AMC Ad Uses Snarky Blog Post to Mock Dish Network

By STUART ELLIOTT

Does the snarkiness of a blog post translate for a mainstream, general audience? A cable company is hoping to find out.

The company, AMC Networks, ran an ad on the back cover of the Aug. 24-26 issue of USA Weekend that reprints excerpts from the Mediaite blog.

The ad is the most recent riposte from AMC Networks in a dispute with Dish Network, which began at the end of June.

As part of the dispute, Dish dropped three channels owned by AMC Networks - AMC, IFC and WE tv - and replaced them with HDNet Movies, HDNet and Style. The Mediaite post, which went up on July 2, was a sardonic take on the substitutions. “Don't Worry Dish Subscribers!” began the headline on the blog post. “Here Are Some Perfectly Good Shows You Can Watch Now That You Lost AMC.”

The post, by Jon Bershad, mockingly suggested “Bikini Barbershop: Jersey” on HDNet could replace “Mad Men” on AMC an d, tongue firmly in cheek, proposed “Tia & Tamera” on Style as an alternative to “Breaking Bad” on AMC.

Earlier Coverage of Dish Network-AMC Fight

Stuart Elliott has been the advertising columnist at The New York Times since 1991. Follow @stuartenyt on Twitter and sign up for In Advertising, his weekly e-mail newsletter by clicking here.