The Broadcast Network of the Year Is …

Every year at this time I used to wonder which network truly excelled during the previous 11 months and deserved recognition as the best of the year I stopped doing so in 2020 and didn39t even think about it in 2021 and 2022 because it simply did not seem fair to compliment any one of them over the others at a time when they were all working so diligently to entertain andor inform us during the dawn of this Decade of DisastersBut this year which began with production back in full swing the big bad facing the industry wasn39t biological Rather the crippling work stoppages brought about by various factions of the creative community that were finally fed up with a multitude of runaway issues from crappy compensation by streamers to studiofueled anxieties from AI fired up a fresh hell that threatened to consume them allAs with navigating the COVID lockdown and putting aside the unfortunate reality that many of their parent companies brought the strikes on themselves I39m going to give all the networks and streamers that were compromised this year props for the many ways in which they managed to keep themselves goingHowever I39m going to single one out for doing a particularly impressive job FoxLooking back as we move forward the Fox Broadcasting Company stands out to me not only because it maintained allimportant focus on viewer engagement and advertiser expectations as new rounds of chaos sent the industry reeling but also because it has done exactly that through good times and bad beginning with its launch in the Eighties Since then it hasn39t simply reflected the popular culture of the time Rather it has continuously contributed to the definition of same Consider the impact on television and beyond of in no particular order American Idol Beverly Hills 90210 Melrose Place The XFiles Ally McBeal 24 House Party of Five The Simpsons Family Guy Bob39s Burgers Malcolm in the Middle Arrested Development New Girl Glee Prison Break Joe Millionaire Empire The Masked Singer and so many others that built and reinforced the foundation of Fox I can39t be certain but I do believe that no other network would have gambled on any of those shows at the times of their premieres Many networks however did attempt to create clones of themHas Fox had its share of flops Of course in fact some might call it an outsize share And many of those duds have at least sounded like fun a recent example being Stars on Mars Regardless Fox has consistently delivered across five decades shows that can be described as quothistoricquot amp8230 and nothing seems to have compromised that not even the multiple blows of COVID and the strikes This sustained focus also applies to Fox39s marketing branding and publicity strategies which remain best in classNow every broadcast network has through the years delivered more memorable and profitable shows than anyone can easily recall And they have all displayed at various times profoundly effective marketing and publicity campaigns on behalf of programs and platform alike But the truth is with the exception of Fox I couldn39t fully explain the current brand of any of them right now at least not when I compare the current state of things to the often dynamic ways in which CBS NBC and ABC positioned themselves in previous decades especially the 3970s 3980s and 3990s For that matter The WB often excelled at advancing its identity in this area in the 3990s and early 2000s as did The CW in the late aughts and throughout the teensLook there is still much to admire about all the broadcasters There is no more powerful or important an entertainment program on television than NBC39s Saturday Night Live which has survived more regime changes than I can recall The Law ampamp Order franchise continues to matter in a way few broadcast dramas have in the history of the medium Similarly CBS39 NCIS franchise along with Survivor Blue Bloods and the legendarily formidable newsmagazine 60 Minutes and ABC39s Abbott Elementary Shark Tank and Dancing with the Stars are outstanding reminders of the vitality of broadcast Television and by that I mean the medium itself would be something less without themBut do those shows truly define their networks Do they support or reflect unquestionably distinctive branding I don39t think so Do youAs impressed with it as I am I would like to see Fox give us another big breakout hit on the order of American Idol 24 and 90210 I think the 911 shows came close amp8230 but the original is headed to ABC and spinoff Lone Star won39t return until fall 2024In the meantime I39ll do what I can to continue to support Fox and all the broadcasters amp8230 even The CW best described at this moment as a work in progress Indeed as they grapple with so many changes in all areas of their businesses all at once that phrase might be applied to every broadcast network at this time Not that there is anything wrong with that amp8230Posted at MediaVillage through the Thought Leadership selfpublishing platformClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillageorgMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Ed Martin

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The Broadcast Network of the Year Is …

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