In the rarefied air around Burbank, Johnny Carson is considered a legend. And not only is Jay Leno his worthy successor, he’s also [as his ratings so often prove] the most successful and popular host of his kind. In his hands the Tonight Show earns NBC $250m a year; Which you’d think would be enough, even for Jeff Zucker. Not so.
In 2002, NBC gleefully sabotaged this golden goose, basically firing Jay so they could use his show as bait to make Conan O’Brien – who earns them $100m less – stay with the team.
Today, with his cold-blooded eviction now getting closer, NBC decided to keep Jay on board [Basically so the other networks can't beat them over the head with the results of their witless stupidity.] The new plan is to ditch the 10pm dramas and build Jay a new home there instead. Why? Well, this is NBC remember, so the answer is ‘Money’. A one-hour drama costs around $5m, and Jay would earn +/- $45m a year, for which they get five hours a week.
So this is not being done from respect for his talent, or even to correct their mistake – They did this because he’s the cheap option.
Jeff Zucker has often said that NBC doesn’t care about ratings, just the bottom line. Under such glaringly myopic guidance NBC recently achieved the lowest ratings in the history of American TV. And the echoing void of creative enrichment so often displayed by him and his peers is the clear, unequivocal and sole reason why.
Jay Leno is not the one NBC has need to remove. Escort Mr. Zucker and his pals to the curb and you’d save millions in profits and audience IQ’s. But despite increasing evidence that’s a viable plan, I expect to see ‘Ice Dancing from Hell’ in the Winter Olympics before the NBC suits find the guts to enact this overdue change.
