie Ford, Vice President, Retail Customer Experience, CVS Health. Find out what CVS is doing about that in Cynsiders.

2022 SPORTS MEDIA AWARDS

Congratulations to All Star Honoree:

Jordan Gruber, Manager of Athlete Partnerships, Facebook

Join us on April 19th as we celebrate at the New York Athletic Club in NYC.

EARLY BIRD RATE ENDS TOMORROW!

PRODUCTION & DEVELOPMENT

Ron Howard will direct and produce an authorized, untitled documentary about Muppets creator Jim Henson. Howard’s Imagine Documentaries partner Brian Grazer, along with Imagine’s Sara Bernstein and Justin Wilkes will also produce, with Margaret Bodde. The Disney Original Documentary project will include never-before-seen personal archives.

CMT issued two series orders: a second season of “CMT Campfire Sessions,” and a revival of music franchise “CMY Storytellers.” “Campfire” kicks off covering Little Big Town on Tuesday, April 12 at 8p, while “Storytellers” launches with Brooks & Dunn the following night at 8p.

Saloon Media, a Blue Ant Media company, and Bullrush Pictures are collaborating on a new half-hour workplace comedy, “Hospital Show.” The series is an adaptation of the web series of the same name, created by actor, writer and director Adam Greydon Reid, also the founder of Bullrush Pictures. The deal marks Saloon Media’s latest in the expansion of its scripted content production business.

Cineflix Media Inc. has announced the acquisition of Back Alley Film Productions, along with the company’s library of content IP. Cineflix will absorb Back Alley Films’ operations and acquire its programming assets, including the company’s ownership interest in series “Bellevue,” “WWII drama Bomb Girls,” and “Durham County.”

Wilandrea Blair, winner of comedic writing fellowship Women Write Now, has landed a first-look deal with NBCUniversal Television & Streaming to develop projects for Peacock. The program was developed by Kevin Hart’s Laugh Out Loud in partnership with the Sundance Institute to elevate and champion Black women in comedy.

Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (“Transparent”) will serve as showrunners for “The United States of America Vs. Vince McMahon,” in development by WWE and Blumhouse Television. The scripted series explores the career of McMahon, Chairman and CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment.

Gianni Paolo and Michael Rainey Jr., stars of “Power Book II: Ghost,” have launched Twenty Two Entertainment. The production company is fully funded by Artists for Artists, the incubator started by Kenan Thompson (“SNL,” “Kenan”) to allow artists to create and produce their own content while partnering with global distributors.

Endeavor Content and Anonymous Content have formed a joint venture to develop premium scripted series, reports Deadline. Anonymous and Endeavor will serve as co-studios on all scripted television projects produced and developed under the alliance, led by Anonymous Content’s CCO David Levine and Endeavor Content’s EVP, TV, Joe Hipps.

Netflix’s “Bridgerton” prequel, focused on a young Queen Charlotte, will include the original’s stars Golda Rosheuval, Adjoa Andoh and Ruth Gemmell reprising their roles as Queen Charlotte, Lady Agatha Danbury and Lady Violet Bridgerton. India Amarteifio (“Line of Duty”) will play the young Queen Charlotte.

More casting notes: Matt Walsh (“Veep”) has boarded the cast of Apple Original limited series “Manhunt,” about the Lincoln assassination…Merritt Patterson (“Jingle Bell Princess,” “Heatwave”) and Daniel Lissing (“When Hope Calls,” “The Cleaning Lady”) will star in GAC Family’s “Catering Christmas” (wt) which begins production April 3. “Catering Christmas” is the first announced film in GAC Family’s annual Great American Christmas stunt…Ella Purnell (“Yellowjackets”) will star in Prime Video’s “Fallout,” based on the game franchise.

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

HBO’s “Game of Thrones” prequel, “House of Dragons,” will debut Sunday, August 21. The series is set 300 years before the events of “Game of Thrones, focusing on the House of Targaryen.

New HGTV series “Renovation Goldmine” launches Saturday, April 30, at 8p, spotlighting the owners of a design and renovation business dedicated to repurposing treasures found in clients’ homes. In each episode, the duo will revive old furniture and other pieces their clients own and use the money saved to give families their dream home renovation.

Bravo promises “new drama and a side of shade” when season 14 of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” premieres Sunday, May 1 at 8p. New this season: Four-time Gold Medal Olympian Sanya Richards-Ross.

Streaming platform Fox Soul is distributing video podcast “Maino’s Kitchen Talk” on its platform starting Monday, April 4 at 7p. The show, co-hosted by the platinum-selling recording artist with Georgie and Hala, features in-depth conversations about life.

Kelsey Grammer (“Frasier”) will narrate Fox Business Network docuseries “Legends & Lies,” featuring dramatic recreations of historic events, starting Monday, April 25.

Starting in April, new Magnolia Network original content will premiere weekly on discovery+ and the Magnolia app. New series include “Magnolia Workshops,” debuting Sunday, April 3; “Handcrafted Hotels,” launching Friday, April 15; and a pilot episode preview of “As the Garden Grows” on Friday, April 1.

Season four of EstrellaTV primetime talk show “Tu-Night Con Omar Chaparro” premieres in a new timeslot, Saturday, April 23 at 9p. “I like to have fun on this show and entertain the audience, and now with the move to Saturday nights, it truly is the best way to spend your weekend,” said host Chaparro.

“Evil” – a Paramount+ drama centered on the battle between science and religion – is back for season three on Sunday, June 12. New episodes will roll out weekly.

COMING UP

Hulu’s “Crush” premieres Friday, April 29. The teen romance film follows an aspiring artist who joins the track team to be close to her crush but falls for an unexpected teammate instead.

LGBTQ-first network Revry will mark Transgender Day of Visibility today by streaming content that celebrates love and honors the trans community. Per GLAAD, of the 637 total regular and recurring LGBTQ characters counted on scripted primetime broadcast, cable, and streaming originals, 42 are transgender.

Fox News chief political anchor Bret Baier will present an interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday, April 1 at 6p. The interview will cover the level of support to Ukraine from the west, whether concessions from either side are on the table, Russian president Vladimir Putin’s siege mentality and news of the day.

The sixth and final season of CBS’s “Bull” will wrap Thursday, May 26 at 10p. “Bull” was the last on the list of 19 shows that had their season finale dates announced by the network – the first was “Undercover Boss,” which concludes season 11 on Friday, April 8 at 8p.

TECH TALK

An antitrust bill that would prohibit large tech companies from favoring their own products or services has won the support of the Justice Department. “The Department views the rise of dominant platforms as presenting a threat to open markets and competition, with risks for consumers, businesses, innovation, resiliency, global competitiveness, and our democracy,” wrote Peter Hyun, an acting assistant attorney general, in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The bill passed in the committee, and it will eventually be voted on by the full Senate.

VIZIO has introduced a beta program for a new cross-platform viewing solution called Jump Ads, designed to bridge the gap between linear TV and streaming services. Jump Ads give programmers and brands the ability to present an interactive overlay at the conclusion of linear TV programs, directing viewers into a supporting app on VIZIO’s operating system to continue their viewing experience. “As the provider of both the TV hardware and software, VIZIO is in a unique position to create an environment that reduces friction and increases usability,” said Adam Bergman, VP of Sales at VIZIO Ads. “Jump Ads represent yet another step in VIZIO’s ongoing mission to unify the smart TV experience with features that benefit viewers, content providers and advertisers.”

Tightened privacy rules worldwide continued to lessen behavioral targeting abilities for media experts, according to Integral Ad Science’s latest Media Quality Report. Yet ad buyers who adopted sophisticated contextual strategy methods and transitioned away from traditional media quality assurance practices gained an advantage in their bids for ad impressions that appeared next to suitable content to drive stronger favorability and create a better user experience. Powered by the growing adoption of sophisticated contextual solutions, worldwide brand risk averaged less than 3% across all environments and formats, with mobile web video remaining the most at-risk despite a 5.9 percentage point year-over-year improvement.

Google announced initiatives to fight disinformation in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as committing to over $35 million in humanitarian aid. “We saw how many Ukrainians turned to Search to find up-to-date information, including where to find shelter or humanitarian aid, and relied on air raid alerts on their phones,” wrote Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai in a blog post. In addition to new features that improve access to trusted information, Alphabet will invest $10 million to research region-specific misinformation, and support fact-checking networks.

UPFRONT CALENDAR

April 5: PlayFronts (NYC): Meta (9:20a), Activision Blizzard (9:40a), Frameplay (10a), Niantic (11:05a), Admix (11:25a), Unity (11:50a), Zynga (1p), Bidstack (1:20p), Riot Games (1:45p), Anzu (2:10p), Twitch (3:15p), IGN (3:35p), SuperAwesome (3:301), and PlayerWON (4:10)
April 5-7: Magna’s Equity Upfront
April 6: Disney’s Sports Summit (virtual); AMC Networks at 6:30p (The Peak in Hudson Yards, NYC); National CineMedia at 11a (Academy of Motion Pictures, LA)
April 12: Black Owned Media Upfront at 1p (virtual)
April 13: FETV (Empire State Building, NYC); TV One (virtual)
April 25: Disney Storyteller’s Showcase
April 26: FETV (Empire State Building, NYC)
May 2-6: IAB NewFronts
May 2: NBCUniversal/Peacock NewFront
May 3: Roku at 11:30a (Caldwell Factory, NYC)
May 16: NBCUniversal (Radio City Music Hall, NYC); Telemundo (Ziegfeld Theater, NYC); Fox (Skylight, NYC)
May 17: Discovery (Jazz at Lincoln Center, NYC); Disney (Basketball City at Pier 36, NYC); YouTube Brandcast at 8p; Univision (Javits Center in NYC)
May 18: Paramount (Carnegie Hall, NYC); WarnerMedia (Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden, NYC)
May 19: The CW (New York City Center Theater, NYC)
May 18: Paramount (Carnegie Hall, NYC); WarnerMedia (Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden, NYC)
May 19: The CW (New York City Center Theater, NYC)

GOING GLOBAL

Highlights of Banijay’s spring slate include formats “Starstruck,” “Limitless Win,” “The Courtship,” “Language of Love,” “Your Body Uncovered” and “Shaolin Heroes,” along with scripted titles including “Rogue Heroes,” “Then You Run” and “Signora Volpe.”

Keshet International shared its spring offerings, including “Ellie Simmonds: A World Without Dwarfism?” (UK), “Scotland: Escape to the Wilderness” (UK), “Roomies” (Finland), “Storm Lara” (Belgium), “Deep Crime Unit” (Japan), “Question Team” (UK) and “Family Dinner Date” (Israel).

New scripted series “Exceptional,” a suspenseful teen drama, is available from Armoza as both a format and finished tape.

Pernel Media has commissioned Arte Geie to produce a new nature and science documentary miniseries and a one-off revealing the extraordinary abilities of the butterfly. “Butterflies: Superheroes of Nature” explores the insect’s capabilities. The series will be shot in South America, Northern and Southern Europe and Africa.

RTÉ Programme Sales has sold “Room to Improve” and “Cheap Irish Homes” to multiple territories, and also unveiled its MIPTV slate, which is headlined by documentaries “Speechless” and “100 Years of Ulysses.”

Hat Trick International announced it has sold two of its factual series — “Sarah Beeny’s New Life in the Country” and “Britain’s Beautiful Rivers with Richard Hammond” — to broadcasters around the world.

Cyber Group Studios has inked multiple deals with France’s Gulli for two original CGS properties, “The McFire Family” and “George Moby and Co.”, and for the third season of the French animated series “Taffy.” All three shows will begin production this year.

Peacock has ordered a sketch comedy special “Would it Kill You to Laugh? Starring Kate Berlant & John Early.” The one-hour special, featuring journalist/host Meredith Vieira along with the comedy duo, is set to premiere this summer.

ESPORTS BUSINESS SUMMIT 2022

What’s New?

Enhanced Show Floor, Welcome Reception, Attendee Lounge, Networking App, Tempest Awards, Concierge Service and more!

November 1-3rd @ the MGM, Las Vegas

REGISTER today!

RATINGS

Hallmark Channel’s Spring Into Love programming event debuted on Saturday night with original movie premiere “A Second Chance at Love,” which became the #1 most-watched entertainment cable program of the day among Households, Women 18+ and Total Viewers, averaging 137,000 W25-54 and 1.3 million Total Viewers.

Broadcast Nielsen Ratings for Tuesday, March 29
Show, P2+ 000s, (A18-49)
ABC: Judge Steve Harvey 3.26 (0.4), Abbott Elementary 2.34 (0.5), black-ish 1.82 (0.3), To Tell the Truth 2.08 (0.3)
CBS: FBI 7.58 (0.7), FBI: International 6.24 (0.6), FBI: Most Wanted 5.84 (0.6)
CW: Superman & Lois .68 (0.1), Naomi 0.47 (0.1)
FOX: The Resident 3.14 (0.4), Name That Tune 1.85 (0.4)
NBC: Young Rock 2.07 (0.34), Mr. Mayor 1.83 (0,3), This Is Us 4.21 (0.7), The Thing About Pam 2.50 (0.3)
Telemundo: Exatlon Estados Unidos 1.03 (0.2), Heclai: Amor y Venganza 1.167 (0.3), Pasion de Gavilanes 0.69 (0.2)
Univision: Soltero con Hijas 1.61 (0.5), Mi Fortuna es Amarte 1.77 (0.6), Madre 1.78 (0.5)
Source: Nielsen live + same day time period averages

EXECUTIVE MOVES

Jeremy Doig has been named Chief Technology Officer, Disney Streaming. Doig joins the company next month after 18 years at Google.

ABC Signature has appointed Danny Feldheim as SVP, Comedy Development. Feldheim was previously SVP at Paramount+.

Media and marketing consultancy Ebiquity has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Media Management and conditional agreement to acquire MediaPath Network AB. As part of the MMi acquisition, Thomas Bridge, Founder and CEO at MMi, will join Ebiquity’s North American leadership team as President, Ebiquity North America; current Managing Director, North America Paul Williamson will step into the role of Managing Director, Ebiquity Americas.

Yari Torres has joined All3Media International in the role of VP, Latin America. Torres was previously Director, Sales Liaison at NBCUniversal.

Claravine has hired Olivia Mills as Senior Manager of People and Culture. Mills was most recently an HR consultant at a Colorado-based financial services firm.

IN MEMORIAM

Director Marvin J. Chomsky died March 28. He was 92. Chomsky won Emmys for directing miniseries “Holocaust” and “Peter the Great,” and TV movies “Attica” and “Inside the Third Reich.”

Actor Paul Herman died March 29. He was 76. In addition to numerous film roles, Herman appeared in “The Sopranos” and “Entourage.”

This Day in History
1930 – The Motion Picture Production Code was instituted, with strict guidelines for the depiction of sex, crime, religion and violence.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
Which sitcom’s title changed for its third season because the show’s original setting was abandoned? “Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place” (1998-2001) was changed to “Two Guys and a Girl.” Kudos to: Tara Berman-NBC News/NYC; Rob Casalaina-ITN/NYC; Charles Lore/NYC; Creed Heilskov-ImOn Communications/Cedar Rapids; Synda Kollman-Charter Marketing Group/Boca Raton, FL; Lorrie Shilling/El Segundo, CA; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA; Michael Hochman-Bridesman the Series/Philadelphia

Today’s Trivia Question
Which actor played a sitcom character who supported conspiracy theories, and was suspected by some co-workers of being the Unabomber? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: a limit of four answers per time zone.)

Cynopsis Team