Top of the Rock: Inside the Rise and Fall of Must See TV
The DVR and online video streaming of your favorite shows has turned Must See TV into Must See When I Get Around to It. But Warren Littlefield, former entertainment president of NBC, has reminded us of what was possible not so long ago. His new book, Top of The Rock: Inside the Rise and Fall of Must See TV (May 1, Doubleday), recounts his successful run at the network and the inside stories of the shows that...
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Keith Olbermann
Keith Olbermann must be used to seeing blown-up bridges in his rearview mirror. His departure from cable network Current after just nine months is the latest in a series of ugly breakups with employers. So what are his job options now?
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Matt Lauer
The team from ABC's Good Morning America sent a bucket of golf balls to Matt Lauer to congratulate him on his new deal to remain at NBC's Today. But the game for ratings leadership will only get more intense.
Lauer's new agreement keeps him in the coanchor chair of the morning show for...
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Melissa Francis
As a child actress in the 1980s, Melissa Francis performed in more than 100 commercials and TV shows, including Little House on the Prairie. She left Hollywood for Harvard, where she studied economics, but eventually found herself in front of a camera again as a financial reporter and news anchor. Francis recently jumped from CNBC to Fox Business Network, where she'll have her own daily program starting later this spring, giving viewers a regular venue to catch her feisty interviewing style.
"She has a playful yet inquisitive edge to her that makes her different than the die-cast cable anchors," says Piers Morgan Tonight executive producer Jonathan Wald, who worked with...
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Josh Elliott
There is a lot more energy in the Times Square studio of ABC's Good Morning America since the arrival of news anchor Josh Elliott, who joined the program from ESPN's SportsCenter last May.
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Jon-Adrian Velazquez, Luke Russert
As the son of the late Tim Russert, the longtime moderator of NBC's Meet the Press, Luke Russert grew up in Washington politics. So it was natural for him to cover Capitol Hill when he joined NBC News in 2008. His coverage of the scandal involving sexting House member Anthony Weiner helped nudge the Congressman into resigning.
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David Caruso
As mid-season shows debut over the next three months, it will be crunch time for a number of series that haven't been tearing up the Nielsen charts. Here's what network insiders say are the shows on the bubble as execs look to set their schedules in May.
ABC
A second-year ratings fade may mean it's time to pull a sheet over the Dana Delany-led Body of Proof. While the network ordered an extra episode of Pan Am in order to keep a hold on the cast until May, its chances of returning next fall are as likely as an airport going a full day without a flight delay. Comedy Happy Endings doesn't do a great job retaining the lead-in from the mighty Modern Family, but ABC parent Disney has an ownership stake in the show and it's a favorite within the network's entertainment division — so a pickup for another season is considered a lock. And fan fave Cougar Town will get a final shot for renewal if it performs well in its new Tuesday time period starting February 14.
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General Hospital
There may be life after daytime for ABC's last remaining soap opera, General Hospital, which is likely to get the ax later this year to make room for Katie Couric's new syndicated talk show.
One scenario being discussed has the drama continuing as a...
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Lara Logan
Ask CBS News chief foreign affairs correspondent Lara Logan how she's doing and her one-word answer is "Busy." She's finishing a profile of Aerosmith for 60 Minutes. She's working on a story about drug-money laundering in Colombia and the Pacific Rim. She has an upcoming piece on a Botswana couple living in the African Bush for the last 30...
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