“The View From the Phlipside” is a media commentary program airing on WRFA-LP, Jamestown NY. It can be heard Monday through Friday just after 8 AM and 5 PM. The following are scripts which may not exactly match the aired version of the program. Mostly because the host may suddenly choose to add or subtract words at a moments notice. WRFA-LP is not responsible for any such silliness or the opinions expressed. You can listen to a live stream of WRFA or find a podcast of this program at wrfalp.com. Copyright 2013-15 by Jay Phillippi. All Rights Reserved. You like what you see? Drop me a line and we can talk.
Program scripts from week of September 14, 2015
My name is Jay Phillippi and I’ve spent my life in and around the media. TV, radio, the movies and more. I love them, and I hate them and I always have an opinion. Call this the View from the Phlipside.
TV Health
I
continue to keep on eye on how old line media are doing as we
continue to march forward into the new media era. I was interested
recently by a series of articles that came out looking at the varying
states of health for that old war horse, television.
continue to keep on eye on how old line media are doing as we
continue to march forward into the new media era. I was interested
recently by a series of articles that came out looking at the varying
states of health for that old war horse, television.
Right
off the bat the news wasn’t good. If you look at the stock market
you will discover that across the board media stocks are down. Well,
to be fair, virtually all media stock except Disney and Netflix.
Make of that what you will. Google’s advertising revenue in the U.S.
grew by more than fourteen billion dollars between 2010 and 2015.
That’s more than the entire television industry in that period. In
fact television network revenues will probably show no growth for
that same time period while digital advertising will pass TV revenues
sometime in the next two years.
off the bat the news wasn’t good. If you look at the stock market
you will discover that across the board media stocks are down. Well,
to be fair, virtually all media stock except Disney and Netflix.
Make of that what you will. Google’s advertising revenue in the U.S.
grew by more than fourteen billion dollars between 2010 and 2015.
That’s more than the entire television industry in that period. In
fact television network revenues will probably show no growth for
that same time period while digital advertising will pass TV revenues
sometime in the next two years.
The
next big piece of bad news for television is viewership in younger
demographics. Folks in the 18-49 year group continue to defect.
Losing five to six percent of that demographic every year for the
next five years puts a huge hole in the most desirable advertising
audience.
next big piece of bad news for television is viewership in younger
demographics. Folks in the 18-49 year group continue to defect.
Losing five to six percent of that demographic every year for the
next five years puts a huge hole in the most desirable advertising
audience.
And
advertisers have taken notice. In the television industry there very
important periods on the calendar known as “upfronts”. In
simplest terms that’s when the advertisers and the press get the
first looks at the shows for the upcoming season. The hope is that
people will be excited enough about the shows to buy advertising in
advance, “upfront”. ABC was the pioneer for upfronts back in
1963. The broadcast networks run theirs late in May for the
following fall schedule. The bottom line numbers this past spring
show a decline for the third straight year. Cable and satellite
networks saw their numbers drop for the second straight year.
advertisers have taken notice. In the television industry there very
important periods on the calendar known as “upfronts”. In
simplest terms that’s when the advertisers and the press get the
first looks at the shows for the upcoming season. The hope is that
people will be excited enough about the shows to buy advertising in
advance, “upfront”. ABC was the pioneer for upfronts back in
1963. The broadcast networks run theirs late in May for the
following fall schedule. The bottom line numbers this past spring
show a decline for the third straight year. Cable and satellite
networks saw their numbers drop for the second straight year.
If
there is any joy to be found in the land of the small screen it comes
from sports. In fact, if it weren’t for sports advertising it’s hard
to imagine where some of these folks would be. Last year ad revenue
from sports grew overall at about eight percent with NBC showing a
fifteen percent uptick. The advantage sports has is immediacy. No
one is willing to “watch it later” so it provides much more of
the traditional “captive audience”.
there is any joy to be found in the land of the small screen it comes
from sports. In fact, if it weren’t for sports advertising it’s hard
to imagine where some of these folks would be. Last year ad revenue
from sports grew overall at about eight percent with NBC showing a
fifteen percent uptick. The advantage sports has is immediacy. No
one is willing to “watch it later” so it provides much more of
the traditional “captive audience”.
What
all of this really means is that television is going to have to shift
from a primarily broadcast model to an online/on demand model to
survive. That process has already begun but expect to see it
accelerate in the next couple years. It will be interesting to see
how it all shakes out.
all of this really means is that television is going to have to shift
from a primarily broadcast model to an online/on demand model to
survive. That process has already begun but expect to see it
accelerate in the next couple years. It will be interesting to see
how it all shakes out.
RIP Jean Darling
Reaching
back for a story from just before the return of our program. It’s
worth noting as a milestone on a path we are all too shortly to
complete. At the beginning of September came the passing of actress
Jean Darling.
back for a story from just before the return of our program. It’s
worth noting as a milestone on a path we are all too shortly to
complete. At the beginning of September came the passing of actress
Jean Darling.
Unless
you’re a silent movie fan that name probably means nothing to you.
Darling was one of only four surviving members of the Hal Roach
classic “Our Gang” movie series. The series also appeared under
the name “The Little Rascals”. Beyond her career, which was a
success on several levels and in different media, the death of Jean
Darling brings us closer to the true end of the “Silent Era” of
the movies. There are a handful or less of stars from those days
still alive. The other side of that coin is that we have lost a huge
portion of the inventory of those early movies. Because they were
seen as trivial, there was no interest in maintaining them. An
enormous segment of movie history is about to pass irrevocably into
darkness.
you’re a silent movie fan that name probably means nothing to you.
Darling was one of only four surviving members of the Hal Roach
classic “Our Gang” movie series. The series also appeared under
the name “The Little Rascals”. Beyond her career, which was a
success on several levels and in different media, the death of Jean
Darling brings us closer to the true end of the “Silent Era” of
the movies. There are a handful or less of stars from those days
still alive. The other side of that coin is that we have lost a huge
portion of the inventory of those early movies. Because they were
seen as trivial, there was no interest in maintaining them. An
enormous segment of movie history is about to pass irrevocably into
darkness.
Jean
Darling was born Dorothy Jean LeVake in 1922 but had her name legally
changed to Jean Darling just five months later. At age four she
passed her screen test and joined the “Our Gang” cast. She would
do forty six silents as a member of the group and six “talkies”.
The transition from silent to sound movies was difficult for actors
of all ages. It took about a year for the movie makers to get a
feel for the new way of making movies. During that transition
Darling would leave the cast to move on to other things. She made an
uncredited appearance with Laurel and Hardy in “Babes in Toyland”
and as the young Jane in a 1930s version of “Jane Eyre”.
Darling was born Dorothy Jean LeVake in 1922 but had her name legally
changed to Jean Darling just five months later. At age four she
passed her screen test and joined the “Our Gang” cast. She would
do forty six silents as a member of the group and six “talkies”.
The transition from silent to sound movies was difficult for actors
of all ages. It took about a year for the movie makers to get a
feel for the new way of making movies. During that transition
Darling would leave the cast to move on to other things. She made an
uncredited appearance with Laurel and Hardy in “Babes in Toyland”
and as the young Jane in a 1930s version of “Jane Eyre”.
At
that point Darling pivoted and left the movies behind. She would
begin working in live theater on Broadway. At her peak she would
score a large role in the original cast of “Carousel” and rack up
more than 800 performances. By 1950 she was popular enough to star
in a TV show titled “A Date With Jean Darling”. And you thought
“The Bachelor” was an original idea.
that point Darling pivoted and left the movies behind. She would
begin working in live theater on Broadway. At her peak she would
score a large role in the original cast of “Carousel” and rack up
more than 800 performances. By 1950 she was popular enough to star
in a TV show titled “A Date With Jean Darling”. And you thought
“The Bachelor” was an original idea.
She
still wasn’t done. Retiring to Ireland in 1974 she wrote dozens of
mystery short stories that were published in well known mystery
magazines. She read stories she had written on the radio in Ireland
as “Aunt Poppy”. She made her final movie appearance in the 2013
silent short called “The Butler’s Tale” which you can find on
YouTube. Darling spent the end of her life in Germany with her only
son, where she died after a sudden illness.
still wasn’t done. Retiring to Ireland in 1974 she wrote dozens of
mystery short stories that were published in well known mystery
magazines. She read stories she had written on the radio in Ireland
as “Aunt Poppy”. She made her final movie appearance in the 2013
silent short called “The Butler’s Tale” which you can find on
YouTube. Darling spent the end of her life in Germany with her only
son, where she died after a sudden illness.
The
end of an era is coming soon. Jean Darling was 93 years old
end of an era is coming soon. Jean Darling was 93 years old
The (Faulty) View
Before
I begin let me be open with these facts. I am the son of a
Registered Nurse and the son-in-law of another. I am proud to say
that I have many friends who are nurses.
I begin let me be open with these facts. I am the son of a
Registered Nurse and the son-in-law of another. I am proud to say
that I have many friends who are nurses.
So
it’s not surprising that I am among the many folks who were offended
by the segment done a couple weeks ago on ABC’s talk show “The
View”. If you haven’t heard about it here is a brief summary.
During a segment on the Miss America pageant they commented on the
talent portion from Kelley Johnson, Miss Colorado. Miss Johnson is a
nurse who works in an Alzheimer’s unit. She came out in a nurses
uniform and did an original monologue talking about her work. The
hosts on “The View” then made comments about her “reading her
e-mails” and asked why she was wearing a “doctor’s stethoscope”.
Unsurprisingly, to everyone other than the five hosts, the Internet
went nuts.
it’s not surprising that I am among the many folks who were offended
by the segment done a couple weeks ago on ABC’s talk show “The
View”. If you haven’t heard about it here is a brief summary.
During a segment on the Miss America pageant they commented on the
talent portion from Kelley Johnson, Miss Colorado. Miss Johnson is a
nurse who works in an Alzheimer’s unit. She came out in a nurses
uniform and did an original monologue talking about her work. The
hosts on “The View” then made comments about her “reading her
e-mails” and asked why she was wearing a “doctor’s stethoscope”.
Unsurprisingly, to everyone other than the five hosts, the Internet
went nuts.
The
question for me was when and how the program would decide to deal
with the furor. A couple years ago I did a commentary on the lost
art of the apology. I advocated then and believe now, that a lot of
problems could be avoided with a simple and direct apology. Sadly,
“The View” chose to go the other way.
question for me was when and how the program would decide to deal
with the furor. A couple years ago I did a commentary on the lost
art of the apology. I advocated then and believe now, that a lot of
problems could be avoided with a simple and direct apology. Sadly,
“The View” chose to go the other way.
The
“apology” came a couple days later. By the standard of simple
and direct, it failed in almost every particular. What began as “We
love you and that’s not what we meant” quickly descended into
“Well, if you would just pay closer attention we wouldn’t have this
problem”. Yes, they seriously claimed that the audience just
wasn’t listening closely enough. Which is hysterical given that one
of the hosts, Joy Behar, acknowledged that during the original
segment she hadn’t been paying attention and didn’t really understand
what was going on. Which didn’t stop her from commenting, of
course.
“apology” came a couple days later. By the standard of simple
and direct, it failed in almost every particular. What began as “We
love you and that’s not what we meant” quickly descended into
“Well, if you would just pay closer attention we wouldn’t have this
problem”. Yes, they seriously claimed that the audience just
wasn’t listening closely enough. Which is hysterical given that one
of the hosts, Joy Behar, acknowledged that during the original
segment she hadn’t been paying attention and didn’t really understand
what was going on. Which didn’t stop her from commenting, of
course.
Trying
to make your mistake the fault of the person offended is never the
solution you want if the end result you’re reaching for is to stop
the bleeding. (Sorry, couldn’t resist)
to make your mistake the fault of the person offended is never the
solution you want if the end result you’re reaching for is to stop
the bleeding. (Sorry, couldn’t resist)
It
seems like nurses and their supporters aren’t the only ones
unimpressed by all of this. Two sponsors, Johnson and Johnson and
Eggland’s Best, have suspended advertising on the show for the time
being.
seems like nurses and their supporters aren’t the only ones
unimpressed by all of this. Two sponsors, Johnson and Johnson and
Eggland’s Best, have suspended advertising on the show for the time
being.
In
the end “The View” stuck their foot in it over a segment that I’m
willing to bet they spent very little time thinking about before it
went on the air. It was going to be a quick opportunity for a cheap
shot at a beauty queen. When that blew up in their face, they
managed to mess up the apology as well. All they had to do was look
into the camera and say “We screwed up. We’re sorry. We won’t do
it again”.
the end “The View” stuck their foot in it over a segment that I’m
willing to bet they spent very little time thinking about before it
went on the air. It was going to be a quick opportunity for a cheap
shot at a beauty queen. When that blew up in their face, they
managed to mess up the apology as well. All they had to do was look
into the camera and say “We screwed up. We’re sorry. We won’t do
it again”.
Just.
That. Simple.
That. Simple.
Call that the View From the Phlipside
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