08 August 2010
Episode Three: Addendum
This is just an addendum to Episode Three. I didn't actually proof that at all before posting. It was a Facebook post done in a fit of passion and a great deal of worry that NBC would once again cancel a show that I thought should stay. I know that it sounds self centered but I have very good taste and usually soon after I decide I like something it becomes popular. I am waiting for a 1920's / 1950's fashion and home decor surge to prove my point. It happened with the 1960's / 1970's style so I am hopeful. Anyway what I was saying in my post wasn't that television programs should be predictable, I was saying that the programing needed to be more regular. That might not be a big difference to most people but the distinction is an important one. In my humble opinion recent formula for programing is "lets keep all the garbage, reality, talent and game shows and get rid of anything scripted or even halfway entertaining usually without even allowing the program an entire season. 13 episodes is not enough to make a show a success and sometimes the "suits" will yank the show and replace it with dreck within a few weeks of the pilot. If you gave NBC the chance they would cancel Dr. Who.
Episode Three: A rant I did on Facebook a while ago
Networks and Programing
Sunday, February 28, 2010 at 2:45am | Edit Note | Delete
I have sat by with all this knowledge in my head about network programing and ratings and how the business end of television works and I want to cry because they are using such an arcane method of determining who is watching. Why do we stand by the old Nielsen ratings when we have new media to let the audience tell us what they want to see?
The biggest problem with ratings is that there are to many options with cable for audiences to developed any loyalty to a program. There is no unity or uniformity to programing anymore. On the big 4 networks there used to be a rule of thumb with regard to programs and placement. Mornings were for talk shows, afternoons were for soap operas, 8-10 PM were for family comedy, and 10PM was for drama. There were other time slots like after school programing aimed at kids and game shows in the early evening but you get the idea. This system worked for everyone and did so very well for decades. The audiences knew what shows were on and when without looking because it was a routine. The advertisers were able to target their preferred audiences based on subject content and the producers were able to be creative and make something to share with the world.
It seems that around the time Friends and Seinfeld nearly bankrupted NBC the networks seemed to forget that magic formula that brought audiences in. TGIF was an ingenious way of packaging programing so audiences would know where to go and they had fantastic success with it because they had a hit anchor program. The mistake they made was in not being ready for the fact that programs like Full House will lose their appeal eventually. There was to much of the ideal with the programing and marketing for TGIF built on the cornerstone of just one show. If they had moved the show up by even a half an hour one season before they ended the show they would have had a chance. They could have groomed a new cornerstone program and audiences would have accepted it because they would have had time to adapt.
Audiences don't like change, they don't want to have to search for their favorite programs, they want them to be there when they are supposed to be. We are creatures of habit and certain programs will become part of our routine if they are reliable. However the moment the program is not there, even a fiercely loyal audience will quickly lose interest. The problem is that network programers market shows when they should be marketing time slots and placing their most promising shows in those slots. Audiences are a product to sell to the advertisers but how can a network promise an audience when they are changing their lineup so frequently?
Sites like Hulu are full of comments where loyal fans admit that they are upset and discouraged by the network decisions to cancel or move shows. It is time for a change in the way the networks do their programing. We could also use an updated ratings system that includes non traditional viewers that watch their TV online.
The system is broken and you can almost see the execs wringing their hands trying to figure out what to do. They are mucking it up big time though and the quality of programing is declining and has been for years.
Check out this website it shows what numbers the networks are using when they make their decisions about what to keep and what to lose. I am on here all the time, I even have them email me the overnight numbers every morning but it makes no difference because as I said before THE SYSTEM DOES NOT WORK. But check the website anyway, it's an eye opener and they really have a handle on how things are done at the moment.
http://tvbythenumbers.com/
Sunday, February 28, 2010 at 2:45am | Edit Note | Delete
I have sat by with all this knowledge in my head about network programing and ratings and how the business end of television works and I want to cry because they are using such an arcane method of determining who is watching. Why do we stand by the old Nielsen ratings when we have new media to let the audience tell us what they want to see?
The biggest problem with ratings is that there are to many options with cable for audiences to developed any loyalty to a program. There is no unity or uniformity to programing anymore. On the big 4 networks there used to be a rule of thumb with regard to programs and placement. Mornings were for talk shows, afternoons were for soap operas, 8-10 PM were for family comedy, and 10PM was for drama. There were other time slots like after school programing aimed at kids and game shows in the early evening but you get the idea. This system worked for everyone and did so very well for decades. The audiences knew what shows were on and when without looking because it was a routine. The advertisers were able to target their preferred audiences based on subject content and the producers were able to be creative and make something to share with the world.
It seems that around the time Friends and Seinfeld nearly bankrupted NBC the networks seemed to forget that magic formula that brought audiences in. TGIF was an ingenious way of packaging programing so audiences would know where to go and they had fantastic success with it because they had a hit anchor program. The mistake they made was in not being ready for the fact that programs like Full House will lose their appeal eventually. There was to much of the ideal with the programing and marketing for TGIF built on the cornerstone of just one show. If they had moved the show up by even a half an hour one season before they ended the show they would have had a chance. They could have groomed a new cornerstone program and audiences would have accepted it because they would have had time to adapt.
Audiences don't like change, they don't want to have to search for their favorite programs, they want them to be there when they are supposed to be. We are creatures of habit and certain programs will become part of our routine if they are reliable. However the moment the program is not there, even a fiercely loyal audience will quickly lose interest. The problem is that network programers market shows when they should be marketing time slots and placing their most promising shows in those slots. Audiences are a product to sell to the advertisers but how can a network promise an audience when they are changing their lineup so frequently?
Sites like Hulu are full of comments where loyal fans admit that they are upset and discouraged by the network decisions to cancel or move shows. It is time for a change in the way the networks do their programing. We could also use an updated ratings system that includes non traditional viewers that watch their TV online.
The system is broken and you can almost see the execs wringing their hands trying to figure out what to do. They are mucking it up big time though and the quality of programing is declining and has been for years.
Check out this website it shows what numbers the networks are using when they make their decisions about what to keep and what to lose. I am on here all the time, I even have them email me the overnight numbers every morning but it makes no difference because as I said before THE SYSTEM DOES NOT WORK. But check the website anyway, it's an eye opener and they really have a handle on how things are done at the moment.
http://tvbythenumbers.com/
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