THE IDIOT BOX - Ben Silverman Is Not Optimistic About Friday Night Lights

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Early buzz: Spurlock, Henson, 'Doctor,' cupcakes, more
Published 2/5/2008 by Whitney Matheson at USATODAY.com - Pop Candy
Happy Super Tuesday! Last night I started watching American Gangster , and I fell asleep. You'd think I'd have no problem staying awake through a violent Denzel / Russell Crowe flick, but I'm in no hurry to pick it up again. Let's take a look at some headlines: - Conan O'Brien surfaced on A Daily Show ...

WATCH FNL TONIGHT!!
Published 2/8/2008 by Jerkwheat at DeadOn...
... NBC Entertainment head Ben Silverman likes the show, but its ratings suck and have always sucked so that’s not a good sign. In fact, to quote Mr. Silverman.. ...

TV Tonight: Friday Night Lights
Published 2/8/2008 by BuzzSugar at BuzzSugar -- Entertainment hourly.
... got in the way, and even if the strike ends soon, there's no telling whether NBC will put the show back into production. Frankly, signs haven't been good. First, Ben Silverman utterly blew off questions about the show in an interview with Radar . Then, someone leaked the news that the second season ...

Scoop! Friday Night Lights Over... But Not Out?
Published 2/8/2008 at TV Guide - Ausiello Report
... fans. Since the drama's second season is being released on DVD in April with (tellingly) only the 15 pre-strike episodes included, it is highly unlikely that the show will return this season. And unless you tune in in droves — and bring friends, strangers and pets to the Nielsen box — tonight's season finale could well serve as the series finale. At least on NBC. Although Peacock prez Ben Silverman's dismissive comments in Radar this week imply that he isn't among FNL 's supporters, many of his colleagues both at the network and studio still believe in the show in a big ...

CHALK TALK: The Future Of Friday Night Lights
Published 2/8/2008 by Alex Blagg at Best Week Ever
... to keep Friday Night Lights on the air.) Tonight is the final episode Friday Night Lights was able to complete this season before the Writers Strike shut down work on new scripts. While NBC has yet to formally announce the fate of the show after tonight, here is the latest news from around the web. What asked outright if he plans to keep FNL on the air, NBC President Ben Silverman smugly told Radar Magazine to "watch 30 Rock", then continued to stroke the peacock feathers of FNL's more successful sibling series ...

Friday Night Lights in Trouble?
Published 2/8/2008 at OH NO!!
... Although Peacock prez Ben Silverman's dismissive comments in Radar this week imply that he isn't among FNL's supporters, many of his colleagues both at the network and studio still believe in the show in a big way. In fact, my source tells me that execs are working 'round the clock exploring options to keep the show alive. Among them: ...

Tonight’s TV Addict Must Watch: FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
Published 2/8/2008 by theTVaddict at the TV addict
“I love it. You love it. Unfortunately, no one watches it. That’s the thing with shows. People have to watch them. We’re NBC, we have a reputation to uphold. And, man, with this writers’ strike … well, we’ll see what we can do. But start watching 30 Rock.” NBC President Ben Silverman in a recent interview with RadarOnline. If Ben Silverman’s recent comments are any indication, one thing is abundantly clear. Tonight’s season finale of FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS may in fact be its series finale thanks to Mr. Silverman’s penchant for reality television, game shows and apparent aversion to quality. ...

MM Recommends: 'Friday Night Lights'
Published 2/8/2008 by jbercovici at Portfolio.com: Mixed Media
Okay, so I'm not exactly ahead of the curve in telling you to watch Friday Night Lights. From day one, critics have loved the NBC football drama almost as much as viewers have loved to ignore it. So why am I speaking up now? Because this may be your last chance to get on board. Judging from the hints NBC entertainment chief Ben Silverman has been dropping recently, he has all but made up his mind to kill FNL at the end of the season. Unless, that is, the show encounters a sudden surge of viewership in the remainder of its second season. If you haven't been watching, now's the perfect time to start. NBC still has a couple episodes of FNL ...

'Friday Night Lights' Fans Take Their Fight To The Streets. And By Streets, We Mean Mailboxes [Protests]
Published 2/9/2008 by Mark Graham at Defamer
... the large base of critical support it once enjoyed. Making matters even worse, its ratings remained abysmal, which led the Peacock Emperor to make this now infamous pronouncement about the show: "Unfortunately, no one watches it. That's the thing with shows. People have to watch them." (Ed Note: SNAP!) These two factors have led to widespread speculation that tonight's episode of FNL will end up as being both the season and series finale. But wait, all is not lost. Those rabble rousers over at ...

Open Letter to Ben Silverman re: “Friday Night Lights”
Published 2/10/2008 by db at Box Office Psychics
... When questioned by Radar Online the other night at the Lipstick Jungle launch you told blogger Neel Shah to switch from “Friday Night Lights” to “30 Rock.”  Shah doesn’t watch “30 Rock.”  I do!  It’s great. ...

57 Channels and Only This Is On vol. XIX
Published 2/10/2008 by Scooter McGavin at Scooter McGavin's 9th Green
... pointed me to this article from Radar Online (which name dropped my brother Shooter) where a reporter asked about Friday Night Lights to which NBC President Silverman said, “Start watching 30 Rock.” Then proceeds to say no one watches FNL. Um, I’m sorry Benny Boy; I totally missed how 30 Rock was this ratings juggernaut. And most of its few viewers are ones that are just too lazy to switch the channel between ...

Friday Night Lights Will Not Go Gentle…
Published 2/11/2008 by Michael O'Connell at Mikey Likes TV
... Back to the matter of the show’s future, here is what we know: With the end of the writer’s strike, likelihood that FNL will be one of the series to resume production is of the slim to none-ish variety. Some are reporting that there is a chance, but I’d take that with a considerable amount of salt. As for a return next season, poorly media-trained NBC entertainment honcho Ben Silverman is not optimistic - he is about 30 Rock, and I can’t say I care a hell of a lot. So what can be done to save FNL? Probably nothing, ...

Early ABC pick-ups for next season, plus other strike fallout
Published 2/11/2008 by Alan Sepinwall at What's Alan Watching?
The strike is basically over (barring something strange in the WGA group vote tomorrow, everyone goes back to work on Wednesday), but as I mentioned in my story this morning, the networks are still trying to figure out which shows will actually make more episodes this season. The NY Times says that "24" has already been pushed back to 2009 (and that "Heroes" won't make any more episodes until fall), and while it's clear that most hits will be back for at least a few episodes in early spring (and that "Lost" will be able to make something close to a full season), it's still unclear what shows have aired their last original episode for the '07-'08 season. ("Chuck," for instance, isn't ...

You Be the Critic: KNIGHT RIDER
Published 2/18/2008 by theTVaddict at the TV addict
Before reading this TV Addict’s rant with regards to last night’s special two-hour KNIGHT RIDER movie there are three things you should know. Firstly, having missed the original series by a few years, I have absolutely no warm and fuzzy feelings of nostalgia for the original Hasselhoff’s vehicle. Second, I’m still angry at NBC Ben Silverman for his recent comments with regards to FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS. And finally, I’m not ten years old anymore. Which would most likely explain why I may never tune into NBC on Sunday night ever again. Two hours of AMERICAN GLADIATORS followed by what amounted to be a glorified car commercial for the ...

Friday Night Lights May Be Saved, So Please Shut Up Now [Good Television]
Published 2/21/2008 by Richard at Gawker
Friday Night Lights, that show that no one watches but everyone loves, may be getting a stay of execution. The "football as metaphor for small town America" program (and especially its lead pair, Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton) has a rabid cult following and support from critics and Neel Shahs all over the place, which has kept it afloat far longer than a low rated show should expect. With the strike, though, it looked like FNL had snapped the ball one last shaky-camera-ed, beautifully scored time. Sad, emotive bloggers (and some of my friends) would not stop moaning about it. But, lo! What light over yonder bleachers breaks? Nü NBC, ...

NBC Looking to Share 'Friday Night Lights'
Published 2/21/2008 at BuddyTV
Friday Night Lights is one of the best shows on television, but like a lot of great shows it isn't watched by very many people. Each new episode in season 2 averaged only about six million viewers, which isn't a particularly spectacular amount for a major network like NBC. However, six million viewers would be considered a great number on networks like the CW, E!, G4, DirecTV, or TNT, which is why NBC is attempting to bring the show back for a third season by sharing it with one of these outlets. The network has been shopping the show around, trying to strike up a deal where, for a certain fee, one of these channels can broadcast repeats of Friday Night Lights episodes after they've ...

Media Jews Violate Kosher At Spotted Pig [Last Night's Party]
Published 2/26/2008 by Nick Denton at Gawker
New York's Adam Moss, host of the viewing party the magazine threw at the Spotted Pig, before ab-obsessed Dave Zinczenko unbuttoned his shirt. Moss, who used to run New York Times' Sunday magazine, is one of the most high-minded of modern editors. Which makes the magazine's web triumph last week all the more disturbing. New York claims 20m pageviews per day for the arty nudes it ran of drunken starlet, Lindsay Lohan. (Yes, jealous.) Moss says the traffic is "addictive". He's joking, for the moment. But wait. (In this week's New York sex diaries, an S&M-loving comedian.) After the jump, lovingly photographed by ...

Despite The Best Efforts Of Viacom, 'Friday Night Lights' Gets Picked Up For Another Season [Renewals]
Published 3/6/2008 by Mark Graham at Defamer
... The perenially ratings challenged yet highly adored Friday Night Lights has been on life support ever since the WGA Strike shut production down on the show's second season. First, Peacock Emperor Ben Silverman gave the show the Diss Of Death ("Unfortunately, no one watches it. That's the thing with shows. People have to watch them.") in an interview with Radar. Then, the good people over at ...