Apparently cutbacks aren’t just for jobs and budgets anymore: Floundering NBC is considering slashing away at primetime itself. “Can we continue to broadcast 22 hours in primetime? Three of our competitors don’t,” NBC Universal President Jeff Zucker said in an keynote address during the annual UBS Global Media and Communications Conference. “Can we continue to broadcast seven days a week? One of our competitors doesn’t.” Of course, he’s exaggerating even NBC’s current original programming a smidge: Fridays and Saturdays on the Peacock have been a mishmash of the flailing (Crusoe) and already-failed (Lipstick Jungle) along with a slew of reruns (Knight Rider, Law & Order, more Law & Order). But in his defense, Fox and The CW (as well as MyNetwork TV, if you count that) do program fewer hours than the Big Three nets do. And if cutting back means one fewer Knight Rider or Kath & Kim, well, that’s not necessarily all bad.
UPDATE: Turns out NBC is doing plenty of the more traditional laying-off-folks stuff as well. The network and its studio are merging their programming ranks and putting Angela Bromstad — who’d been heading NBC Universal’s international production — in charge of all scripted fare. Former BBC Worldwide America executive and Dancing With the Stars producer Paul Telegdy will head unscripted programming. NBC execs wouldn’t comment on specific jobs lost under the “restructuring,” but Teri Weinberg, exec VP of NBC Entertainment, will be leaving to form her own production company, and Craig Pleistis, exec VP of alternative programming, will instead head a new production company under NBC’s banner.
Kath & Kim is hilarious – I will be ticked if they cancel it!
Ugh I can’t believe Crusoe is still on air. As much as I hate most of CBS’s programming, even their worst Friday night fare is better equipped with talent (!) than a large portion of NBC’s programming. Its time to change direction. Please find some courage to back good stories and innovative ideas. Maybe thats the only way to get back in the game.
Remember on 30 Rock when Will Arnett’s CEO said he was gonna shut down the entire company for two years to cut costs? It’s not seeming so far fetched anymore. Pathetic.
I hope they focus on actual NBC and don’t touch USA, the abused Sci-Fi channel, or Bravo.
If he’s talking about 22 hours of quality programming, then, no NBC cannot make that commitment. In fact, I’d go so far as to say they’d have trouble getting halfway there, and that’s even with giving them four hours of Football Night in America.
What?? I love Kath&Kim!!–am i the only one?
Kath and Kim is a great show! Why can’t they get rid of the beyond over Law and Order, and I doubt international dance star or whatever it’s called was cheap.
Why doesn’t Universal wake up and realize that ever since they promoted Jeff Zucker from The Today Show and made him the head of entertainment at NBC and than actually made him in charge of Universal, the network has no idea what television shows to put on TV. Zucker may have been very good for the Today Show, but not for primetime. Universal should fire him.
Ruth
As long as they keep Chuck on, I’m happy. Also, if they’re looking to cut costs, I’d like to see 30 Rock stand on its own two feet without overload stunt guest casting. I know it’s possible!
Well, right now NBC has enough good shows to make up one solid night of programming from 8-11 pm. So, they might as well join FOX in the 2hour a night programming regime. Apparently, only ABC and CBS have enough creative and skilled personnel to deliver the standard 3hrs of nightly primetime tv.
Wasn’t Katherine Pope fired as well? That may have been a bad move. Fantastic decision to finally sack Teri Weinberg who, along with Ben Silverman, pretty much ruined NBC by bringing in such quality programs as the all new Knight Rider, Kath & Kim and Crusoe. That only takes care of part of the problem. Ben Silverman is still digging a hole of incompetence for the network, and Jeff Zucker is still making poor decisions (like hiring Ben Silverman, and like not firing Ben Silverman). NBC’s freefall won’t end any time soon with Silverman still making decisions.
dear god in heaven….I hope LIFE makes the cut. The numbers were up last week, but that show looks expensive. Have you seen the cars driven by Charlie Crews?
uh oh
Commit to a t.v. series for a full season, promote it, and leave it in one time slot for long enough for viewers to find it, watch it and decide if they want to keep watching it. That’s the only way NBC will drag itself out of fourth place. The way they keep switching shows from time slot to time slot(Lipstick Jungle, Life) or canceling them if they don’t instantly become a hit (My Own Worst Enemy) is unfair to viewers. Remember Seinfeld and Cheers, guys? They were not hits at first, but NBC held on and gave both shows a chance, and now they’re both considered classics. Same with Hill Street Blues. I know that reality t.v. is a lot cheaper to produce than scripted t.v., but it’s ruining television. I also agree about firing a lot of the NBC brain trust. And one last point: as long as NBC is owned by GE, the quality of the network is never going to go up that much. NBC is just a tiny cog in a big empire, which is really sad for t.v. addicts like myself.
Now NBC says Jay Leno is taking the 10 pm slot.
As far as I’m concerned, NBC can quit broadcasting 24 hours a day. I might miss SVU but I’d survive. The worst TV ever is on NBC.