Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Tuesday, September 17th, 2024:
HAVE I MENTIONED I AM NOT FOND OF PENSKE MEDIA?
I have written quite a bit over the last few months about Penske Media Corporation, which owns nearly every Hollywood trade as well as a number of other prominent media titles. And let's not forget the various awards shows and festivals, ranging from SXSW to The Golden Globes.
But as aggressive as I am writing about the company, I also have to admit when I've been beat on a story. And this Richard Rushfield piece in The Ankler is a fairly brutal takedown of Penske's unsavory efforts to pressure studios and advertisers ahead of the upcoming Golden Globe Awards. I've written about this issue in the past, but this piece is an impressively thorough gutting of Penske's journalistic efforts.
Rushfield obtained a copy of the Penske Media Variety Awards deck and it is something else. He first mocks the deck's claim that Variety is "#1" in the industry:
So if they’re #1 (by what metric is not noted), what does that make THR? Number 3? Or is it Number 10 after Deadline, IndieWire, Gold Derby, Rolling Stone, Robb Report, Vibe, Hollywood Life and Footwear News (“The publication of record for senior footwear”)?
This also begs the question, if you own number one, why do you need to own . . . all the others too? But you can’t be a monopoly of one . . .
Particularly when you want to engulf your websites, making your pages virtually unreadable, with giant Pennysaver-esque ads like these on the #1 brand!
But he rightly saves his strongest outrage for Penske's decision to offer studios the opportunity to sign up for the "Variety Golden Globes Salon Dinner Series."
Now because all these conflicts and monopolies get hard to keep track of, let’s just pause to untangle this one, as a case study.
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In the movie awards race, Penske Media owns and operates the number-two show, which survives (barely) because of its supposed value as a predictor of the Oscars (dubious, more so now as the voters are unknown, but still that’s the claim).
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Penske Media supervises the nomination and awards process, voted on by this said anonymous group, selected by Penske Media.
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Penske Media owns all of the trade organs that cover the show, and their commentary includes predicting the eventual nominees and winners, as well as touting the importance of the show itself.
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So say you’re a studio with a film or an actor that you think deserves acclaim. Penske Media comes to you and says, Nice to meet you. So you know, we own this Globes show, as well as all trade coverage of it. So how’d you like to buy an ad on our websites?
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And then they say — not out loud, I’m sure, but no one needs this spelled out anymore — because we like you so much, we’ll skip over the legal pattycakes about disclosure and some of your ads will look, as far as anyone can tell, just like articles, and in fact be written by the same people who write the articles.
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And after you’re done with that, how about you let us throw a very special little dinner for your talent that you pay a lot of money for, and you and your friends can come down and have dinner with 30 to 40 Globes voters, people we select.
Aside from the terrible journalistic conflicts these events entail, one consequence of this is that the smaller projects, the independent films that would be most helped by a Golden Globes nomination or win will be shut out of the process because they can't afford to pay for access to the Golden Globe voters.
And on a side note, I'll just mention that every time I have interacted with someone at Penske Media's corporate side, I've been reminded of how many events and titles they control and either reminded that I shouldn't get on their bad side or casually offered access to events if I treat them "fairly."
YEAH, I GET IT. NETFLIX DOESN'T THINK MUCH OF TV CRITICS
Longtime readers of Too Much TV know that one of my frequent complaints is that Netflix's PR people can be nearly impossible to deal with when trying to get even the slightest bit of information. A lot of times, it's tough to even figure out who is handling a project, must less convince them to reluctantly hand over a screener or the slightest information.
The problem is even more challenging when trying to track down information on Netflix's many global productions. I've resorted to blind-emailing Netflix PR contacts in other countries in an effort to get some help. Add that to Netflix's reliance on fan events instead of press access and the decision to launch its own consumer-facing entertainment site..well, let's just say dealing with Netflix is often my biggest challenge.
I was reminded of all of this today when I read an interview with Ted Sarandos in the UK's publication The Times. The headline is "Netflix's Ted Sarandos: We Make TV For The People, Not TV Critics." And while Sarandos is a very smart executive and I have a lot of admiration for his ability to navigate the problems of the streaming world, he doesn't understand the core basics of TV criticism and how we can help his business:
Plus, he adds, even individual subscribers enjoy a mix. “I love Ripley and I love Love is Blind — it just depends what I’m in the mood for,” says Sarandos. “Not everyone will love everything, but we are about pleasing audiences — not critics or people in the industry.”
Sarandos seems to believe that TV critics are somehow different than the average TV viewer. That we couldn't conceive of enjoying an unscripted series or some odd reality show. But his attitude is pervasive in the DNA of Netflix's executive class and it is a constant point of tension every time I deal with the streamer.
Before the last Television Critic Association's press tour, I spent some hours at Netflix's headquarters having some off-the-record discussions with executives. And as helpful as they were, there were also a lot of comments along the lines of "You're not most critics," or "You understand our business." But they were also almost uniformly convinced the best drive to their programming is their own internal marketing and the ability of the Netflix UI to push new content in front of subscribers.
As a critic who enjoys writing about niche programming and global productions, it's infuriating. But even worse, it's an attitude that has started to infiltrate other streamers as they have begun to hire ex-Netflix employees.
So the next time you see a new TV show or direct-to-streaming (DTS) movie and think "I wonder why I haven't heard of this before," know that much of the blame likely falls on the shoulders of the streamers press and communication decisions.
THIS ONLY HAS A TANGENTIAL CONNECTION TO TV
I am a big believer in supporting the little guy. I contribute to and promote TV and movie Kickstarters as much as I can, because in this media consolidated world, it's hard to be an independent voice.
Along those lines, I'd like to highlight a new movie that is slowly rolling out and it's one you should see if you can. Just A Bit Outside tells the story of the 1982 Brewers and while I am a die-hard Cubs fan, it's a great story that you probably aren't familiar with unless you're a die-hard Brewers supporter.
Right now, it's only playing in a few Marcus Theater locations in Wisconsin (although it's slowly being added to some other Marcus locations, including Gurnee, Ill. this weekend.
The TV connection is that the film was co-produced by Kelly Kahl, the former President of CBS Entertainment. But the real reason I'm mentioning this is that it's a small film that deserves some extra love. Go see it if it's playing near you and if it isn't, call your local Marcus Theater and ask them to add it.
TWEET OF THE DAY
ODDS AND SODS
* It is always dangerous to judge an international reboot of a familiar show by just what you see in a trailer. Especially a familiar show such as The Office, which had a very successful run in the U.S. even though the American version was very different from the UK original take. But with all of that being said, this trailer of the upcoming Australian version of The Office is very....unsettling.
* Season two of Castlevania: Nocturne will premiere on Netflix in January.
* The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep will premiere on Netflix Tuesday, February 11th.
* Season three of Heartstopper premieres Thursday, October 3rd on Netflix.
* The NY Times has a fascinating look at the challenges facing Hollywood's producers (gift link).
* The Financial Times has a solid look at how Netflix has won the streaming wars.
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17TH:
* American Masters And Voces: Julia Alvarez: A Life Remembered (PBS)
* American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez (FX)
* Body Cam Season Premiere (Investigation Discovery)
* Caught In The Act: Unfaithful Season Premiere (MTV)
* Child Star (Hulu)
* Culinary Class Wars Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Dancing With The Stars Season Thirty-Three Premiere (ABC)
* Deon Cole: OK, Mister (Netflix)
* Exposed: Naked Crimes Season Premiere (Investigation Discovery)
* High Potential Series Premiere (ABC)
* Live From the Other Side With Tyler Henry Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Missing (Netflix)
* Nothin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored Story Of '80s Hair Metal (Paramount+)
* Road Rage Season Premiere (Investigation Discovery)
* Stopping The Steal (HBO)
* World's Most Notorious Killers Series Premiere (Peacock)
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 18TH:
* Agatha All Along Series Premiere (Disney+)
* Big Cats 24/7 (PBS)
* Envious (Netflix)
* Jersey Shore Family Vacation Season Seven B Premiere (MTV)
* I Am Georgina (Netflix)
* Survivor Season Forty-Seven Premiere (CBS)
* The Bay (BritBox)
* The Golden Bachelorette (ABC)
* The Real Housewives Of Salt Lake City Season Premiere (Bravo)
* What's Next? The Future with Bill Gates Series Premiere (Netflix)
SEE YOU ON WEDNESDAY!