Strange Ads Promote an Author Who Isn't Real and a Book That Doesn't Exist

IFC's upcoming The Spoils of Bablyon, a comedy miniseries that spoofs serious miniseries, is based on a book that seems to be sold out in Hudson News stores around the country. The problem with keeping the book in stock, though, is that there were never any printed copies. Eric Jonrosh (and the jig will be up when he shows up on TV and looks a lot like Will Ferrell, who produces the series along with the rest of the Funny or Die crew) is the megalomaniacal author of the book, and his persona has become the avatar of IFC's marketing for the show. "[Andrew Steele and Matt Piedmont, who wrote the series] created a character—well, we don't even like to call him a character," head of marketing Blake Callaway tells AdFreak. "We like to pretend he's real. We've written the fake book reviews. He's committed to literacy, because if you can't read, you can't read Jonrosh." The writer's megalomaniacal streak is borne out in the ambitions of the miniseries, which appears to span a period from the 1930s to the 1980s, if the trailer (see below) is any indication. So IFC has an appropriately grandiose ad campaign, with the book-focused executions littering bookstores and branded Little Free Libraries installed in cities like Dallas and Minneapolis in partnership with that organization. Callaway says he hopes to entice writers from the blockbuster-ier end of the literary spectrum to turn out for the show's Los Angeles premiere in January. "[James Patterson] is on our wish list,"... Continue reading at 'AdWeek'

[ AdWeek | 2013-11-15 00:00:00 UTC ]

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Perplexity will put ads in its AI search engine and share revenue with publishers

When people type a question into Perplexity, the two-year-old search engine scours the internet and uses information from multiple sources, including online publishers, to synthesize an answer using AI. Soon, Perplexity will start sharing revenue with some publishers as part of an advertising... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2024-07-30 13:00:52 UTC ]
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Spotify subscribers in the US now get 15 hours of audiobooks every month

In addition to music and podcasts, Spotify has recently been working to cement its presence in the audiobook space. Today, the company announced Premium users in the US will be able to stream 15 hours of free audiobook content monthly as a part of their subscription.... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-11-08 19:20:00 UTC ]
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Video and Audio Downloader Pro 2 review: Save YouTube videos and more

At a glance ProsResolutions up to 8K possible, direct extraction of MP3 filesConsNo downloading of videos behind paywallsOur VerdictThe Video and Audio Downloader Pro 2 is easy to use and useful, especially for users of public service media libraries. Watching videos offline has evolved... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2023-08-04 16:46:51 UTC ]
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Video and Audio Downloader Pro 2 review: Save YouTube videos and more

At a glance ProsResolutions up to 8K possible, direct extraction of MP3 filesConsNo downloading of videos behind paywallsOur VerdictThe Video and Audio Downloader Pro 2 is easy to use and useful, especially for users of public service media libraries. Watching videos offline has evolved... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2023-07-31 17:44:06 UTC ]
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College textbook maker Pearson eyes NFTs to claim a cut of second-hand sales

NFT advocates often tout the technology's ability to grant the creator a cut of second-hand sales as one of its major attributes. Artists can earn from one of their digital creations years after first selling it. Others are looking at NFTs to earn a buck from the secondary market too, including... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2022-08-03 20:10:20 UTC ]
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Amazon is bringing mobile games to its Amazon Kids+ service

Amazon is bringing two mobile games to its subscription-based entertainment platform for children. Known as Amazon Kids+, the $2.99 per month service has served as sort of a one-stop shop for kid-friendly books, TV shows, movies, games and more. The first game, Super Spy Ryan is a multiplayer... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2022-04-14 13:00:13 UTC ]
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The Most Anticipated LGBTQ+ Books of 2022

A few years ago, I found myself a bit tipsy at the National Book Award ceremony. It was my first—and so far, only—time there. The experience felt grand; it was a red-carpeted “benefit dinner” on Wall Street. People wore tuxedos and gowns. I couldn’t look around the room without seeing a writer I... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2021-12-20 12:00:00 UTC ]
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How to Write About Kink Without Going Full “Fifty Shades”

It is hard to talk about sex and literature without making some sort of Fifty Shades of Grey reference. But where Fifty Shades shows a caricature of S&M, the new anthology Kink is a celebration of the range of human desires. From the power of control and the titillation of voyeurism, this... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2021-02-12 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Trade Show Organizers Respond to the Coronavirus Outbreak

The 55th annual National Magazine Awards, originally set for Thursday, have been pushed to a to-be-determined date later in the Spring, the American Society of Magazine Editors said Monday. A mere three days before the event, the timing of the announcement—in which ASME cited the "near-certain... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2020-03-10 17:17:20 UTC ]
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Oprah’s Book Club drops My Dark Vanessa as a pick because of Twitter controversy.

After the massive blowback from its selection of American Dirt—a book about the migrant experience widely denounced for having very little connection to the migrant experience (or to Mexico, where the book is set)—it makes sense that Oprah’s Book Club would make future selections more... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-03-05 17:20:51 UTC ]
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People Magazine’s Newest Engagement Play Is Texting Readers Directly

You up? It's People. Starting Sunday, People magazine says it will be offering free, exclusive Oscars red carpet and backstage content to users who text 212-479-1704 and sign up by providing their name and phone number. The project is part of a partnership with Community, a messaging platform... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2020-02-04 19:22:48 UTC ]
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BookScan Reports 'Fifty Shades of Grey' Is Bestselling Book of the Decade

E.L. James’s irresistibly salacious novel 'Fifty Shades of Grey' is the bestselling book in the U.S. book market over the past decade according to NPD BookScan. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-12-18 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Nestlé Is Doubling Down on Ad Tech

Nestl?, the consumer-packaged-goods parent of such brands as Gerber, Poland Spring and Haagen-Dazs, recently unveiled its Global Digital Media Center of Competencies (DCoC), which brings together all of its agencies to deliver greater transparency in its media investments. It makes sense,... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2019-11-13 11:00:00 UTC ]
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And the Dish ran away with the ... Fox

Welcome to another edition of Ad Age Sports Media Brief, a weekly roundup of news from every zone of the sports media spray chart, including the latest on broadcast/cable/streaming, sponsorships, endorsements, gambling and tech. They can Dish Network it out, but they can take it? In the latest... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2019-09-28 16:15:43 UTC ]
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7 Novels Set in Toronto

In the popular imagination, the idea of Canadian literature is overwhelmingly dominated by imposing landscapes: the vast emptiness of the prairies, a cruel wilderness that tests the limits of human survival. It makes sense that such settings would loom large––many of the country’s most... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2019-08-26 11:00:08 UTC ]
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Four things to look out for as ViacomCBS comes to life

It ultimately took an extraordinary set of circumstances to clear the way for the reunion, but after three years of hemming and hawing (and the headlines-grabbing ouster of Les Moonves), CBS and Viacom have at long last agreed to a merger. The deal will bring together the CBS, Showtime, MTV,... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2019-08-13 20:58:29 UTC ]
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How Google is rewriting the rules of ad auctions

Google is moving to a simpler online advertising model called “unified auctions,” but its adoption will be anything but simple for the publishers who rely on the internet giant’s technology to manage their ad inventory. In the coming months, Google is aiming to level the playing field for... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2019-05-28 07:00:00 UTC ]
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New Novel Coming from E.L. James This Spring

Penguin Random House’s Vintage Books imprint will publish 'The Mister,' a new novel by Fifty Shades of Grey author E.L. James, on April 16. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-01-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Wolf of Wall Street in court over royalty row

Jordan Belfort, the real life "Wolf of Wall Street", is in court following a row over royalties from his latest book, Way of the Wolf. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A Book Club Book Club

You certainly don’t have to be a Fifty Shades of Grey fan to enjoy Book Club, the new romantic comedy that stars Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Candice Bergen, and Mary Steenburgen. But the movie, in which four women’s lives are forever changed by reading E.L. James’ infamous series, is bound to... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2018-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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