Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Monday, August 19th, 2024:
THE DEPARTMENT OF FOLLOW-UPS
About an hour after I sent out Friday's newsletter, I was able to significantly update the story about the most recent round of layoffs at The Hollywood Reporter and if you didn't see it over the weekend, you can check it out here.
Also, there is a lot of talk today about the long-awaited addition of Homicide: Life On The Street to the world of streaming. Long-time readers of this newsletter will remember this story, which tells a crazy tale about charges of plagiarism against then-new TV producer John Wells:
In June 1992, writer David Simon issued a statement through his lawyer claiming that the upcoming CBS drama Polish Hill contained an "astonishing number of similarities" to his 1991 book "Homicide: A Year On The Killing Streets."
The book was a non-fiction account of Baltimore murder investigators and he and producer Barry Levinson had been working on a series based on the book. But according to Simon, entire accounts, dialogue and characters were lifted from his book by Polish Hill screenwriter John Wells. Simon said he learned of the similarities when Levinson began searching for a writer to work on the pilot for a proposed series based on his book.
It's just a crazy story and while there was eventually a settlement, it's not clear what terms might have been negotiated.
REMEMBERING PHIL DONAHUE
I have complicated feelings about Phil Donahue. His daytime talker was a fixture on television when I was younger and in a lot of ways, he seemed to embody the man I wanted to become: smart, kind, intellectually curious and interested in hearing people's stories - no matter what they might be.
But Phil Donahue is also the subject of my first really big national media story. When Donahue's MSNBC talker was canceled, I was able to report about the contentious behind-the-scenes battles about the direction of the show. And the results of a focus group which found that his show was seen by viewers as being "un-American" because he was opposed to the war in Iraq:
Although Donahue didn't know it at the time, his fate was sealed a number of weeks ago after NBC News executives received the results of a study commissioned to provide guidance on the future of the news channel.
That report--shared with me by an NBC news insider--gives an excruciatingly painful assessment of the channel and its programming. Some of the recommendations, such as dropping the "America's News Channel," have already been implemented. But the harshest criticism was leveled at Donahue, whom the authors of the study described as "a tired, left-wing liberal out of touch with the current marketplace."
The study went on to claim that Donahue presented a "difficult public face for NBC in a time of war......He seems to delight in presenting guests who are anti-war, anti-Bush and skeptical of the administration's motives." The report went on to outline a possible nightmare scenario where the show becomes "a home for the liberal antiwar agenda at the same time that our competitors are waving the flag at every opportunity."
It's a strange experience today to see so many stories about that MSNBC show reference my reporting, without mentioning who broke the story. But as a reporter, it's rewarding to break a story that people still discuss more than twenty years later.
DEADLINE GETS SOME FACTS ABOUT STREAMING, DRAWS THE WRONG TAKEAWAY
Samba TV just released a new State of Viewership Report, and I was going to write about it. But to be honest, I don't think there was anything in there you probably didn't know already. Churn across the industry is up, except at Netflix. And why is Netflix doing so much better when it comes to keeping its subscriber churn rate low? Here's what Deadline's Katie Campione writes:
Samba’s data shows that viewers are generally invested in a specific piece of content, choosing to leave the platform after they’ve finished watching. The only exception to this is Netflix, which is unsurprising given that the streamer has proven highly effective at using its algorithm to draw users to new content and keep them engaged on the platform. It’s a tool that many of the newer platforms have yet to perfect.
Yes, Netflix has a fairly effective content recommendation engine. But Netflix executives will tell you that something else is the big driver for the streamer when it comes to low churn rates. And the hint comes in the next two paragraphs of the story:
Netflix had the lowest level of churn and also represented 60% of the Top 50 shows in the first half of the year with series like Fool Me Once, Griselda, American Nightmare, Bridgerton and The Gentlemen in the Top 10.
Elsewhere, subscription cyclers come back for buzzy new shows, Samba says, including Peacock’s Ted, AppleTV’s Masters of the Air, and FX’s Shōgun, which aired in Hulu and Disney+. New seasons of House of the Dragon (the second most-popular premiere of the half, behind Fool Me Once), True Detective, and Reacher were also a big draw.
Subscribers want to be able to log on and find something new or at least unfamiliar every time they open the app. It might be a new scripted series, or a sports documentary or a dating show. But having new original content - as much as possible - reduces the subscriber churn rate.
The problem is that cranking out that much original programming is expensive. And while Netflix isn't spending some huge multiples on money more than its competitors, it is also not spending a big percentage of its content budget on sports. It's great that Peacock has all of this live sports programming, but every dollar spent on sports is one less dollar that can be used on everything else. And while live sports will bring in fans, the sports rights are expensive and they are basically disposable. The game streams and its over. As compared to episodes of any scripted or non-scripted series, which can be viewed for years after the premiere.
And to be honest, that is one of the reasons why Netflix has not pursued a large sports rights package more aggressively. Because ultimately that money comes out of the programming budget and it can't continue to produce thousands of hours of original programming every year also pay for the NFL or NBA.
And then there is this takeaway some people in the industry got from reading the article:
TWEET OF THE DAY
I understand why people in the industry want to return to longer seasons like there were in the golden years of broadcast television. But that's not an economic model that works in the streaming business, for a number of reasons I've outlined in this newsletter in the past. And there's nothing in the Samba data that would support longer seasons as a way to reduce churn. But it's one of those pieces of conventional industry wisdom that people just refuse to believe.
ODDS AND SODS
* In an op-ed for The NY Times, MSNBC's Rachel Maddow writes about what worries her most about election night.
* Esquire's Josh Rosenberg asks the burning question: why do all Netflix shows look the same?
* Japan's exports of anime and other content are close to parity with steel and semiconductor devices. Which explains a lot about the success of Crunchyroll.
* Atlantic takes a look at Anna Marie Tendler's new book Men Have Called Her Crazy. And while she's probably legally prevented from discussing her ex-husband John Mulaney, it's pretty clear he is one of the men referenced in the book's title.
* Disney+ has canceled the Star Wars universe original series The Acolyte after one season. Which is not a huge surprise, given the critical response and the viewer numbers.
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
MONDAY, AUGUST 19TH:
* CoComelon Lane (Netflix)
* PBS News Special: Democratic National Convention (PBS)
* The Anonymous Series Premiere (USA)
* Under The Vines (Acorn TV)
TUESDAY, AUGUST 20TH:
* Divided By Design Series Premiere (HGTV)
* Face To Face With Scott Peterson (Peacock)
* Langston Kerman: Bad Poetry (Netflix)
* Muslim Matchmaker Series Premiere (Hulu)
* Spiral Season Eight Premiere (MHz Choice)
* Terror Tuesday: Extreme (Netflix)
* TouTouYouTou Series Premiere (MHz Choice)
* Untold: The Murder Of Air McNair (Netflix)
SEE YOU ON TUESDAY!