• Gail Pennington, TV reviewer for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Waterloo - Cedar Falls Courier, has written an article on the importance of conflict in keeping long-running dramas alive and lively. She points out that CSI is one of the exceptions, and suggests that the show's success might be due to viewers appreciating "the way they work smoothly as a team."

• INC Magazine (via Elyse's) mentioned the original CSI show in an article on product placement. Laura Udall, CEO of the Zuca backpacking company, commented on their product being chosen as a possible prop for the show. "We're really excited about it," she said. "It could be a big breakthrough for us."

• Forensics classes throughout the country are suddenly drawing big crowds, thanks to the success of CSI. At the recent annual meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, no less than 280 people attended, including many from outside the profession. "People used to have no idea what we did," the president-elect of the association tells the Naples Daily News. "Now, it's like: 'You do that? Whoa, cool.'"

• Since viewers first met Gil Grissom and his Las Vegas police unit five years ago, the Nevada capital has become an increasingly popular setting for TV shows. CBS spokesman Chris Ender tells the Investor's Business Daily that "Las Vegas has sort of become like a crossroads where the entire world runs through. [...] It is a rich background for a lot of interesting people and interesting places - and it certainly looks good on camera."

• The Ventura County Star debates which franchise is better CSI or Law & Order. They conclude CSI is the perfect show if you like seeing "liquefied remains and slow-motion renderings of a bullet cracking through a skull and burrowing into a brain," while Law & Order is most appealing if you're a current-affairs buff.

• BeatGreets offers a new electronic greeting card, CSI White House, featuring an animated cartoon version of Jorja Fox (Sara Sidle), voiced by the actress herself. In the cartoon, Fox encourages people to vote against George Bush in the presidential election. Thanks go out to Jorja Fox Online for this!

• This Tuesday, Paramount Home Video will release CSI: The Complete Fourth Season on DVD. The 6-disc box set includes four featurettes and cast & crew commentaries on 7 of the 23 included episodes. The DVD set can already be pre-ordered through Amazon.com.

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