Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Wednesday, March 26th, 2025:
IF YOU CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF MY DULCET TONES
I am on the latest edition of the "Book And Film Globe" Podcast, which was released today. I'm talking about food competition shows, and I suppose the biggest disagreement between myself and host Neil Pollack is that I only sort of disliked the new Food Network series House Of Knives. OTOH, I also managed to fit in a mention of the short-lived Esquire Network.
You can listen to it on the Book And Film Globe web site, or the podcast is available on Apple and Spotify.
And as a reminder, I'm always interested in doing podcasts, interviews or other press. Reply to this newsletter or email me at
NPR AND PBS HEADS TESTIFY BEFORE DOGE SUBCOMMITTEE
National Public Radio (NPR) and Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) executives and other witnesses testified before the DOGE subcommittee on Wednesday about alleged biased content and government funding of the entities.
I watched the entire 2 1/2 hour event and I was going to parse a bunch of the testimony. But to be honest, it went about as well as you would expect it to go in front of a subcommittee helmed by Rep Marjorie "Jewish Space Lasers" Taylor Greene.
To be clear, as critical as I have been of the PBS and NPR decisions around DEI, I am supporter of both. And it's something I would encourage everyone to do if they're able.
My point all along has been that PBS and NPR are making a mistake by making moves they hope will help them with the Trump Administration and conservative critics. I think it's clear at this point that making concessions will only be seen as a sign of weakness and you'll be asked for more concessions. Look at Columbia University, which has reportedly agreed to a wide range of concessions, only to have Donald Trump suggest they still needed to do more.
I didn't expect either CEO to push back against some of the more insane claims made in the hearing, but there has to be someone at PBS (or friendly to the network) who could be tasked to give interviews making the obvious counterarguments. Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene focused a lot of time criticizing PBS over its documentaries about trans people and programming featuring a drag queen. Leading reasonable people to ask "well, PBS airs hundreds of hours of programming a year, so if you're complaining a special that aired in 2021, the network must be doing okay overall."
I also want someone out there pushing back against the conservative argument that PBS's audience is somehow primarily rich, urban liberals. Or that there are any comparable options to the free, commercial-free PBS Kids programming. Programming which is extremely vital to poor families, many of whom can't afford to spend money on cable TV or a couple of streaming services.
Look, I don't agree with the editorial stance of 100% of PBS programming. But I think it serves the greater good overall and I would hate for its federal funding to go away.
A COUPLE OF REASONS TO READ THE ANKLER TODAY
There are two very good pieces in The Ankler today and while I would encourage you to subscribe, I do have links to full versions of the story.
Former Baywatch actress Alexandra Paul wrote a piece describing her harrowing 13-year battle with a stalker and it is just a horrific tale:
I have taken out restraining orders, my stalker has been investigated by the FBI, arrested, jailed and deported to Germany. But nothing has deterred her from her fixation on me. She always comes back. At my gym. When she rented a bedroom one block away. When she found me alone on hiking trails. When she falsely told police my husband was beating me. When she crashed his workplace to falsely assert he was a pedophile.
I have no idea why she picked me out as the object of both her desire and her hatred. I had never seen her before that fateful evening in December of 2011 when the doorbell rang and I innocently opened the door, seeing what seemed at first just a young woman and her little brother. That simple unwitting gesture of being home at the wrong time altered the course of my life.
The stalking only ended after the female stalker died from breast cancer. And to give you a sense of her obsession, after she was diagnosed in her home country of Germany, she declined treatment so she could return to the U.S. to track Paul. Just a frightening story.
And the second story is from Lesley Goldberg, who spoke with a number of Hollywood professionals about what they would do to overhaul the current television development process:
Matt Nix adds that rising writers can also help themselves when it comes to building their skillset and adapting to the industry’s needs: “With fewer slots for writers, there is less room for specialists, more need for people who can do it all — writing, post, on-set work,” he says. “I’d like to see more training in this area, but I’d also like to see people actively building their résumés and showing their abilities. You say you can edit and you’re great on set? Let’s see the short film you made.”
Andy Bobrow (Krapopolis, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Community) suggests that efficiencies could be found by resetting expectations among more junior staffers. “The work that a writers’ assistant does, the note-taking and organizing drafts, etc., should be done by a full-fledged staff writer,” he says. “In other words, rather than hire a writers assistant who dreams of making it to staff writer, just hire a staff writer and tell them that as a staff writer, they will be required to do these chores. There’s no aspiring writer who would say no to that. If that had been our tradition from the start, no one would think it’s odd, they would just think that’s how you start.”
TWEET OF THE DAY
ODDS AND SODS
* CBS has canceled its late night series After Midnight after two seasons, reportedly because host Taylor Tomlinson wanted out. There are no plans to replace the show and it'll be interesting to see if the network decides to turn the time back over to its affiliates.
* The Kennedy Center on Tuesday terminated at least five members of its small social impact team. The team’s focus was to reach new and diverse audiences beyond those who regularly attend symphony and opera performances, and “to advance justice and equity” through art, according to its website.
* Paramount+ announced that it has acquired The Children Of October, a documentary featuring social media activist Montana Tucker, which will premiere on the streaming service April 23rd.
* Netflix has ordered an eight-episode live-action Scooby Doo series. Here is the logline, which sounds....interesting? - "A modern reimagining of the iconic mystery-solving group of teens and their very special dog. During their final summer at camp, old friends Shaggy and Daphne get embroiled in a haunting mystery surrounding a lonely lost Great Dane puppy that may have been a witness to a supernatural murder. Together with the pragmatic and scientific townie, Velma, and the strange, but ever so handsome new kid, Freddy, they set out to solve the case that is pulling each of them into a creepy nightmare that threatens to expose all of their secrets."
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26TH:
Bref.2 (Netflix)
Caught (Netflix)
Million Dollar Secret Series Premiere (Netflix)
Side Quest Series Premiere (Apple TV+)
The Connors Season Premiere (ABC)
The Grudge Series Premiere (Vice)
The Studio Series Premiere (Apple TV+)
THURSDAY, MARCH 27TH:
Accused: Did I Do It? Series Premiere (A&E)
Bosch: Legacy (Prime Video)
Gold & Greed: The Hunt For Fenn's Treasure (Netflix)
Holland (Prime Video)
Paul American Series Premiere (Max)
Southern Charm Season Ten Reunion Special (Bravo)
Survival Of The Thickest Series Premiere (Netflix)
SEE YOU ON THURSDAY!