How Fox Screwed All Other Networks, Writers, And Viewers
By fred | January 17, 2008
You know there’s a writers’ strike, right ? Of course you do. And yo know that American Idol is know ruling the screens all over the country, if not further. And despite having a lesser strong season premiere than in the past, it still got over 30 million viewers and great ratings on the beloved 18-49 demo. And this is only the beginning, Fox intends to air episodes of Idol about every hour for as long as the strike will last, pretty much.
And because there’s nothing else on TV, they make a lot of money, killing any “competition”. Do you see, now, why it’s in their best interest that the strike last as long as possible, that no other networks “broke” from the AMPTP common position and signs a deal with the WGA ?
All along I’ve said repeatedly that one network should do it, break the consensus and get themselves a deal with the WGA, because if they were to be the only network with new scripted content on the air, they would destroy every other network. For instance, ABC, whose drama don’t repeat well, has been sinking really hard ever since the strike started, and if, unlike other networks, they had their full schedule ready : a FULL season of Lost, Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, Desperate Housewives and other Grey’s Anatomy, if all those shows were fully on the air, facing nothing but reruns and reality crap, ABC would be the number one network in America, hands down, ABC could be asking millions from advertisers to appear during those shows, ABC would be king !
But those retards did not do that, and now they’re last. Really, sometimes The CW is close to doing better than the Alphabet. And if we were to push the whole thing a bit further, we could even say that ABC, but also CBS and NBC, have been manipulated by Fox. Because now, Fox is king.
Oh sure, Fox has scripted series as well, and they lost a new season of 24, and House is a major hit. But their number one hit, American Idol, does not come from writers. And if for them to loose House, Bones and 24 comes with a complete lack of competition for their hit Idol, maybe it was worth it, financially. And don’t be fooled, money is all they care about by the end of the day.
So, yeah, Peter Chernin, President of Fox, must be smarter than all other chairmen in the (AMPTP) room, because he got what he couldn’t dream of : a complete lack of (scripted) competition for his bulldozer Idol.
I’m not the only one saying this. Here, read this very nice piece from Ed Decter, WGA member (and Pet Rock owner) :
Laughing All The Way
By Ed Decter (WGA member, Pet Rock owner)
Long ago, in the era before digital streaming and video on demand, I was one of those kids who saved his allowance and bought a Pet Rock. I remember my father putting on his bifocals to examine the cardboard box with the built-in handle, the little nest of straw and the egg-sized gray stone. My dad sighed then said, “The guy who thought of this is laughing all the way to the bank.”
If my dad were still alive, he would be following the progress of our strike very closely; not just because his son is a screenwriter, but because he was always skeptical that those in power would abuse that power (I guess being in the first United States Army division to cross the Rhine made an impression on him).
My dad read two newspapers cover-to-cover every morning. He would have certainly seen the article about how the WGA strike has resulted in a huge boost in ad rates for American Idol. Fox is now charging about a million dollars for a thirty second spot on Idol. This rate isn’t for the FINALS, just a regular weekly episode. After reading the article my dad would have called me and asked, “How many thirty second spots are there in an hour of television?” I would have replied that on average there are about eighteen minutes of commercials per hour.
My dad, who was a businessman and very good with numbers, particularly as they related to the “bottom line,” would have estimated that each hour of American Idol was grossing 36 million dollars for Fox. The two hour episode that aired last night might have brought in 72 million. I would have then explained to my dad that those ad rate figures were just the tip of the iceberg. The Idol show also serves as an advertisement for CD sales, live touring shows, and tons of Idol-related merchandise (even on the Internet!).
I imagine my dad would have asked me who the “guy in charge” at Fox was. I would have told him the guy’s name is Peter Chernin. My dad would have said, “He must be laughing all the way to the bank.”
Peter Chernin must be a lot smarter than the chairmen of the other conglomerates. He must have about a hundred IQ points on each of them. How did he convince Les Moonves to “hold the line” and do without new CSI episodes while handing Fox the biggest ratings win in history? How did Chernin spin Iger on shutting down the Grey’s Anatomy juggernaut so that WGA-less Idol could run free of any competition? What did he say to Jeff Zucker? Did he assure Zucker that Howie Mandel is every bit the ratings equal of Simon Cowell?
Apparently, according to my Google search, a guy named Gary Dahl invented the Pet Rock. In the world of sales Gary was an amateur. He just dreamed up a product and made a bunch of money. If Gary were truly a captain of industry he would have also convinced the manufacturers of hula hoops, Slinkys and Tonka Trucks to STOP MANUFACTURING THEIR TOYS so that the public could ONLY buy Pet Rocks.
That’s why Gary Dahl could never be chairman of Fox. He’s no Peter Chernin.
So, Les, Bob, Jeff, just know that when Peter Chernin is at the bank cashing his billion dollar profit checks, he’s not just laughing at the WGA – he’s also laughing at the three of you.
Posted in News
