Guest News Anchors

From PRIMEDIA’s first letter to Obligation:

“Channel One has never received payment from a movie studio or anyone associated with a movie studio for an appearance on Channel One; and Channel One has never in any way traded an appearance for a promise of a purchase of advertising. The same holds true for any and all other advertisers. Consistent with the standards and practices at other major news outlets, our news gathering and advertising sales are separate and our sales staff has no influence over any segments we run.”

From PRIMEDIA’s second letter to Obligation:

“Channel One has never, directly or indirectly, sold an anchor position to anyone, not to an advertiser, not to a movie studio, not to anyone. No one has ever paid Channel One one dime to have a guest or guest anchor appear in our broadcast and there has never been any quid pro quo of any sort with respect to our guests or guest anchors. We bring onto our broadcasts people of interest to our viewers — including actors — and our relationship to them is no different then the relationship 60 Minutes has to an actor who is interviewed by Mike Wallace. And like 60 Minutes, our people who sell ads have no influence on our editorial content.”

Actress Amanda Bynes laughs it up on Channel One’s set.
She is on the show to plug her movie What A Girl Wants.

“We bring onto our broadcasts people of interest
to our viewers — including actors — and our relationship
to them is no different then the relationship 60 Minutes
has to an actor who is interviewed by Mike Wallace. And
like 60 Minutes, our people who sell ads have no influence
on our editorial content.”

This movie made $11.4 million its opening weekend ending
April 6, 2003. Channel One’s news department chooses to have
Ms. Bynes be a news anchor on Monday, April 7.

Are we to believe there was no coordination between the
movie studio, Channel One’s advertising department and
their news department?

Channel One News makes rock band Vertical
Horizon guest news anchors so they can pitch their
new CD and tour.

“Channel One has never, directly or indirectly,
sold an anchor position to anyone, not to an advertiser,
not to a movie studio, not to anyone.“

Channel One believes something can be sold only if money
is involved. They obviously are bartering valuable celebrity
appearances and gifts for air time.

Singer Alanis Morrisette waves
to students.

“…there has never been any quid pro quo
of any sort with respect to our guests or guest anchors.”

“…our news gathering and advertising sales
are separate…”

Channel One news anchors Elmer Thudd and Sam Dodson.

Watch the video.

Check these guest news anchors out. Their music played
throughout the show. They were there to get students interested
in their New Age music.

Channel One solely determines who is invited on the show
and what they will try to sell in their role as news anchors.

Actress Dakota Fanning uses anchor position to plug her
new movie Dreamer.

“No one has ever paid Channel One one dime
to have a guest or guest anchor appear in our broadcast
and there has never been any quid pro quo of any sort with
respect to our guests or guest anchors. “

PRIMEDIA insists there is no payment made by Dreamworks
for Ms. Fanning to be on the show.

That is a Dreamer blanket that she is holding. The movie
studio is giving this to Channel One so it can be used
in a contest on C1N’s web site.

How much would it cost Channel One to have Ms. Fanning
appear on their set? How much would Dreamworks have paid
to promote their new movie to a captive audience of three
to eight million young people?

Tony Hawk’s video games are routinely advertised on C1.
He is on the May 24, 2005 show to promote a tour that helps
sell his merchandise.

Beginning End

Tony Hawk has been a guest anchor before. We are told
by Channel One there is absolutely no connection between
Mr. Hawk being offered a news anchor position and his video
games being a frequent advertiser.

Obligation’s response: Hogwash.

Nintendo is a major advertiser on C1N. For years, they
have specifically chosen to advertise Tony Hawk brand games
on the show.
Tony Hawk is sitting in the red anchor chair as a reward for
being a good advertiser. The tour he is promoting will help sales
of Nintendo’s video games.

Rosario Dawson in her position as news anchor is telling
students that her movie is a family film. The news department
has a movie clip playing in the background.

“We bring onto our broadcasts people of interest
to our viewers — including actors — and our relationship
to them is no different then the relationship 60 Minutes
has to an actor who is interviewed by Mike Wallace. And
like 60 Minutes, our people who sell ads have no influence
on our editorial content.”

Channel One says there is no connection whatsoever between
the news department and the advertising department, but how
can that be.

Watch the video.

The news department is in charge of the on-air talent.
The news department wrote the script that in this case
was nothing more than ad copy to sell the movie.

Are they saying the news department called Sony/Columbia
and said, “We would like to plug your movie on our
TV show. We have an audience and it would be fun to advertise
this adult movie to our student population and receive
nothing in return”?

WB’s 7th Heaven pays for regular ads on Channel One. Actress
Beverly Mitchell gets special anchor spot to further plug
the show.

“Channel One has never in any way traded
an appearance for a promise of a purchase of advertising.”

In the strange world of Channel One News, news is advertising
and advertising is news.

When a guest anchor like Ms. Mitchell comes on the show,
her screen time is not consider by C1N as “commercial
time.” To do so would count against their two minute
limit on advertising. So the ad morphs into the news.

Ryan Cabrera plugs CD,
tour and TV show (whew) as a guest news anchor.

“…there has never been any quid pro quo
of any sort with respect to our guests or guest anchors.”

No “quid pro quo”? The singer is giving his
signed guitar to a student who enters a contest on Channelone.com.
The guitar probably cost between $300 and $700. Signing it
may have increased the value to Channel One. Driving young
people to the web site is of vital importance to the company.
What this singer is doing has great financial value to C1N.

Singer Monica promotes
new CD.

“We bring onto our broadcasts people of interest
to our viewers — including actors — and our relationship
to them is no different then the relationship 60 Minutes
has to an actor who is interviewed by Mike Wallace. And like
60 Minutes, our people who sell ads have no influence on
our editorial content.”

Seth Doane gently guides Monica through all the promotional
aspects of her appearance. “What about the new album?

Kareem Rush of the Los Angeles Lakers is one of many NBA
players to anchor Channel One.

“…there has never been any quid pro quo
of any sort with respect to our guests or guest anchors.”

The NBA has a public relations problem. That is why the
NBA entered into a long-term
deal with Channel One News.

No quid pro quo? Hardly.

“As part of the new arrangement,
Channel One will feature NBA and WNBA players as co-hosts
on network broadcasts.  Channel One anchors will
also be granted access to cover all major league events,
including the NBA All-Star Game, NBA Finals, WNBA Finals
and related events during the season.

Channel One will also air promotional spots on the network for
major NBA and WNBA events throughout the season.”

from Channel One’s press release 3/27/01

Five stars from The WB Network’s Pop Stars are ready for
duty as Channel One anchors.

The WB is a longtime, major advertiser on C1N. The news
department is happy to help an advertiser.

“…our people who sell ads have no influence
on our editorial content.”

Who are they kidding? These five news anchors are promoting
one of Channel One’s major advertisers. They also are promoting
their show.

We have much more proof than this that if you advertise
on Channel One the odds are good that you’ll be offered
a news anchor position.

Frankie Muniz plugs his movie Agent Cody Banks.

“our news gathering and advertising sales
are separate and our sales staff has no influence over
any segments we run.”

Muniz entire appearance is a commercial for Agent Cody
Banks.

The news department simply cannot be separate from the
sales department when it is the news department writing
and acting in the commercial.

Actor Muniz himself is now a member of the Channel One
NEWS department, not the SALES department.

Vanessa Carlton plugs her CD with assist from Errol Barnett

Does Vanessa Carlton do concerts free for anybody who
calls her up?

Channel One received the value of a Vanessa Carlton concert.
This helped them increase their web traffic and exposure
to their web ads. Ms. Carlton’s appearance helped promote
the Channel One brand to schools.

This was a cold and calculated financial deal.

OK Go is a music group that needs to pump up sales. Channel
One makes each band member a reporter who can then report
on how good the band is.

“Channel One has never, directly or indirectly,
sold an anchor position to anyone, not to an advertiser,
not to a movie studio, not to anyone. No one has ever paid
Channel One one dime to have a guest or guest anchor appear
in our broadcast and there has never been any quid pro
quo of any sort with respect to our guests or guest anchors. “

Dreamworks Records recording artists have full run of
the show they guest anchor.

This is a frame from the commercial Channel One ran for
the movie Antitrust.

“…our people who sell ads have no influence
on our editorial content.”

Channel One’s sales department accepted payment to run
ads for the movie.

Channel One’s news department (the editorial part of the
company) invites
the actress from the movie to co-anchor the show. She
not only talks about the movie, she and Derrick Shore,
the regular anchor, hold hands and say they will go to
the movie together. Good grief. News and advertising holding
hands – literally.

All-American Rejects anchor May 2, 2003 show.

Anchor/ Actress Lindsay Lohan discusses her new movie
Mean Girls.

“We bring onto our broadcasts people of interest
to our viewers — including actors — and our relationship
to them is no different then the relationship 60 Minutes
has to an actor who is interviewed by Mike Wallace. And
like 60 Minutes, our people who sell ads have no influence
on our editorial content.”

Nobody has ever confused Channel One News with 60 Minutes.

If Channel One producers ran 60 Minutes you would see
Lindsay Lohan introducing herself as a news anchor.

60 Minutes reporters ask tough questions even in the fluff
pieces with actors. Channel One serves up softballs that
the guest anchor can hit out of the ball park.

60 Minutes is aimed at an older audience. Channel One’s
young audience deserves clear separation of advertising
and news.

Actress-turned-anchor Anne Hathaway reports the news and
gives students a scoop – her new movie is wonderful.

Ella Enchanted is the movie Ms. Hathaway hawked to students.

The movie studio also paid for regular commercials to
be run on Channel One. If you believe Channel One, this
was another strange coincidence.

Soleil Moon Frye may be the most enthusiastic
guest anchor ever.

“Channel One has never in any way traded
an appearance for a promise of a purchase of advertising.”

“…our people who sell ads have no influence
on our editorial content.”

Wait just a minute. Ads for Sabrina were routinely on
Channel One.

Money was flowing from the WB Network to Channel One’s
sales department to pay for 30-second commercials promoting
Sabrina the Teenage Witch and other shows.

We are to believe that Channel One’s news department independently
decides to invite an actress from the show to guest anchor
before the start of the new season.

Melissa Joan Hart (Sabrina herself) also guest anchors
at another time. [Seen on the Santa Monica Freeway: “Honk,
if you have been a guest news anchor on Channel One.”]

On location at the Winter X-Games? The X-Games were a
major advertiser on C1N. It just made sense to have two “X-stars” guest
anchor a show from the snowy slopes.

“Channel One has never in
any way traded an appearance for a promise of a purchase
of advertising.”

Watch the video.

Channel One is always looking for cross-promotional opportunities
for its advertisers. Notice who is quoted in the “Quote
of the Day.”