Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by LaminatorX on Wednesday September 02 2015, @12:30AM   Printer-friendly
from the diamonds-in-the-coal-pile dept.

John Koblin writes in the NYT that there's a malaise in TV these days that's felt among executives, viewers and critics, and it's the result of one thing: There is simply too much on television. John Landgraf, chief executive of FX Networks, reported at the Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour that the total number of original scripted series on TV in 2014 was 371 and will surpass 400 in 2015. The glut, according to Landgraf, has presented "a huge challenge in finding compelling original stories and the level of talent needed to sustain those stories." Michael Lombardo, president of programming at HBO. says it is harder than ever to build an audience for a show when viewers are confronted with so many choices and might click away at any moment. "I hear it all the time," says Lombardo. "People going, 'I can't commit to another show, and I don't have the time to emotionally commit to another show.' I hear that, and I'm aware of it, and I get it." Another complication is that shows not only compete against one another, but also against old series that live on in the archives of Amazon, Hulu or Netflix. So a new season of "Scandal," for example, is also competing against old series like "The Wire." "The amount of competition is just literally insane," says Landgraf.

Others point out that the explosion in programming has created more opportunity for shows with diverse casts and topics, such as "Jane the Virgin," "Transparent" and "Orange Is the New Black." Marti Noxon, the showrunner for Lifetime's "UnREAL" and Bravo's "Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce," says there has been a "sea change" in the last five years. "I couldn't have gotten those two shows on TV five years ago," says Noxon. "There was not enough opportunity for voices that speak to a smaller audience. Now many of these places are looking to reach some people — not all the people. That's opened up a tremendous opportunity for women and other people that have been left out of the conversation."


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by VLM on Wednesday September 02 2015, @04:58PM

    by VLM (445) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday September 02 2015, @04:58PM (#231346)

    Or take a show like dukes of hazard. Basically a poor chase movie in TV form.

    Uhhhhhh when I was a kid when that was new, I was like "Daisy? Who? Eww girl cooties?" and then I became a teen and its all "Whoa thats the show with Daisy in it, oh and some cars or something?" Same deal with Hee Haw and Baywatch. Before the internet you only got to see girls at school or at the mall 80s style until the rentacops chased you out, so TV was pretty cool. This is probably some of the decline of modern TV. Why watch PG-ish cheesecake on TV when you can see far better on your internet connected smartphone? This requires TV to up its game, and given experiments during superbowl halftime shows indicate that showing more skin isn't likely to be successful...

    Watch the first episode then watch the last episode.

    Not necessarily disagreeing, but I'd add that some of these shows run so long that the characters are more ossified and static than the viewers. I mean, Bart from the Simpsons and I are kind of the same generation, well, maybe I could have baby sat him or been his older bro or uncle, but he was in his first season before I graduated from high school, and he's unchanged but I haven't been a high school kid in ... awhile. How I related to a TV cartoon boy is going to change a bit as I go from being "kinda his age" to "I could mathematically be his grandpa, theoretically". Yet Bart hasn't changed. Or for another example the daughter on Married w Children has gone from theoretically possible dating material for me (maybe a little outta my league?) to I don't let my daughter dress like that.

    The only TV I can think of that attempted to age actors with the show would be old rural CBS stuff from the 70s, like Waltons, Little House on the Prairie stuff like that for stay at home moms to watch on reruns. Not aware of anything popular and current that ages the actors.

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +1  
       Insightful=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Insightful' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   3