How to program a TV network 101

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Since it appears no one at NBC knows how to program a television network, let’s give them some help. RBR-TVBR readers – please add your suggestions.


We’ll start off with this simple solution to two problems.

NBC was absolutely foolish to schedule “Chase,” a new cop show, at 10 pm Monday against ABC’s “Castle,” a cop show, and the remake of CBS’s cop show of all cop shows, “Hawaii 5-0.” Even if the update of 5-0 had been poorly done, it would have still creamed Chase in premiere week as people tuned in for the first episode of 5-0. But it wasn’t poorly done and 5-0 is winning the time slot, with Chase a distant third in a three-horse race.

What’s winning the early hours of Monday? The top reality show on television, “Dancing With the Stars” on ABC. How about offering a big name reality show against the two cop shows at 10 pm? Wouldn’t a big chunk of the ABC audience be likely to flip over to NBC for that?

“Apprentice” is doing poorly in the prime 10 pm Thursday spot, but NBC still has to maintain the franchise for the upcoming “Celebrity Apprentice” and it has other business relationships with Donald Trump. Fix two problems and move Apprentice to 10 pm Monday.

OK, that’s lesson one of TV Network Programming 101. We invite our readers to add their own lessons below.