MediaMarketalk

Politics Looks like CBS '  "60 Minutes" drew 22 million viewers on Sunday night with Anderson Cooper's much anticipated interview segment with President Donald Trump accuser, Stormy Daniels (Stephanie Clifford). It was 60 Mintues' best ratings since 2008. Daniels also bested Donald Trump's 2016 interview by 2 million viewers. Well, we're happy somebody made out (no pun intended), because we felt robbed in the department of delivery. Some in the media are saying the run up to the interview was over-hyped, (namely by Daniels' attorney Michael Avenatti ) and that the resulting edited broadcast under delivered. However, media outlets are claiming Daniels did offer new details . We were left underwhelmed, but convinced of her veracity. As of today Michael Avenatti teased  "there's more to come" .  The White House for its part says, Trump continues to deny the alleged affair. That's weird because we thought Trump joined a lawsui...

In Memorium - Fashion Hubert de Givenchy , the designer or as the fahion industry would refer to him, a  French couturier passed on Saturday, at the age of 91, without much attention in the media. For so many decades the name Givenchy was connected to, what was at the time, the world's most classicly beautiful women such as Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly . We were never able to obtain a Givenchy garment, but we appreciated his style, adherence to elegance and talent. 

Retail Recently while reading an article on Bloomberg " The Death of Clothing ", we were reminded again that America has come a long way from its heady days of packed department stores, and the need to walk around with the item you were thinking about purchasing, lest it be snatch from the rack. That was yesterday. Today habits have changed so much stores are consolidating or closing. The new trend in "not shopping" for clothing has hit retailers with sizable debt the hardest.   While we generally agree, from our experience in retail, the desire for luxury clothing, be it knockoff or not, is still pretty high. Fashionistas on Instagram have huge followings, and from what we're told there are two distinct groups keeping luxury afloat; the wealthy (they can afford to shop and spend on "experiences") and the hip urban crowd (who judge affluence and influence by "what you're wearing).  The desire for designer handbags has remained...

In Memoriam There are those in the media who are gripping about the "stars" or well know performers who were left out of Oscars 2018 " In Memoriam ". We think the focus was on the behind the scenes people and lesser known performers who also contribute the magic of making movies. Lots of attention was devoted in the media to the passing of Adam West  (we went on endlessly in social media about West) as we grew and Glen Campbell , but the award show is being slammed for not including them. We ask, how much attention did the media give to the people who were included?

Award Shows This year we did not do a play-by-play for the 90th Academy Awards , but we would't miss the Oscars , and the who did what, for anything in the world. So here's the complete list , and a review of Mary J. Blige's " winning performance " from the LA Times. Reports that social media questioned Kobe Bryant's presence (on a Times Up-themed night ) to pick up his Oscar for his contribution to the animated " Dear Basketball ", was interesting. Just to round out the gripes, CNN went over who was left out of this year's " In Memoriam ". Until next year.... 

Retail We've long questioned the wisdom of liberal return policies. In 2012 we penned a piece  Time to Refine Retailer Return Policies , although it was focused on the consumer end of the return. But this Wall Street Journal piece about merchandise returns , some "$90 billion" worth, really gives us pause. What is the actual cost of retail goods if retailers are forced to throwaway (this merchandise goes to landfills) or sell the goods to secondary markets for pennies on the dollar. What is driving this huge amount of merchandise returns? Some point to the lack of quality in today's goods. Shoppers joke that the items are made to be disposable and that's how retailers make their profit. Whatever the reason for the huge amount of returns, consumers and the planet are undoubtedly paying the cost.