MBN, Monte Bubbles Network

Editorial on port transfer

Look no further then to Muslim outrage over cartoons to understand why this transfer is a really bad idea. If something as simple as a cartoon could set the Muslim world on fire then how could we place trust for a state owned and Muslim business running a port operation in our country.

Everyday in print in this country are things that offend someone. We on a daily basis offend one religious group or another.

Freedom of the press means just what it says, freedom and in Muslim countries there is no such freedom. Can you truly trust a company that is ran by those that do not believe in freedom to speak with keeping their word.

Mohammad was a great man. He created a religion that was one meant to be of peace. Do you think that such a great man would have ever set the world on fire because of cartoons poking fun of him? I think he would no more approve of what was done then Jesus would approve of those using his name to wage a religious war.

The company has been treated badly in that the deal should never have been approved and should and will be rewarded for this mess caused by a panel that didn't have the sense to come in out of the rain.

NBC continues to tank with Olympics

When it comes to explaining the low ratings for these Winter Games place the blame directly is on NBC for doing a super-terrible job of presenting the Olympics.

The network blew it, the biggest beef with NBC is how it programmed and promoted the events.

The announcers are awful, the Games run way too late into the evening, and there’s not enough focus on foreign athletes.to the new technology that allows viewers to find out results well before the taped competitions air.

"It appears as though the announcers are grasping for chitchat to fill the time slots."

NBC continues to present the Games as strictly an American event rather than a global competition. Americans may want their countrymen to win, but they’d also like to hear about the other competitors.

The network erred by airing the marquee events way too late at night, when many viewers have stopped watching.

The network guaranteed advertisers an average household rating of between 12 and 14 for the Games, and it’s just above 12 as of Wednesday

Reese Witherspoon to Present at 78th Academy Awards®

Beverly Hills, CA — Academy Award®-nominated actress Reese Witherspoon will be a presenter at the 78th Academy Awards ceremony, telecast producer Gil Cate's announced today.

Witherspoon recently received her first Oscar nomination for her 2005 leading role as June Carter Cash in "Walk the Line." She will be seen next in "Penelope."

Her film credits include "Election," "Vanity Fair," the "Legally Blonde" films, "Sweet Home Alabama," "Pleasantville" and "Freeway."

Witherspoon will join fellow presenters Hilary Swank, Jamie Foxx, Morgan Freeman, Jessica Alba, Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, Jennifer Aniston, Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Keanu Reeves, Will Ferrell, Queen Latifah, Clint Eastwood, Terrence Howard, Meryl Streep, Will Smith, Steve Carrell, Nicole Kidman, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Uma Thurman, Charlize Theron, Naomi Watts and Lily Tomlin.

Gregg Field Orchestra to Lead Entertainment at Governors Ball

Marking its sixth appearance at the Governors Ball, the Gregg Field Orchestra will kick off the post-telecast celebration following the 78th Academy Awards® on Sunday, March 5, Governors Ball Chair Cheryl Boone Isaacs announced today.

Field will lead the 27-piece orchestra, which also will accompany Grammy®-nominated singer Patti Austin, as it performs for the 1,650 Ball guests – Academy Award winners and nominees, show presenters and telecast participants.

Joining the orchestra will be three-time Grammy Award-winning saxophonist Tom Scott who will perform solos throughout the evening. Scott, who has 26 solo recordings and 13 Grammy nominations, has numerous film and television scoring credits.

The evening’s entertainment also will feature a performance by Mindi Abair, a jazz artist whose 2003 album was recognized by Billboard magazine as one of the Top 10 contemporary jazz albums of the year.

The Ball will cap the celebration of the film achievements of 2005 in the Governors Ballroom on the top level of the Hollywood & Highland Center® following the Awards Presentation.

©A.M.P.A.S.®

Consumers would really prefer to view TV shows the good-old-fashioned way -- on the TV set.

Results of a study by Points North Group and Horowitz Associates found that consumers would really prefer to view TV shows the good-old-fashioned way -- on the TV set.

While 25% of Internet users surveyed expressed interest in watching downloaded TV shows and movies on their PCs, 38% of those surveyed preferred to watch that downloaded material on a TV screen. For 18- to 34-year-olds, there is even more preference for TV-set viewing: 68% would watch downloads on their TV while only 45% would watch on their PCs.

Consumers still want to watch TV shows and movies on a TV, whether the programs are broadcast or downloaded.

While Sony and Microsoft have developed “media-center” PCs designed to manage digital content in the home, the technology falls well short of seamless integration of platforms. Analysts have speculated that in the not-so-distant future Apple will unveil a product that facilitates the transfer of digital content between PCs, TVs and portable devices. But at the moment no hardware is currently available that easily and wirelessly connects the PC and the TV, although anyone with a digital video recorder can load a TV show on to that device’s hard drive.

If you want to watch Web-only content, like videos, it’s still pretty inconvenient to view it on your TV screen, unless you are one of the few who have hardwired your computer to your TV. Video files also can be burned onto a DVD then transferred via “sneaker net,” hacker slang for physically carrying a removable media (like a DVD) from one computer to another.

The picture quality of downloaded material is not great; the quality is analogous to VHS rather than DVD.

Getting Web-based content to the TV should be the industry’s primary goal and will unlock by far the biggest revenue opportunities.

In the past few months there has been a proliferation of deals to make TV programming available for download through the Internet. Apple’s iTunes offers, among other things, replays of current ABC hits “Desperate Housewives” and “Lost” for $1.99 each. Google also has a video-download service that sells everything from rebroadcasts of NBA games to episodes of classic series such as the “Brady Bunch.”

Networks are starting to realize that they may be able to make money out of old programming gathering dust in their vaults. The pay-per-download business model could generate revenue with little further cost to the network.

Downloaded content could also become an effective platform for advertisers. In time, consumers will see a mix of free, ad-supported, pay-on-demand and subscription options.

The mosque's golden dome was blown off in the explosion, which touched off a round of Sunni-Shiite discord across the country. Some Shiites have accused the Sunnis, who constitute the majority group in Samarra, of complicity in the shrine bombing. At least 100 Iraqis have died in street fighting and other violence in recent days. Iraqi security forces provided security during the country's constitutional referendum in October and December's nationwide voting held to select a general assembly, Venable said. Today, Iraqi security forces have secured the area around the damaged mosque and some other areas in Iraq touched by sectarian violence over the bombings.

Still, Venable cautioned that Iraqi police and soldiers aren't yet ready to assume security for the entire country. "But, in the places where they are responsible for the battle space, they've done a very credible job," Venable said of Iraqi soldiers and police. This "is another indicator of the continued forward progress we see in Iraq," he said. U.S. officials have downplayed the possibility of an Iraqi civil war erupting between Shiites, who compose about 60 percent of the population, and Sunnis, who make up around 20 percent of the populace.

Sunnis were favored during the reign of former dictator Saddam Hussein, while Shiites and Kurds were persecuted. Iraqi government and religious leaders have appealed to the general population not to allow peaceful demonstrations over the bombing to descend into violence. Those entreaties seem to be working, Army Col. Jeffrey J. Snow, a senior U.S. military officer stationed in Baghdad, told Pentagon reporters during a satellite teleconference today. "It appears as though the people have really listened to the government of Iraq, as well as the religious leadership, in terms of not allowing this to break down into violent acts," said Snow, the commander of the 1st Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division.

Snow said his unit works closely with Iraqi military units. There's no apparent split or animosity between the Sunni and Shiite soldiers, the colonel said. "We're not seeing any indications within the ranks of an allegiance on way or another," Snow said. "The allegiance is to the government of Iraq. "They have conveyed that to their soldiers. Their soldiers are complying," he said. Snow's report "is completely consistent with what I'm hearing" from other U.S. officials with knowledge of the situation on the ground in Iraq, senior DOD spokesman Bryan Whitman told Pentagon reporters today. The Iraqi government has urged its citizens to eschew violence, Whitman said, while curfew hours have been lengthened in efforts to dissipate the current strife. "Everyone has called for calm, and they've extended the curfew and we'll see," Whitman said.

Germany Nine Gold Ten Silver Five Bronze

United States Eigtht Gold Nine Silver Six Bronze

Russia Eight Gold Four Silver Eight Bronze

Canada Six Gold Eight Silver Six Bronze

Austria Eight Gold Six Silver Five Bronze

Norway Two Gold Eight Silver Eight Bronze

Switzerland Five Gold Four Silver Four Bronze

Sweden Five Gold Two Silver Five Bronze

Italy Four Gold Six Bronze

France Three Gold Two Silver Four Bronze

Netherlands Three Gold Two Silver Four Bronze

China Two Gold Three Silver Four Bronze

South Korea Four Gold Three Silver One Silver

Finland Five Silver Three Bronze

Estonia Three Gold

Croatia One Gold Two Silver

Czech Republic One Gold Two Silver

Australia One Gold One Bronze

Ukraine Two Bronze

Japan One Gold

Belarus One Silver

Bulgaria One Silver

Great Britain One Silver

Slovakia One Silver

Latvia One Bronze

Poland One Bronze