MySpace owner talks Justin Timberlake's new job (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap) – Can MySpace be saved?

That's the question facing the sickly social network's new owner Specific Media. Instead of picking up the site for parts, the Irvine-based online advertising network's CEO Tim Vanderhook says he is serious about relaunching MySpace as a digital entertainment destination.

He's certainly got one big name in his corner who could help make those ambitions more than just a pipe dream.

Shortly after picking up MySpace from News Corp. for $35 million on Wednesday, Specific Media said that it was bringing on popstar and actor Justin Timberlake to serve as the site's creative director.

It was a move that no one saw coming, instantly generating more excitement around MySpace than the site has seen for years. Fresh off his coup, Vanderhook told TheWrap about his vision for MySpace, how Timberlake will be involved, and why the social network fell behind Facebook.

Q: MySpace is seen as a tarnished brand. Will it be difficult to make people care about it again?

A: We still have 70 million people coming to the site that would disagree with that statement. One thing that we love about MySpace is that it's iconic, and when it comes to the online space, iconic brands always have the ability to bounce back.

Q: How did Justin Timberlake come on board? Did you know him before?

A: No, we didn't know him. When it comes to creative ideas, we're not professional content creators. We're not artists or musicians. We wanted to find a multi-faceted person who is all of those things, so we were sitting in a room thinking about who that person would be, and Justin was the name that came up.

We reached out to anyone who could get ahold of him and eventually we got a meeting. We talked about MySpace and told him we wanted to find a partner to guide our creative course, and something about MySpace just struck a cord in him. He's very passionate about helping young artists get discovered and within that meeting he was coming up with hundreds of ideas instantly.

Q: How involved will Justin be in the company's day-to-day operations?

A: Obviously, he has many careers that he has to take care of, so his time is limited, but his passion and involvement are high. He will have an office at MySpace and he will have six people working directly for him, who will be executing on what he wants to do.

Q: Did his role playing Facebook guru Sean Parker in "The Social Network" make him more interested in being involved in MySpace?

A: No, that just happened to be ironic. He was more interested in what we were doing from a strategy perspective.

Q: So you're not worried he's a Facebook plant?

A: Not at all.

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Seth Meyers bows to Justin Timberlake's comedy (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – "Saturday Night Live" head writer Seth Meyers reveals his true feelings about Justin Timberlake, his favorite moment from last season and how much he misses Amy Poehler.

YOU HOSTED THE WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS' DINNER IN APRIL TO GREAT REVIEWS. HOW DID YOU PREPARE?

I had a bunch of writers from SNL helping me. We spent three weeks working on material, cutting and changing up until the actual day. My SNL training definitely kicked in. But really, it was the most stressful thing ever. I mean, following a really funny president is not what any comedian is angling for.

YOU SHOWED A LOT OF RESTRAINT IN COVERING THE ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER SCANDAL IN THE FINALE OF SNL. WHY?

Well, the timing was terrible because the news broke on a Monday, and that's a lifetime away from Saturday night. Also, there were a lot of talented people in late-night who got their cracks at it, so you have to try to find a way to repackage it in a way that's fresh. Strangely, at the table read, I don't think Arnold got mentioned hardly at all. I think it's because Justin Timberlake and Lady Gaga were here for the finale. There was a lot going on. Timberlake is so good. I pale in comparison to him. It's like a butter knife next to a Swiss Army knife.

HOW MUCH PRESSURE DO OTHER LATE-NIGHT COMEDIANS PUT ON YOU TO MAKE SURE EVERY JOKE ON "WEEKEND UPDATE" IS COMPLETELY FRESH?

There isn't a huge risk of repeating what they've done, but we did have to be careful with bin Laden. After it was announced that his wives were potentially coming to the U.S., we had a joke -- "They're either gonna go to Guantanamo Bay or get their own show on Bravo" -- and someone on staff was like, "I think I've seen that joke four times this week," so we just pulled it altogether.

WHICH "WEEKEND UPDATE" SEGMENTS ARE THE TOUGHEST FOR YOU TO GET THROUGH WITHOUT CRACKING?

When Fred Armisen is doing an "Update" bit that's not going well, that's probably the hardest to not laugh because he is the most fearless performer. Once he did his Native American stand-up comedian character, and the audience just wasn't going for it. But it's this great thing -- you don't worry because he couldn't care less. I feel stressed when other people's (bits) don't go well, but with Fred, I've been trained to just go with it and know that for certain people, it's gonna be their favorite thing.

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT OF THIS PAST SEASON?

When Dana Carvey came back, and we did "Wayne's World." It was fascinating to see how the audience reacted. And this year, Bill Hader's character Stefan got the same reaction. You could see people grabbing the person next to them like, "Oh, my God, we're at Saturday Night Live on a night when Stefan is here!"

CAN YOU EVER SEE YOURSELF HAVING ANOTHER "WEEKEND UPDATE" CO-ANCHOR?

The hard part would be imagining anyone other than Amy Poehler. She was my closest friend on the show, and she steers the ship very well. I miss arguing with her -- we both come from arguing backgrounds. She's one of the great all-time arguers.

WHEN YOU'RE OUT AND ABOUT NEW YORK, WHAT KIND OF FEEDBACK DO YOU GET ABOUT THE SHOW?

It's mostly positive. But I do get criticism that's not necessarily intended, which is like, "I love 'Weekend Update,' I can't stand the rest of the show." And then I have to say: "Well, I'm the head writer, so I'm responsible for that. Ah, that's my fault." I do own up.

PEOPLE SEEM HYPERCRITICAL OF SNL IN A WAY THEY AREN'T OF OTHER LATE-NIGHT COMEDY SHOWS. WHY DO YOU THINK THIS IS?

I think people have ownership of the show, like it's a part of your family and you're allowed to lay into it. You would never want to trade that for not having passionate fans. My favorite thing is meeting people who say they hate the show, but they "haven't watched it in 30 years." That irrational, tough-love hatred -- that's the greatest thing.

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