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The Nielsens Are Evil

As I watched Better off Ted last night, I was again struck with anger that the shows I like are always either on the bubble or sure of being canceled. [Edited to add: According to TV by the Numbers, Better of Ted gets 4.5-5 million viewers, a 1.9 in the 18-49 demographic. American Idol gets 18 million viewers, a 8.0 in the 18-49 demo.]

It all started when I was nine, and a little show starring Sarah Jessica Parker and a cast of odd characters. That show was Square Pegs. My best friend and I watched it every week, delighting in Patty and her fat friend’s journey through high school, the odd behavior of Johnny Slash and his buddy Marshall, the Valley Girl stylings of Jennifer, the grudging respect Jennifer’s boyfriend Vinnie began to show Patty as the year progressed, and the elevated diction of Muffy. Muffy and Brother Dan, the vice principal at the Catholic high school I graduated from, are the only people I have heard use the work behoove and mean it.

Square Pegs made it through one year on the air, but that was it. Its cancellation cut me to my core. I wish I could say that was the last time I was crushed as one of my favorite shows didn’t make it back on the air, but the list is too long for a blog post.

Twin Peaks almost canceled itself, with its quick drop in quality after the reveal of the central mystery. ABC put it out of its misery when it canceled it, but it still hurt.

Veronica Mars was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen, standing up to my incessant replays of its three short years.

This year, I fear that I will again have to bid a fond farewell to some high-quality shows. And that I will again be left with nothing but an unsatisfying cliffhanger to watch again and again on the DVDs as others revel in their Americal Idol, Dancing with the Stars, CSI, and Grey’s Anatomy. I will again curse the random sampling method of gauging viewer interest in their television shows. The Nielsens have been cruel to me over the years, and I would like to see a ratings system that I can at least believe is accurate.

Yet I still look forward to the upfronts. The announcements of which shows have been spared and which new shows I will get attached to in the fall. The mourning period that begins when the cancellations are for sure.

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Tags: tv, twin peaks, upfronts, veronica mars

Uncategorized | Jennifer Roland | April 16, 2009 4:00 am | Comments (4)

A New Landscape for Television?

NBC is all over the press talking about its “revolutionary” approach to selling advertising and scheduling shows. I’m interested in a year-round programming schedule, but I’m wondering what will happen to the back end, the reruns and syndication deals.

Here’s a good story on the topic: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/20/business/media/20adco.html?ref=television

I will say that I don’t hate the occasional rerun–in fact, I’m a huge supporter of rerunning a series in order to build excitement for the next season, refresh regular viewers, and potentially draw in new viewers. That’s how I got into Twin Peaks. I missed the first couple episodes, then I didn’t find any reason to start watching a serial midway. Then, they replayed all of S1 right before S2 began. I was hooked five minutes into the pilot. If David Lynch and Mark Frost had any idea how to handle the show after Laura Palmer’s murder was solved, I would have remained a loyal viewer for years to come. Sadly, that wasn’t the case, but those first 16 episodes were TV gold that I never would have seen without reruns.

If NBC moves to year-round staggered programming, will they push all reruns online? If so, then the high residuals for the creatives will go away. What effect would lack of network television reruns have on syndication deals? Will the line between computers and television be blurred even more, killing syndication once any potential viewer can watch shows off the Internet?

I guess my point is that we live in interesting times for the entertainment biz. What do you think of NBC’s ideas? What effect will this have on the business of television? On you and your viewing habits?

Updated to add this link: http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/02/20/nbc-to-stream-classic-series/ Looks like NBC is not only killing syndication, but also DVD sales. Do creatives earn residuals on old content streamed online?

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