Rise and Fall of Network TV

Summer 2003

The Rise And Fall Of Network Television

By Mark Bryant

In the good old days of network television, virtually every choice was made for the viewer. The choices were made primarily on what the viewer would most likely tolerate, rather than what he or she really wanted. It was a simple, yet shallow strategy. In those days, television was synonymous with ABC, CBS and NBC, plus a few rerun-filled independent formats. There were only a handful of stations in any given market area. Local outlets were recognized by the network reruns and low budget commercials they ran for community merchants. ABC, CBS and NBC were the trio that ran national television.

There was security in this simplicity. In this system, the primary concern was which of three networks would out-rate the others and what new programming trends would appear next, such as comedies, westerns, detective stories or anthology dramas.

This was broadcasting purely for mass culture, a search for the largest possible audience at any given time. Those with tastes not shared by enough millions had little chance of seeing their preferences on television. Broadcasting in this form was done with a commercial incentive. The networks were in business to make money, and programs were designed to be profitable. The programs that failed to deliver high ratings and audience shares were discarded. The networks thus held a staunch bottom line.

After decades of continued success and wealth in the 1950's, 60's and 70's, however, American television changed. Old media empires fell into disarray while new ones climbed up the ladder. Audience numbers tumbled. Companies known for their newspapers, magazines, movies and telephones are now operating there own networks. Where profanity and nudity had been taboo, television now communicates such things freely and undeleted.

This has come after decades of sameness on national TV and the resulting diversity has created a new pecking order. Foreigners have brought up the most familiar institutions in American entertainment- from movie studios to record companies. American companies, meanwhile, are busy overseas entertaining foreigners.

The biggest example of this is Rupert Murdoch, native Australian and owner of the FOX Network. Murdoch bought the storied Los Angeles Dodgers baseball franchise in 1998. He is outspoken and known for tabloid journalism that appeals to today's sensationalist media. The FOX Network began televising National Football League games in 1994 and became an instant hit. Murdoch is generally known as the first global mogul of media.

As J. Fred McDonald, archivist and emeritus history professor stated "If viewers are deserting 'free TV', it is because they were never fully served by broadcasting in the first place" (1990).

The challenges to network television consisted of technological innovation and enhanced competition. What contributed to its' downfall were monopolistic media practices which placed standardization about diversity, and politics, both national and global.

The years of experimentation had passed by the 1960's and television had come of age. It was now a mature and streamlined business- a cash cow. The average household was using television five to six hours a day. Only sleeping occupied more human time.

Television was as lucrative as it was powerful. In 1963, the three networks and 565 stations in the United States pulled in 1.8 billion dollars in total revenue. CBS earned 555million, an increase of 700 percent over revenues in 1948. CBS in 1963 also pulled in 39 percent of all network business. NBC garnered 35 percent, ABC 26 percent.

National TV was firmly in place, and for the next two decades the main concern was the battle between three corporate giants locked in season after season of rivalry. McDonald noted: "There were countless citizens who felt abused and disenfranchised by a national utility that seemingly ignored their protestations" (1990). Overwhelming control of television was the name of the game to ABC, CBS and NBC.

The most successful operation was CBS. This network emphasized soap operas in the afternoon and sitcoms in the evening. According to Andrews and Dunning "there have been more sitcoms throughout history…except during a brief period when westerns were riding high, situation comedy has always been the major force on Television" (1980).

By 1964, CBS was charging $50,000 a prime time minute for advertisers. McDonald noted "Others…felt it regrettable that the scarce public airwaves were being manipulated so unabashedly to make greater and greater amounts of money…The loyalty was to the bottom line" (1990).

Thus, splicing and inserting advertising minutes, cutting quality here and there, subtle changes could mean millions of dollars when carried out over a whole year. As Dave Karp, television writer, noted: "TV is not an art form or cultural channel. It is an advertising medium…The (shows) are not supposed to be any good. They are supposed to make money" (McDonald, 1990). For all their flaws and vulnerability, the networks kept their grip on American television and profited heavily.

Beginning in the early 1970's, the networks were challenged with restrictions to their business operations and access to the national audience. These rules and laws were passed by the Federal Communications Commission, the White House and Congress. The resulting limitations on monopoly adversely affected network profits:

Prime Time Access Rule: Limited network TV to three prime-time hours per night in 50 largest markets. Created to help free-enterprise networks of affiliate stations and independent programmers. This was passed in April, 1970.

Finalcial interest and syndication rules: Networks were order to surrender all financial interest and syndication rights in any series not totally produced by them. Considered the most damaging attack against network TV monopoly in FCC history. Placed domestic and foreign syndication rights in hands of studios actually producing the programming, not the networks.

Restricted network production: Limited number of hours a network could fill even with their own productions. This was a settlement of a protracted hearing against NBC by the Department of Justice in 1975.

Ban on cigarette advertising: Enacted by Congress beginning January 2, 1971. Banned cigarette ads on television under pressure from consumer groups and professional medical associations.

After three decades, viewer loyalty to TV was in decline by the late 1970's. The prime time schedule had been streamlines into a few entertainment genres that had been worked and reworked for over 30 years to the point of repetitive quality. A TV Guide pool in the spring of 1979 showed that 44 percent of the American population was unhappy with TV. Said George Comstock, "There has been a definite decline in public satisfaction (in the last two decades). With each passing decade, the expression of public opinion favorable to television has declined" (1989).

National TV had never offered viewers what they wanted; it offered audiences what they most accepted. Audiences were to be as large as possible, shows as large as possible, and program content was to be as common as possible to attract viewers. This was a fatal flaw in network television that hastened its' decline.

Technological innovations emerged in the 1980's. Videocassette recorders, videotape, and camcorders became common. The increased use of satellites created a boom in able TV. Network cables offered programs from foreign countries, movies, sports programming, distant domestic stations and closed circuit feeds. Peter Conrad noted, "We have been almost persuaded not to accept the reality of anything unless we can experience it at second hand, mediated by the television cameras" (1982).

Home Box Office (HBO) debuted on September 30, 1975 at the Joe Frazier-Muhammad Ali heavyweight boxing championship bout-the "Thrilla In Manilla". Other companies followed suit. Ted Turner's WTBS station in Atlanta went satellite in December 1976. Showtime, a pay-cable network, debuted in March, 1978. By the eighties, cable delivering via satellite multiple programs was commonplace.

Cable offered new local and regional channels plus national networks devoted to specific topics and interests- news of he day, popular music, sports, religion, finance, politics, humor, travel, home shopping and weather. Cable could appeal to narrower cross sections of society, such as blacks, children, rock music fans, history buffs and sports fans in ways that network TV never could. Superstations such as WTBS, WGN (Chicago) and WWOR in New York flourished.

Meanwhile, in network television, Comstock summed it up by saying "Television has fallen in expressed public esteem. People watch more but think less highly of it" (1989).

How did three similarly programmed national networks satisfy a population as varied as the United States in the first place? There was a popular belief in he network hierarchy that commercial television was the best and highest standard that could be reached and that the networks were satisfying most of the people most of the time. But after three decades of the same genres and forms, it became apparent that this was not the case.

McDonald, J. Fred (1990). One nation under television, the rise and decline of network TV. Pantheon Books, New York.

Andrews, Bart and Brad Dunning (1980). The worst TV shows ever. E.P. Dutton, New York.

Conrad, Peter (1982). Television: the media and its manners. Routledge & Kegan Paul, Boston.

Comstock, George (1989). The evolution of American television. Sage Publications, Newbury Park, CA.