ÿþ<html> <head> <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1"> <title>OnlineColumnist®.com: Putin Punishes Georgia</title> <meta name="generator" content="Adobe GoLive 4"> <style type="text/css"> .style3 { height: 68px; } .MsoNormal {} h1 {margin-bottom:.0001pt; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; font-weight:normal; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; } .style4 { font-size: large; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial; } .style5 { font-size: x-large; font-weight: bold; } .style6 { text-decoration: underline; } </style> </head> <body bgcolor="white" vlink="black"> <center> &nbsp;<table cool width="624" height="2719" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" gridx="16" showgridx gridy="16" showgridy> <tr height="79"> <td width="133" height="118" rowspan="2" valign="top" align="left" xpos="0"> <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html"><img height="110" width="62" src="images/discobolos.logo.transp.gif" border="0"></a></td> <td width="7" height="118" rowspan="2"></td> <td width="482" height="79" colspan="2" valign="top" align="left" xpos="140"><img height="75" width="450" src="images/banner.GIF"></td> <td width="1" height="118" rowspan="2"></td> <td width="1" height="79"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="79"></td> </tr> <tr height="39"> <td width="182" height="39"></td> <td width="300" height="39" valign="top" align="left" xpos="322"><a href="aboutdiscobolos.html"><img height="14" width="267" src="images/divisionofNEW.GIF" border="0"></a></td> <td width="1" height="39"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="39"></td> </tr> <tr> <td width="624" colspan="6" valign="top" align="left" xpos="0" class="style3"> <table border="0" width="100%" bgcolor="black" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td> <table border="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#99ffcc" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4"> <tr> <td align="center"> <div align="left"> <a href="index.html"><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> HOME</strong></font></a><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> &#8226; <a href="articlesindex.html">ARTICLES</a> &#8226; <a href="books.html">BOOKS</a> &#8226; <a href="teflon.html"> THE </a><a href="teflon.html">TEFLON</a><a href="teflon.html"> REPORT</a> &#8226; <a href="mailto:letters@onlinecolumnist.com"> REACTIONS</a> &#8226; <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html">ABOUT DISCOBOLOS</a></strong></font></div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> <tr height="2"> <td width="133" height="2">&nbsp;</td> <td width="489" height="2576" colspan="3" rowspan="2" align="left" xpos="133" content valign="top" csheight="2573"> <p class="style4">NBC&#39;s Costly Mistake</p> <p><b><font face="Arial,Geneva,Helvetica">by John M. Curtis</font></b><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><b><a href="books.html"><br> </a></b></font><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><b> (310) 204-8700</b></font></p> <p><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><i>Copyright Jan..14, 2010<br>All Rights Reserved. </i></font>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </p> <bAbout the Author</u> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<span class="style5">&nbsp;W</span>hen Jack Paar quit NBC s  Tonight Show in Oct. 1962, a 37-year-old comic named Johnny Carson took over, building the show into America s favorite late-night TV pastime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Carson enjoyed a 30-year run, handing the baton to Jay Leno in 1992.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>NBC executives had muted expectations for Leno, a 32-year-old stand-up comic, filling Carson s shoes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Much to NBC s surprise, Leno grew on Carson s audience, working hard to retain and expand Johnny s loyal following.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Twelve years into Leno s gig, NBC s 26-year-old Harvard whiz-kid, president of its TV Group, Jeff Zucker, made a deal in 2004 with fellow Harvard alum Conan O Brien, host of NBC s  Late Night show to retire Leno and take over the  Tonight Show in 2009.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Rolling the dice, Zucker had high expectations when he retired Leno May 29, 2009 and handed the  Tonight Show to O <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">Brien.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]></span><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Back in 2004, Zucker crunched the demographic numbers and concluded that Conan attracted a new generation of late-night viewers, making it logical to hand over the show in five years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Zucker miscalculated Leno s late-night audience, refusing to jump on the Conan bandwagon and ending NBC s supremacy in late-night TV.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Zucker s calculation was based on giving Conan enough time to develop his own audience, a type of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> demographic transition. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Over the past seven months, NBC watched the  Tonight Show shrink in the Nielsen overnight ratings, cutting deeply into NBC s advertising revenues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>While Zucker wanted to give Conan more time, the network required profits, something lagging behind CBS s  Late Night with David Letterman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Despite Letterman s PR problems, he continued beat Conan s overnight ratings, forcing Zucker to change his mind.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>No one knows whether giving Conan more time would change the current trend of Letterman dominating late-night TV.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Zucker knew that sticking Leno in primetime was a huge risk, forcing the late-night format into the 10:00 p.m. slot, typically saved for nighttime dramas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>TV unions were especially irked when Zucker insisted that Leno, his safety net, be stuck in primetime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Tying up Leno in primetime turned prescient for Zucker, since it prevented Jay from jumping ship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Zucker played both sides against the middle and got burned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Conan s decision in 2004 to stick around five years and inherit the  Tonight Show was based on Zucker s belief that his young star represented the future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Zucker s disappointment with Conan s ratings prompted his brainstorm to return Leno to the 11:35 p.m. time slot, penciling in Conan 12:05 a.m., causing the latest Hollywood hubbub.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Zucker, a brilliant programming executive with NBC, responsible for  Friends,  Law and Order, Donald Trump s  The Apprentice,  Fear Factor, etc., including NBC s Latino programming divisions, let his ego get the better of him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>When Conan spurned Zucker s plan to have Conan follow Leno at 12:05 a.m, the 44-year-old President and CEO of NBC Universal threatened to put Conan on  ice for years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> I ll keep you off the air for 3 1/2 years, said Zucker, displaying kind of chutzpah not seen since Disney CEO Michael Eisner lashed out in 1998 at Jeffrey Katzenberg, refusing his promotion, calling him a  little midget and eventually costing Disney shareholders in 1999 a $250 million judgment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>In a letter to his fans, Conan said Zucker s plan would  seriously destroy the  Tonight Show,  the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Zucker s mistake was not trying to anticipate changing demographics and signing Conan to replace Leno on the  Tonight Show, it was acting imperiously, airing his frustrations in public and embarrassing his network.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>No one doubts Zucker s programming talent or forward-thinking for NBC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Zucker made an honest mistake about future audience changes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>He didn t realize that Conan s acerbic wit and aloofness was less appealing to the late-night audience than a more warm-and-fuzzy Leno.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> I worked long and hard to get the opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future, said Conan, hinting at a potentially mammoth-sized breach-of-contract suit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Zucker s public spanking of Conan makes it more difficult for NBC to reach an amicable settlement.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Zucker needs urgent training with NBC s parent company GE s former President and CEO Jack Welch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>When Welch left GE in 2001, he was a tough act to follow for Jeffrey R. Immelt, who tried his best to fill Welch s shoes of treating all employees with the utmost respect and dignity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Zucker s public tongue-lashing of O Brien does nothing to correct his mistake, or, for that matter, make the fix more within reach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Zucker s lack of finesse complicated the mess and exposed NBC to more liability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>It wasn t Conan s fault that Zucker promised him the  Tonight Show in 2004.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Whether Zucker believed his experiment failed or not, he shouldn t punish Conan for his own mistake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Nor should Zucker show so little sensitivity to Leno when he arbitrarily made him into a has-been in 2004 promising Conan the  Tonight Show. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Zucker needs to man-up, mend fences or consider another job.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span class="style6">About the Author </span> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <b>John M. Curtis</b> writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>He s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author <i>of <a href="books.html">Dodging The Bullet</a></i> and <i><a href="books.html">Operation Charisma</a></i>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;</p> </td> <td width="1" height="2576" rowspan="2"></td> <td width="1" height="2"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="2"></td> </tr> <tr height="2574"> <td width="133" height="2574" valign="top" align="left" xpos="0"><img height="172" width="111" src="images/johninframe3.jpg"></td> <td width="1" height="2574"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="2574"></td> </tr> <tr height="1" cntrlrow> <td width="133" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="133" height="1"></td> <td width="7" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="7" height="1"></td> <td width="182" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="182" height="1"></td> <td width="300" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="300" height="1"></td> <td width="1" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="1"></td> <td width="1" height="1"></td> </tr> </table> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2" width="597"> <tr> <td><font size="1" face="Arial,Geneva,Helvetica"> <hr noshade size="1"> </font><a href="index.html"><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> Home</strong></font></a><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> || <a href="articlesindex.html">Articles</a> || <a href="books.html">Books</a> || <a href="teflon.html">The Teflon Report</a> || <a href="mailto:letters@onlinecolumnist.com"> Reactions</a> || <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html">About Discobolos</a></strong></font> <div align="left"> <p><font size="1" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular">This site designed, developed and hosted by the experts at</font><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"> <a href="http://www.cmeonline.net" target="_blank"><img height="30" width="138" src="images/cmelogoANIM.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle"></a></font></p> </div> <p><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular">©1999-2005 <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html"> Discobolos Consulting Services, Inc.</a><br> (310) 204-8300<br> All Rights Reserved. </font></td> </tr> </table> </center> </body> </html>