Hometown News

I didn't think about that, but it's a good point too. I'd add that the non-news programming (especially syndication and cable) has become mind-numbingly repetitive in its own way. American TV has always been lazy in terms of its presentation, but it seems like around the mid-2010s, streaming became an excuse for the linear TV industry to give up and become just as lazy with everything else.

I don't think it has anything to do with Fox News. They started de-emphasizing network branding when NBC bought WTVJ, and I assume they've stuck with that approach ever since then because it's worked for them.

At the risk of getting off-topic, if I recall correctly, New Zealand is the only other country in the world that does allow pharma ads on TV. It's at least the only other developed country. And even there, it was only legally formalized in 2023, and a lot of people (including doctors) want it banned. The market in Europe is a bit more complex than you're making it out to be. Ad revenue is falling and there's still plenty of angst about streaming replacing linear TV someday. It's also not unheard of for networks in Europe, like Channel 4 in the UK, to make cutbacks as severe as what CBS is currently doing. Channel 4 just went through a few years of greenlighting significantly less programming than usual and cancelling series they had greenlit during production because the money wasn't there to support it. I have a theory about why it still doesn't seem quite as dire for traditional TV over there. European countries were always much better at making TV feel like an event consistently. Just look at all the extra effort they've always put into presentation - the idents, live announcers introducing the shows, etc. It sounds silly, but psychologically, I do think it matters to viewers on a subconscious level. Outside of the local news (which itself is becoming increasingly centralized), American TV has always lacked that personal touch. Linear TV in America and in countries with a more Americanized style of television seem much more vulnerable to streaming because there's so little to differentiate it besides the negative aspects: more ads and less choice.

That's a bit extreme, but I could see the networks' late-night lineups gravitating towards a mix of dirt-cheap experimental programming, movies, and imported shows, somewhat like ITV regions in the UK when they made their first attempts at late-night programming in the '80s and '90s. I don't see the classic late-night talk shows lasting much longer, that's for sure. There's really nothing they still offer that podcasts don't.

These look the same as any other modern newscast's lower third. Same stock rectangular look, same generic font.

For MSNBC, it might be that their opinion shows are hurting the brand of both the NBC network news and the affiliates' local news operations by association while no longer bringing in enough ratings to justify it. I'm just guessing, but I do recall reading years ago that FOX affiliates have complained about viewers confusing them with FOX News Channel, so it isn't a farfetched idea. I'm less sure what the strategy is with USA and CNBC. USA seems to just be a dumping ground now for the sporting events that used to air on NBCSN, so maybe they think they can just move all that content to Peacock and viewers will get used to it. There isn't an obvious replacement for CNBC and unlike the others, it's an international brand.

They've been propped up almost single-handedly by pharmaceutical advertising for years now. If RFK Jr. does get those ads banned like he wants to, I don't know how these cable networks will actually make money anymore.

More dismal numbers for MSNBC: They are basically getting no viewers under the age of 55 anymore. Comcast might actually have a hard time finding a buyer at this rate.

FOX is only as dominant as it is because there's less competition in their niche. MSNBC and CNN cannibalizing each other's ratings is likely accelerating both networks' decline. Ultimately, though, 24/7 cable news is an outdated model and I'm sure we'll eventually see FOX start to decline as well. It's not like young people are watching them either.

I think people in general are just tired of the "all Trump, all the time" monomania on these networks. It's been almost a decade of the same topics on a loop. It makes it that much harder for them to compete with YouTube, Twitch, podcasts, social media, etc. where there's actual choices, not the same programming over and over again.

Doesn't CBS still own Channel 5 in the UK and Network 10 in Australia? If I was running CBS, I might have tried importing series from those networks to fill the daytime lineup rather than commissioning a new soap that's probably going to fail.

Maybe not:

This is pretty common in other countries, including the UK, Canada, and Australia, so there's precedent for it.

I'm not sure giving up 10pm is such an apocalyptic scenario. Sure, it is a sign of weakness for the Big Three, and it is unfortunate that the timeslot will just be used to stretch local news departments even further when we're already overloaded with news on TV. But FOX and the CW (including its predecessors) have already been doing exactly this for decades and they're still around. I see it more as another step in the slow managed decline of linear TV than an instant disaster for the networks.

I'm a bit confused as to why the presence of a ticker is the metric for whether or not something counts as news. I don't recall tickers being commonplace on news channels until the 2000s. My guess is that they're being phased out because they're no longer necessary now that everyone has a smartphone with them at all times.

The red L3s they're using for anchors, reporters, and breaking news are slightly more inspired than the norm, but the plain white ones they're using for headlines and people they're interviewing are just the same tired stuff that everyone else is using. Overall, the new look is still better than their previous graphics, which were very cheap-looking for a top-10 market like the Bay Area.

I'm glad I'm not the only one thinking this. This simplistic "flat design" look that literally every newscast has nowadays has run its course. It all looks the same.