Quick quiz: when was the last time a network sitcom broke out to huge success among viewers?
If you answered “2009, Modern Family,” you win.
Since then, the best any network could settle for in the comedy category was “mildly popular.”
And that may signal that it’s time for the broadcast networks to undergo a radical makeover of their mindsets, according to the folks at Vulture.
The first prescription for change: stop launching comedies just to fill slots on a schedule. Then stick with the ones that actually cultivate a fan base, even if the Nielsen numbers aren’t in the stratosphere.
Viewers, Vulture argues, have been trained not to invest in new shows because they know that networks these days are probably going to cancel them anyway.
One more idea: it’s time for the industry to stop hating on the multi-cam series.
Read More: Vulture
Brief Take: Networks have been reluctant to put major marketing money behind new sitcoms in recent years, hastening their march to cancellation land. It’s time for a major comedy rethink if broadcast television is going to find new shows worthy of robust marketing campaigns.
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