The Larger Issue: Network Stupidity
By now anyone who follows the basic entertainment news knows that NBC and Leno are about to screw over Conan O'Brien by moving Jay into his old time slot. While you may be a fan of Jay "Hey, look at this typo!" Leno, or you may prefer Conan "I'm actually funny and creative" O'Brien, everyone can agree that this move is going to create quite a mess for all involved.
As I've been thinking about this, one thing has been nagging at me... can we be over temporal issues at this point?
As you can probably guess, I am a Conan fan, and I have never really found Leno to be amusing. He's terrible at interviews, his jokes are bland, and his best bits involve how stupid other people are, which is hardly difficult to pull off. His new early late show is tanking, and for some reason NBC is going to reward his unfunny garbage by going backsies on Conan O'Brien and taking the Tonight Show spot away from the person that actually wants it and actually cares about comedy, is quick in interviews, and is always trying something new.
But this isn't about that. The question I have is: can we forget the idea of what time a show is on at this point?
I watch Conan's show daily... but not at night. I watch it in the morning as I drink coffee, check e-mail, and get ready for the day. Now that Tivo and cable boxes with massive recording potential are more and more prevalent, why does the time of day a show is on matter?
Time slots have something to do with "ad dollars". Companies pay more for shows on during Prime Time. I feel this model is outdated, and the reason that network television companies are having a hard time securing advertising is not due to the caliber of the programming or when it's on... it's that networks have not proven that they understand how people are consuming their media.
Recorded TV allows you to skip commercials. Even if a show is on that I'd like to watch, I record it so that I can watch it later without commercials. I wouldn't be surprised if in a few years many commercials were just 15-30 seconds of a black screen with a white URL on it. That would make more of an impact on me than a scene of people eating at Chilis whipping by at Mach 4.
So, while it sucks that NBC is screwing with Conan, I have to wonder why it should matter. It certainly won't matter to me... I'll just have to reprogram my DVR.
I know that not everyone has cable and not everyone has the ability to record programming... right now. But people are not consuming media the same way as they were ten years ago, and sooner than later the majority of television watchers will be recording programs. What is the point of upsetting the balance with this Leno ego-move, really? Are they trying to plug a hole in the dam without acknowledging the extinction-level tsunami that's headed their way? Stuff like this is futile and all it does is ruin the good will and support people might have for a product or program.
I don't know what the future of television is, but I do know that it's not what NBC thinks it is, and it sure as hell isn't Jay Leno. That guy's the worst.
I think it also speaks to the absolute ineptitude of major networks while dealing with "new media" and how their customers consume their products. And, it is real obvious from their comedies that they don't understand what is funny. 2 good shows: The Office (a remake from BBC) and 30 Rock (which has hot Tina Fey). Jay Leno's time has come and gone; he is not relevant and his material, as Josh said, relies on stupid people for a laugh (typos, interviews, etc.). I don't consider him a comedian if he walks up to people on the street, asks them who is the Vice President, and gets the audience to laugh when they say something stupid. Conan at least is willing to take a comedic chance and is funny. I wonder how much writing both of them do on their respective shows? Here is the thing. I don't watch either of them. Both are past my bedtime and I don't have Tivo or whatever. However, I have more interest in Conan because he is young and fresh. Jay has money and a ton of cars - he should just retire.
But that's the question... what money? NBC seems to be looking at the problem through cataracts. Out of all of the factors that mean lower viewership and lower revenue, they think it's Jay's time slot? What about:
Those things say to me that the problem is Jay's program, not Jay's time. So, NBC is concerned about money? Fire the guy that's making $30,000,000 a year and crapping on the network.
I am one of those latecomers, who'll be among the last to get Tivo and other fancy TV-recording devices. But I largely agree.
In time, it won't matter anymore. But apparently where money is concerned, it does seem to matter now. Hence the nonsense.