Ubiquitous
2023-08-02 08:30:51 UTC
The late-night silence is deafening.
On May 2nd, the Writers Guild of America went on strike seeking better wages,
higher residual rates, and protections against the looming threat of
Artificial Intelligence, among related demands.
That meant screenwriters closed their laptops, taking the jokes out of the
corporate comedians mouths. No more wisecracks Colbert, Kimmel, Oliver, or
Maher. The late-night landscape went dark, and the lights wont be back on
anytime soon.
Will audiences greet their return like a favorite shows new seasons? Or,
will we see a faltering landscape crumble, plagued by incessant partisanship,
relentless clapter, and a business model in obvious decline?
The latter may be more likely, even if the format continues in some capacity
when the strike finally ends.
Were certainly not seeing any desperate op-eds demanding the swift return of
these late-night propagandists. Even the Left-leaning MovieWeb perused the
late-night-free environment and wondered if the public even missed it.
Had the work stoppage lasted a few weeks or even months wed expect the show
to go on, more or less as usual. The hosts might forgo any summer vacation
plans to resume their high-paying gigs and reconnect with their dwindling fan
base.
Except the WGA and the studio representatives remain far apart and youd be
hard-pressed to find an industry observer who sees a resolution lurking
around the corner.
The news cycle moves on without their pre-packaged monologues, leaving folks
like John Oliver wishing he could weigh in on the latest Trump indictment
news and, conversely, ignore stories with the name Hunter attached.
No one expected a swift resolution to the writers strike, and that was
before the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) joined them on the picket lines earlier
this month. That means even if the late-night shows were open for business,
theyd have no one to grace their colorful couches.
The loss of late-night comedy struck a body blow against the mainstream
media. Journalists loved regurgitating whatever Stephen Colbert said on a
given night, assuming it tarred and/or feathered GOP favorites like Donald
Trump or former Fox News superstar Tucker Carlson.
Reporters even assembled round-up stories on the latest late-night antics,
purposely leaving out the one show thats still cranking out new episodes
thats Gutfeld!, the Fox News hit that recently abandoned the late shift
for an earlier, 10 p.m. EST time slot.
Another sign of the formats eventual doom?
Late-night TV was in trouble before the dueling strikes. The Left-leaning
Axios said the format was rapidly declining back in April, noting the
recent loss of several key players.
Low ratings likely sunk TBS mainstay Full Frontal with Samantha Bee. Trevor
Noah up and left the basement-rated Daily Show over at Comedy Central,
leaving the cable channel to uncork a rotating host schedule without finding
the South African comics successor.
That search, like the show itself, is presumably on hold.
Late Late Show star James Corden also called it quits, abandoning a format
that was setting CBS back millions. The network didnt bother to find his
replacement, opting to air a game show reboot in his place.
Late-night revenues were similarly down in recent months.
Axios reported ad revenue for the top six shows shrank more than 50% since
2014, and more than 60% from its highest point in 2016 (a heated presidential
campaign year).
Does that sound like a healthy TV landscape?
Audiences are fickle. They may have watched their favorite late-night
comedian for years, but now theyre left to find new bedtime rituals. That
could mean social media surfing or sampling the various YouTube creators
cranking out provocative, timely satire.
Comedians like liberal-leaning Jimmy Dore happily tear into President Joe
Biden as well as Trump. Right-leaning comics, meanwhile, eviscerate the woke
mind virus, among other progressive targets.
Any random sketch by Ryan Long is as funny, if not funnier, than whatever
Jimmy Fallon uncorked from his Tonight Show perch.
Theres no lack of creative minds filling the gaps left behind by late-night
taking an extended knee. And audiences can watch them at any time of the day
if they crave late-night-style yuks.
The host of HBOs Real Time with Bill Maher is still talking, but hes
doing it via his weekly Club Random podcast. The show eschews partisan
banter for conversations across the ideological divide. Heres betting hes
having more fun talking to the likes of Jordan Peterson than pretending Real
Time guests like Rob Reiner make sense.
Some Jimmy Kimmel scribes have hit the road, packaging themselves together as
a late-night stand-up tour to make ends meet during the strike.
Kimmel himself is keeping a low profile this summer, except when hes the
target of Twitters Community Notes fact-checking squad. Colbert is mostly
quiet on Twitter, too. Its almost like his comic shtick is a job and he
doesnt feel compelled to weigh in on the latest headlines if theres no
paycheck attached.
Seth Meyers Twitter feed is similarly subdued.
Even late-night stalwarts seemed resigned to the new reality facing them when
the strike finally ends.
--
Let's go Brandon!
On May 2nd, the Writers Guild of America went on strike seeking better wages,
higher residual rates, and protections against the looming threat of
Artificial Intelligence, among related demands.
That meant screenwriters closed their laptops, taking the jokes out of the
corporate comedians mouths. No more wisecracks Colbert, Kimmel, Oliver, or
Maher. The late-night landscape went dark, and the lights wont be back on
anytime soon.
Will audiences greet their return like a favorite shows new seasons? Or,
will we see a faltering landscape crumble, plagued by incessant partisanship,
relentless clapter, and a business model in obvious decline?
The latter may be more likely, even if the format continues in some capacity
when the strike finally ends.
Were certainly not seeing any desperate op-eds demanding the swift return of
these late-night propagandists. Even the Left-leaning MovieWeb perused the
late-night-free environment and wondered if the public even missed it.
Had the work stoppage lasted a few weeks or even months wed expect the show
to go on, more or less as usual. The hosts might forgo any summer vacation
plans to resume their high-paying gigs and reconnect with their dwindling fan
base.
Except the WGA and the studio representatives remain far apart and youd be
hard-pressed to find an industry observer who sees a resolution lurking
around the corner.
The news cycle moves on without their pre-packaged monologues, leaving folks
like John Oliver wishing he could weigh in on the latest Trump indictment
news and, conversely, ignore stories with the name Hunter attached.
No one expected a swift resolution to the writers strike, and that was
before the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) joined them on the picket lines earlier
this month. That means even if the late-night shows were open for business,
theyd have no one to grace their colorful couches.
The loss of late-night comedy struck a body blow against the mainstream
media. Journalists loved regurgitating whatever Stephen Colbert said on a
given night, assuming it tarred and/or feathered GOP favorites like Donald
Trump or former Fox News superstar Tucker Carlson.
Reporters even assembled round-up stories on the latest late-night antics,
purposely leaving out the one show thats still cranking out new episodes
thats Gutfeld!, the Fox News hit that recently abandoned the late shift
for an earlier, 10 p.m. EST time slot.
Another sign of the formats eventual doom?
Late-night TV was in trouble before the dueling strikes. The Left-leaning
Axios said the format was rapidly declining back in April, noting the
recent loss of several key players.
Low ratings likely sunk TBS mainstay Full Frontal with Samantha Bee. Trevor
Noah up and left the basement-rated Daily Show over at Comedy Central,
leaving the cable channel to uncork a rotating host schedule without finding
the South African comics successor.
That search, like the show itself, is presumably on hold.
Late Late Show star James Corden also called it quits, abandoning a format
that was setting CBS back millions. The network didnt bother to find his
replacement, opting to air a game show reboot in his place.
Late-night revenues were similarly down in recent months.
Axios reported ad revenue for the top six shows shrank more than 50% since
2014, and more than 60% from its highest point in 2016 (a heated presidential
campaign year).
Does that sound like a healthy TV landscape?
Audiences are fickle. They may have watched their favorite late-night
comedian for years, but now theyre left to find new bedtime rituals. That
could mean social media surfing or sampling the various YouTube creators
cranking out provocative, timely satire.
Comedians like liberal-leaning Jimmy Dore happily tear into President Joe
Biden as well as Trump. Right-leaning comics, meanwhile, eviscerate the woke
mind virus, among other progressive targets.
Any random sketch by Ryan Long is as funny, if not funnier, than whatever
Jimmy Fallon uncorked from his Tonight Show perch.
Theres no lack of creative minds filling the gaps left behind by late-night
taking an extended knee. And audiences can watch them at any time of the day
if they crave late-night-style yuks.
The host of HBOs Real Time with Bill Maher is still talking, but hes
doing it via his weekly Club Random podcast. The show eschews partisan
banter for conversations across the ideological divide. Heres betting hes
having more fun talking to the likes of Jordan Peterson than pretending Real
Time guests like Rob Reiner make sense.
Some Jimmy Kimmel scribes have hit the road, packaging themselves together as
a late-night stand-up tour to make ends meet during the strike.
Kimmel himself is keeping a low profile this summer, except when hes the
target of Twitters Community Notes fact-checking squad. Colbert is mostly
quiet on Twitter, too. Its almost like his comic shtick is a job and he
doesnt feel compelled to weigh in on the latest headlines if theres no
paycheck attached.
Seth Meyers Twitter feed is similarly subdued.
Even late-night stalwarts seemed resigned to the new reality facing them when
the strike finally ends.
--
Let's go Brandon!