This NBC debacle has got me doing something that I've never done before: I am watching The Tonight Show.
My experience with late-night television was after Johnny Carson, though I remember the commotion over Jay Leno versus David Letterman well enough. And once Jay Leno took over The Tonight Show, well, I never was a fan, so I never watched. His monologue bugged, his jokes were limp and cheesy, and the special segments (especially Headlines and Jay-walking) were both boring and irritating.
Once the news came down (in 2004) that Conan O'Brien would be taking over Tonight (in 2009), I thought, "Well that's cool, since I prefer Conan, though I still probably will never watch it."
Now though, I'm watching Tonight out of protest. This evening, and every other evening unless something else happens, I will be one of the many numbers of viewers watching Conan's Tonight Show. I will be among the uptick in ratings for Conan. I will be among the supporters. I will be a voice on the Internets.
Here's what NBC should do:
1.) Back off of Conan. Let him work his Tonight Show how he wants, and he and the show will be fine. Let him create his own legacy. You promised him this opportunity; follow through.
2.) Fire Jay Leno. The guy's show is lame. Even my mom, who is a fan of Leno's, won't watch it anymore. He's no longer the host of Tonight, and his prime-time experiment has failed. He's lost so much credibility at this point, too.
3.) Create some decent 10 p.m. shows. That's all. Put some money into actual television. Remember that you are, in fact, a television network, to which people visit to watch shows. Good shows, too, please.
4.) Suck it up that you've made a mess of this. Revert! Revert! Get back into a normal schedule! This is blowing up bad so much bigger than anyone at that network ever imagined it would. As well it should have. Grab your big-girl panties, you guys at NBC, and deal with the decisions you've made. Let Jay go; leave Conan alone.
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