Merlyn on Media

March 9, 2014 | Merlyn Reineke

Content is No Longer King

This past weekend, I was driving around with my five-year-old son and we got to talking about a tune playing on the radio. Making conversation, I asked, “Alexander, what’s your favorite song?” I wasn’t sure a five-year-old would even have an answer, but after a few seconds he said “Radioactive” by Imagine Dragons (and no, […]

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February 17, 2014 | Merlyn Reineke

Merlyn Reineke

Tower Above a Crowded Field of Competitors

The other day, I was driving along the Inner Loop near the Connecticut Avenue exit and noticed a car stopped alongside the shoulder. As I got closer, I saw it was actually two vehicles: in front was a Black Mercedes-Benz C300, and behind with its flashers on was a Mercedes SUV. Plastered all over the […]

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January 28, 2014 | Merlyn Reineke

Is Social Media a Waste of Money?

If you’re an organization of any size, the use of social media to market your products or services is just part of doing business these days. Yet a recent study by the research firm NextStage Evolution of more than 1,700 North American companies showed that MORE THAN HALF of them are so dissatisfied with their […]

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November 27, 2013 | Merlyn Reineke

Children & the Future of Television

Have you ever watched a child in front of a TV? I don’t mean the specific shows they view, but HOW they access that content? My two youngest kids are 10 and 4 years old. When I was their age (and yes, we DID have TV that long ago!), there were few TV options so […]

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November 4, 2013 | Merlyn Reineke

photo Merlyn Reineke

How Over-Optimism Can Drive Business & NPO Success

When I worked in TV Programming at Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), we gathered the department in an undersized conference room each Friday afternoon to review current projects. John Wilson, head of Programming at the time, didn’t always attend those meetings. But this particular Friday, he did… as he had a serious item he wanted to […]

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October 30, 2013 | Merlyn Reineke

Merlyn Reineke

The Worst Technology Month… Ever

So technology is having a REALLY bad month. First, the rollout of the online portion of the Affordable Health Care Act has been pretty much a disaster. Sure, the ACA is a complicated program with vagaries based on location and myriad plans and options. Yet is there ANY more important program to the Obama Administration […]

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October 4, 2013 | Merlyn Reineke

Tom Clancy & the New Media Revolution

One of my first jobs in Hollywood back in the day was as a lowly Associate Producer for a morning TV talk show. As with any typical gabfest, we had our share of authors touting their latest books, and one of my jobs was to read through them to determine if the author was ‘show […]

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September 6, 2013 | Merlyn Reineke

Are Local TV Stations The Next Media Domino to Fall?

The media landscape is changing SO fast, it’s hard for legacy organizations to keep up. Newspapers have been feeling the brunt of these changes, as they have been cutting back and even shutting down in unprecedented numbers… and it remains to be seen if Amazon’s Jeff Bezos can resuscitate the once proud Washington Post. But […]

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August 16, 2013 | Merlyn Reineke

Merlyn Reineke

The Real Reason Your Cable Bill is So High

If you’re like me, you probably have an ungodly number of TV channels included in your cable subscription… the VAST majority of which you probably NEVER watch. They’re like little electronic speed bumps that you hop across when you’re scrolling through your on-screen program guide, looking for the good stuff. Sound about right? The fact […]

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August 8, 2013 | Merlyn Reineke

Three Ways to Make The Washington Post Great Again

An Open Letter to Jeff Bezos, soon-to-be owner of The Washington Post Dear Jeff (and may I call you Jeff?), Welcome to the neighborhood! I think I speak for many residents of the DC area when I say we’re glad you’re coming to Washington (well, at least your money is). This town has needed an […]

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