Former NBC Universal CEO Bob Wright said he doesn't think Vivendi, the French conglomerate that owns 20% of the media giant will look to unload that stake in a public offering.
What Vivendi will do with its chunk of NBC Universal has become everyone's favorite guessing game, especially now that NBC Universal parent General Electric Co. is in negotiations to sell a controlling stake in its entertainment unit cable goliath Comcast Corp.
In an interview with News Corp.'s Fox Business Network, Wright said, "I don't think an IPO is such an attractive proposition right in this market." He said he thinks Vivendi will negotiate an exit deal.
Wright did not shed much light on why he thinks GE is looking to sell. He said "this is a depressed time for media. NBC Universal value is lower today than three or four years ago." Asked why then is GE looking to deal, he responded "maybe they worry it won't get much better."
Ever the politician, Wright did not criticize he successor Jeff Zucker's big bet on Jay Leno in prime time. Asked about the move to run the show in the 10 p.m. time slot five nights a week, Wright said, "it's a decision with a long point of view ... they'll have to wait awhile."
-- Joe Flint
Photo: Bob Wright. Credit: NBC
Coach Taylor faces a challenge as 'Friday Night Lights' returns
Coach Eric Taylor of “Friday Night Lights†(8 p.m. Central Wednesday, DirecTV's 101 Network; three and a half stars) has had his share of ups and downs, but Season 4 of the show finds him as down as he has ever been, professionally speaking.
Even when things weren’t going well for the Dillon Panthers, the high school football team he led with sternness and compassion, Taylor (Kyle Chandler) still had excellent facilities and an extensive staff at his disposal. Money wasn’t really a problem for the Panthers, a perennial powerhouse in Texas football.
Of course, “Friday Night Lights†has always been about much more than football: This fine ensemble drama has used sports as a vehicle for telling nuanced stories about race, class and family. Though the Panthers, occasionally get their moments in the sun, Dillon is usually a place of reduced expectations and limited options.
So it comes as no surprise that the new season of “FNL†sees Taylor going through the kind of involuntary retrenching that many Americans are experiencing. The nice stadium, the lavish equipment budget and the extensive staff are gone. Thanks to redistricting and some maneuvering by his detractors, this season Taylor is coaching the East Dillon Lions, a poorly equipped and unskilled squad.
You can judge Taylor's contentment level by how much he stalks around with his jaw clenched, and there's a lot of sideline stomping as the season begins. But as usual, Kyle Chandler makes the charismatic Taylor's frustration compelling. And the question of the season, as always, isn't limited to whether Taylor can make the team competitive. It's also about whether he can turn undisciplined boys into men. Dramatically speaking, it's all to the good that the coach has his work cut out for him.
Taylor's wife, Tami (Connie Britton), has her own set of challenges -- as principal of Dillon High School, she receives an avalanche of criticism about the redistricting (parents see East Dillon as a second-rate high school). As if that's not enough to deal with, prominent Panther boosters think they run the Panther football program. Despite her down-home friendliness, the shrewd Tami isn't about to allow that.
It'll be interesting to see how "FNL" manages the post high-school era for several of its characters -- a transition that has often led to choppy, disjointed stories on other shows that have featured characters navigating those years. This season, both Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch) and Matt Saracen (Evanston's Zach Gilford) are still kicking around Dillon, where their prospects seem less than exciting. "How does it feel to be the guy who used to be Tim Riggins?" a high schooler asks the former Panther star, who seems unmooored without Taylor's guidance.
Saracen decided to stay in Dillon and care for his grandmother rather than attend art school in Chicago, and dealing with the outcome that choice is proving difficult. But then Saracen's life, especially, has consisted of tough choices and a narrow range of options. Four seasons in, I still find myself wanting the world to give this hangdog kid a break.
Julie Taylor (Aimee Teegarden) and Landry (Jesse Plemons) are still in high school, and a new roster of young characters joins the cast this season. If a few of them prove as memorable as Riggins or Saracen, "FNL" will be in good shape.
The show certainly has a lot of ground to cover in its 13-episode fourth season (which is set to air next summer on NBC). This year, the challenge is to create fresh, interesting story lines for new and returning high school characters, integrate the post-high school crowd into the show and mix the stories of the East Dillon team with those of the Panther players. It’s a tall order, but in the early going, the show seems up to it.
Besides, haven’t we learned that “Friday Night Lights†is usually pretty good at pulling off the underdog win?
Photos: Kyle Chandler as Coach Eric Taylor; Taylor Kitsch as Tim Riggins; Panther fans.
Sponsored Link: Amazon's Friday Night Lights StoreMichael Jackson film 'This Is It' earns $2.2 million on 1st night
NEW YORK — According to studio estimates, late-night screenings of "Michael Jackson's This Is It" have earned $2.
Letters Offer An Intimate Portrait Of Poet Lord Byron
Between trysts with various women and men, the British poet Lord Byron maintained a lifelong, spirited correspondence with a clergyman named Francis Hodgson. Now, a collection of their revealing letters is up for auction at Sotheby's.
ECUADOR: Oil Giant Is Gone, Legal and Environmental Mess Remains
WASHINGTON, Oct 28 (IPS)The story began almost 40 years ago, but when filmmaker Joe Berlinger "saw villagers eating canned tuna fish because the fish in their rivers were too contaminated to eat, [he] knew [he] had to do something".
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