ABC and CBS Boycott The Jay Leno Show
Rival Networks Discourage Stars from Appearing on NBC's Leno
Oct 2, 2009
The Jay Leno Show has received widespread scorn from the rest of the television industry, especially with respect to new fall shows. Leno, airing every weeknight at 10pm, is viewed as an occupier, taking the place of scripted dramas and thereby eliminating many jobs that should go to others in the industry. When he headlined The Tonight Show, Jay Leno often interviewed stars from any network, most especially in the midst of fall premiere season. No longer.
ABC and CBS Boycott The Jay Leno Show
One of the more charming consequences of Leno's move to 10pm is that rival networks ABC and CBS are discouraging their stars from appearing on the show, even when those appearances would promote ABC and CBS shows. The idea is that the networks don't want to undercut the shows they're airing at 10pm by having their stars draw audiences to rival network NBC.
Fox and HBO, however, are encouraging their stars to appear on The Jay Leno Show, seeing it as a good promotional vehicle. It should be noted, however, that Fox doesn't run programming in the 10pm hour, so the position is hardly altruistic. A more intriguing question is if the boycott extends to the CW's starlets. The CW is partly owned by CBS, but like Fox, it doesn't program the 10pm hour.
The boycott is interestingly paradoxical. The lower number of stars available to appear may well hurt Leno's ratings, but less promotion for new fall shows may well hurt ABC and CBS. The question will be, who gets hurt the most? It's likely not Leno, since few beyond ABC and CBS feel the need to eschew his show.
Leno Show Inspires Mixed Feelings
On September 29, 2009, Julia Louis-Dreyfus became the first CBS actor to appear on Leno. In an awkward moment, Leno raised the issue of the boycott, to which she responded, "Yes, there was a little pressure, because as you know you are now on prime time and I'm on a different network." But the two are friends, so Louis-Dreyfus felt honor-bound to appear.
John Wells, newly-elected President of the Writers Guild of America, West said of the show, "I wish NBC and Jay Leno well; personally, he's a very nice guy, but I hope he falls flat on his face and we get five dramas back." This is a sentiment shared by many who openly root for Leno to fail, especially given the difficult economic climate. But NBC says it's not worried about the boycott and the show welcomes all talent, no matter their employer. While the boycott is likely little more than standing on principle, one can't help but note the irony that a boycott meant to hurt Leno inadvertently gave it even more promotion.
Read more from the LA Times: Jay Leno has fewer guests to choose from thanks to rival networks' boycott.
 |
