SNL Finds Success, Again

Saturday Night Live has gotten rave reviews this political season doing what they have always done, with varying degrees of success, since the mid 1970's. Let's be honest, some seasons have been nothing short of painful. Thus far, this season has been a home run. The writing, the topicality, the guests, and the performances have been excellent. The Palin factor. And the buzz on the show? Off the map. Not to mention the huge live TV audiences and the even larger on-line audiences.

What the show tries to do every week closely resembles what entertainment based radio shows try to do every day--also with varying degrees of success. So much of a shows success starts with the prep and the writing. Typically, winging it is not the best path.

Last night on Charlie Rose (on PBS) SNL's Lorne Michaels, Seth Meyers, Darrell Hammond, Fred Armisen and writer James Downey appeared to talk about the process, the prep, the performance, and, yes, this season's success. Pull the curtain back and get a peek into their process.

You Think We Got Problems (in radio)?

With people under 30 it would appear TV may be in worse shape.

MediaPost had this story based on a Pew study:

Only 58% of adults younger than 30 say they watch TV almost every day, while 23% of say they watch television only a few times a week. That's according to new research by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Numbers decidedly weaker than we are experiencing in radio. What's not mentioned is what the numbers were in the past and how far they have fallen. It's reasonable to guess that younger demos have always watched less TV than their older counterparts.

Here's how the older demo's shake out.

Among older adults, the numbers are higher. Seventy-two percent of people age 30-49 watch TV almost every day, as do 80% of those 50-64 and 89% of those 65 and older.

A huge difference.

Get this...from the same MediaPost article:

Independent of the Pew study, The Wall Street Journal recently wrote about the growing number of adults who have stopped paying for cable TV because they can watch any programs they want online. Presidential debates can now be streamed live, shows on cable channels like MTV are available for free streaming, and the best moments from "Saturday Night Live" can be viewed on demand at Hulu.com and NBC.com.

And the article goes on to say:

If people had already started canceling their cable subscriptions before the recent economic events, it's easy to imagine that more will do so in a recession. And that means that Internet video, which already commands some of the highest CPMs out there, will grow in popularity. Current predictions are that the market could reach $1 billion by 2010, but that could turn out to be an underestimate if more people than expected stop watching TV.

Additionally, as people spend more time online, search advertising also is likely to continue to grow. Many Web users now view search engines, and not portals, as the gateway to the Web; when those people go online, they start at Google, Yahoo or another company's search engine. Just last week, Google reported that second quarter profit grew 26%, showing that paid search is holding up very well, even as the rest of the economy teeters.

The future is here and it's on-demand. Honestly, I had never heard that cable TV subscriptions were being canceled. But if that tidbit is accurate, that's got to send chills down the spine of TV exec's everywhere.

And we wonder why there is little to no appetite for HD Radio--good content or not.

MTV Networks learned long ago that music and music videos were becoming too much of a commodity (not to mention the declining ratings) to center most of it's programming around it. The channels today are largely about music and the people making the music but not music videos.

It's a very difficult lesson for radio to wrap its arms around. I'm guilty, we are all guilty of selling "more music." It was a plausible strategy before more music could be better deployed elsewhere. Now the challenge is to develop radio programming (live, on-line, on demand) that gets beyond the songs exclusively.

What exclusive content do you have worth searching for and consuming on-demand?

Radio Guy Glenn Beck Changes Channels From HN to FNC

Politico and Drudge report the story this afternoon:

From Politico:

Drudge teased this earlier, and Fox News has announced that conservative talk-show host Glenn Beck is joining the network, leaving behind CNN's Headline News. Beck will host a show at 5 p.m. on Fox beginning in the spring.

It hasn't yet been determined when Beck's last day will be, but I've heard from a network source that Headline News was already prepared to re-air "Lou Dobbs Tonight" at 9pm, instead of Beck's show (which first airs at 7pm). When Beck leaves, Dobbs show will be in the 9pm slot.

"Glenn has been a terrific employee and colleague to many of us at CNN," a network spokesperson said in a statement. "We wish him well.”Glenn Beck has signed a multi-year agreement to join FOX News, announced Roger Ailes, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of FOX News. Beginning next spring, Beck will host FOX News Channel’s (FNC) 5 PM/ET weekday program as well as a weekend show on the network.

Currently, Beck serves as the host of Glenn Beck, a talk show on CNN’s Headline News which has grown more than 200% in viewership in both the 7pm and 9pm timeslots since its 2006 debut. He also hosts a daily radio show The Glenn Beck Program which is syndicated via Premiere Radio Networks to more than 300 stations nationwide as well as XM Satellite Radio, and ranks as the third most listened to radio talk show in America among adults 25-54.

In making the announcement, Ailes said, “As we embark on a new political landscape, Glenn’s thought provoking commentary will complement an already stellar line-up of stars at FOX News”

Prior to his television career, Beck served as a talk radio show host at WFLA-AM in Tampa, FL where he took his program to number one within his first year there. He began his radio career in Corpus Christi, Texas as the youngest Top 40 morning show disc jockey in America at 18 years of age. Beck later moved on to become a top 40 disc jockey in major markets around the country, including Houston, Washington, DC, Baltimore, Phoenix and New Haven, CT.

Beck added, “I am thrilled and profoundly humbled to have the chance to bring my program to FOX News. Expanding my audience is exciting, but I'm really looking forward to joining Mr. Ailes and his world-class team."

A recipient of the 2008 Marconi Award for Network Syndicated Personality of the Year from the National Association of Broadcasters, Beck is also the author of the New York Times bestseller An Inconvenient Book - Real Solutions to the World’s Biggest Problems (2007) as well as The Real America - Messages from the Heart and Heartland (2005).

The Nets Get Older

No, not the internet...the broadcast television networks.

Variety reports that all of the networks have aged--some more than others with ABC and CBS, aging out of the prime TV demo, 18-49. For the just-completed 2007-08 TV season, CBS was oldest with a median age of 54. ABC clocked in at 50, followed by NBC (49), Fox (44), CW (34) and Univision (34). When you factor in time shifted viewing (DVR) the ages drop by about a year. In case you were wondering the average median age in the US is 38.

The article pointed out that traditional television is no longer necessarily the first screen for the younger set.

Even the shows that one might think would deliver younger viewers such as The Tonight Show profile out of the demo. In fact Leno's median age is the oldest of the late night talkers at 54, followed by "Late Show With David Letterman" at 53. "Late Night With Conan O'Brien" has edged up to 46 but still delivers the youngest demos of the late night shows.

I feature this story to further illustrate the challenges ahead for ALL traditional media--TV, newspaper, and RADIO. As the Variety story pointed out, TV was not necessary the first stop for young viewers, just as radio may not be the first choice for younger listeners. We know that 12-24's are still radio cumer's (down over the last decade but still there) based on Arbitron's national listening study, but we also know that their time spent listening and AQH rating are down dramatically.

We all must live in the here and now--meaning that programming must deliver ratings that sales can sell today. Budgets must be met. We all understand this reality. Unfortunately, that leaves little room to re-think, re-tool, re-deploy assets (stations) with new, inventive, and radically changed products. Products that may not be a big ratings draw--at first. Eventually the day will come and these changes will have to be made.

Will it be too late?

Gen Y's Are Changing Everything

Those born between the years of 1986–2000 (some demographers offer slightly different years) are changing everything...as they should.

Millennials see life differently than Gen X, Jones, and Boomers because their experiences have been different in large part due to technology. Or maybe better put, what technology has enabled them to do.

There was an excellent story on The Fox Report with anchor Sheppard Smith Friday evening about the dramatic increase in Gen Y's interest in this election cycle. Consider that these teens/early 20's are coming of age at a time when all they have known is their country at war and their first political memory was the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

There was much more to this report than politics. Some of the key points:

• They crave authenticity
• BS detector high for in-authenticity
• Keep it real, no made-for-TV moments
• Email is slow
• Many without TV's
• If it's not on the internet it doesn't exist
  

If having a TV has become less important imagine how Gen Y must feel about radio (let alone a HD radio). In a few short years the first members of this group will be crossing into that all important 25-54 demo. We all must continue our march to be all things virtual and mobile but most critically we must provide content that provides high entertainment values.

Watch the video right here:

Have You Heard Of Hulu?

Meet Hulu...
Movies, TV, and a social networking component all in the same place-on demand and FREE!

From their website:

Hulu's ambitious and never-ending mission is to help you find and enjoy the world's premium content when, where and how you want it. We hope to provide you with the web's most comprehensive selection from more than 50 content providers including FOX, NBC, MGM, Sony Pictures Television, Warner Bros., Lionsgate, and more to deliver premium programming across all genres and formats, television shows, feature films, and clips. Watch full-length episodes of current primetime TV shows such as The Simpsons and The Office the morning after they air, classics like Miami Vice and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and clips from Saturday Night Live, Nip/Tuck, and others. Hulu also offers full-length feature films like The Usual Suspects, Ice Age, Three Amigos!, and The Big Lebowski as well as clips from films such as Napoleon Dynamite, The 40 Year Old Virgin, Devil Wears Prada and many more. Hulu is free and ad-supported — available anytime in the U.S.

Hulu was founded in March 2007 and is a joint venture owned by NBC Universal and News Corp. In addition, Hulu has closed a $100 million investment from private equity firm Providence Equity Partners. <--------yes, the same people that just bought Clear Channel's TV division

The selection is pretty amazing and they add new content every day. If you missed SNL Saturday night, no problem it's on the site the next day. Bill O'Reilly's Talk Points Memo, no problem, there it is. Available to share on your website, email, or link. As you will see later in the post you can even edit a show down to a short clip that's easy to share.

I haven't watched a movie yet, but the TV shows have very short commercial interruptions that seemed like a small price to pay for all this for free. Sounds a lot like the radio model--except for the length of the breaks. You can also buy any episode or movie you like enough to own.

Traffic to Hulu has been growing fast; already attracting hundreds of thousands of unique users.

Content is king and Hulu has amassed of lot of it including WKRP in Cincinnati. Check out this hilarious clip...I laughed 'til I hurt.