Dancing fallout

Didn't have to be a genius to predict that the GSN Internet board would explode with righteous wrath over the Dancing With the Stars acquisition. The board is dominated by super-traditionalist older-is-better fans who don't much like anything on GSN produced after 1990. Especially when it's not a traditional game show. So they're yelping and yelping some more. Some of my sassy contributions to the screamfest...

I don't expect many posters on this board to watch DWTS. But posters around here are hardly representative of GSN's audience. Check Karn Feud's ratings if you don't believe me.

Stuff like Amazing Race was a demo gamble for GSN, an attempt to reach entirely different viewers than the network's usual old-skewing, female-skewing audience. Dancing With the Stars, in contrast, really hits that demo sweet spot for GSN. In fact, it may well be the broadcast show which gets the most viewers in those famous "adult female" demos that GSN specializes in.

Doesn't mean that the show will necessarily succeed on GSN. But it's a great demo fit for the network. It's not something like Improv-a-Ganza. Comedy generally skews younger and more male, and GSN's demos are anything but young and male. DWTS skews right into GSN's demo wheelhouse.

By the way, I doubt that [new GSN programming veep] Amy Davis had much to do with the acquisition. She's only been at GSN for a few weeks, and a huge acquisition like this must have been in the works for a long time. And it must have gotten signoffs from key people at Sony. I haven't seen any financial details, but a very large piece of change, by GSN standards, must have gone for these exclusive rerun rights.

Other poster: Actually the only thing I'm erupting with is I think these kinds of shows suck no matter what channel they come on, still can't believe it's been around for 13 years, and have no intentions of watching reruns of it...or first runs of it...ever.

Thanks for proving my point. I'm sure we'll see many more similar complaints on this board.

Another poster: But what about the possibility to add on more Match Game 1970's, Family Feud Dawson episodes, Card Sharks episode, and $25,000/$100,000 Pyramid episodes to the lease packages they have? Same for getting 100% of the Goodson-Todman library rights back?

If those shows got twenty million viewers, with heavy concentrations among GSN's current and target demos, the network might well spend whatever it takes.

Just one thing. Those shows don't get twenty million viewers.

Yet another poster: Surely, the acquisition of DWTS certainly doesn't seem like good news, and I can't help but be fairly pessimistic about the general direction of GSN in the future, but still I wouldn't yet presumptuously come to the conclusion that GSN is going to be all garbage reality programming.

Garbage is in the eye of the beholder. Twenty million beholders think DWTS is pretty good. That's why they watch. I don't watch it and I don't intend to watch it because I'm not a dancing fan. But the show has gotten generally favorable reviews as an interesting competition. And it's certainly built for GSN's audience (which again has little in common with this board).

One oddity: why didn't GSN get the first three seasons as well? I'm sure they would like to have John O'Hurley from the first season as a natural tie-in with Family Feud.