CNN Delays Original Series Launches While Ukraine Coverage Continues

Marta Balaga Returning barely six months after its 2021 edition, which wrapped in September, French TV festival Series Mania welcomed Jury President Julia Sinkevych,who arrived in Lille from war-torn Ukraine.“I didn’t know if I would be lucky enough to be here tonight,” said Sinkevych to a standing ovation, with Laurence Herszberg, Series Mania general director, observing that culture cannot be insensitive to what is happening.“The whole world is now admiring our resistance, the resistance of the Ukrainian people. But there is another battlefield, which is culture, and I want us to be noticed, recognized and admired on the cultural battlefield, too,” added Sinkevych.“This [conflict] has been going on for a long time and there have been many episodes in this TV series.

Peta Murgatroyd got emotional while reflecting on Russia’s ongoing war with Ukraine.

Rebecca Souw Chinese-owned streaming platform iQiyi added its first Thai original series and two additional shows from Taiwan to its slate of content destined for markets outside mainland China.The additions were revealed Thursday as part of the Hong Kong FilMart rights market being held virtually this year for the third time. The Thai series is “KinnPorsche,” a ‘boys love’ action series starring Mile Phakphum Romsaithong (“Ladytwenty” and “Khamin Rak Kap Poon”) and Apo Nattawin Wattanagitiphat (“Chart Suer Pun Mungkorn” and “Pra Teap Rak Hang Jai”).The Taiwanese productions, “Lesson in Love” and “Oh No! Here Comes Trouble” are both set in high school.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorBenjamin Hall, the Fox News Channel correspondent who was injured while covering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for the Fox Corp.-owned network, has managed to get out of the country, according to a memo from Suzanne Scott, Fox News Media’s CEO, issued Wednesday.“Ben is alert and in good spirits. He is being treated with the best possible care in the world and we are in close contact with his wife and family,” Scott said in the note to staffers.Fox News has deployed a handful of correspondents around the country, including Trey Yingst and Steve Harrigan.Hall had been reporting in Horenka, outside of Kyiv, Ukraine, with cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski and journalist Oleksandra “Sasha” Kuvshynova when their vehicle came under fire.

A plane is “ready and waiting” to bring Ukrainian orphans over to Scotland for sanctuary, but the Home Office is not clearing the paperwork, Ian Blackford has claimed.

Girls’ Generation member Seohyun and Through The Darkness actor Kim Nam-gil will join the cast of Netflix’s upcoming original series Song of the Bandits.On March 14, Netflix Korea confirmed that Seohyun and Kim will join the cast of its upcoming original period drama. Song of the Bandits is also set to star veteran actor Yoo Jae-myung (Hometown), Lee Hyun-wook (Mine), and rising actress Lee Ho-jung (Nevertheless).The historical drama will be set in the 1920s, a period during which Korea was under Japanese colonial rule.

Elon Musk is looking to throw down with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Tesla co-founder, 50, challenged Putin, 69, to a one-on-one fight amidst Russia’s tragic invasion of Ukraine. “I hereby challenge Vladimir Putin to single combat,” Elon wrote on Twitter March 14. “Stakes are Ukraine,” he added. Elon wrote Putin’s name in Russian and Ukraine in Ukrainian.

Former Miss Ukraine Anastasiia Lenna has joined the Ukrainian forces to fight Russian troops as Vladimir Putin's invasion continues.The stunning brunette has swapped evening gowns for a rifle as she warned Russian invaders that they will "will die on our land" if they continue their advance. Sharing images on her social media, Anastasiia, who represented Ukraine at the 2015 Miss Grand International beauty pageant, has vowed to defend Ukraine until their safe border is restored.This week, Anastasiia, who has 315,000 Instagram followers, posted another video contrasting Ukraine before the war compared to recent photos and videos.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefChinese streaming video platform iQiyi has announced plans to raise $285 million from a private placing of shares, part of which will be taken up by parent company Baidu.The move comes in the same week that the NASDAQ-listed company said it was suspending its weekend live broadcasts of English Premier League football (soccer) due to the sport’s public displays of solidarity with Ukraine.iQiyi is understood to have informed the Premier League that it would be removing the coverage following the league’s announcement that a “moment of reflection and solidarity” would be held before matches at the weekend. Several teams also displayed armbands in the blue and yellow colors of the Ukrainian flag.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorABC News anchor David Muir will anchor a live primetime “20/20” special from the border between Ukraine and Poland on Friday night, as the nation’s news networks continue to scramble to cover Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, one of the biggest global stories to take place in recent memory.Muir will report on the refugee emergency taking place along that border as Ukrainians seek safety amid turmoil in their country. The program will air on Friday, March 4, at 8 p.m.

Ukraine.The move against Echo Moskvy, one of Russia’s oldest radio stations, comes amid growing pressure on Russia’s independent media to follow the Kremlin's official line while covering the invasion of Ukraine.Officials also threatened to block Dozhd, Russia’s top independent TV channel.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterSpectrum Originals has ordered the dramedy series “Panhandle” starring Luke Kirby and Tiana Okoye, Variety has learned.Set in the Florida panhandle, the series follows agoraphobic arm-chair detective Bell Prescott (Kirby) and reluctant traffic cop Cammie Lorde (Okoye) as they wrestle with personal demons, shocking twists, and a few Florida gators on their journey to heal themselves and their town.Spectrum has ordered an eight-episode first season of the series, which will shoot in Savannah, GA. It will have a nine month exclusive ad-free run on Spectrum before an ad-supported second window on The Roku Channel.Nicholas Stoller and Carla Kettner created the series and will serve as executive producers.

EXCLUSIVE: Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group (AMG) proudly announces the promotion of Nora Zimmett to President of News and Original Series for Weather Group. Her previous title was Chief Content Officer and Executive Vice President, overseeing live and original programming for The Weather Channel, as well as its world-renowned storm coverage.

Former Miss Ukraine Anastasiia Lenna has revealed she's armed herself with an assault rifle and is ready to defend her country from Russian forces.The 31 year old, who represented Ukraine in the 2015 Miss Grand International beauty contest, took to her Instagram feed to post two photos of herself in brown cargo trousers, a black jacket, black gloves and protective glasses. Anastasiia swapped her tiara for an assault rifle and shared on her social media: "22.02.2022 #standwithukraine #handsofukraine".

Though most people may have one image in their mind when it comes to a shoulder, in reality, bravery has no one face. As Russian forces close in on the Ukrainian city of Kyiv, former Miss Ukraine Anastasiia Lenna, 31, is taking up arms, warning Instagram followers: “‘Everyone who crosses the Ukrainian border with the intent to invade will be killed!’

Foxtel in Australia has become the latest broadcaster to suspend transmission of the Kremlin-backed RT channel in the region.

Vikings: Valhalla made its debut on Netflix this month.