theMediaman.com

GlobalTV’s irritating practise of gobbling up all the American syndicated TV shows has bit them back over the last few years. Starting with getting the distribution for the simultaneously-cast “Survivor” and “Friends”, located on seperate networks in the US, they’ve started screwing with the broadcast times. “Friends”, for example, was specially broadcast before primetime at 7:30.

More recently, they’ve moved “24″, the only show during the week that I HAVE to see, to 10:00 so they can accomodate the broadcast of “The Apprentice”. Luckily, the FOX feed comes in from Buffalo, completely virgin… no gratuitous Global bumpers that - since they’ve changed the format - sounds like a subway train arriving… “Ding! Ding!” Get two or three of these bumpers in a row and you’re ready to shoot the television.

I love Canadian television commercials. I think that, on average, they’re far more creative and entertaining (and effective) than the American ones. However, the US campaigns have $$$, which shows when I see what is probably the funniest ad I’ve seen since the MacGuyver MasterCard ad. In this one, an American Express ad, we get to see a confusing M. Night Shyamalan short film. It was funnier when I watched it the first time, only somewhat sure that I knew who it was.

Why do we get stuck with the lame Robert Deniro version? Even the Kate Winslet commercial for the “My Life, My Card” campaign is better. I’m curious why the only commercial from this campaign (besides Ellen’s) to make it into Canada is the one that’s so dependant on an emotional connection to a particular city; one that’s not even Canadian. Why aren’t they playing the Mike Lazaridis ad? I’m sure it’s playing somewhere, but I don’t see it nearly as much as Deniro’s constipated frown.

Hopefully Global will keep the 10:00 slot for “24″ throughout the rest of the season. Since they routinely screw up the commercial feed for football games, this only seems like compensation.