The Four Stories Every TV Fan Must Read Today: 03/26/2015

Here are the four stories that are today's must-read pieces for anyone interested in the television or media business.

1) While you might disagree with the politics of FOX News head Roger Ailes, he comes across as a pretty good boss in the Ad Week piece, "Gregg Jarrett: ‘I Might Not Have Survived’ Without Roger Ailes.'"

Ailes got very busy, hiring lawyers to handle Jarrett’s criminal case in Minnesota, and making calls to get Jarrett admitted to the Betty Ford Center. Ailes also worked with Jarrett’s co-anchor, Julie Banderas, to find the fastest and most discreet travel arrangements for Jarrett, and Ailes dispatched a Fox News producer to fly at Jarrett’s side.

Jarrett says Roger Ailes personally–and regularly–called to check on his wife and two teenaged daughters. “This was so very hard on them. Their father’s on television. Suddenly, he’s detained by police, his mugshot is all over television. It’s hard enough being a teenager, but when you go to high school and kids in the hall say ‘hey, I saw your Dad’s mugshot on TV last night, it’s devastating.”

Thinking back to what his arrest did to daughters Grace, 18, and Olivia, 16, Jarrett became visibly emotional–pain filling his eyes. “It breaks my heart.”

2) Uber-producer Gavin Palone takes a scathing look at one of the less-understood parts of the TV business: the agency "package fee." As he writes in "Your Agent Gets Money For Nothing," the fee charged by agencies for putting together a deal (even if they didn't have anything to do with it) can earn them more money from a hit series than the person who created it:

I'm not writing this to bash the agencies. It isn't any more their fault than it would be mine if I were to put my house up for sale at five times what it's worth and someone acceded to my demand. Understandably, nobody is willing to overpay for my house, but close to 100 percent of broadcast network scripted TV shows generate package fees for talent agencies. And I promise you, the only reason those fees are paid is out of fear that the agency will kill a deal if its agents don't get to wet their beaks, rather than because they did any extra work or "packaging."

3) In the April edition of "Esquire," comedian and talk show host Chelsea Handler says that comedian Bill Cosby once tried to "Cosby" her, which might be the first time his alleged behavior has been used as a verb:

Oh, I was in Atlantic City playing, doing stand-up, and he was doing stand-up in Atlantic City in the same hotel, and at like three o'clock in the afternoon, someone from the hotel came down and said, "Oh, you know, Mr. Cosby would really like to meet you up in his hotel suite." And I thought, That's really weird. This was like ten years ago. And I said, That's really weird. I don't want to go alone. I go, I don't know him.

4) When the BBC officially canned Jeremy Clarkson from TOP GEAR earlier this week, fans of the show were distraught over the future of the show. But most fans of Clarkson were pretty sure that he would end up working somewhere else for a lot more money. That seems to be the likely scenario, if this Daily Mail piece is to be believed:

But it may be Netflix – which has a £3.4billion programming budget – who may be best placed to woo Clarkson.

Industry insiders believe that he would be give him complete control of any new Top Gear-inspired show.

The online subscription video service does not depend on advertising income, so would allow him free rein to make controversial remarks about cars, without the risk of offending customers.

Clarkson, who is worth £30million, could make much more money than from his previous deal BBC deal.