Ogre writes, I found an intersting article on Newsweek.com. It has to do with the fact that NBC and other studios are refusing to pay residuals to the folks associated with producing and creating web based material associated with broadcast shows. As a result of Moore and others refusing to create any new product, NBC has seized the webisodes and filed a grievance with the writers guild.
This ought make next years contract negotiations between the writers guild and the major studios very interesting.
sounds to me like…
This has something to do with NBC making drastic cost cutting decisions. if you read this ( "Peacock To Be Plucked" http://us.imdb.com/news/sb/2006-10-19 ) blurb on IMDb TV News you’ll see that NBC itself is cutting costs and staff from their network. Much of it is going to come from their news programming (which network news is already bad enough but this is just going to make it worse). Furthermore NBC is going to replace much of their programming with more (yes MORE) reality and game shows.
I have no doubt this is the same mindset in negotiating BSG contracts with Moore & Co.
Re: sounds to me like…
You know, I’m no fan of reality TV shows, and when they started I felt like they were the harbinger of a network TV apocalypse. I still feel like they cater to the baser instincts of the viewing public, and I watch very little of the stuff (I did like Blow Out enough to watch it when it happened to be on – Jonathan is just a fascinating creature), but I’ve come to think that reality TV might just be improving the quality of the TV I watch every week.
Here’s the way I’m starting to see it: For every cheap reality TV show the networks put out, that’s a) one less hour they have to fill with bad scripted drama or comedy and b) a few more potential dollars that can be put into the fewer scripted shows that are left. The past few years, I’ve been watching more scripted TV because it seems like the few that are left are actually better. This season, for example, I’ve enjoyed Heroes, Justice, Kidnapped, Standoff, Jericho (despite some reservations, this one is still holding my interest), and Men In Trees (a somewhat guilty pleasure considering it’s obviously just Northern Exposure: The Next Generation). Add in a few others that have been going for a year or two already (My Name Is Earl, How I Met Your Mother, Lost, The Office, Criminal Minds for example), and, for me at least, there’s more good TV now than ever. I’ve left out basic cable, but there’s obviously a bunch of stuff there I like, too.
Granted, my taste is pretty open (I’ve never been too picky about TV shows), but I’ve noticed that even my friends and family are enjoying more network TV than they seem to have enjoyed in the past.
All of this could be bad for the people in Hollywood generally (fewer scripted shows means fewer writers and actors, for example, get jobs), but I have to say that I think viewers are reaping the benefits – the people who like reality shows get a whole lot of they want, and the people who like scripted TV are getting a higher quality product. Or, maybe I’m just a TV-addicted madman… :)
Oh, and PS: Network news has been dying on the vine for years. I think it’s probably just as well that they give way to 24-hour cable news – maybe the feds should legislate a way for CNN/MSNBC/Fox to get into people’s homes for free.