As a white male, aged 18 to 35, I watch Adult Swim on the Cartoon Network. For the past week or so, my obligatory Judge/McFarlane quotient has been interrupted with ads like this, about Zap News App. (Sorry, embedding is turned off.)

For those too busy or important to click the link, the ad purports to be from two guys (pictured here) from Muncie, Indiana, whose iPhone app idea, Zap News, was stolen by CNN. These ads don't show any features of their or CNN's app but then, why should they? Everyone knows what news apps do; i.e., nothing special. Elsewhere on the web, the wronged duo demand that CNN "remove the app from the iTunes App Store and issue a public apology to us, then give us $100,000 and massages. And call our parents and tell them the truth."

Right about now, you should be thinking to yourself, "Well, this is obviously a viral marketing campaign. The gentleman writing this column, in addition to reinforcing various stereotypes, must be some sort of dimwit." You are correct to think that, at least the first sentence - that was my reaction, too. The question, though, becomes: viral marketing for what?

The obvious answer is: CNN's iPhone app.  (more...)

They were legally separated in March. And now, Time Warner Cable and Time Warner and its networks - like CNN - are falling further out of favor. Multichannel News has the details of the channel changes planned by Time Warner Cable in New York, that will launch CNN from channel 10 to channel 78 beginning next month. (more...)