So says San Francisco Chronicle TV critic/columnist Tim Goodman:
Consider the issue facing the History Channel, which came to the Television Critics Association summer press tour Wednesday and brought along, of all people, Matt Damon and Marisa Tomei, to promote the documentary “The People Speak.” The film is littered with stars, including Don Cheadle and Viggo Mortensen and musicians like Eddie Vedder, Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, all touting the merits of grassroots democracy. This might be something a diverse audience – maybe even a younger audience than the History Channel is used to – might want to watch. But the History Channel is jammed with non-scripted, popular but substantively suspect series: “Ice Road Truckers,” “Ax Men,” “MonsterQuest” and “UFO Hunters.” Conversely, the History Channel still has a love affair with World War II and will be premiering a new series, “WWII in HD.”
Is there one viewer who will watch all of that? Is there one family who will watch the channel enough to see the promos for these disparate upcoming series? Probably not. Read more
I think there’s definitely something to the points Goodman makes. Unfortunately, either due to a bad editor back at the mothership or having too many cocktails down at the TCA show, Goodman’s column didn’t offer the counterbalance of networks like USA, TNT, Disney, and Nickelodeon that succeed in having far, far less disparate schedules.
I work with elementary students in Kansas. You would be surprised at how many of these kids and their families watch a weird variety of shows on the History Channel, the Discovery Channels, and the Animal Planet. I don’t watch any of the above mentioned cable shows but the kids do. Yes, even the WWII shows. In terms of network shows the one that is most mentioned is “House.” And of course they watch the kid networks.
And if you go to the movies some of these shows are being promoted before the previews. The trick is remembering either to look for them on the schedule or to remember when and where they are going to be.
But it is totally difficult to keep up with shows and schedules, what to make time for, and what to record. The audience is fractured because the offerings are too many. I think the major networks should be happy that they still have as many viewers as they have.
The link to “read more” isn’t working for me… it might just be me though.
Anna, it wasn’t just you, but it’s fixed now. Sorry about that!
Rodney D.( aka yours truly) mentioned the flaws with the Hitler channel weeks ago to a lead balloon response. I have a book on European history 1550 to 1659 in the pipeline and another mss almost finished; not bragging, just to say History Channel like Discovery,A an E,Bravo and others have all gone for the Lowest Common Denominator to stay popularwith cable megacorporations and not suffer the fate of Oxygen, Fuse, etc. Even getting local weather on the WC is now like pulling wisdom teeth. USA is arguably a success,and so are TNT and TBS, but they are as far away from Emmy-winning shows as W.Bush is from Mt. Rush more. I hope more congenial and bland posters will chime in on this bc basic cable is, quality-wise, BELOW even NBC. ( That is opinion, if I needs must label it so.)
Thanks
The thing is a seroius presentation of history is not going to draw viewers. CSPAN often has history professors on dicussing books they have written. I do think there are tons of great shows on cable and in fact I enjoy the Ice Road Truckers on History. I disagree that shows like Ice Road Truckers, Top Chef, and Deadliest Catch are lowest common denominator shows. They are just fun entertainment. Speaking of A&E I think the First 48 is a shocking interesting, captivating, and thought provocking show. I never thought something like that would be broadcast. It is a show that makes one think about the human condition.
I’ve noticed that Tim Goodman likes to present himself as a kind of “cut through the bull” expert on television. How that often manifests itself is in a macro theory about the biz that conveniently leaves out all facts that contradict the theory.
Many of these channels with a theme have moved away from their original content to attract a wider audience. The History Channel, TVLand and TLC are a couple of the cable channels that have moved away from their original topics. It does destroy any loyalty a viewer had to a particular channel and makes TV watching even more of a hodge-podge of surfing. I’m not even sure which cable network several of the shows I watch are on! I just know what number the channel is on my remote.
Airing shows that don’t appeal to their original core audience must be very risky for a station like The History Channel. They lose their original loyal viewers and if the new shows are stinkers, they don’t get new ones!
BTW, David, I enjoy Ice Road Truckers and Deadliest Catch ( well, just the first season of the latter.) My real gripe with the History Channel is the constant stream of Nostradamus, UFO, Hannibal and Genghis Khan as video game ninjas howling like werewolves as they decapitate five guys at once, etc, and other truly raunchy occult garbage, ( And I like the occult, on Syfy or Coast to Coast on the radio – JUST NOT TAUGHT AS HISTORY.) But the show about what the world would be like without people, based on a Scientific American article I think, was awesome. I wish they’d do more of that and less of … Nostradamus.
Jay, you HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD! This Monday will mark the 31st month I have been without Cable. I gave up on it because of the LACK OF VARIETY (What good are “Niche” Channels when they stray away and show besically the SAME PROGRAMMING!
Nostradamus and Ice Road Truckers, among others ARE NOT HISTORY. Niether are the “Reality” Shows that have spread across the Channels like some Malignancy from H-E-(Double Hockey Sticks)! By appealing to “The Lowest Common Denominator” The Corperations that own these channels have Alienated the rest of us. I can find more Historical Programming (Among Others) on the DVD Rack than I can find on the Channels, so that’s where my Subscription Dollars go.