Jeff Zucker has long been the Rodney Dangerfield of the big-media world. And the NBC Universal chief executive's decision to schedule a Jay Leno talk show five nights a week at 10 p.m. did nothing to change that.
The conventional wisdom was that in scheduling Leno for an hour in prime-time five days a week beginning in September, NBC was giving up beachfront real-estate to put up a rooming house, as one industry veteran put it. The head of one of Hollywood's biggest talent agencies agreed, saying, "It's really a lesson in how to kill a brand." And last December, CBS President Les Moonves publicly kicked sand in Zucker's face at the UBS media conference in New York, declaring, "I would bet anyone who would like to bet that CSI: Miami will beat Jay by a lot. Remember: by a lot!"
That sounds like a setup for what is known as a pyrrhic victory. For one thing, any CSI episode costs seven figures, which is more than a whole lotta Lenos. Consequently, CBS can win the ratings battle while still losing the financial war. But there's far more at stake here for the big broadcast networks than winning a simple skirmish over ratings points and ad rates on any given night. Read more
Blog Spotlight: Will Leno Be Funnier at 10?
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