DAILY TV NEWS ROUND-UP. Today's interesting TV stories to read from TVwithThinus - 19 October 2017.

Here's the latest news about TV that I read and that you should read too:


■ Where has TStv gone? 18 days after its 1 October launch in Nigeria, TStv is seemingly nowhere.
Biola Kazeem wonders about Nigerian's gullibility and their willingness to accept fake promises like thelies about TV channels TStv says its carrying but isn't allowed to.
- TStv isn't what we need now," says Nigerians. "We actually need an uninterrupted electricity supply".

■ MIPCOM TV market told: Black people are rare as unicorns on prime time TV

■ Australian breakfast show presenter lurks and hides behind her car!
Lisa Wilkingson hides behind her car from the paparazzi after a nasty fight following abreakdown in salary negotiations goes public between a TV star's agent in Australia and the Nine network.

■ China's StarTimes says Uganda is one of the African countries that benefitted from the $2.5 billion contract for digital terrestrial TV migration.
Of course StarTimes itself benefitted commercially too - since it's China's money.
Meanwhile StarTimes has taken 51 journalists from across Africa to Beijing and China for a media tour and to cover the 19th Congress of the Communist Party of China but has deliberately excluded South Africa's media.

■ New SABC board Febe Potgieter-Qubule claims:
"I don't see myself compromised". Says her new SABC board position will make her reconsider her role in the ANC going forward.

■ Econet Media officially launches Kwesé TV in Uganda.
Has a media launch event in Kampala where Kwesé TV will now have to battle it out against MultiChoice Uganda's DStv and China's StarTimes for pay-TV viewers.
- Quite inane and non-sensical comments from Herbert Mucunguzi, Kwesé TV Uganda general manager as to what Kwesé TV Uganda offers. You'd think he or the PR people would put in actual effort to come up with non-stock comments not already used before by MultiChoice and StarTimes for their offerings.
- Kwesé TV Zambia's general manager Kapa Kaumba fawning over Zambia's government, likewise talks a lot that means absolutely nothing.


■ Nielsen to measure viewing of shows streaming on Netflix.
The service aiming to measure and find ratings for On Demand video streaming services, will provide data comparable to what Nielsen provides for linear TV, including ratings, reach, frequency and demographics.
- Netflix slams the effort and Nielsen: "The data that Nielsen is reporting is not accurate, not even close, and does not reflect the viewing of these shows on Netflix".

■ Digital TV a massive and expensive flop in Thailand.
Digital terrestrial television migration came too late and audience behaviour had already changed due to technology.

■ Final 4th season of Star Wars Rebels on Disney XD (DStv 304) will be more serialised.
Last season just started in America, no date yet for when it starts in South Africa and Africa, but Dave Filoni says "episodes will be more serialised than you're used to".


■ The actor Javid Iqbal doesn't really exist, Star Trek: Discovery made him up since actor Shazad Latif is apparently playing both Voq who disguises himself to become Ash Tyler.
- Maybe some clarity about the confusing plot points in Star Trek: Discovery.
- Jason Isaacs says Star Trek: Discovery is "of our time, and for our time."
- Klingon Voq can't stay missing for much longer.


■ How big is delayed TV viewing in America?
In some cases it's even bigger than live viewing - in others almost nothing. Here's how some of America's biggest TV shows break down when it comes to viewers who watch it after its been shown.

■ Why competing with Netflix and Amazon is impossible.
MUST WATCH: Barry Diller discusses what makes Netflix and Amazon today's leaders in video.


■ Executive producer of Viacom's The Mist TV drama, Amanda Segel, accuses Harvey Weinstein's brother Bob Weinstein of sexual harassment.
- Variety's TV critic Maureen Ryan says a TV executive sexually assaulted her.
- Hollywood's other open secret: Preying on young boys.
- Inside Harvey Weinstein's horrific history of bullying: "Has never done anything that was consensual".

■ The shamed Roy Price out at Amazon after shocking sexual harassment claims.

■ And a MUST READ: Inside Amazon and the fall of the vulgar exec Roy Price.
As usual Amazon and Roy Price are silent and refused to comment. Amazon insiders reveal Roy Price's "crude sex talk" at gatherings, asked staffers if stars in a TV series would "show their tits";  misogyny of scripts.

■ Fighting the pirates.
How illegal downloads and streaming of TV shows is now impacting the global TV industry.
Netflix says it's pushing to secure global rights and release all originals simultaneously to global members to help address piracy, and "that there's been a notable reduction in piracy in countries where we operate".

■ Lifetime (DStv 131) finally releases a trailer for the delayed 3rd season of UnReal.
The 3rd season will start in America on 26 February 2018 and will this time revolve around a bachelorette looking for Mister Right. No word yet on when the 3rd season will start on Lifetime in South Africa and Africa on MultiChoice's DStv.

■ The delicate art of the TV series finale.
Ending a TV series properly with a perfect final episode is equal parts craft and philosophy.

■ Next year the Swiss will vote to get rid of TV and radio licence fees.
Switzerland voting in March 2018 on a proposal to scrap the licence fee for the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC).

■ Nigerian presenter of a TV crime show sues over being blocked by Nigerian police.
Aisha Tosan, the presenter of presenter of Crime Fighters, Police and You files papers in Lagos High Court to stop Nigeria's police from blocking her, and impeding her right to give out information.

■ Chelsea Handler's talk show, Chelsea, on Netflix cancelled after 2 seasons.
Went from daily in the first season, to weekly in the second season to cancelled.

■ In a new generation of social media-driven dramas
viewers decide the outcome in the next episode, as part of TV's next big new trend.

DAILY TV NEWS ROUND-UP. Today's interesting TV stories to read from TVwithThinus - 13 October 2017.

Here's the latest news about TV that I read and that you should read too:


■ Mexican soap actor slaps TV reporter through the face in a red carpet interview.
Aggressive telenovela star Eduardo Yanez suddenly turns physically violent and assaults Paco Fuentes.

■ Kate Beckinsale says sexual predator and rapist Harvey Weinstein couldn't remember if he had sexually assaulted her or not".

■ Dawson's Creek star James van der Beek has had his "ass grabbed by powerful, older men".
"I’ve had them corner me in inappropriate sexual conversations when I was much younger".

■ More groping allegations emerge against Ben Affleck.

■ "Horrific" Jason Momoa joked that he gets to rape beautiful women in Game of Thrones.


■ "You will love my dick," Roy Price, Amazon's programming boss said to TV producer.
Isa Hackett, a producer on Amazon Prime Video's Man in the High Castle is making her claim of sexual harassment public. Amazon is utterly silent on what it did regarding Roy Price and the sex harassment claim that she reported to Amazon.

■ Rose McGowan: Harvey Weinstein raped me. Again Amazon is silent.
- Accuses Jeff Bezos and Amazon of a massive cover-up who cancelled her TV series.
- Amazon suspends Roy Price who is abruptly put on "leave of absence".

■ Has anyone in Hollywood fallen faster than Harvey Weinstein?
Star doing red carpet premieres suddenly asked hard questions about sexual harassment instead of the usual softball questions.

■ Harvey Weinstein checks into a luxury 5-star resort after jetting out of LA in a private jet.
He lied about doing rehab in Europe and wants to go somewhere where he can use his cell phone like the Arizona resort with a spa and golf course.
- New TIME does "producer, predator, pariah" Harvey Weinstein cover.
- The Weinstein Company (TWC) near the brink as talent agencies abruptly cut off their talent supply.


■ Remember when Nikki Finke reported Harvey Weinstein's harassment of a man on his deathbed? Referenced his "disgusting behaviour".
- Remember when Nikki Finke told of how Harvey Weinstein ordered her into a "windowless room" and screamed at her for 90 minutes?

■ Peaky Blinders seen on BBC First (DStv 119) is dumping The Weinstein Company (TWC) from the credits.



■ Valor, Seal Team, Shooter: The tropes and "triggers" of the new bunch of American military TV dramas.
- And Riverdale is subverting every "mean girl" TV trope with the Cheryl Blossom character.


■ Australian free-to-air viewers lose The Simpsons and Modern Family.
The struggling Ten is done and out of a deal with 21th Century Fox studios.

■ The SABC is now looking for tenders to bid to become the SABC's service provider for the digital file delivery of content.

■ How those fake TV shows seen inside shows are made.
From This is Us and Insecure - the how, and why, and what of these meta-shows inside series.


■ SABC staff morale is at an all-time low.
Move the slider and listen from minute 13:28 to 17:30.
Bemawu president Hannes du Buisson tells 702: "SABC staff are really, really, very, very low on morale at this point in time" and that SABC staffers "are fed up".


■ Netflix responds to conspiracy theories over its $500 million investment in Canada.
- Meanwhile Netflix's content investment is increasingly international in nature - the international growth is it's secret weapon.


■ After Star Trek: Discovery said there won't be any canon changes it's filled with canon changes; producer says canon changes will be explained.
- As criticism over Star Trek: Discovery grow; producers plead with viewers to be patient.
- Star Trek: Discovery suffers from inconsistent storytelling.
- "Mess": Star Trek: Discovery fails to make its case.
- Star Trek: Discovery takes too long to get where it's going.
- Filming wrapped on first season on Wednesday; second season of Star Trek: Discovery looks likely.


■ The battle to keep arts on mainstream BBC television is shocking, says presenter.
Arts programmes on BBC condemned to a "vicious, Orwellian circle" of little watched platforms.


■ MUST READ: This week's Popbitch tells its like it is - scroll and read from "Blinded by the Lights":
Here's some excerpts:
"Does the principled entertainment journalist ignore these things and just get on with the job at hand?"

"It is these same reporters who could (and should) be breaking these types of stories. The journalists who are rubbing shoulders with the major players, the ones for whom Hollywood scandals are their bread and butter, should be at the forefront of this stuff. And yet they aren’t."

"The implied arrangement is that if you turn up to the Oscars as a guest of Miramax, or you get paid to host a junket at Cannes, or you get an exclusive sit-down interview with the star of a Weinstein vehicle, then you go easy. You don’t bite the hand that feeds you."

"Yet too many newspapers, magazines and journalists are unwilling (or unable) to forfeit the access. They can’t turn down the interviews, the parties, or the chance to get their upcoming book optioned by someone like Weinstein."

"If you’re a reporter attending Hollywood parties, if you’re spending your summer in Cannes, if you’re overseeing front page splashes and conducting double page interviews on movie stars and yet you have somehow managed to have never heard a single Weinstein rumour, pray tell: what the f- have you been doing?"