A Celebration of Innovation

        I think a lot about creativity--and how to nurture it. As a boss, I often walk a fine line between giving people room to be great--and having to deliver concrete results to shareholders and advertisers. The trick--and it is a trick, not an art--is to create a supportive structure that energizes the participants and allows them to do their best work. But, I always reserve the right to make mid-course corrections at the very least, and wholesale changes at the very most. Some employees react well to this concept--and others don't.

        I always think about the bosses who inspired me to go out on creative limbs, to aspire to be great--and what they were like. The man whom I succeeded as Vice President of News for Post-Newsweek Stations,  the late Jim Snyder, always pushed me to be my best, and would be critical of my work when it wasn't. But, I always felt his support, and I never (well, almost never) took the criticisms as anything other than constructive. I always wanted to give him my best, because I felt I couldn't let him down. He knew how to unleash my creative juices, and I studied how he motivated me, and applied what I learned from him to motivate others-- to this day.

        I've also learned from bosses who suck all the air out of the room. I worked for one  news executive who thought that he had all the answers and we were all there to carry out his bidding. Needless to say, those of us who reported to him quickly realized that we could never come up with an idea that--in his estimation--was as good as something he hatched up. It's not hard to imagine what happened next: We stopped giving him our best ideas.

        Here at TitanTV, one of the innovations I'm most proud of is TitanGreens.com. I knew there was room for a daily, crisp look at environmental news. But, what I originally had in mind was not what you see now at TitanGreens.com. That's because Laura van Straaten, Morgan Jones, and our great host and environmentalist, Liza de Guia, had much better ideas. Ideas that involved comedy, character development, and irreverent sass.  Check out Daily Greens, Planet Police, Media Mulch and Versus--all on TitanGreens.com, or one of our great local affiliates. This week, we learned that we won a Webby Award for our efforts. That's the Internet's version of The Academy Awards or the Grammies. I'm proud to consider these folks and the folks who shoot and edit the pieces my colleagues. They are all innovators in this still nascent field of digital journalism.

        If you want to read more about the award, here's the press release:

TITANTV’S TITANGREENS.COM ECO-COMEDY SHOWS WIN 2008 WEBBY
PEOPLE’S VOICE AWARD FOR PUBLIC SERVICE AND ACTIVISM

New York, NY -- May 7, 2008 -- The global web community has voted to award TitanTV's TitanGreens.com comedic video shows about climate change a 2008 Webby People's Voice Award for "Public Service and Activism." TitanGreens.com's content was the only nominee devoted to climate change in its category.

Hailed as the "the Internet's highest honor" by the New York Times, the Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet, including web sites, interactive advertising, online film and video, and mobile web sites. The Webby Awards is presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a 550-person judging academy whose members include Internet co-inventor Vinton Cerf, R/GA's Chief Bob Greenberg, "Simpsons'" creator Matt Groening, Arianna Huffington, and Harvey Weinstein.

"The Webby Awards honors the very best of the Internet," said David-Michel Davies, executive director of the Webby Awards. "TitanGreens.com's win is a testament to the skill, ingenuity, and vision of its creators."

This year, nearly 500,000 votes were cast by people around the world for their favorite sites, videos and ads in the Webby People's Voice Awards. The 12th Annual Webby Awards received a record 9,500 entries from over 60 countries and all 50 states. Winners will be honored at two star-studded ceremonies in New York City: the Webby Film & Video Awards on June 9th and the 12th Annual Webby Awards Gala on June 10th. A full list of both Webby Awards and People's Voice Awards winners can be found at http://www.webbyawards.com/webbys/current.php?season=12 .

"Our content team is thrilled about our shows winning," said Laura van Straaten, vice president of content and general manager for TitanTV and head of the team that created TitanGreens.com. "TitanGreens' non-preachy approach provides proof that environmentalists really do have a sense of humor. It's great to be recognized for that."

TitanGreens is a block of hip and edgy environmental short-form videos broadcast by online syndicator TitanTV and created under COO Mark Effron's and van Straaten's leadership with host and producer Liza de Guia and senior producer and head writer Morgan Jones. The production team includes Patrick Andrews, Allison Jacobs, Rebecca Hudziak and Brandon Whalen. Programming includes:

• "Daily Greens"- Fresh servings of environmental news, served up with a healthy dash of sass and attitude.
• "Planet Police"- An unscripted narrative mockumentary series about a not-so-dynamic duo who'll stop at (almost) nothing to take down eco-criminals who live life on the wasteful side.
• "Media Mulch" - A down and dirty roundup of the coolest and greenest videos, blogs and gizmos you can find online.
• "Versus"- The eco-lowdown that busts the myths, in a funny fashion, on which products and services are the greenest choices for consumers: Bottle vs. Can. Plane vs. Car. Plastic wrap vs. Foil.

"We're delighted that our quirky approach to eco-activism has been recognized by our fans and by the green community worldwide," said head writer and senior producer Morgan Jones, who also plays Sgt. Patrice Underwood in "Planet Police."

"There's no reason we can't all have a good time and be as hilarious as possible while we're trying to save the planet," said Liza de Guia who hosts and stars in all the TitanGreens.com shows and also serves as a producer.

Founded in 1996, the Webby Awards are known worldwide for their famous five-word speech limit. Past headline-grabbing speechmakers include Al Gore ("Please don't recount this vote"), Beastie Boys ("Can anyone fix my computer?"), and Prince ("Everything you think is true.")

TitanTV is a worldwide source for local, original and user-generated content and is syndicated on the web sites of more than 1,000 television stations. TitanTV thus provides advertising solutions and revenue generating opportunities for local TV stations nationwide, while being an online resource for millions of users seeking unique content and local TV listing information. In its continuing effort to enable local TV web sites to remain competitive, TitanTV Network offers local broadcasters original entertaining programming, packaged inside a hosted online video player, along with an easy-to-use content management system.

Visit www.TitanTV.com for detailed product and programming information and for professional backgrounds on the company's principals.

Hailed as the "Oscars of the Internet" by the New York Times , the Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet, including web sites, interactive advertising, online film and video, and mobile web sites. Established in 1996, the 12th Annual Webby Awards received a record 9,500 entries from all 50 states and over 60 countries worldwide. The Webby Awards is presented by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. Sponsors and Partners of the Webby Awards include: Adobe; The Creative Group; Nokia; .ORG; The Barbarian Group; Level3; Adweek; Fortune; Variety; Wired; IDG: Brightcove; PricewaterhouseCoopers; 2advanced.Net; KobeMail and Museum of the Moving Image.