Could NBC collapse altogether?

[MorningNews 1448]

WSB (ABC) may have been the ratings king here in Atlanta for about a thousand years, but despite those claims, let's face it: WXIA (NBC) has been closing in on them lately in both primetime and news, as evidenced by the last three ratings reports.

 

Their news audience has been increasing from 11% in November to 15% in February, which is half of WAGA's. Even without news at 4:00 and 5:00, Ellen DeGeneres and Dr. Phil have been holding up very well (the former opposite Judge Judy on 'AGA). And having lived in a small market most of my life, I can somewhat relate to WXIA: They're like a large-market version of KTVF (both are on Channel 11), but a million times better. I dunno about Fox, but at least they still have plenty of backup (Almost Human, New Girl, the Cosmos reboot) even with the once-dominant American Idol still hurting.

 

But wasn't ABC at one point in FOURTH PLACE??

Very hard to imagine a point in the near future where WSB would ever fall behind any other station in Atlanta. WSB is like embedded into the Atlanta DNA.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

Yes. During it's early years of Edward Noble and Leonard Goldenson. Probably because ABC didn't have a lot of stations to it's name. ABC wouldn't become number one until Fred Silverman arrived.

In the early 50s, ABC-TV was in dire straits. Unlike the radio network, which had a decent infrastructure that NBC set up (as NBC Blue) and Noble improved upon, ABC-TV really had nothing to their name but a chain of O&Os, all on Channel 7. NBC, CBS and even DuMont has a leg up in getting talent and programming migrated to TV.

 

In fact, it got so bad that they got bought out by United Paramount Theatres - Paramount Pictures' divested-by-court-order theatre chain - in order to get needed capital (and that brought Goldenson aboard).

[Breaking News 829]

ABC was my favorite out of (3) and you do have to wonder about ABC & NBC. Both networks have their woes and NBC seems to be the one to come up roses. ABC does have it work cut out for them with Anne & Bob leaving in the next few years. However ABC needs to get some good people in management role.

 

It seems that these suits at these networks are some stuffy old man or some woman, but they don't seem to be the network execs like Brandon Tartikoff that gave shows time to gel... Today suits are not like that, but Moonves has worked hard to keep CBS on top but NBC & ABC are both in a sticky situation...

 

I think we shouldn't cast ABC away just yet, because they have some good strong affiliations, and these contracts and etc. I just hope some good people come in the role of Anne & Bob because the new people will have their work cut out for them. Does anybody remember Jamie Tarses who ran ABC entertainment division in the mid 90s?

[Jess 1115]

I don't know about other markets. I know that my market's NBC O&O, which operates in Comcast's backyard, got a hell of a lot more local post Comcast. It now really focuses on the entire tri-state area, with dedicated reporters in Delaware, South Jersey, Trenton, and the Jersey Shore. It spends more time covering community stories than anybody else.

[johnnya2k6 171]

Keep in mind that in the late '70s, WSB was still affiliated with NBC even if they were dead last.

 

But the last time ABC fell to last place was in 2003, when viewers were getting tired of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? three nights a week. Let's just say that they were, uh..."Lost" and "Desperate" for a turnaround.

[Mrtraveler01 738]

 

Keep in mind that in the late '70s, WSB was still affiliated with NBC even if they were dead last.

 

But the last time ABC fell to last place was in 2003, when viewers were getting tired of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? three nights a week. Let's just say that they were, uh..."Lost" and "Desperate" for a turnaround.

 

Part of me thinks ABC's "Resurrection" may come sooner than we think.

 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2014/03/11/nielsen-weekly-tv-ratings-highlights/6291779/

[24994J 5577]

 

Part of me thinks ABC's "Resurrection" may come sooner than we think.

 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2014/03/11/nielsen-weekly-tv-ratings-highlights/6291779/

 

That might be a little optimistic. Let me refer to one of the lines in the article...

 

"network's biggest since V in 2009"

 

And we know how that worked out in the long run.

[CircleSeven 1955]

 

That might be a little optimistic. Let me refer to one of the lines in the article...

 

"network's biggest since V in 2009"

 

And we know how that worked out in the long run.

 

mmm-hmmm!!!!

 

I dunno why they're aiming too high on this show, because they showed strong numbers on its first airing. Just because that is the case, it may not be like that in the long run. Call me back when we see some consistent ratings for a good balance of episodes. Then we'll know if this is the real deal. And it still won't fix their other problems with the network. Like for example, their problematic Thursday Night 8pm/ET timeslot...

[Jase 1047]

 

mmm-hmmm!!!!

 

I dunno why they're aiming too high on this show, because they showed strong numbers on its first airing. Just because that is the case, it may not be it will be like that in the long run. Call me back when we see some consistent ratings for a good balance of episodes. Then we'll know if this is the real deal. And it still won't fix their other problems with the network. Like for example, their problematic Thursday Night 8pm/ET timeslot...

 

Not to mention that 'Resurrection' will be going head-to-head with NBC's 'Believe' on Sundays which could bring both shows live viewing/demo #s down given they appeal to a similar audience. ABC may have a troubled 7\8p timeslot, but that's nothing compared to NBC on Thursday.

[24994J 5577]

I think a big problem lies in the fact that every network "tries" to win every night. It just doesn't happen. For an example, NBC should just stop trying on Thursdays, put on whatever they want, and lower their standards.

[johnnya2k6 171]

And Believe is from Alfonso Cuaron, still riding high after his recent Oscar win for Gravity.

[jero23 105]

 

Both markets are better off without NBC. They don't know how to run a 'local' tv station very well. Large markets are faceless and the NBC format works fairly well. In mid-sized markets people are a bit more connected to their communities. Localism works in those markets and NBC doesn't do that very well. NBC completely botched WKYC for the same reasons and Multimedia/Gannett turned it around (except at 11 pm because of the NBC lead in) in fairly short order because they understand how to do local.

 

Besides, under NBC ownership their talent was kind of a multicultural parade. (Outlet Broadcasting had excellent taste in anchor and reporter chicks.)

 

Also, don't discount Providence. Being dominant in a market that is on the small side of being mid-sized can be just as lucrative as being in a larger market. WHIO in Dayton is another example.

 

 

I would have to disagree with you on that. When NBC was in the Birmingham market with the ownership of WVTM, not only was it hyperlocal but it was for a time the #1 news operation in the market. NBC invested in the operations of the newsrooms in Tuscaloosa and Anniston. In addition, there was a community trailer that traveled around the market with the then-Novocom graphic design showing the station being in all aspects of the Central Alabama communities.

 

NBC failed with WNCN because they didn't do like they did in the Birmingham market and attempt to reach out to all aspects of the huge market (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, Cary, Goldsboro, and Fayetteville) it served. Media General is still repeating those same mistakes with this "WNCN" branding. Actually, NBC was extremely successful in Columbus as it was the solid #2 in the Columbus-Chillicothe market. It at times even challenged market leader WBNS in certain timeslots. Since Media General has taken ownership of WCMH has slipped and likely will wind up being #3 behind the Sinclair combo of WSYX/WTTE news operation.

 

WJAR is winning the Providence-New Bedford market by default because it is the only consistent thing in that market.

[DirtyHarry 727]

 

I would have to disagree with you on that. When NBC was in the Birmingham market with the ownership of WVTM, not only was it hyperlocal but it was for a time the #1 news operation in the market. NBC invested in the operations of the newsrooms in Tuscaloosa and Anniston. In addition, there was a community trailer that traveled around the market with the then-Novocom graphic design showing the station being in all aspects of the Central Alabama communities.

 

NBC failed with WNCN because they didn't do like they did in the Birmingham market and attempt to reach out to all aspects of the huge market (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, Cary, Goldsboro, and Fayetteville) it served. Media General is still repeating those same mistakes with this "WNCN" branding. Actually, NBC was extremely successful in Columbus as it was the solid #2 in the Columbus-Chillicothe market. It at times even challenged market leader WBNS in certain timeslots. Since Media General has taken ownership of WCMH has slipped and likely will wind up being #3 behind the Sinclair combo of WSYX/WTTE news operation.

 

WJAR is winning the Providence-New Bedford market by default because it is the only consistent thing in that market.

 

All I know is that WKYC was a perennial number 3 in Cleveland and I always felt WCMH's number 2 slot was more of a function of a then floundering WSYX than anything they did. They even bought a second-hand news set from Louisville! IMO, Tom Burke, Doug Gealy and the people from Outlet really had that place humming in the mid to late 1980's through about the mid-1990;s. The did almost everything well, from their eye for attractive reporter chicks, to graphics and promotion. They even did a bang-up on their sign off:

 

[tyrannical bastard 3951]

Broadcast TV has always been a cycle. Every network has been in this position over time. CBS looked like it was doomed in the mid-90s. ABC looked doomed in the early 2000s, NBC in the early 80s and for most of the last decade. Take "American Idol" and the NFL off of Fox, and it would still be the "Big 3".

 

What is certain is the dominance of CBS these days. They have a lot of hit shows, and unlike the other 3 networks, they don't "give them away" on hulu. To watch shows on CBS, you actually have to watch them on CBS or wait a season or two for them to be on DVD. When the shows are overexposed and too readily available, they become watered down and overexposed, taking more of the focus away from the network itself.

 

I do think that NBC has come the closest to "disappearing" with their 1980-81 season, and the last days of Jeff Zucker and his brilliant idea of putting Jay Leno on five days a week. Actually, with the rise of "American Idol" and the overexposure of "Millionaire", ABC was the first of the big 3 networks to slip into 4th. NBC last year, was the first to slip into 5th (for February sweeps)

 

Of the networks, CBS is buoyed by their scripted programming, while the others are driven by reality TV.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

All I know is that WKYC was a perennial number 3 in Cleveland and I always felt WCMH's number 2 slot was more of a function of a then floundering WSYX than anything they did. They even bought a second-hand news set from Louisville! IMO, Tom Burke, Doug Gealy and the people from Outlet really had that place humming in the mid to late 1980's through about the mid-1990;s. The did almost everything well, from their eye for attractive reporter chicks, to graphics and promotion. They even did a bang-up on their sign off:

 

NBC never wanted to be in Cleveland. They were ordered back into town by the FCC and FTC in 1965 after they were found to have engaged in extortion with Group W for the KYW stations in Philadelphia. (For those who don't know about that nine-year-long saga, it's well worth the read.)

 

As such, NBC never really treated WKYC with much respect, and operated it as a "farm team" station for WNBC. Of course, exhibit A is Al Roker. ABC's Brian Ross was also WKYC's chief investigative reporter in the 1970s who did a serious string of exposes on the mafia in Cleveland that resulted in his promotion to New York.

 

By all accounts, WKYC has been much more successful and respected in the Cleveland market AFTER NBC sold off majority control.

[TVIntheDesert 183]

 

NBC failed with WNCN because they didn't do like they did in the Birmingham market and attempt to reach out to all aspects of the huge market (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, Cary, Goldsboro, and Fayetteville) it served. Media General is still repeating those same mistakes with this "WNCN" branding. Actually, NBC was extremely successful in Columbus as it was the solid #2 in the Columbus-Chillicothe market. It at times even challenged market leader WBNS in certain timeslots. Since Media General has taken ownership of WCMH has slipped and likely will wind up being #3 behind the Sinclair combo of WSYX/WTTE news operation.

 

 

 

Media General is treating WNCN as bad as Sinclair does KDNL in St. Louis. A big-3 network affiliate in a top-50 market should NOT be airing bottom-barrel barter syndication ("Cash Cab," "OK! TV," "EP Daily") during the day. They've set the bar for "programming on the cheap," kind of like the final two years of Kevin O'Brien's ownership of WLNE.

[tyrannical bastard 3951]

 

Media General is treating WNCN as bad as Sinclair does KDNL in St. Louis. A big-3 network affiliate in a top-50 market should NOT be airing bottom-barrel barter syndication ("Cash Cab," "OK! TV," "EP Daily") during the day. They've set the bar for "programming on the cheap," kind of like the final two years of Kevin O'Brien's ownership of WLNE.

 

There's no denying that KDNL is a bastard stepchild of network affiliated stations. At least to WNCN's defense, they also air Ellen and Judge Judy, whereas KDNL's strongest programming is "Steve Harvey" and "Family Feud" along with "Maury" and off-network repeats of "Modern Family" and "The Simpsons". WNCN has made a valiant effort in Raleigh-Durham seeing that they've always had a newscast, and is now really breaking the mold of the other Media General stations with the best-looking graphics package out of all of the legacy MG stations, along with an investigative focus on news. KDNL, on the other hand, has been mailing it in as an ABC affiliate for almost 20 years, and is only NOW making an attempt to get back in the news game after an almost 13 year absence.

[jero23 105]

 

All I know is that WKYC was a perennial number 3 in Cleveland and I always felt WCMH's number 2 slot was more of a function of a then floundering WSYX than anything they did. They even bought a second-hand news set from Louisville! IMO, Tom Burke, Doug Gealy and the people from Outlet really had that place humming in the mid to late 1980's through about the mid-1990;s. The did almost everything well, from their eye for attractive reporter chicks, to graphics and promotion. They even did a bang-up on their sign off:

 

 

Everyone will agree with you WKYC was the biggest joke of any NBC O&O station of any era hands down. Gannett is what has made "Channel 3/Channel 3 News" prominent not NBC. However, WCMH was at its very best as a NBC O&O station because its ratings and revenue potential was much higher and solid during that era.

[Brother 83]

 

What is certain is the dominance of CBS these days. They have a lot of hit shows, and unlike the other 3 networks, they don't "give them away" on hulu. To watch shows on CBS, you actually have to watch them on CBS or wait a season or two for them to be on DVD. When the shows are overexposed and too readily available, they become watered down and overexposed, taking more of the focus away from the network itself.

 

CBS does, however, give their programs away on their own website. Even so, this wisely keeps their shows in house, so to speak, so it fits in with your point that hulu takes the focus away from NBC, FOX, etc.