Field Notes Inside an Integrated Communications Agency

Let the countdown begin! Although many of us already see antennas and "rabbit ears" as extinct, in 362 days (as of today) this will hold true. On February 18, 2009 the DTV transition (digital TV) will occur, switching from analog to digital broadcast television. 

So what does this mean to you?  All-digital broadcasting will not only improve picture and sound quality, it will offer "multicasting."  This will allow broadcast stations to offer several channels of digital programming at the same time, while as with analog, they could only offer one. This means even more fragmentation for media buyers (ugh). The transition to digital will also open up airwaves for public safety and emergency communications like police and fire departments.

After the 17th, anyone who has an analog set and relies on an over-the-air signal will need to make a switch.  According to Nielson Media Research, 13 million households have television sets that can only receive analog broadcasts and are currently unprepared for the transition. 

You do not however need to ditch your old television, just get a digital to analog converter box. They sell from $40-$70. The government has issued a coupon program that just became available, worth $40 towards a converter box.

So this is great right? I get way more programs to choose from, no more "rabbit ears", and the government is going to give me a coupon to cover the cost of a converter box! 

Sounds simple, however this is a really profound and expensive change to this medium. This is likely to impact the economy in a big way. The National Association of Broadcasters announced plans for a $697 million dollar campaign to educate consumers about the digital broadcast transition. 

Will millions of people run out to Best Buy to upgrade their TV's? And if so, what are they going to do with their old TV sets?  As I was writing this post thinking through the possible implications this change will have, a new article popped up from my Google Reader about how much e-waste this change may potentially create.

Even with the efforts to educate and prepare the public for the conversion, this will most likely affect the elderly and low-income population the greatest. These households will be unable to afford cable or satellite, and may also have a difficult time purchasing the more expensive converter boxes.

For many advertisers and media buyers, this could result in a shift in media dollars. Ratings may drop in these areas, and we may see broadcast dollars targeting low-income households move to other mediums such as direct mail. 

The outcome of this conversion is still unknown, however February 09' will creep up fast! Will you be ready?

Ok, I'll admit it. I'm a health-nut. I'm the crazy girl who spends hours in the grocery store examining food labels and trying to depict the elements of the "helpful" ingredient list. There are certain words on a food label that if you see, well let's just say you better run screaming into the soy section and pick up a container of yogurt in the hopes it will cleanse your body of the toxins that probably seeped in from that package of granola bars. If anyone can tell me what "fractionated palm kernel oil" is I'll give you a cookie. (Free of partially hydrogenated oils of course). Some people may think it's border line obsessive compulsive the way I examine food. Whatever. I'll be the one laughing at my 97th birthday party.

Wake-up.Turn on any morning TV show, and you're bound to learn a plethora of information about food. Fries are bad, oatmeal's good. Common sense, right? One would think that's the case. But in the next breathe after Meredith Viera tells us to eat our oatmeal and berries, she delivers a statement that made me gag on my toothbrush. For the first time since the Civil War (again I iterate the Civil War) American's life expectancy is now on the decline. Declining. Going down. No more growing old with our loved one until we're 100. Now we should just be praying we get in a good 70 years. Why is this? Childhood obesity rates have surged so greatly in the past few years that kids have knocked 10 years off their lives before they're even teenagers. An acclaimed food Nazi, I hear this and am in moral disbelief. The problem is that most American families listen to Meredith Viera's words and rush out the door to make the usual morning pit stop for a McDonald's bacon egg and cheese biscuit. Does this fact not shock us? Does it not make us stop and think, "Hey, maybe I should eat Cheerios instead." No. It's just like teens who think they'll never get cancer from smoking. That won't happen to me. I'll lose weight when I'm older. I'll start exercising. I'll get a Wii!

Oh the Wii. Props to you, Nintendo. A valiant effort to get the kiddies up off the couch and moving around the living room. The New York Times even did a story on a British study conducted on the health benefits of the Wii. A heart-racing game of Wii tennis will burn about 179 calories an hour. Impressive. And I'm sure that little Bobby washes down his victorious game of tennis with an ice cold Coca-Cola and a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos. Make that Cooler Ranch Doritos. We should all run out to Best Buy and make a purchase toward our health. An hour of real tennis burns at least two times as much as the pseudo version brought to us in our living room. Do they list that on the box? Kids who watch hours of TV and play video games are more likely to be obese. The Wii is a step in the right direction, but it's not the answer.

Network executives at NBC learned that they could also capitalize on obesity in America. Hell, there are so many obese Americans why don't we create a show that awards the person who can lose the most weight? Beautiful. Enter "The Biggest Loser." Thousands of people send in their requests to be picked for the show. Everyone is so willing to prove that they are absolutely fatter than the next guy. Congratulations, you win. You're really, really fat. So now for a season of primetime TV we get to watch the NBC approved fattest Americans shrink before our eyes. Contestants get 24 hour access to top personal trainers and meals handed to them with carefully factored out calories. Entertainment at its finest. If anything, this only affirms for most Americans the difficulty of losing weight. Most people don't have time to give up their jobs and spend 24 hours a day on the treadmill. This isn't how real life works. In real life it takes serious effort to make the right choices that contibute to a longer, healthier life. We don't all have to be food Nazis, but we do all have to take a moment, step away from the Wii and start processing the words of Meredith Viera.

Obsessing over every calorie that enters your body will never make you happy. Nothing will ever be as good as fresh baked chocolate chip cookies straight from the oven. But trading in a pint of Ben and Jerry's for some frozen yogurt and taking a walk around the block are all very doable in our daily lives. 

In 2006, our client Blue Cross and Blue Shield began implementing workplace wellness initiatives among its employees. Out of 213 employees who participated the group lost a total of 700 pounds. The program, Blue Challenge gave employees the tools to undersand their health and nutrition. Weight loss is hard, but those in a motivating environment are more likely to stick with the program. Taking workplace wellness a step further, why not take these health and nutrition tools home to the family? 

If we learned nothing else from Willy Wonka, let's remember that gluttony will only get you a ticket to the furnace where you will be fished out by Oompa Loompas. The keys to your health are simple.

• Eat right.
• Exercise.
• Get enough sleep.
• Laugh as often as possible.

What's that last one again? Laughter. Happiness may be a temporary state in our lives, but those of us who are willing to take time to exercise, eat some fruit and laugh with our friends, won't have to start looking for a director to help out with our Biggest Loser audition tapes. These simple tasks are what make a healthy individual thrive. So do yourself a favor, and learn to practice moderation. Skip the drive thru in the morning and pour yourself a bowl of cereal. Take a walk, ride your bike or even take a trip to that strange universe known as the gym.

And if you have kids, don't think you can buy them a Wii, give them some Lucky Charms and call them the picture of health. Eating habits stay with you the rest of your life. Sit down with your kid and take some really good notes during Willy Wonka. Remember what happened to Augustus Gloop. You don't wanna be the poor Oompa Loompa that has to save him from the furnace, do you?

Hallelujah. Programming still matters.
 
With all the YouTube and streaming video hype, it’s easy to lose focus on content and get distracted by the delivery channel. It’s especially easy to forget about cable television, yesterday’s new media.
 
Cable’s performance this summer shows that the medium still has sizzle. It’s more than 24/7 news and Law and Order re-runs. Cable networks have always had a reputation for edgier programming and that’s ideal for competing in today’s consumer-driven media environment.
 
The broadcast networks bet on bottom of the barrel reality shows this summer. Maybe, as pointed out by The New York Times, this was designed to save production costs. Or maybe, the networks thought reality would help them compete with online consumer-generated reality content.
 
Whatever, the rationale, traditional network’s summer fare is coming up dismally short and cable execs are looking smart with drama programming like TNT’s Saving Grace, AMC’s Mad Men and Lifetime’s Army Wives. TNT is offering past episodes online. I believe this is a strategy that’ll help their dramas capitalize on buzz and build audiences over time.
 
Will the traditional networks rush to copy cable? Will cable be able to sustain this momentum into the fall when favorites return from summer re-runs? We’ll know more as the fall schedules are released.
 
No matter the outcome, it’s good to know that drama isn’t dead.
 
FYI, the Triangle Ad Club is hosting their annual fall premiere party next Thursday at 5:30 at the Matthews House in Cary. If any of you would like to go as our guests, please let us know.