the laughingstock of the medium? Jeff Zucker can tell you.News broke this morning that NBC is prepared to sell a 51% stake of NBC Universal to Comcast Corp. A cable television operator.
Now, no one can deny the fact that broadcast television is a struggling medium. Look no further than NBC for proof of that. What once was the number one network on television is now slumming it in fourth place, behind CBS, ABC and Fox.
But, that's not to say broadcast TV has flatlined. CBS' NCIS, the current number one show on air, is averaging 21 million viewers a week. ABC's Grey's Anatomy and Fox's House both pull down 17 million weekly. The only show NBC can consistently get in the top ten is Sunday Night Football.
So, what the hell is NBC's problem? Willingness to accept defeat, I say. And well before they decided to give Jay Leno free-reign. Even before they let glorified frat-boy Ben Silverman crap all over NBC's legacy.
No, NBC gave up in 2006, when Jeff Zucker, then CEO of NBC Universal, announced that NBC would give up on scripted programming during the 8 o'clock hour in favor of inexpensive reality programming. Sure, they claimed it was a cost-saving measure, but what are they doing with all that money saved? Not investing in original quality programming, that's for sure.
Now, I am a faithful watcher of NBC's Thursday line up - two hours of the best comedies on television is what you get there. But a network cannot exist on two hours of programming a week. And they certainly can't survive with some unfunny, moon-faced doofus tanking in the 10 o'clock hour. Seriously, who thought putting Leno on five nights a week at 10 was a good idea? Because, I gotta tell you guys, it's not.
So, do you think this Comcast deal is a good idea or should NBC just air reruns of their shows people actually watched? What if they just bought the syndication rights to other networks' popular shows and stop putting any effort into producing TV at all?
