NBC Takes 'American Idol'-Like Show Online

NBC is launching an online show called Star Tomorrow which will follow 100 bands for 16 weeks beginning this summer as they compete for a record deal. Tommy Mottola will be the shows's Simon. Somehow we don't think will make a dent in American Idol's ratings.

TV Isn't The Only Place to Find Super Bowl Advertising

While everyone's buzzing about the upcoming Super Bowl Commercial Orgasm on TV, the industry seems to have forgotten that there are other media carrying Super Bowl related advertising. Thanks to Adverlicio.us which put together a collection of Super Bowl-related online advertising, we can re-direct our attention, if only for a few minutes, to this upstart little medium called the Internet. Unfortunately, most of the ads aren't very good so after you take a look, you can go back to worshiping the :30.

Adland Ties Super Bowl Spots In A Bow

Neatly organizing the known players for Sunday's Super Bowl Advertising extravaganza, Adland has compiled a list of advertisers, what they plan to air and when during the game the ads will run. Budweiser will dominate with ten spots during the game. GoDaddy has finally made the list. All the other regulars will be there as well from FedX to Subway to ESPN to MasterCard to Emerald to Burger King (with Brooke Burke) to Pepsi to...well....just go read the list.

Shocker! GoDaddy Super Bowl Commercial Gets Approved

Conveniently, with just three days left and milking every last bit of publicity, GoDaddy today received approval to place a commercial in the Super Bowl this Sunday. It took fourteen tries but the fourteenth was the charm. GoDaddy CEO says the spot will appear as the second ad in the sixth break, likely at the end of the first quarter or the beginning of the second. A second position has been purchased as well.

GoDaddy has created a time line of its dealing with NFL with an explanation, screenshots and video for each of the 14 attempts. The approved version reallu isn't all that exciting or funny for that matter but, as always, Parsons promises an Internet-only version to be released Super Bowl Sunday.

Religious Right Uppity Over Britney Spears' 'Will & Grace' Appearance

Not realizing it was lack of advertisers instead of their religious whinings that caused NBC to cancel its Book of Daniel, The American Family Association is all hot and bothered again over Britney Spears' appearance on the NBC sitcom Will & Grace in which she plays a co-host during a new cooking segment called "Cruci-fixin's" on the show's fictitious TV network, recently purchased by a Christian TV network.

AFA Special Projects Director Randy Sharp blathered, "They would not be making fun of Mohammed or Buddha. It's almost sacrilegious. I wonder who is at the helm of NBC that they are not getting the message. NBC doesn't seem concerned that they are tanking because they are offending their viewers and running them off." Though it's in its last season, Will & Grace is hardly tanking.

Gawker Media Launches Silicon Valley Gossip Blog

The bow's untied. The password protection has been removed. Today, Gawker media launches another gossip blog, this time, focusing on Silicon Valley. Called Valley Wag and described as a tech gossip rag for Silicon Valley tech types who are too busy changing the world to have time for "sex, greed and Hypocrisy" but who Gawker knows needs, like everyone else, some good dirt. The blog is written by West Coast newcomber Nick Douglas who, because of his newness, won't be burdened with having to be polite to anyone unlucky enough to find themselves maligned on the pages of Valley Wag.

Animals Audition For Spike Jonze Miller Commercials

In the works since last Summer, Miller, along with Spike Jonze and Y&R Chicago, has created six commercials featuring talking animals that mock all the animals Budweiser has used in its ads over the years. The "auditions" for the ads, which feature animals babbling on frustrated actor-style, can be viewed here. Who knows. Perhaps they'll appear in the Super Bowl.

Grocery Store Uses Body Parts to Sell Produce

While we know there's all sorts of metaphors for human body parts and the selling of such parts, we don't seem to recall seeing a grocery store liken it's produce to body parts in quite this particular manner. In these ads, asparagus, pears, bananas and, yes, melons are compared to the various body parts one might envision when thinking about such produce.

Fiat Partners With Google Earth For Olympic Contest

Adverblog points to an online game created through a partnership between Google Earth and Fiat to promote the car makers Sedici SUV. Players use Google Earth to search the snow-covered terrain at Turin for points indicating four hidden Sedici vehicles and a pass to the Ferrari 360 Experience, a travel package that includes a Ferrari plant tour and test drive. Players can only win the car if they live in Italy, France, Great Britain, Austria, Switzerland, Greece and Spain.

Parents Get Another...Really, It's Different This Time...Parenting Mag

While parents may not need yet another parenting magazine, advertisers, apparent;y do. With close to 70 pages of advertising, including a double gatefold from Hasbro, Disney Publishing Worldwide, on February 14 at a newsstand near you, is launching Wondertime, a magazine "designed to help moms understand how children are learning and growing." Hmm. That sounds like the premise of just about every other parenting magazine out there but no matter. I'm sure you know a freaky, over-involved, over-protective, over-coddling, over-concerned parent or two who just loves to suck this stuff up.

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