If you’ve ever been to YouTube, you’d be familiar with the top right-hand corner of the home page, which is normally home to a paid video advertisement. Well, if you go there right now, it’s showing an ad for the movie Ghost Rider. But what’s this? It’s sporting that orange OFLC “this film has advertising approval” banner…and the Australian release date…and the website for the movie ending in .au – yep, this is an Australian(ish, considering it’s for a US movie) TV commercial!

I’m jumping to the conclusion that YouTube can now localise that ad spot. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out in the local ad, movie and TV industries: watch this space, indeed.

I was going to do this after each episode, but on second thoughts, I might shift this back to Fridays. It doesn’t seem right on Tuesdays…

One show I took off the list was Australia’s Brainiest Radio Star [7.30pm Thu, 10], as the response would’ve been fairly predictable (“NO: it contains Jo Stanley!”). The only thing I wanna say about this repeat is that the winner was a radio star when the show was taped, but was boned by the time it aired!

Simply copy the following, paste it into the comment box, and edit where necessary – even explain why you made your choice if you like! Dunno what the show’s about? That’s what the links are for!

1) The King Of Queens [7pm Weekdays, 9] – YES or NO
2) Weeds [9pm Tue, 9] – YES or NO
3) Life As We Know It [10.30pm Tue, 7] – YES or NO
4) Australian Princess [7.30pm Wed, 10] – YES or NO
5) Da Kath & Kim Code [repeat; 8.30pm Wed, ABC] – YES or NO
6) The Loop [8pm Thu, 7] – YES or NO
7) 2006 AFI Awards [9.30pm Thu, 9] – YES or NO
Movie: Blast From The Past [9pm Fri, 9] – YES or NO
9) How The Hell Did We Get Here? [7.30pm Sat, ABC] – YES or NO
10) Movie: Flashdance [9.30pm Sat, 7] – YES or NO
Bonus Question: Who should replace Naomi Robson as host of Today Tonight in 2007?

Naomi Robson has quit Today Tonight. The details are at The Australian‘s ‘Media’ section.

After your hearty endorsement last week, everyone’s favourite game* returns for a second week, and here’s good news: now you can play Yes Or No at the movies! Simply decide between ‘yes’ or ‘no’ after each trailer screens. For example: Borat, yes; The Santa Clause 3, no. It’s the best thing to happen to the “pre-show program” since imagining that these people are looking at porn!!
*provided that Josh, Ross, Brett, Daniel G, Lyndal, Nigel P, Esther and fourthof5 are “everyone”

Just copy the following, paste it into the comment box, and edit where necessary – even explain why you made your choice if you like!

1) Movie: Wimbledon [8:30pm Fri, 10] – YES or NO
2) Iron Chef America [8:30pm Sat, SBS] – YES or NO
3) The Idol final [7:30pm Sun, 10] – YES or NO
4) The Comic Relief thing [7:30pm Mon, 7] – YES or NO
5) The StarDancers final [7:30pm Tue, 7] – YES or NO
6) The 2006 Glass House Awards For Eksalince [9pm Wed, ABC] – YES or NO
7) Look Who’s Talking [not the movie; 8:30pm Thu, 9] – YES or NO

This is based on the “Movie Yes/Movie No” game mentioned a couple of times in the podcast – I’ve expanded it to include new shows and other hot-button TV issues. Simply copy the following, paste it into the comment box, and edit where necessary – even explain why you made your choice if you like!

10.5 Apocalypse [8:30 Fri, 7] – YES or NO
The Dish [8:35 Fri, 10] – YES or NO
The Inside Film Awards [10:00 Fri, SBS] – YES or NO
A ‘sing-along’ version of High School Musical [7:00 Sat, 7] – YES or NO
The Mask Of Zorro [8:30 Sat, 10] – YES or NO
Communications Minister Helen Coonan speaking at this year’s Andrew Olle Media Lecture [10:35 Sat, ABC] – YES or NO
So You Think You Can Dance [8:30 Sun/7:30 Mon, 10] – YES or NO
Ashes To Ashes [9:35 Tue, 9] – YES or NO
House at the “new appointment time” of 7:30 [Wed, 10] – YES or NO
Ads interrupting programmes on SBS – YES or NO
Doing this each week – YES or NO

(Help, Brett, help! Every time I paste the YouTube embed code to just above “Did you notice”, the post updates, but the embed code vanishes! Is it cos I’m not admin?)

In case you missed it, the video of the one-minute-and-forty-seconds (not five minutes!) Simpsons Movie preview is here.

Did you notice:

• It was rated G – surely the animal cruelty warranted at least a PG?
• The truck Homer tried to destroy was stopped at a Homer-created “SOP” sign?

In a short statement on his website, Rove McManus has announced that the remaining three episodes of the 2006 season of Rove Live have been cancelled, as he continues to mourn the passing of his wife Belinda Emmett on Saturday from cancer:

At the moment I have no plans for Rove Live for the rest of 2006. This is a very difficult period for all of us and some time away is the best thing for me right now.

In the meantime I want to extend my sincerest thanks for all of your heartfelt messages and condolences. That Belinda meant so much to so many people, genuinely means a lot to me.

-Rove

According to eBroadcast, this week’s episode would have featured Toni Collette, Borat plugging his new movie, house band Burn the City and the latest voted-out Idol finalist. In the programme’s place is a repeat of the special Seriously Funny: The Best Of The Melbourne International Comedy Festival, hosted by Tripod (and produced by confetti cannon lovers GNWTV Productions). TV3 in New Zealand has put an episode of House in its vacant Friday 9:30 slot.

Belinda’s family has requested donations to the McGrath Foundation, via NAB branches or online, instead of sending flowers.

And while I’m at the Rove Live website, somebody should take that banner for Toyota Hilux’s “48 Hours To Live” promotion down: it’s coincidentally inappropriate… The promotion’s been cancelled, too.

The final edition of Media Watch for the year airs this week. The reason I mention this is that the ABC’s new editorial policies threaten to turn Media Watch into Big Questions.

You can see the final episode before the show possibly jumps the shark on ABC on Monday the 30th at 9.20pm, and Thursday the 2nd at 12.20am.

Or on ABC2 on both Wednesday the 1st and Thursday the 2nd, at 7.45pm and 10.15pm.

Or there is a video podcast.