Countdown clocks, going green … and lots of Anderson Cooper

Posted on October 21, 2007 by Melissa Worden

I was watching CNN Friday and noticed the station’s logo has turned green. I figured that it had to do with their new “Planet in Peril” series that at the time was scheduled to run in 100 hours, 30 minutes and 08 seconds.

Yes, they actually had a countdown clock for this show four days ahead of time. I wish I had snapped a photo of the TV — but you can see one over on this blog. Interestingly, the PIP promo now only says “Tuesday 9 PM.”

Here’s what they said about the color change:

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, how about this? You may have noticed something a little different about what you’re seeing on TV.

See that little green logo down there? Well, CNN is going green because we’re digging deeper on environmental issues, covering stories that affect all of us from the air we breathe to the fuel we use. It all coincides with the premiere of “Planet in Peril,” a special report from Anderson Cooper, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Animal Planet ’s Jeff Corwin.

That is next Tuesday and Wednesday at 9:00 p.m. Eastern, only on CNN.

What they failed to mention on TV is that they have a “Planet in Peril” section on their Web site, too.

And they’re advertising it just as heavily online. “Planet in Peril” is now a part of the masthead, minus a green CNN logo. Come on … at least be consistent in your gimmickry!

Anyway, the section is flashy at first glance, and I like the rotating globe as a navigation tool (except when I have to wait for it to turn to get to a new link). But the site is a letdown once you start clicking around because it’s clearly a commercial for the TV show.

It’s FULL of links that take you outside of this pretty section, videos set on autoplay, headlines to older stories, fuzzy sneak peek videos and trailers, outtakes with penis jokes and journalists forgetting their lines, and photos of Anderson Cooper modeling.

Can’t get enough of McStudly? You can even download those pictures and post them on your very own computer as wallpaper …

Anderson Cooper model shot #1