Posted on 01/10/2010 2:38:27 PM PST by abb
Jeff Zucker was a fearless news producer and fast-rising entertainment executive who was just 41 when he became head of NBC Universal. But in the last few years, the onetime whiz kid behind the "Today" show -- he turned Katie Couric into a star -- has made several costly miscalculations that have led to a spectacular fall by the country's premier television network.
Zucker's troubles were magnified this week when, with NBC facing a revolt by affiliate stations furious over their sinking ratings, he decided to move Jay Leno back to late night after less than four months. The unusual measure was an acknowledgment that Zucker's gambit to shift the comedian into prime time had failed.
NBC's Leno flip-flop, which is shaping up to be one of the biggest debacles in television history, underscores how Zucker, who views himself as a maverick and a champion of change, now faces a decidedly different legacy. Instead of the mogul with moxie who transformed television -- he called for "a re-engineering of our businesses from top to bottom" -- Zucker might better be remembered as the guy who plucked the peacock.
How Zucker found himself in such a fix is a study in how a chief executive, confronting wrenching changes to his business, reacts to challenges.
Now the network is bracing for more fallout: Will Conan O'Brien, who last spring became host of the storied "Tonight Show," leave the network when Leno moves from 10 p.m. back to 11:35 p.m., which could happen as soon as March? Will Leno remain content with a half-hour show, signing off at 12:05 a.m. to make room for O'Brien, if he stays? And how will NBC plug five hours of programming each week in Leno's vacated time slot?
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(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Well, you may be a bozo, but this idea is genius.
My girl and I were watching some Timeless Moments From The Tonight Show DVD’s two nights ago, and we laughed until tears were streaming.
That was the best show ever, in my opinion, and showing it to new generations would be a good thing.
“Late Nite—Lost”
“Late Nite Survivor”
hahahaha!
Leno and O’Brien should just alternate days or weeks. Problem solved.
As I presume the history site explains, DuMont ceased network operations and their TV operations morphed into a group called Metromedia. WABD New York became WNEW.
Eventually, Rupert Murdoch bought the former DuMont stations and formed the nucleus of the Fox Network. WNEW became today’s WNYW.
So the original “fourth” network resurrected to become the present-day fourth network.
DuMont’s nephew is Chicagoan Bruce DuMont, who hosts the syndicated Sunday radio talk show “Beyond the Beltway.”
[[Due to funding problems, their long-suffering project to reopen in their own building has been stalled for several years, so you can't go and actually see it today.]]
They had exhibits with historical Chicago broadcast connections, such as Fibber McGee's closet, Edgar Bergen's Charlie McCarthy, and a TV camera used in the first Presidential debate (Kennedy-Nixon).
The coolest exhibit they had was a news studio (with room for a small audience) where you could sit in the anchor's chair and do an entire newscast. It came complete with director, floor manager, teleprompter, and taped inserts for on-the-scene reports, weather, and sports. You could buy the tape and take it home with you.
http://telecruiser.com/
DuMont Telecruiser Model B, Number 101
“The Golden Telecruiser”T
http://www.dumonthistory.tv/
DuMont Television Network
Historical Website
No more McClatchey Watch? That sucks. I hope someone picks up the reporting they did.
I will miss that site. He did a magnificent job.
Why would the network ever think that somebody would sit and stare at Leno onscreen during prime time?
I honestly cannot remember the last time I watched a program on NBC, other than tuning into the local news. I stopped watching “new” Law and Order’s (all franchises) years ago, when it became more and more obvious that the drama was taking a back seat to the political message du jour (man, I miss Michael Moriarty!).
Wouldn’t bug me one bit if the network failed (which I know Obama will never let happen).
The business of furthering political correctness religion, brainwashing and pacifying ignorant fools, creating a template for defending socialist governance, and daily mind control and propaganda that convinces viewers that everyone agrees with them and that resistance is hopeless.
They don’t care a whit what we think. Not a whit.
Conan is a better writer than performer, IMHO. I did like his bringing back of Andy Richter, but the new show just doesn’t click with me.
Can you say that Francisco Franco is still dead at that exhibit?
I've never thought about what it would be like being a news anchor. Sitting behind that desk thinking., "I'm an egotistical dunderhead who thinks about my hair all day long."
≤}B^)
NBC will fill the 5 primetime hours vacated by Leno with a new, ongoing version of “the Biggest Loser”, starring Jeff Zucker.
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