A shot across the bow?

Scripps will use its own shows to replace syndies on some of its stations this fall. A couple targets of the move are Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. While the shows are in no imminent danger, nothing lasts forever on TV.

Scripps explains its move as partly a cost-cutter. "By replacing some syndicated fare with programming it effectively owns, Scripps could theoretically reduce programming costs and boost revenues while exploiting locally generated revenues."

That's the theory. But replacing two of the most popular syndies with untested new shows is hardly a guaranteed win. Wheel and Jeopardy skew old like almost any game show, but they pull ten or twelve million viewers for each episode. Which is more than a lot of prime time broadcast shows can claim. Still, the Scripps move may be a harbinger of things to come, as broadcast stations look to pare costs in the face of the cable/satellite monster.

I'm not worried about Pat and Vanna and Alex yet. But the Scripps move is a reminder that even the most popular shows are vulnerable to the accountants. Just ask the producers of daytime soap operas.