[IMG:L]Dick Clark’s Primetime New Year’s Rockin’ Eve 2008 — 10/9c, 11:35/10:35c on ABC
Still the mother of all New Year’s countdowns, Rockin’ Eve boasts a double threat with Dick Clark and his surefire successor, the indefatigable Ryan Seacrest–as well as the most star-studded lineup and a preshow that kicks off two hours before the ball drops. Miley Cyrus, pretty much the biggest name in music these days–there’s no denying it–will sing alongside the Jonas Brothers in the Big Apple (and stay out way past her bedtime), while Fergie hosts from Hollywood AND performs with OneRepublic.
[IMG:R]New Year’s Eve with Carson Daly — 11:35/10:35c on NBC, CNBC
Dick Clark’s only mild competition tonight comes from Daly, NBC’s version of Seacrest. The Last Call host rings in the New Year in NYC, with help from Lenny Kravitz and Alicia Keys, who perform, and NFL star-turned-talking head Tiki Barber, who roams the streets looking for craziness.
[IMG:L]New Year’s Eve Live — 11/10c on Fox
A distant third fiddle to NBC and CBS in the New Year’s Eve network wars, Fox is on the scene too. It runs out all the in-house talent available tonight, with former So You Think You Can Dance presenter Cat Deeley serving as the host and Spike Feresten, whose Talkshow with Spike Feresten airs on the network on Saturday nights, reporting from the streets. Then Fox plays its American Idol card with performances from Jordin Sparks and Blake Lewis, as well as Lifehouse.
[IMG:R]Tila Tequila’s Masquerade Party — 11/10c on MTV
Ah, the countdown everyone under 21 will be tuning into. MTV’s new megastar Tila Tequila, whose 15 minutes of fame are also on a countdown, hosts a show that is so chock-full of teen favorites that it’s like a mini-VMAs–even Kid Rock is on hand in the event someone needs to be sucker-punched! Slated to perform are Mary J. Blige, Boys Like Girls, Good Charlotte, Wyclef Jean, Fabolous and Flo Rida. Gym Class Heroes’ Travis McCoy will DJ in between songs and Perez Hilton will, of course, be present.
[IMG:L]106 & Party: New Year’s Eve Special — 11/10c on BET
The Carson Daly to MTV’s Ryan Seacrest on this night, BET will air a New Year’s Eve version of its weekday-countdown staple 106 & Park—Park has been changed to Party, get it?! Soulja Boy, Swizz Beatz, Hurricane Chris, Lil’ Boosie, Foxx, Bow Wow, Omarion and MIMS will perform in the studio–hopefully not all at once.
[IMG:R]New Year’s Eve Live with Anderson Cooper — 11/10c on CNN
For those who want to party but not too hard, Anderson Cooper and the folks at CNN will lull you into 2008. But Kathy Griffin will be quasi-co-hosting, which will at least juice up the festivities to the necessary level. No offense, but the musical guests–Earth, Wind and Fire, Miranda Lambert, and Widespread Panic–while not untalented, constitute by far the worst lineup of New Year’s Eve, even if CNN is exclusively shooting for the baby-boomer demographic.
[IMG:L]U Party with Fox News 2008 — 11/10c on Fox News Channel
Was Fox News actually trying to come up with an oxymoronic title? This bare-bones countdown is literally without guests, and the highlight of the telecast, aside from the ball dropping, will be holiday text messages that are featured on the channel’s ticker. Yeah, “U” might want to head elsewhere for your 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1–and everything leading up to it!
