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The Morning Fix: Kanye’s Chaos; More Leno analysis (sigh); Tyler Perry still strong; Miley’s voice mail

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After the coffee. Before that pitch call with Kanye West and Taylor Swift.

Here’s Jay! Tonight marks (finally) the debut of Jay Leno’s prime time show and there is no shortage of analysis (or promos from the Peacock) on what this all means for the industry. Drama writers want him to fail. Conan O’Brien probably secretly hopes the same. Local stations are praying he puts up a decent number while NBC brass prepares to spin victory regardless of what happens. Spin and predictions from the Los Angeles Times, The Wrap, The New York Times, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter and The Daily Beast. If there are half as many viewers for Leno as there are stories about him, NBC should be in good shape.

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I can do No. 1 all by myself. Once again a Tyler Perry movie opens No. 1 at the box office.’I Can Do Bad All by Myself’ took in a little over $24 million, which is becoming a common occurrence for Perry. Otherwise it was a pretty humdrum weekend at the movies. Personally, I saw ‘Big Fan,’ which was a little grim. Analysis from the Los Angles Times, Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.

Wither Oprah? It’s time for the annual is Oprah Winfrey losing her grip story, this one courtesy of the Associated Press. The ratings are down slightly (as they are for most talk shows) and there is a school of thought that the queen of talk may have alienated some of her core by going so political during the last election. Of course, she’s still in first and no one is really close to her. Bigger issue (to us anyway) is whether that cable network will get off the ground and whether she’ll renew after the 2010-11 season.

Stick to what you know. CBS continues to bet on its procedural dramas while its competition looks for the easier, softer (i.e. cheaper) way to success. Can the Tiffany Network continue to shine with it strategy? Forbes takes a look.

Barter doesn’t pay the bills. The bad economy has shaken up the syndication business. It used to be that TV stations would get most of their talk shows and reruns by paying cash and giving up some commercial inventory. Now it’s just the latter, which is hurting the studios. Broadcasting & Cable looks at the challenges facing what is the backbone of the TV industry.

Get Miley Cyrus on the phone. While that one may be hard to pull off, you can get a recorded message from her. The New York Times reports on SayNow, a new company that offers fans (or nut jobs, but anyway) a new old way to connect with their favorite stars. Call and listen to them pitch a product. Kind of reminds us of an episode of ‘The Simpsons’ where Lisa keeps calling the Cory hotline to hear her favorite star recite the alphabet.

Inside the Los Angeles Times: A close-up look at Grupo Televisa CEO Emilio Aacarraga Jean, whose life is a lot like the telenovelas his company makes. Kanye West brings down the house at the MTV Video Music Awards, but not in a good way. Alan Alda on the late great Larry Gelbart.

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-- Joe Flint

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