An investor put that question to ACME Communications CEO Jamie Kellner on his quarterly conference call. “Bring back Michigan J. Frog,” was the immediate reply. Kellner, of course, launched The WB network for Warner Brothers. He lamented that the strong brand developed by The WB was tossed away. Since then, The CW hasn’t caught on as a brand, in his view. And that’s not sour grapes – Kellner would love to have viewers embrace The CW, since almost all of ACME’s stations are affiliates. Kellner is convinced that part of the ratings problem for The CW is that because the brand isn’t top of mind, Nielsen diary keepers are underreporting viewing of the network’s shows.
