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Award-winning editor and reporter with 30-plus years of experience working in digital and print media. Experienced with guiding editorial direction and managing newsrooms. Thousands of career bylines, covering breaking news, technology, artificial intelligence, crime, courts, entertainment, business, cybersecurity, government, sports, and more.
Latest and Favorites
For the rest of 2026, Hollie Choi, managing director of the Entertainment ID Registry (EIDR), has one overriding goal: grow the registry. "I want to make more EIDR IDs. Lots of them," she said. Part of that push will be EIDR asking its existing clients to let EIDR help them register their back catalog of titles.
CARLSBAD, Calif. — Legoland California Resort opens its $90M Lego Galaxy on March 6, featuring a new indoor roller coaster, space rides, and hands-on fun for families.
LOS ANGELES - David Rimawi, partner with Burbank, Calif.-based film and TV studio The Asylum, is no stranger to watching a random indie property blow up and birth a seven-film franchise. After all, his company is behind such hits as the zombie TV series "Z Nation" and the "Sharknado" franchise.
The high-definition format war is officially over. Toshiba will stop shipments of HD DVD players and recorders by March and will end production of HD DVD drives for computers as well. The company added that it will continue to provide product support and services for current HD DVD owners.
An award-winning investigative report on Napa restauarants breaking the law.
Sports Illustrated and columnist Rick Reilly turned my research into the class schedules of Ohio State football players into the cover story of the Aug. 31, 1998 issue.
Recent events might lend credence to proponents of a digital only world for advance screeners of new content.
A post-pandemic look at Hollywood's shift to remote and virtualized production technologies.
Technology
New FAA rules and technology are opening up the skies, but privacy, safety and logistical questions persist
During April's NAB Show in Las Vegas, members of the Media & Entertainment Services Alliance (MESA) spent plenty of time discussing direct-to-consumer strategies.
Standards exist to properly track ads across platforms, but not everyone is using them
IAB CEO rips 'profiteers' impeding online content flow as Brave launch looms
CSG's Steffen says the company powering Sony's Ultra service had its work cut out for it
Eighteen films. One 50 GB Blu-ray Disc. $25. When under-the-radar U.K. distributor Firecake Entertainment released its Ultimate Horror Classics collection in the United States Oct. 7, it did something no home entertainment industry observer had seen since the advent of Blu-ray: It used the disc not for its 1080p video or lossless audio capabilities, but purely as a storage medium.
The master mixer behind a trove of home entertainment sees consumers tuning into latest in audio delivery
FaceIt's Bembenek lays out extraordinary challenge of broadcasting competitive gaming
Rovi's road from content protection provider to digital entertainment technology powerhouse is paved with a series of notable acquisitions
Plenty of metadata, ease of use and the ability for consumers to access everything on mobile and PC devices that they can access on their TVs are all part of the equation, Cable Show speakers agreed.
It was 1988 that the first Appleseed OVA (original video animation) was released, and 26 years later the franchise is still alive and kicking.
Reporting for the industry trade association Media & Entertainment Services Alliance (MESA).
Hollywood
On the eve of a new premium VOD offering from DirecTV, nearly two dozen filmmakers - including James Cameron, Michael Bay and Robert Zemeckis - have come out against the idea.
In the wake of Toshiba's formal surrender in the next-gen DVD format war, Universal Studios Home Entertainment said Tuesday that it will begin releasing titles on Blu-ray Disc.
Independent video retailers have weathered many storms, and a number of them are still hanging in there.
The "Bridesmaids" and "Spy" helmer doesn't want a single joke to be missed, which means a big win for home viewers.
With VHS it was the movie. DVDs opened the door to commentaries, deleted scenes and any number of bonuses that could fit on a single (or dual-sided) disc. Then Blu-ray Disc made 1080p high-def and Internet connectivity to content commonplace. But home entertainment isn’t as simple as a disc anymore.
For the home entertainment release of 'Star Trek,' Paramount Home Media Distribution took over the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles. That's a hard-to-top promotional feat, and yet the studio managed for the release of the sequel, 'Star Trek Into Darkness' ...
When the Christian-themed indie film God’s Not Dead pulled in $8.6 million from just 780 theaters during its opening weekend in late March, many in the industry were surprised. Not Michael Scott, managing partner of Pure Flix Entertainment, which produced the film (for around $2 million).
LOS ANGELES — “What would happen if this movie opened next week?” Al Pacino asked. He may have been smiling when he said it, but he certainly wasn’t asking in jest.
When Lionsgate releases the limited-edition Blu-ray combo pack of 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2' March 22, disc owners will probably laugh, more than likely cry, and definitely want to watch it all over again.
In the wake of Toshiba's formal surrender in the next-generation DVD format war, Universal Studios Home Entertainment said Tuesday that it will begin releasing titles on Blu-ray Disc.
The cast of "Harry Potter" recently spoke to Home Media Magazine from the set of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" about the upcoming Blu-ray releases of the franchise.
Samsung and its industry first Ultra High-Def (UHD) Blu-ray Disc player quickly became the belle of the ball at this year’s IFA consumer electronics trade show in Berlin.
When tasked with tackling the special effects for a family film like 'Monster Trucks' - featuring an all-CGI creature living inside a built-from-scratch, rusted, aqua-green truck - special effects guru Jim Schwalm and his team switched gears, from explosion experts to puppeteers of sorts.
Just a couple of years ago, HBO tried something new with its subscribers in Wisconsin, doing a trial where broadband subscribers could access on HBO content on their computer. Today, it’s HBO Go, and more than 2.6 million subscribers have downloaded the TV everywhere application to their computers and mobile devices.
ENCINITAS, Calif. — On May 30 a half dozen reporters were given a glimpse of what it takes to become a Navy SEAL, lifting 250-pound logs, running drills in knee-deep ocean water, and covering themselves with sand. It’s something Scott Waugh hasn’t done himself.
Analysts aren't surprised that Toshiba abandoned HD DVD just one month after vowing to fight on and cut player prices in the wake of Warner Bros.' surprising early January defection to the Blu-ray camp.
A panel of high-ranking studio executives projected Blu-ray Disc sales could top $1 billion this year and soar as high as $2.5 billion in 2009.
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment has begun delaying select new disc releases 28-days to kiosks, video stores and Netflix - a policy the studio started with the May 22 release of 'The Secret World of Arrietty,' a studio representative confirmed.
Latency issues didn't deter audience; viewer, ad buyer expectations soar
News
Hosted public affairs TV shows for Century Cable and Adelphia and was first openly gay man to serve on L.A.'s city council
OCEANSIDE - Transportation Manager Frank Watanabe resigned fromhis city post Thursday amid allegations by a councilwoman that heviolated city rules and granted a developer special favors. His resignation, which becomes effective April 20, comes oneweek after Councilwoman Esther Sanchez accused him and City ManagerSteve Jepsen of allowing developer Loren Ritter to cut corners withhis three-home [...]
A controversial housing project in the northwest part of the city has been shut down because soil imported to the site has tested positive for a toxic chemical, and both the developer and a city councilwoman are questioning how the contaminated dirt got there.
POINT LOMA – It threatened to rain most of the afternoon Mondayduring a memorial service for famed astronaut Capt. Walter M.Schirra at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery.
Six months ago, the Register found restaurants throughout Napa County were ignoring state laws requiring public notification about health inspections. A follow-up probe over the last several weeks shows that while restaurants have made progress, more than half of the restaurants visited by the Register still fail to comply with California laws regarding public notification.
It took several months and a lot of digging for funds, but San Leandro will finally have BART shuttle service to the western industrial areas of the city.
Newsletters
The WiTH Foundation is the organization of choice that inspires, empowers and educates to create an equitable and inclusive media and entertainment technology community.
Monthly newsletter for the Entertainment Identifier Registry Association (EIDR), a nonprofit industry that supplies the entertainment supply chain with universal identifiers for a broad array of audiovisual objects. For more information, please visit www.eidr.org.
Social media, newsletter, and marketing work for Johnson Interiors & More in Oceanside, Calif.
A weekly newsletter published for The Ohio State University Alumni Club of San Diego (OSUSD).
The Content Delivery & Security Association (CDSA) newsletter was published every Wednesday for more than 20 years, and represented a worldwide forum advocating for the innovative and responsible delivery and storage of entertainment, software, and information content.
The M+E Daily was a weekday publication servicing the media and entertainment technology industry,
The HITS List published twice a week and covered every angle of IT in the media and entertainment sector.
The Smart Content newsletter covered everything AI, metadata, and intelligent technology for the media and entertainment industry.
MVP was published weekly and covered emerging technologies in media and entertainment.
Profiles and Q&As
Sumit Grover, SVP and business head of media and entertainment for Tech Mahindra Americas, spoke with MESA about how the company helps media and entertainment firms improve their bottom lines, why its next-gen video and business technology stands out in a crowded field, and why its policy of “wellness before business” has helped it shine during the pandemic.
Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association, took the time to chat with 'Home Media Magazine' about the state of 3DTV, Ultra HD, UltraViolet, and the hardware standards the CEA is working on.
Bud Cort took a few minutes to chat with DVDTalk about his role as a "bond company stooge" in Wes Anderson's The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, which is now out on DVD. The actor discussed his love for the sea, a break-in at his Italian hotel room, and his few (very few) career regrets.
What started in 1995 as a small editing facility in Burbank today has become one of the biggest multi-channel media management firms, with Visual Data helping content owners and distributors everywhere get the right content in the right format to the right place, and always on time.
So busy he's handling a dozen interviews at the same time, Director Spike Lee shared his thoughts about the new Malcolm X: Special Edition 2-Disc DVD with DVDTalk.com. The new DVD (Feb. 8, Warner Bros.)
Stacy Jolna has been in the media and technology game for more than three decades now, collecting Emmys, a Cannes Lion, and a Peabody along the way.. A founding executive team member of TiVo, Jolna’s latest endeavor is Clix, a free, digital “guidance guru” for streaming content that reaches 120 million digital TV homes, and streams to more than 100 million online viewers each month.
As a founding senior executive of Netflix, and with more than a quarter-century of experience in the video industry, Redbox president Mitch Lowe knows how to do rental.
For more than 30 years, Will Kreth, former executive director of EIDR and former director of metadata management for Showtime, has worked in media and entertainment and related technologies. All that experience — and all the changes happening so quickly in the industry — led Kreth to launch the new industry consulting firm HAND (Human & Digital), geared toward helping media and entertainment players more easily discover the right talent and the right technologies.
As SVP at THX Ltd. and chairman of the 3D@Home Consortium, Rick Dean’s professional life is pretty much all 3D all the time. He’s spearheading the development of all THX 3D certification initiatives and THX Media Director, a technology that aims to simplify home theater setup and operation, and maximize the use of 2D and 3D product features.
Event Coverage
LAS VEGAS - Shaquille O'Neal - NBA hall of famer, multi-million investor, commercial sponsor mainstay and self-described tech geek - was asked June 13 ...
Mark Greenberg, president and CEO of Epix, remembers the simpler times, when there was one way to get TV, a dozen channels to choose from, and HBO was the only thing around without ads.
LAS VEGAS - More than 50 MESA members exhibited during NAB. Here's what a few of them had to share at the show. Signiant In just four years, Signiant has
For all the constant changes in technology and content distribution, not much has changed with studios and TV windows, according to Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter.
BURBANK, Calif. - In 2018, Joel Sloss, senior program manager for media security at Microsoft Azure, saw the need for further discussion and cooperation ...
For all the constant changes in technology and content distribution, not much has changed with studios and TV windows, according to Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter.
The Social TV Summit, an executive conference focused on social media and how it affects content on TV, online and on the second screen, returns to Los Angeles on July 16. Organizers are offering a discount admission rate to readers of 2nd Screen 2Day.
By Chris Tribbey - Los Angeles, last December in Tampa, Fla., families waiting to watch Disney's PG animation Frozen were reportedly shown a trailer for the NC-17-rated film Nymphomaniac. That's a disaster for everyone involved, from filmmaker to distributor.
LAS VEGAS - The first Ultra High-Def Blu-ray Disc titles will hit retail this year, with Warner, Fox and Sony announcing their initial slates for the latest disc format before any consumer electronics company announced a set-top to handle the format. Jan.
LOS ANGELES - At the Dec. 6 Content Protection Summit (CPS), world-renowned cybersecurity expert Ralph Echemendia, best known as "The Ethical Hacker," rel
The first full day of the IBC Show in Amsterdam saw a flurry of tech deals, product announcements, and new partnerships. Here's what MESA members NAGRA, Verim
Shari Alyse, a TEDx and inspirational speaker and best-selling author (“Love Yourself Happy”), arrived at the March 10 Smart Content Summit feeling a bit of pressure to deliver when she got on stage for the closing Women in Technology Hollywood (WiTH) keynote of the day.
ATLANTA - While less crowded than January's Consumer Electronics Show, the CEDIA Expo could easily have been confused for the giant electronics show after just a few minutes on the convention floor.
M+E Journal magazine
From 2019-2024, I oversaw publication of the M+E Journal, an award-winning, 100-plus-page magazine that features C-suite-level insights from Hollywood technology firms. From overall concept to story pitches, from budgeting to editing, from artwork to layout, I was responsible for every editorial corner of the publication. The magazine won a Maggie Award and four straight APEX awards. "The 'Now What?'" Issue offered the nuts and bolts of Hollywood's new remote-work reality.
Innovation explodes across every workflow as media and entertainment technology emerges from the pandemic.
The opportunities before media and entertainment are unprecedented. So too are the threats.
Will the metaverse prove transformative for media and entertainment?
Today’s localization challenges are enormous. The opportunities are unprecedented. Is the industry ready for the mayhem?
The landscape ahead for M+E looks uncertain. Automation can ease the journey.
Columns
It was a griddle-hot summer afternoon, and I was heading down the Valley Center-Escondido grade, coming home from another hard andfun day of work as the sports editor of the Valley Center Roadrunner. I’m 18, and I’m in my very first car: a 1987 silverNissan pickup, a foul-looking family hand-me-down with no AC, no radio, and a ton of dents. I think the Blue Book price on it back then was $53.86.
When people older and supposedly wiser than you say Don Knotts lives in the giant house at 1114 Idaho Ave., at the top of the hill between San Pasqual Valley Road and Bear Valley Parkway, you believe them.
As a new uncle, I believe I have two important jobs: Love my nephew unconditionally, and torture his parents.
Sports
OAKLAND — They won't use the word revenge, but the Oakland Raiders were surely thinking it Sunday night. Quarterback Rich Gannon completed 26 of 38 passes for 297 yards and ran in a touchdown, leading Oakland to a 27-20 win against the defending champion New England Patriots in a rematch of last year's still-disputed divisional playoff game.
SAN FRANCISCO — It took two pitches to turn an exciting pitching duel in the National League Division Series into a giant nightmare for San Francisco on Saturday.
Fourth and 10, 15 yards from the end zone. No timeouts and 1:18 left in the game.
Sunday was supposed to be Rich Gannon's day. The Raiders quarterback had tied an NFL record with six straight 300-plus yard passing games coming into the match-up with San Francisco.
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Going into Wednesday's game against the Crew in Columbus, Ohio, the Miami Fusion already had a strike against it.
OAKLAND — It all seemed so simple for the Raiders on Sunday.
Reviews
Lambasted for the immaturities of Star Wars Episode I and the political mud in Episode II, writer/director George Lucas faced lowered expectations from the public for Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, despite promises of a more adult, dark movie. And while the kids are still invited, and the politics are as boring as ever, Episode III bests its prequels, with superior visuals, brilliant action sequences, improved acting, and a tale long awaited.
Champloo is about fascinating and flashy characters on a road trip, about how the trio is going to overcome the next obstacle in their path and find their next meal. Sometimes they find sex along the way, more often, they find a battle. Champloo is all about the journey, not the destination. In this third volume, we get stories of love, honor, and hookers.
Grand in scale, thoughtful in more than one way, and visually ahead of its time, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind is another wonderful film from Miyazaki, one that isn't afraid to fault mankind for all its stupid behaviors, but offers hope and, yes, joy, in the form of one young girl.
Championship DVDs are perfect preseason fare. They're even better when our team doesn't win it all, because we can look back and remember what was.