Ninth time's the charm!

Tags: america's got talent, are you there chelsea? harem, happy endings, jeff probst, teen mom 2, the oscars, weeds

Our prayers have been answered. After Chelsea Handler proved to be absolutely terrible at last year's Video Music Awards, MTV has decided to ditch tradition and have no host at Sunday night's award ceremony. There are plenty of other shows that we wish would follow this example, as well as a few we hope never try to be as ahem edgy as MTV.

Tags: 16 and pregnant, academy awards, bachelor pad, bad girls club, big brother, chris harrison, Drew Pinsky, golden globes, hells kitchen, jeff probst, julie chen, perez hilton, survior, teen mom, the bachelor, the bachelorette, the talk, VMAs 2011

It's a strange news day to be sure, but one thing is certain: MTV is happy they don't have to make a token effort to play music anymore now that they've ditched that part of their logo.

Tags: Big Bang Theory., Chuck Lorre, jeff probst, Jersey Shore, mad about you, Minka Kelly, paul reiser, survivor

I'm really surprised that this show was only done as a one-off special. It's basically Extreme Makeover Home Edition meets The Amazing Race with the bedimpled Jeff Probst hosting the whole thing. It's got "tearjerking family viewing" written all over it. Put it on Sunday nights when people are looking for something feel-good to watch together and I'm sure it would do gangbusters.

Tags: Jeff Probst, Live for the Moment

The Creative Arts Emmys were held this past Saturday, and though most of the categories are for essential yet unglamorous jobs we don't care to hear about, they are increasingly cramming more and more actually important (to us) categories into the oft-overlooked Schmemmys. By way of PSA, here are the night's awards and winners you probably do care about that you shouldn't be looking for in the real Emmys broadcast this Sunday.

Tags: Ann Margaret, Betty White, Conan, Dexter, Elizabeth Mitchell, Emmys, Glee, Jamie Oliver, Jeff Probst, John Lithgow, Kathy Griffin, Lost, Mike O'Malley, Neil Patrick Harris, Phil Keoghan, Saturday Night Live, Survivor, SVU, The Amazing Race, The Colbert Report, V

What do your TV-watching habits say about you? Or, more precisely, what do peoples' favorite shows reveal about their political preferences? According to a poll administered by audience rating entity FastTrack Television, McCain and Obama supporters share a lot of the same faves, with a few illuminating exceptions. While both camps love them some House and The Office, Obama lovers are more inclined to watch shows with a, shall we say, rather juvenile comedic sensibility like Family Guy and Two and a Half Men, while McCain-iacs are more interested in manly man fare like Survivor and NCIS. Translation: Dems like poop jokes, fantastical conceits like talking babies and misogyny (Charlie Sheen), while Republicans have closeted gay feelings towards Jeff Probst, enjoy watching people lie and cheat to get what they want and like watching Mark Harmon act like a tough guy. Draw from this information what you will. Perhaps the most enlightening bit of info? The Undecideds were the only group polled who watch E.R., which, among other things, puts to rest the mind boggling question of how that show is still on the air. If these people are convinced E.R. is good television, clearly they have bigger problems than deciding who to vote for.

Tags: Charlie Sheen, E.R., Family Guy, House, Jeff Probst, Mark Harmon, McCain, NCIS, Obama, Survivor, The Office, Two and a Half Men

The Emmys can just be so dull and predictable... or just outright boring. Does anyone remember last year's never ending Sopranos tribute complete with Jersey Boys singing? Yeah. This year they are trying to spice things up by having Josh Groban sing classic theme songs (yup, Friends is now classic), presenters recite memorable TV lines ("Marcia, Marcia, Marcia!"), recreating famous sets and reuniting stars of classic shows. Sounds like a lot is going on, but we've got some of our own ideas about how they could really make this show unforgettable, and, most importantly, watchable.

Tags: 30 rock, american idol, dexter, emmy awards 2008, Emmys, heidi klum, jeff probst, mad men, michael emerson, ricky gervais, ryan seacrest, the office, the simpsons

(Contains some relatively mild spoilers not specific to any person but mentioning events of the upcoming season of Survivor in general terms.)

What's interesting about listening to Jeff Probst talk about Survivor, as he did during an hour-long media conference call today, is that after fifteen seasons have aired and sixteen have been filmed, he remains enormously conflicted about hosting Survivor. In one breath, his manner is impossibly moist as he insists that the show is compelling because -- seriously -- everyone goes out there and experiences what he calls a "spiritual death," in the form of either being voted off or otherwise broken down. In the next, he is so reluctant to seem like a humorless stiff that he freely chuckles that the show is "corny" in that he does indeed intone the same things -- "want to know what you're playin' for?", "Immunity -- back up for grabs," and especially "the tribe has spoken" -- over and over. "That's the show," he insists, a little defensively.

He's hard to read, in this way.

Tags: jeff probst, survivor