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MTV Is 40 Years Old. It Changed American Culture

Given the commercial and cultural behemoth it would become, MTV’s launch was inauspicious. - The Conversation

Tavis Smiley Wants To Build Nationwide Black Talk Radio Network

The veteran broadcaster, who lost his talk shows on both public radio and PBS after revelations that he had had sexual relationships with subordinates, launched KBLA in Los Angeles in June as an "unapologetically progressive" and "unapologetically Black" news-talk AM station. - Inside Radio

The Plan To Make Paramount+ Streaming Successful

The road ahead won’t be easy for ViacomCBS. Its fledgling Paramount+ was a late entry into streaming, and is essentially a rebranded and expanded version of CBS All Access. - The New York Times

The Woes Of Planned Blockbuster ‘Jungle Cruise’ Show The Pandemic Is Still On

That is to say, with the Delta variant tearing through countries and kids in the U.S. still unable to be vaccinated, Jungle Cruise made a poor showing on the big screen (and Disney Plus $$ wasn't enough to make up for that). - The New York Times

The Show ‘Ted Lasso’ Needed Sarah Niles

But she needed the earnest kindness - and bawdy amusements - of the show's ethos as well. - The New York Times

The Children Of Blaxploitation Directors Rescue Their Fathers’ Films

Justine Henzell and Mario Van Peebles have done the heavy lifting to rescue, and in some cases help reshoot, their dads' important, overlooked (and in Henzell's case, formerly unfinished) films. - The Guardian (UK)

China Finally Allows In A Foreign Film

And it's ... a British Christmas movie about a cat? - Variety

France’s Call My Agent Hit Cult Popularity In The US, But Its Star Didn’t Really Know It

Actor Camille Cottin, who spent a lot of time with her family during the pandemic, is bemused by her popularity. "Now you tell me during the pandemic everybody watched ‘Call My Agent!,’ I was miles away, imagining that I was buried alive," she added with a grim laugh." - The New York Times

South America’s Largest Film Collection Goes Up In Flames

On Thursday, flames engulfed Brazil's Cinemateca Brasileira, whose collection includes "more than a million archival documents and around 250,000 film reels," with the extent of the damage as yet unknown. - Hyperallergic

The Complicated Psychology Behind Our Attraction To Video Games

If video games are play, they’re an expression of our highest capacities as humans—our love of freedom, of imagination, and creative whim. But when they are work then our affection for them is an extraordinary concession to modern conditions of unfreedom. - Dissent

Why Scarlett Johansson Is Suing Disney (And Why It Matters)

A star of her scale taking on a studio of an even bigger scale, potentially burning whatever bridges remain, is an unusual gambit but it’s a fight that’s been steadily brewing since the pandemic sped up the streaming wars last year. - The Guardian

Longest-Running Kids Animated Series In History Will End After 25 Years

Arthur, starring everyone's favorite cartoon aardvark, debuted on PBS in 1996 and will air its final season in 2022. In fact, one of the show's writers said that production wrapped two years ago. - The New York Times

Why Newsmax Is Flopping

The network's founders hoped to supplant Fox News, but viewership is down by half since January. Why? Says one expert, "Newsmax is just not good. … Most of their lineup is … people who couldn't make it at Fox News. They just don't have any talent." - Vox

Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney Over “Black Widow”

Scarlett Johansson is suing Disney over the simultaneous digital rollout of “Black Widow,” saying it breaches her contract with the company to release the film in theaters first. - Washington Post

Netflix CEO: The Movie Business Is In Revolution

 In four short years, Netflix has done more to reshape the way that movies are made, distributed and consumed than perhaps any other single company in the history of the film business. - Variety

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