Dumbest TV Biz Mistakes

Don't expect your average cop shows and sitcoms

(NEWSER) - As they ready their fall lineups for advertisers, the major networks are stepping off last season's beaten path of struggles and flops. “We were looking for fresh,” says NBC Entertainment’s new president. “I really want people to see the concept for a show and go: ‘Oh wow. What’s that?’” To that end, his network is planning shows like Smash, the big-budget story of a Broadway musical’s creation. The series will have original songs penned by Broadway legends—and it’s getting some help from Steven Spielberg. More»

Surprise move comes days before shooting starts on Season 7

(NEWSER) - In an unexpected move just days before CSI: NY begins shooting its seventh season, co-star Melina Kanakaredes said today she'll leave the case of the CBS crime procedural. "We hoped Melina would return to CSI: NY for another season, but we respect her decision to move on," the network said in a statement, seemingly indicating negotiations had been ongoing. The show is the lowest-rated show in the CSI family and is moving to Friday this fall, which bodes ill for its prospects, New York notes . More»

Discovery Channel to media mogul: 'Move it or lose it'

(NEWSER) - The long-awaited launch of Oprah's cable network is set for early 2011, and her syndicated talk show will move to the new Oprah Winfrey Network—and from Chicago to Los Angeles. The switch from Discovery Health Channel to OWN was originally set for mid-2009, and Discovery threatened to rescind the offer, saying it wanted her to "move it or lose it," Nikki Finke of Deadline Hollywood reports. More»

Southland , Parks and Recreation lead upturn

(NEWSER) - After years of poor ratings, NBC may be on the rebound with the help of two new series: cop show Southland and Amy Poehler’s comedy Parks and Recreation. Parks scored only 6.9 million total viewers, but it maintained 88% of The Office’s coveted young-adult audience. Southland topped CBS’ Harper’s Island in the 18-to-49 demographic and beat expectations by almost equaling Harper’s Island's total viewership. More»

(NEWSER) - Oprah is getting ready to say goodbye to ABC and take her legendary talk show to her OWN cable network, the New York Post reports. The CEO of Discovery Communications, which is teaming up with Winfrey to create OWN (the Oprah Winfrey Network) says he expects Winfrey’s eponymous show to cease airing via syndication when her current deal ends in September 2011. More»