A new MAGNA report was out last week and I just got around to reading it. It has a very interesting conclusion. While viewers are watching more comedies than ever, it's the "classic" comedies on cable and in syndication that they're watching, not new ones in broadcast prime-time.
Over the past several years, as long-running hits such as Friends, Frasier, Will & Grace, and Everybody Loves Raymond ended their broadcast runs, no comparable successes have emerged to fill the void.
In fall 2003, there were a record 50 comedies on the broadcast networks. By fall 2007 there were an all-time low 21 hours (and it was the first time that NBC had no new fall comedies). Last fall, there were just 22 comedies on the broadcast networks (only three of them new, none of which will return this fall). And none of the comedies that debuted this mid-season are performing well.
Every year at this time, the networks start revealing their program development plans for the new season. Press stories abound about how they might try to revive the network comedy. Seldom noted in these stories, however, is the fact that people still like watching comedies, and are in fact watching them more than ever.
This is the paragraph that grabbed me:
What are the most popular comedies on television today?
Would you believe, the top 15 are Family Guy, George Lopez, Two and a Half Men, Home Improvement, Fresh Prince, Everybody Loves Raymond, Seinfeld, Family Matters, That ‘70s Show, King of Queens, Friends, Frasier, Andy Griffith, Roseanne and M*A*S*H? Of these, only two, Family Guy and Two and a Half Men, will be on a broadcast network this fall.
Very interesting reading. You can download the entire report here.
