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October 21, 2003
NBC in a prime-time frenzy over fall TV lineup
Cleveland Plain Dealer
10/21/03
You'd think that the turkey would be the breed of bird most prone to panic as we slide deeper into the fall. But with Thanksgiving still more than a month away it's the peacock that seems to be twitching with trepidation.
That would be the NBC peacock. Uncertainty seems to reign at the drooping network, where flurries of changes have kept many viewers confused, bewildered and outraged.
If this isn't panic, it's a mighty good imitation. Last Wednesday a last-minute decision pulled an original episode of "The West Wing." Fans of NBC's acclaimed White House drama tuned in at 9 p.m., only to see a rerun of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent." The network also pulled an original episode of "Law & Order" at 10 p.m., airing a repeat in its place.
The 11th-hour move was due to the network's worries about competing against the seventh game of the Cubs-Marlins National League Championship Series, carried by Fox. But a dramatic baseball showdown always was a possibility for that night. Why did it take NBC so long to make a decision?
A case of nerves? The jitters? Panic? Those are good guesses.
Outraged fans of "The West Wing" flooded the switchboards at NBC and its affiliate stations Wednesday night. The network says these episodes will air tomorrow night in their regular time periods. Says?
Well, tune in at your own risk. That's because NBC, once proud as a peacock, has spent much of the fall hopping around like the proverbial decapitated chicken.
Last Wednesday's NBC twitch was no isolated incident.
Sure, CBS, like NBC, pulled original episodes last Thursday, rather than face Fox's coverage of the seventh game of the American League Championship Series between New York and Boston. But the CBS decision wasn't made after a flurry of schedule changes and cancellations.
You got the feeling that CBS boss Leslie Moonves looked at his hand, saw Fox raising the stakes with that Yankees-Red Sox game and thought, "Hmmm, New York and Boston are two of the country's 10 biggest TV markets." Then, with a gambler's grin, he tossed in his cards and laughed, "Too rich for my blood."
NBC Entertainment President Jeff Zucker, though, has the appearance of a sweating player who has lost too many hands and his poker face. He's in danger of losing much more before the 2003-04 TV season reaches its conclusion in May.
If you listen to Zucker, you'll hear that NBC is No. 1, despite Nielsen data showing CBS has more viewers. No matter, goes the argument, NBC is No. 1 with viewers 18 to 49, the ones most prized by advertisers.
Maybe so, but NBC also is No. 1 in another, less-distinguished category. It has made the most changes to its prime-time schedule this fall.
Entering the season with foul new comedies, NBC has already started benching the disastrous "Coupling," which didn't air last week.
NBC also was lightning-quick to change its Friday lineup, pulling "Boomtown" from the 10-11 p.m. time period and moving newcomer "Miss Match" from 8 to 9. "Third Watch" will move into that 10 p.m. Friday slot starting Oct. 31.
The Peacock's tail feathers are looking plenty ruffled, all right. With most of its hit shows getting older and more expensive, NBC is facing the loss of "Friends" and "Frasier," both in their last seasons. "The West Wing," meanwhile, is trying to find new direction with radical changes in the creative team.
More reason for panic: NBC was down about 14 percent last season in that primary demographic Zucker adores so much.
And now critics are lowering the boom because the network has shown so little support for "Boomtown," which hasn't aired since Oct. 3. Zucker isn't talking about when the crime drama will return; he's talking about "if and when." So last week's "West Wing" fiasco looks all the more alarming when you see it as part of an overall NBC pattern.
And it's taking on the pattern of panic.
Posted by Jo at October 21, 2003 08:41 AM