Iran's space agency buys heavily for satellite plans (Billings Gazette)TEHRAN, Iran - Iran's space agency is trying to snap up technology from abroad as fast as possible for its satellite program, fearing the West will seek to impose restrictions like those put on the Iranian nuclear program.Smut on cable, satellite TV targeted (Boston Globe)WASHINGTON — […]

Cable, satellite TV are told to clean up (Sun-Sentinel)WASHINGTON · Sexed-up, profanity-laced shows on cable and satellite TV should be for adult eyes only, and providers must do more to shield children or could find themselves facing indecency fines, the nation's top communications regulator says.

Iran's space agency buys heavily for satellite plans (Billings Gazette)TEHRAN, Iran - Iran's space agency is trying to snap up technology from abroad as fast as possible for its satellite program, fearing the West will seek to impose restrictions like those put on the Iranian nuclear program.Do more to restrict smut, satellite, cable TV warned […]

S. Africa worships'Idol'Reality TV: Kortje wins music competish — Karin Kortje, a former apple packer from the small town of Grabouw in the apple-growing region of the Western Cape, became South Africa's third Idol Sunday night in an emotional finale to the most successful"Idols"season yet for paycaster M-Net.Ten cooks up skedReality TV: Oz'Jamie's Kitchen,''Wedge'join lineup […]

Satellite TV pirates sunk (Gulf Daily News)TWO locations in Bahrain have been closed down for illegally relaying satellite television channels to more than 100 apartments, officials revealed yesterday.FCC chief tells cable, satellite TV to clean up its act (USA Today)Declaring television coarser than ever, a top federal regulator served notice on cable and satellite programmers […]

Big BrotherReality TV: Ten strangers, three months and one network that has taken the reality TV craze one step too far. CBS'much hyped Euro import"Big Brother"debuted Wednesday night with all of the style and drama of a Publishers Clearing House Prize Patrol commercial.E! reviving'Simple Life'Reality TV: Cabler will pay around $700,000 per episode — E! […]

SurvivorReality TV: Who wants to be a millionaire? Sixteen people who abandoned their jobs, families and remote controls to spend 39 days on a South China Sea island — that's who. CBS'much-hyped"Survivor"doesn't have a phone-a-friend option and $200 questions about cereal aren't applicable. Instead, this"Real World"-meets-"Lord of the Flies"gamer offers up snakes, rats, cash and […]

Big BrotherReality TV: Ten strangers, three months and one network that has taken the reality TV craze one step too far. CBS'much hyped Euro import"Big Brother"debuted Wednesday night with all of the style and drama of a Publishers Clearing House Prize Patrol commercial.S. Africa worships'Idol'Reality TV: Kortje wins music competish — Karin Kortje, a former […]

'Idol'Svengalis cool heels in legal battle (Reuters)Reuters - A multimillion-dollar legal showdown pitting "Pop Idol" creator Simon Fuller against former collaborator Simon Cowell could be headed for an out-of-court settlement.FCC seen backing new cable pricing: WSJ (Reuters)Reuters - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is expected to suggest that cable companies could […]

'Replacements'finds place on Disney Channel (Reuters)Reuters - Disney Channel is expanding its animated offerings with a full-season order for a new comedy series titled"The Replacements."Simon and Simon Settle (E! Online)E! Online - Dueling pop moguls Simon Cowell and Simon Fuller have reached an out-of-court settlement in their $170 million […]

Ferguson finds niche on CBS'late, late shift (Reuters)Reuters - "There's something I believe wholeheartedly: Cynicism is the true refuge of the pseudo-intellectual," Craig Ferguson says with conviction, leaning back in a chair with work boot-shod feet propped up on the desk in his office at CBS Television City. "Cynicism is […]

Hilary Duff Joins'New Year's Rockin'Eve'(AP)AP - Hilary Duff will be the host of the West Coast portion of Dick Clark's "New Year's Rockin' Eve" on ABC this year, and she will perform three songs.Brit hunk to star in Fox TV drama (Reuters)Reuters - After scoring one of the breakout stars of the season with […]

Ricochet bounces to ShedReality TV: Brit prod'n company sold for $51 mil — Ricochet, the British production company behind the hit ABC and Channel 4 show"Supernanny,"has agreed to a£30 million ($51.4 million) sale to Shed Prods., which makes"Footballers'Wives"for ITV.SurvivorReality TV: Who wants to be a millionaire? Sixteen people who abandoned their jobs, families and remote […]

Trio Punches Clock for"24"(E! Online)E! Online - Jack is back. And he's bringing some friends with him.North Korea Decries CNN Documentary (AP)AP - North Korea criticized CNN for airing footage purporting to show a public execution, accusing it of being part of a U.S. government-organized slander campaign.Brit hunk to star in Fox TV drama (Reuters)Reuters […]

SurvivorReality TV: Who wants to be a millionaire? Sixteen people who abandoned their jobs, families and remote controls to spend 39 days on a South China Sea island — that's who. CBS'much-hyped"Survivor"doesn't have a phone-a-friend option and $200 questions about cereal aren't applicable. Instead, this"Real World"-meets-"Lord of the Flies"gamer offers up snakes, rats, cash and […]

"Desperate"Teri's Sex Suit (E! Online)E! Online - That's the message of a lawsuit the Desperate Housewives diva is launching at a British tabloid over a salacious story about her sex life."Alias,"AKA Canceled (E! Online)E! Online - Some spies are felled by poison darts. For Sydney Bristow, the culprit was […]

Survivor: The Australian Outback (Survivor II)Reality TV: Die-hard fans might miss Richard, Rudy and the queen of tapioca, but there are plenty of greedy and paranoid players on the prowl for $1 million in"Survivor: The Australian Outback."CBS shrewdly scheduled its money train right after the Super Bowl, and the show that earned the year's most […]

Oprah, Dave: Together Again (E! Online)E! Online - Oprah Winfrey didn't get to become "one of the most recognized and admired public figures" without being one of the savviest.'Idol'finalist Huff believes in'Miracles'(Reuters)Reuters - Sitting in a Nashville coffee shop on a Friday afternoon, a mixture of emotions plays across George Huff's […]

"Alias,"AKA Canceled (E! Online)E! Online - Some spies are felled by poison darts. For Sydney Bristow, the culprit was the curse of Mork & Mindy.Public TV Outlet Battling Christian Network (AP)AP - For more than 30 years, public television station KOCE has dedicated coverage to Orange County in a media market otherwise dominated […]

Auds make up their'Mind'Reality TV: Frosh Eye drama finds'Lost'ratings — CBS may have another hot crime drama on its hands in rookie"Criminal Minds,"which surged to its best Wednesday numbers of the season opposite a repeat"Lost."Chopsocky realityReality TV: China temple to host kung fu star search — China's ancient Shaolin Temple, immortalized in the 1970s skein"Kung […]