Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
Fall TV Shows Reflecting Impact of September 11
Aired November 09, 2001 - 05:57 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: America's new war has changed every aspect of life in the U.S. and television entertainment is no exception to that.
CNN's Sherri Sylvester reports on the impact of the television series this fall.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHERRI SYLVESTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Topical plot lines are back in prime time. "The Agency's" anthrax episode had been pulled but is airing this week. The CIA- based "24" premiered without shock of an exploding jetliner but with its basic story intact. "NYPD Blue" is back offering a New York state of mind.
STEVEN BOCHCO, CREATOR, "NYPD BLUE": In the course of our first seven or eight episodes, we've got some story -- some actual story lines that emanate from the events of September 11.
SYLVESTER: Twenty-five million viewers turned on "The West Wing's" special news-driven episode. Even the irreverent "South Park" animated Osama bin Laden in its opening show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OSAMA BIN LADEN CARTOON CHARACTER: Ramadan.
SOUTH PARK CHARACTER: Hey look, an infidel.
LADEN: (INAUDIBLE) your cover.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARK SCHWED, TV GUIDE: It's really not whether a show is appropriate or not, it's when is the right time for us to put these shows on the air.
SYLVESTER: There are no easy answers for network executives. Newsy dramas are faring well, but so are comedies. Consumers seem to want the TV equivalent of comfort food.
JEFF ZUCKER, PRESIDENT, NBC ENTERTAINMENT: I think we saw that in the great success of programs like "Friends" and "Frasier" and "Raymond" on CBS. The familiar programs, people wanted to find comfort in them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENNIFER ANISTON, RACHEL GREEN, "FRIENDS": I was just thinking about how huge it was for me. I didn't even go to how huge this is going to be for the father.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SYLVESTER: Older shows such as "Friends," "ER," "Law and Order" and "JAG" are getting their best ratings in years.
ROB LOWE, "THE WEST WING": There's so much uncertainty in people's lives that when they want -- when they go to entertainment, they want something they're fairly certain they're going to like.
SYLVESTER: But the networks are struggling with new shows. Fall promos were shelved after September 11, the season was delayed. Viewers still seem unable or unwilling to find the freshmen.
LES MOONVES, CEO, CBS: I think you show a lot more patience than you have before, a realization that you didn't get them promoted appropriately or properly and you know, so I think the strategy definitely changes.
SCHWED: And news divisions are chewing up all those extra dollars so that now they really have to be very smart and very careful about how they spend their money. And yanking shows off the air after two episodes is not being smart or careful about their money.
SYLVESTER: Don't expect pricey specials during November sweeps either. Shuffling the schedule would just add confusion to television's most schizophrenic fall season.
Sherri Sylvester, CNN Entertainment News, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
