TMC
04-11-2018, 12:33 PM
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/act-four/wp/2018/04/10/abc-once-led-tvs-diversity-revolution-then-came-trump-and-roseanne
Roseanne's emergence and ABC's "heartland strategy" (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/29/business/media/roseanne-ratings-trump.html) come as Shonda Rhimes is leaving for Netflix, with Fresh Off the Boat on the bubble (http://radiotvtalk.blog.ajc.com/2018/04/10/hudson-yang-fresh-off-the-boat-save-our-show/), and after a controversial Black-ish episode was pulled, prompting creator Kenya Barris to reportedly seek an early exit from his ABC Studios deal. "Recent signs suggest that ABC is entering a new and more complicated era" when it comes to diverse shows, says Alyssa Rosenberg, "and the network isn’t alone — the number of women and people of color creating new shows declined across the industry as a whole in the 2017-2018 television season. And it’s striking, if a little tricky to discuss, that ABC’s reputation for bold discussions of race has hit a rough patch under the leadership of Channing Dungey, who became the first African American woman to serve as president of a major broadcast television network in 2016." As Rosenberg notes, Dungey has used "the language of diversity" in trying to broaden the network's audience to appeal to so-called Heartland viewers. "So far, Dungey’s attempts to secure a broader audience have shown some success," says Rosenberg, pointing to The Good Doctor and Roseanne. ALSO: By trying to appeal to "heartland" viewers, is ABC becoming "Trump TV"? (https://www.thedailybeast.com/with-roseanne-is-abc-becoming-trump-tv)
Roseanne's emergence and ABC's "heartland strategy" (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/29/business/media/roseanne-ratings-trump.html) come as Shonda Rhimes is leaving for Netflix, with Fresh Off the Boat on the bubble (http://radiotvtalk.blog.ajc.com/2018/04/10/hudson-yang-fresh-off-the-boat-save-our-show/), and after a controversial Black-ish episode was pulled, prompting creator Kenya Barris to reportedly seek an early exit from his ABC Studios deal. "Recent signs suggest that ABC is entering a new and more complicated era" when it comes to diverse shows, says Alyssa Rosenberg, "and the network isn’t alone — the number of women and people of color creating new shows declined across the industry as a whole in the 2017-2018 television season. And it’s striking, if a little tricky to discuss, that ABC’s reputation for bold discussions of race has hit a rough patch under the leadership of Channing Dungey, who became the first African American woman to serve as president of a major broadcast television network in 2016." As Rosenberg notes, Dungey has used "the language of diversity" in trying to broaden the network's audience to appeal to so-called Heartland viewers. "So far, Dungey’s attempts to secure a broader audience have shown some success," says Rosenberg, pointing to The Good Doctor and Roseanne. ALSO: By trying to appeal to "heartland" viewers, is ABC becoming "Trump TV"? (https://www.thedailybeast.com/with-roseanne-is-abc-becoming-trump-tv)