Wishful thinking/24 hour network - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

rerungirl · 04-14-2011, 12:57 PM

I know this will probably never happen, but I'd really like to see a network that would be devoted to missing persons cases. Ideally it would cover cases from every state and include interviews with law enforcement and the missing person's loved ones. For every case we hear about there are thousands more that get little or no media attention. AMW has had amazing success with information it has received from its viewers. Some of their cold cases seemed almost unsolvable but viewer tips provided the needed answers. I'd like to think the same would be true for many missing persons cases if they could get the right kind of coverage.

Apostapler · 04-14-2011, 07:19 PM

Oh that sounds lovely...disappearances are my favorite cases. 24 hours of missing persons stories = heaven.

rerungirl · 04-15-2011, 12:30 PM

I've been reading through some old posts and found a comment from RobinW about the idea of a missing persons channel. I'm sorry, Robin, that I didn't see your comment before I posted mine yesterday. Great minds think alike, I guess. lol. Wish we had the financing to get this idea off the ground.

RobinW · 04-15-2011, 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rerungirl

I've been reading through some old posts and found a comment from RobinW about the idea of a missing persons channel. I'm sorry, Robin, that I didn't see your comment before I posted mine yesterday. Great minds think alike, I guess. lol. Wish we had the financing to get this idea off the ground.

No apology necessary, we're hardly the only people who've thought this is a great idea

. Even people like John Walsh have openly spoken out about the need for a 24-hour missing persons channel. I mean, they wouldn't even need to produce 24 full hours of segments with interviews and reenactments. At the very least, just devote blocks of airtime to displaying photos of missing people and details about their case onscreen, so that cases that don't get a lot of coverage in the media at least get some extra exposure.

Thiussat · 04-16-2011, 03:15 AM

ID is the closest channel we have right now. As has been mentioned a lot on this board recently, they are behind the great new series "Disappeared." There's a lot of other good material on ID as well.

As a side note, the Disappeared episode coming on this week (Monday the 18th) looks very interesting. It's the case of Virginia Tech co-ed Morgan Harrington who disappeared from a Metallica concert a couple of years back. I remember seeing this covered on Nancy Grace when it first happened and have kept an interest in it since because of the bizarre circumstances surrounding it. According to the friends (girls) she was with, Morgan gets up inexplicably and runs out of the concert, leaving them behind. Motorists then report seeing her hitchiking near the concert arena. Her cell phone and purse were left outside the concert hall, ostensibly on purpose since she seemed to be hitchiking voluntarily. Of course, it's possible that she was attacked (which resulted in her dropping her stuff) and then hitchhiked to get away from the assailant. But this doesn't seem like a logical reaction either, especially when she was so close to thousands of people in a public place. Very odd all the way around.

Anyway, sorry for the tangent. I do agree that a channel devoted entirely to missing persons cases would be cool. But I would also like to add unsolved murders to that as well -- they deserve the same attention.

chacha6581 · 05-09-2011, 05:37 PM

I think that would be great too. I wish they would show UM on the ID channel. It would be a great fit. I wonder if they could show old episodes of America's Most Wanted..... Do they show reruns anywhere?

Kane · 05-10-2011, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chacha6581

I wonder if they could show old episodes of America's Most Wanted..... Do they show reruns anywhere?

Doubtful. Occasionally, there have been certain AMW broadcasts that were eventually encored, but AMW generally isn't rerun in the same fashion as other TV shows. However, reruns of its short-lived spin-off, AMW: Final Justice, appeared on at least two cable channels; first on USA Network in 1996-97, and then on Court TV in 2000.

chacha6581 · 05-10-2011, 10:46 AM

Thanks Kane.

CuriousMind90 · 05-18-2011, 09:48 PM

Bump...I was wondering if any of us could speculate how this could become a reality someday.
Let's look at it from a business perspective, as that is the start of everything. Investors and the like don't care how such a channel would help the public or the morality of it; they care about how much revenue it would generate. I would say, from a business perspective, a 24 hour missing persons channel could generate a LOT of money.

People go missing all the time, it's as much of a part of the human condition as murder and poverty are. And the people whose family members go missing or went missing would love such a network and would probably call in and pay to have their loved ones' cases profiled.

And in terms of ratings, people love a mystery by nature. Look at the success of UM itself; People love mysteries, they love to be creeped out. Look at how much publicity and media attention famous mysteries such as the JonBenet Ramsey murder case, or the Natalie Holloway disappearance merited. As a species, we're kind of morbid to a degree--this sort of stuff fascinates us. People also like to be informed. And some people like to help.

A 24 hour network about missing persons--if played the right way--in a very "entertainment" and sensationalist way like UM played it's Missing Persons cases--could be very successful.

chacha6581 · 05-18-2011, 11:59 PM

You know they cancelled AMW, again. Maybe it will happen this time.

04-14-2011, 12:57 PM	#1
rerungirl Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Sep 23, 2002 Location: Midwest Posts: 295	Wishful thinking/24 hour network I know this will probably never happen, but I'd really like to see a network that would be devoted to missing persons cases. Ideally it would cover cases from every state and include interviews with law enforcement and the missing person's loved ones. For every case we hear about there are thousands more that get little or no media attention. AMW has had amazing success with information it has received from its viewers. Some of their cold cases seemed almost unsolvable but viewer tips provided the needed answers. I'd like to think the same would be true for many missing persons cases if they could get the right kind of coverage.

05-09-2011, 05:37 PM	#6
chacha6581 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 08, 2008 Location: Flint,Mi Posts: 264	I think that would be great too. I wish they would show UM on the ID channel. It would be a great fit. I wonder if they could show old episodes of America's Most Wanted..... Do they show reruns anywhere?
	__________________ www.twitter.com/chacha6581

04-14-2011, 07:19 PM	#2
Apostapler Member Forum Regular Join Date: Mar 06, 2009 Location: Indiana Posts: 872	Oh that sounds lovely...disappearances are my favorite cases. 24 hours of missing persons stories = heaven.

04-15-2011, 12:30 PM	#3
rerungirl Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Sep 23, 2002 Location: Midwest Posts: 295	I've been reading through some old posts and found a comment from RobinW about the idea of a missing persons channel. I'm sorry, Robin, that I didn't see your comment before I posted mine yesterday. Great minds think alike, I guess. lol. Wish we had the financing to get this idea off the ground.

04-16-2011, 03:15 AM	#5
Thiussat Member Forum Regular Join Date: Mar 09, 2007 Posts: 601	ID is the closest channel we have right now. As has been mentioned a lot on this board recently, they are behind the great new series "Disappeared." There's a lot of other good material on ID as well. As a side note, the Disappeared episode coming on this week (Monday the 18th) looks very interesting. It's the case of Virginia Tech co-ed Morgan Harrington who disappeared from a Metallica concert a couple of years back. I remember seeing this covered on Nancy Grace when it first happened and have kept an interest in it since because of the bizarre circumstances surrounding it. According to the friends (girls) she was with, Morgan gets up inexplicably and runs out of the concert, leaving them behind. Motorists then report seeing her hitchiking near the concert arena. Her cell phone and purse were left outside the concert hall, ostensibly on purpose since she seemed to be hitchiking voluntarily. Of course, it's possible that she was attacked (which resulted in her dropping her stuff) and then hitchhiked to get away from the assailant. But this doesn't seem like a logical reaction either, especially when she was so close to thousands of people in a public place. Very odd all the way around. Anyway, sorry for the tangent. I do agree that a channel devoted entirely to missing persons cases would be cool. But I would also like to add unsolved murders to that as well -- they deserve the same attention.

05-10-2011, 10:46 AM	#8
chacha6581 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 08, 2008 Location: Flint,Mi Posts: 264	Thanks Kane.

05-18-2011, 09:48 PM	#9
CuriousMind90 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Nov 21, 2010 Posts: 244	Bump...I was wondering if any of us could speculate how this could become a reality someday. Let's look at it from a business perspective, as that is the start of everything. Investors and the like don't care how such a channel would help the public or the morality of it; they care about how much revenue it would generate. I would say, from a business perspective, a 24 hour missing persons channel could generate a LOT of money. People go missing all the time, it's as much of a part of the human condition as murder and poverty are. And the people whose family members go missing or went missing would love such a network and would probably call in and pay to have their loved ones' cases profiled. And in terms of ratings, people love a mystery by nature. Look at the success of UM itself; People love mysteries, they love to be creeped out. Look at how much publicity and media attention famous mysteries such as the JonBenet Ramsey murder case, or the Natalie Holloway disappearance merited. As a species, we're kind of morbid to a degree--this sort of stuff fascinates us. People also like to be informed. And some people like to help. A 24 hour network about missing persons--if played the right way--in a very "entertainment" and sensationalist way like UM played it's Missing Persons cases--could be very successful.

05-18-2011, 11:59 PM	#10
chacha6581 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 08, 2008 Location: Flint,Mi Posts: 264	You know they cancelled AMW, again. Maybe it will happen this time.