CBS Reality Show Abused Kid Stars: Parents

Critics says it's exploitation, but others call it education

(NEWSER) - CBS’ Kid Nation has drawn its share of controversy, which hasn’t stopped a new crop of kid-centric reality shows from cropping up. NBC is letting teenagers care for babies and toddlers on The Baby Borrowers; a Nickelodeon channel probes children’s emotions on The N’s Student Body; and A&E’s Psychic Kids teams pint-sized mediums with adult ones. This new breed of shows is exciting the exact same debate as Kid Nation: Is reality TV too real for its young stars? More»

First set of debuts get lukewarm reception

(NEWSER) - The fall TV season isn't wowing audiences so far, Variety reports. Four fresh shows hit the small screen last night, but none made a big splash. Fox's "Back to You" was tops among 18- to 49-year-olds and attracted 9.4 million viewers overall. But it won by a slim margin, and none of the newbies lived up to last fall's hits. More»

This year's network pilots include four with non-white stars

(NEWSER) - The upcoming crop of pilots for network TV offers hope that the industry taboo against minority leads in dramas can finally be put to rest. Four of the most high-profile projects in the works feature non-white actors, notes the Hollywood Reporter , including Forest Whitaker in a spinoff of Criminal Minds for CBS. More»

Networks retune their lineup to court young viewers

(NEWSER) - Network TV's big hits—Modern Family, The Cleveland Show, NCIS: Los Angeles—join a pack of losers and losing news: NBC viewership is down 10% among young adults, ABC and CBS have slipped, too, and Eastwick, Hank, and Trauma have already been canceled. The LA Times surveys the playing field, mid-season.

• Comedy rules—kinda: Modern Family has reeled in 10.6 million viewers, but networks are still struggling to find the Friends or Seinfeld of the late aughts.

Broadcasters say 'overexposed' prez wastes valuable time

(NEWSER) - Networks are not happy about the primetime hour that President Obama's July 22 news conference took up, reports Howard Kurtz of the Washington Post. Rahm Emanuel called the top brass at all three networks to ensure they carried the event. The networks both resent the pressure and complain that they’re not getting their money’s worth. “There was nothing” newsworthy, says one CBS VP. “There hardly ever is these days.” More»