Today's LTAR

[Tony Abruzzese]

Aaron Read wrote:
(Snip)

>
> Ehhh...were that the case then how does one explain the high 
> popularity of very "edgy" shows like The Sopranos and Oz?  Or Malcolm 
> in the Middle for that matter?  I think it's more a classic case of 
> trying to please everyone so you end up pleasing no one.  It's a very 
> pervasive attitude in network TV these days.

Last time I checked, fans of the the Sopranos and Oz specifically paid 
for that particular programming by by subscribing to HBO.
My guess is that neither one would last very long on "mainstream network 
TV" for a variety of reasons, including explicit content and sporadic 
production schedules. My assumption is that the Sopranos is "successful" 
because the audience is self-selecting and not dependent on advertising 
dollars to stay in production.  Several Italian-American groups have 
been very vocal in their dismay over the portrayal of Italian-Americans 
in the Sopranos, a factor which might adversely affect advertising dollars.

 As for Fox programming, most of their successful comedies have been on 
the edgy side. And programming edgy comedy is a lot safer than 
programming an edgy drama.

Tony