Dear Comcast,
Congratulations on your merger with NBCU. I'm a longtime fan of the network and its programming, but was forced to boycott as a result of Jeff Zucker. I happily await the arrival at the network of Steve Burke, and am excited to see the changes that will happen at NBC.
I watch a lot of television, and have been watching a lot of television for, well, forever. In that time, I've made a lot of useful observations that I think might help you in your new endeavors, and might bring you back to the top of the Big Four Food Chain. Here are some of them.
1. Fix your advertising campaigns.
NBC has, for many years, poorly advertised their shows. Often times the advertising won't accurately describe the program at all. The example I always use to make this point is the show American Dreams (2002-2005). If I were to give a logline to an ad agency in order to market this show, it would be "A middle-class family in Philadelphia deals with the events of the tumultuous 1960s while drawing comparisons between that time and present day." Instead, the ad campaign revolved around the idea that "pop-stars of today portray pop-stars of the 1960s on American Bandstand."
No.
American Dreams could have been a gold mine for NBC. It was sort of the pre-Glee in that it appealed to all different demographics. High school students could watch this show with their parents and be entertained, but unlike with Glee, hey could be educated. Every episode was a history lesson - and if any of you have been paying attention, that is the intended purpose of television. To educate, as well as entertain.
2. Stop greenlighting reality television.
Reality TV killed the dinosaurs. I read that in a history book, honest.
There is nothing more useless than reality television. Is it a guilty pleasure? Sure, but it's trash, and it's not worthy of the network that is responsible for the invention of television. There are arguments that it's cheap to produce, and therefore it brings in more revenue, but that has also proven to be harmful in the long run. For example, viewership of NBC declined drastically when they switched the majority of their programming to reality shows. My favorite argument is that reality television can, in no way, be considered reality. One, the participants are always aware of the cameras, and two, real people wouldn't eat bugs and live in close quarters with people they disliked or swap spouses. Why? Because it's humiliating. Also, bugs are not so tasty.
Scripted television is a glorious thing. Yes, I'm a screenwriter, and I am biased. But shows that make you think are really something. Look at the popularity of Lost. Heck, look at the success of the whole crime drama genre - if there's a mystery to be solved, or a puzzle to figure out, people will come, Ray. People will most definitely come. No matter how much money you're saving, you're not going to keep your audiences from year to year with reality shows.
3. For the love of God, get rid of Jay Leno.
Soon, his demographic will all be dead. Additionally, the conventional talk show is dead. I was less than pleased when I heard that Jimmy Fallon would be taking over the Late Night program, but since then, I have eaten my words. Jimmy has not only done wonders for his own career, he has brought the internet generation back to television. He's doing a great job.
Am I saying to offer the Tonight Show back to Conan O'Brien with your peacock feathers between your legs? No, because he's got a pretty good thing going. Cable TV is a booming metropolis now. I'm telling you to find a fresh face, take a risk, and revamp the franchise before it takes its last breath.
4. Give shows a chance.
Neilsen ratings are not accurate, and they're outdated. Because of this, we can't really be 100% sure of who watches what. In the olden days and, to some extent, during the 1990s, NBC gave shows more than their fair share of chances to scrape up a bigger audience.
Let's talk about a little show called Seinfeld.
Seinfeld had a pretty good following, but not great, until an episode called "The Contest." We're all familiar with that particular episode, so no need for a recap (John. F. Kennedy. Junior.). What you may not know, is that "The Contest" appeared in SEASON THREE. That's right. The network gave Seinfeld three seasons to get on their feet. Most programs these days get maybe one season. But hardly.
5. Watch television.
I think the biggest failure about Jeff Zucker was that he doesn't watch TV. He is, admittedly, very into business, sports, and politics. Never anywhere did he mention how he feels about entertainment. Entertainment is the key to having a successful foothold on the entertainment business. Look at the success of past NBC president Warren Littlefield. That man loves television. He has produced numerous things during his career, even post NBC. He cares about television, and he cares about its progress. I can only hope that Steve Burke will do the same.
I want to get back together, NBC. But you're going to have to really consider these things, as well as my feelings.
There's more where that came from.
Meljo
Congratulations on your merger with NBCU. I'm a longtime fan of the network and its programming, but was forced to boycott as a result of Jeff Zucker. I happily await the arrival at the network of Steve Burke, and am excited to see the changes that will happen at NBC.
I watch a lot of television, and have been watching a lot of television for, well, forever. In that time, I've made a lot of useful observations that I think might help you in your new endeavors, and might bring you back to the top of the Big Four Food Chain. Here are some of them.
1. Fix your advertising campaigns.
NBC has, for many years, poorly advertised their shows. Often times the advertising won't accurately describe the program at all. The example I always use to make this point is the show American Dreams (2002-2005). If I were to give a logline to an ad agency in order to market this show, it would be "A middle-class family in Philadelphia deals with the events of the tumultuous 1960s while drawing comparisons between that time and present day." Instead, the ad campaign revolved around the idea that "pop-stars of today portray pop-stars of the 1960s on American Bandstand."
No.
American Dreams could have been a gold mine for NBC. It was sort of the pre-Glee in that it appealed to all different demographics. High school students could watch this show with their parents and be entertained, but unlike with Glee, hey could be educated. Every episode was a history lesson - and if any of you have been paying attention, that is the intended purpose of television. To educate, as well as entertain.
2. Stop greenlighting reality television.
Reality TV killed the dinosaurs. I read that in a history book, honest.
There is nothing more useless than reality television. Is it a guilty pleasure? Sure, but it's trash, and it's not worthy of the network that is responsible for the invention of television. There are arguments that it's cheap to produce, and therefore it brings in more revenue, but that has also proven to be harmful in the long run. For example, viewership of NBC declined drastically when they switched the majority of their programming to reality shows. My favorite argument is that reality television can, in no way, be considered reality. One, the participants are always aware of the cameras, and two, real people wouldn't eat bugs and live in close quarters with people they disliked or swap spouses. Why? Because it's humiliating. Also, bugs are not so tasty.
Scripted television is a glorious thing. Yes, I'm a screenwriter, and I am biased. But shows that make you think are really something. Look at the popularity of Lost. Heck, look at the success of the whole crime drama genre - if there's a mystery to be solved, or a puzzle to figure out, people will come, Ray. People will most definitely come. No matter how much money you're saving, you're not going to keep your audiences from year to year with reality shows.
3. For the love of God, get rid of Jay Leno.
Soon, his demographic will all be dead. Additionally, the conventional talk show is dead. I was less than pleased when I heard that Jimmy Fallon would be taking over the Late Night program, but since then, I have eaten my words. Jimmy has not only done wonders for his own career, he has brought the internet generation back to television. He's doing a great job.
Am I saying to offer the Tonight Show back to Conan O'Brien with your peacock feathers between your legs? No, because he's got a pretty good thing going. Cable TV is a booming metropolis now. I'm telling you to find a fresh face, take a risk, and revamp the franchise before it takes its last breath.
4. Give shows a chance.
Neilsen ratings are not accurate, and they're outdated. Because of this, we can't really be 100% sure of who watches what. In the olden days and, to some extent, during the 1990s, NBC gave shows more than their fair share of chances to scrape up a bigger audience.
Let's talk about a little show called Seinfeld.
Seinfeld had a pretty good following, but not great, until an episode called "The Contest." We're all familiar with that particular episode, so no need for a recap (John. F. Kennedy. Junior.). What you may not know, is that "The Contest" appeared in SEASON THREE. That's right. The network gave Seinfeld three seasons to get on their feet. Most programs these days get maybe one season. But hardly.
5. Watch television.
I think the biggest failure about Jeff Zucker was that he doesn't watch TV. He is, admittedly, very into business, sports, and politics. Never anywhere did he mention how he feels about entertainment. Entertainment is the key to having a successful foothold on the entertainment business. Look at the success of past NBC president Warren Littlefield. That man loves television. He has produced numerous things during his career, even post NBC. He cares about television, and he cares about its progress. I can only hope that Steve Burke will do the same.
I want to get back together, NBC. But you're going to have to really consider these things, as well as my feelings.
There's more where that came from.
Meljo
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