Where to be and what to watch…

The Cable Center kicks off its Cable Mavericks season with NBC Universal president of cable investments Doug Holloway speaking at his alma mater, Emerson College in Boston. Holloway shares anecdotes from his career with students, and chats about diversity in the media. Speaking of top dogs, those painstakingly coiffed canines hit Manhattan for the annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. USA Network airs the fun live at 8 p.m. ET, and CNBC picks it up at 9. Dogs to watch...and yes, these are their real names: Ch. Smash JP Win A Victory (“Vicki,” to loved ones), a toy poodle, and Ch. Redwitch Reason To Believe (a.k.a. “Macy”), an Akita. Another standout performer who revels in his shaggy appearance, Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant, turns it way down to jam with bluegrasser Alison Krauss on a new episode of CMT Crossroads at 8. The song hardly remains the same when the two duet on Zep chestnuts like “Black Dog” and “When the Levee Breaks.”

The Funny or Die college tour turns up in New England, as Will Ferrell, Andrea Savage and Zack Galifianakis tickle funny bones at the University of Rhode Island. Look for a URHigh joke or two. Down the coast a bit, “New York Minute” was a lame Don Henley song and a lamer Olsen Twins movie—how will it work as a broadcasting seminar? Manor Marketing hosts “NAB--In a New York Minute—Take 2” at Vintage in Manhattan, showcasing gear from Autocue/QTV and Chyron, among others. Speaking of high-tech gear, Nova premieres Astrospies, about top-secret space missions conducted by top-secret cosmonaut spooks, on PBS at 8.

The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) stands tall at the Disney Coronado Springs Resort in Orlando. NATE's annual exposition offers up “the latest innovations in the broadcast and telecommunications tower construction, maintenance and service industry.” Next year's digital switchover is a major topic as well, much as it is in Washington, as the House Telecommunications and Internet Subcommittee holds its DTV hearings. Rep. John Dingell, Rep. Edward Markey et al. “assess the nation's preparedness to make the switch from analog to digital television on Feb. 17, 2009.”

It being Valentine's Day and all, don't forget to send loved ones a wealth of roses commensurate to how loved they are. Fittingly, Send Yourself Roses is the title of Kathleen Turner's new memoir. Known to many as sex operator Cindy Plumb on Nip/Tuck, Turner talks about her brilliant career at the 92nd Street Y. Will the vibe be similarly rosy over at Clear Channel? Find out when the media giant shares quarterly earnings. Yo, Clear Channel, sell those stations already. Finally, Nick Jr. celebrates Val's Day with a special episode of kiddie freakfest Yo Gabba Gabba! at 11:30 a.m. The Gabba gang sings “Be Nice to Everyone,” and former Devo frontman Mark Mothersbaugh shows viewers how to draw an elephant.

The S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications is calling for submissions for the 2008 Mirror Awards, recognizing “excellence in media industry reporting.” Deadline for entries is today (www.mirrorawards.syr.edu). And if you haven't had a chance to check out the Television Delivers People exhibit at the Whitney in New York, it closes this weekend. The exhibit looks at TV's at-times frightening influence on the human psyche. If the Whitney's $15 admission is too steep, you can always check it out on YouTube.