Today I want to let you all know about the premier entertainment blog that is Deadline Hollywood (www.deadline.com/hollywood). This blog, written by entertainment journalist Nikki Finke, is used by all professionals in the entertainment industry because she breaks news before the source is able to. Often times organizations will plan to announce something to the press, but Nikki Finke hears the news from one of her many sources all over and she posts it on her site. She posts several times a day on whatever she finds interesting and important. During the talks for the blockbuster Endeavor / William Morris Agency merger, her site was the place to go to stay up to speed on what was going on. She knew which board members voted for the merger and which ones did not, and that information was never officially released.
On Monday, January 25th, she posted that companies Sony and Apparition are in talks to acquire, Splice, which recently debuted at Sundance. She knows all the details of the pending deal, including that “Apparition will post a minimum guarantee around $2.5 million while an independent source supply a $20 million P&A fund in a deal being wrapped up by CAA by tomorrow.” That same day she discussed a feud that appears to have just begun between American Idol hosts Ellen Degeneres and Simon Cowell. Apparently the first day did not go well, and Ellen was willing to share her angry feelings of moving around her schedule for her new job, only to have to wait for Simon Cowell to show up and hour and a half late; but enough about reality TV. She also broke the news that Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin would be co-hosting the Academy Awards before the Academy did and she even more recently posted that the Academy was looking for a third host, one she expects to be of a different demographic, be it in age, race, or gender.
This blog is perfect for what I write about. She breaks all the news as soon as she can, and often offers her own opinion and cynicism in her posts. Finke is a professional who recognizes the blogging forum as a way for her to create a news site with a few punches. She provides detailed posts about business deals and often simply posts the press release if the news has already been announced. She doesn’t have to wait to hear if something is absolutely true before posting it, which is something newspapers have to do. People are moving toward writers who give them some opinion in the matters they are reporting. Sometimes newspapers, news websites, and news programming have to be so politically correct that they cannot really tell the consumer what the news could mean for them. However, Finke does have many friends in the entertainment industry and, therefore, cannot just say whatever she wants. But there are still many people whose feelings do not get the politically correct treatment.
Finke’s blog is a direct reflection of the entertainment industry. It is a daily reminder that there are no secrets in the entertainment industry. Professionals often go to her blog before reading Variety, because she is honest and up to date. Unfortunately, I cannot be as up to date as she is, since my sources are internet sites, not industry insiders. But my goal is to learn about the news from several sources and break down what the news could mean as far as how it directly affects consumers. She writes for the professional, while I can write for the moviegoers. I fully intend on getting my news for her site as I continue to blog, and I have been reading her posts regularly for a few years now. And since I don’t really need to worry about the repercussions of my statements the way she does, I get to say whatever I want. Which leads me to my next point … I’m excited for Mel Gibson’s comeback!
By the way, for those of you who did not hear, Avatar officially past Titanic yesterday to become the highest grossing movie worldwide and I expect it to past Titanic’s domestic total around Saturday.
Happy navigating! Below are a few links to some of Finke’s blogs that I mentioned.
Splice
http://www.deadline.com/hollywood/apparition-and-sony-about-to-buy-splice-but-newmarket-is-still-in-it/
AI Feud
http://www.deadline.com/hollywood/tv-tug-of-war-its-ellen-vs-simon-and-simon-fuller-vs-simon-cowell-and-american-idol-vs-x-factor-as-tommy-mottola-is-first-choice-to-judge-both-shows/
Academy Awards Hosts
http://www.deadline.com/hollywood/academy-wants-steve-martin-alex-baldwin-to-tag-team-as-oscar-hosts/
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