Networks reluctantly shuffle for Obama speech

Networks are pulling their shows over to the side of the road to make room for the lights and sirens of president Barack Obama's latest primetime address.

Obama will take to the air next Tuesday evening on four broadcast networks and bump the most popular series on television, Fox's "American Idol."

Fulfilling their scheduling civic duty is starting to seem increasingly cumbersome to broadcasters, however. Between a struggling economy and ratings sagging in midseason, every interruption costs networks advertising dollars and momentum. 

"At a time when we're struggling not only financially but to build audiences, this doesn't help on either front," one network executive said. "These repeated interruptions -- and the rumor of even more to come -- really make it difficult to build audience flow and loyalty. We will all lose one or two million dollars for this."

The presidential election resulted in a fall season regularly interrupted by political news coverage, followed by primetime inauguration coverage, then two primetime speeches about the economy. The White House requesting yet another primetime slot, during sweeps and right after several shows dropped to new lows in last night's ratings, has some executives exasperated.

"I believe in the president and his policies, and as broadcasters we have a responsibility to provide the airtime," said another network insider. "But these frequent primetime requests are wreaking serious havoc with our schedule and our advertisers. Ratings are down everywhere and the airtime is costing us all significant dollars when we can least afford it."

Here's how the Big Four will juggle the speech:

>> Fox is arguably the most impacted network and took the longest to agree to airing the speech. The network will move Tuesday's two-hour performance episode of "Idol" to Wednesday, and the Wednesday episode to Thursday at 8 p.m. That preempts "Lie to Me" and "Bones" and puts mega-rated "Idol" against the mega-rated NCAA finals (which neither Fox nor CBS are all that thrilled about).

>> NBC will move Tuesday's two-hour "Biggest Loser" to 9 p.m., preempting "Law & Order: SVU."

>> CBS likewise is dumping its 10 p.m. procedural ("Without a Trace") and moving its two earlier dramas, "NCIS" and "The Mentalist," forward an hour.

>> ABC will cancel previously planned back-to-back episodes of "According to Jim."

Comments

[Fed Up]

This is narcissism at its worst....Obama the narcissist! How much longer are people going to tune in to listen to him drone on and on?

[Ralph]

Obama is going to speak? Short everything, the markets are going to dive - happens everytime he speaks.
Ralph

[Darwin Richardson]

This is the second time the propogandist has so arrogantly scheduled a news conference in prime time. The last one was a big yawn and I am certain this one will be also. Cut him off!

[Chris]

I'd be willing to bet that if one of the networks simply said that they won't air the speech and kept their regular programming, they'll outdraw the president. That would be an interesting, and gutsy, experiment.

[LuK]

As hard as the major networks worked to get Obama elected, I don't feel one bit sorry for them. Wait until they see what happens once he gets his socialist agenda in place. I wonder how they will like the censorship. Already he shows signs of being very thin-skinned. He expected that once he was elected everyone would continue to treat him as the Messiah no matter what he did. People are starting to come out of their star-struck stupor as their retirement trickles away and the threat of more and more taxation and eternal debt for our country becomes increasingly more real.

[Johnny Freedom]

I think he has already had more prime time teleprompterfests than Bush did in 8 years.

[jose pearsola]

Give us all a break. Really, what good is "idol" or shows like it that have been created only for the sake of averice. the dumb audience has figured out that this shows and others like it are created only after running P&L's showing profits unobtainable with more conventional progaming. If these shows were important each would be considered on it's merits and probably not troubled by the president.

[Nomobama]

I will not watch. I wish the networks would tell him NO. Everything this man does is bad for the country and the economy.

[Ohnoes]

Ohnoes! President is going to talk about something we SHOULD care about instead of something we shouldn't, everyone start crying! This country is full of whiners and we're darn good at it too!

Oh well, turning the rant off now.... greedy money grubbing... errr.

[scott wingert]

this isn't cuba ... none of the networks are required to juggle their schedules ... why is anyone bellyaching?

[Neil]

yawn....use the on/off remote and read a good book.

[Rocky]

Obama is the most facinating person he knows. He can listen to the sound of his own voice for hours. Thank goodness I have tivo and can entertain myself with something with a little more substance.

[Reda StCyr]

You all can only dream of the hell we just went through for the last eight years.

Tighten your seat belts, you in this for a longggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg time.

[Mark]

The networks who worked overtime to get Obama elected are now crying about his primetime speeches ha ha too bad guys.

[missy]

I got news for all you BO voters. BO could care less about you or the networks that he is causing to lose money.

[teri]

I'm not watching and you can't make me ;-P

[spt]

Imagine that, fox attacking Obama. They are having a problem adjusting to a president that is actually working hard. Bush never interrupted anything because he was on vacation most of the time and he never worked overtime.

[Taxprayer]

Say, wouldn't this be a good time to show us your birth certificate, Obama?

Until he does, he's the "alleged President" in my book.

[zanne]

30 mins of uh, oh, umms. Stop, please stop Mr. O. We can't take much more.

[Thomas Jefferson]

Obama is beginning to look kind of desperate . . . kind of like the self-obsessed in-law that you put up with and listen to during dinner but kind of feel bad for when they walk away acting like they are Napoleon!

[Chas.]

If memory serves, one had to go to Fox News to see a George Bush speech, no matter the importance of it; the networks shut him out because they hated him. Interesting to see them whine now when our Savior says jump. Can anybody out there do some research to quantify my perception?

[texbek]

good time to clean out the sock drawer.alot more exciting and will not hear more lies.glad I did'nt vote for this IDIOT

[PAULINE]

MAYBE THE BOZO'S TELEPROMPTER WILL BURN OUT AND HE'LL HAVE TO WING IT. THAT WOULD BE A COMEDY SHOW. BUT OTHERWISE I WILL WATCH THE COOKING CHANNEL

[Amy]

Don't you recognize what he is doing? Just like Castro and Chavez, always on camera, always giving speeches and lecturing. He is getting the American people conditioned.....Oh America, I grieve for you..
Wake up before is too late!

[Joe]

All hail Barack Hussein Obama!!!! This guy is shameless!!! Change you can believe in is the change left in my pocket after all the dollars have been ripped from my paycheck. Tax and Spend and get some airtime. This guy thinks he's some movie star.

[Brian]

will the teleprompter be fixed? Maybe he can thank himself for being there. The only thing worse than an idiot is an idiot with an agenda.

[Steve]

Who cares about amteurish singers and such? How can that be even compared to the President's speech in these critical times? You better listen pinheads - maybe you will learn something.

[Scottyp]

If the budget is so great why does he have to sell it on Primetime TV , the more Obidiot spends the more my 2 kids will be in Debt. He acts surprised about AIG and I'm sure he will when Fannie Execs get their bonus eventhough it is manadated by him in HIS(OBAMA"S)stimulus plan.

[steve sugulas]

Whoe gives a shit about little black sambo trying to save his ass!!!

[carol]

Chas you are correct. I enjoyed most of those idiots in the press core getting taken to school by Bush every time. That's why the networks wouldn't show them. Their reporters looked and sounded like morons.

[Dave]

The networks do NOT have to show the President when he speaks. They are only obligated to show the State of the Union addresses.

[NT]

There is no way I want to hear another lying word from that socialists mouth!!! I would rather watch reruns or all of those shows I've DVR'd than the "one and only"!!!

[Wyomingkid41]

"workong hard"?????????????????????????

More methane gas than a heard of polluting cows.............More B*LL SH*T than 10,000 Bulls.

Will take more time to get the B O stink out of the OC
FairGrounds than it does to pay off his spending spree!
At last count that's more than the combined Butgets of every US President since 1776.

[UNHAPPY TAXPAYER]

Tired of listening to old campaign speeches. Time to catchup on my book reading.

[SUCKA YOU DRANK THE KOOL AID]

All this does is accelerate his rapid drop in popularity. I see Bush level lows by summer. Why not schedule weekly fireside chats like your mentor?

[Ed from Canada]

Teleprompter Obama is quickly wearing out his welcome in Americans' homes. I guess Americans can simply NOT tune into this latest promise fest. What else do you expect from a man who's highest and best use is as community organizer.

[tom]

freakin' thug

[ruben]

ANOTHER RE-RUN .Not Again! Its the same speech his been giving for the past year.

[louisraritan]

Awesome! Gonna set my DVR to record it :)

Trying to think of a single show that I watch on Tuesdays and coming up with nada. Will be refreshing to hear from the most popular man in the world.....The President of the United States. If only every Tuesday of the week could be POTUS night. How bout a weekly presidential podcast or youtube video. Another thing I find irresistable is video's of Speaker Pelosi's cats walking around on the historical gavel (wooden hammer). Hey....its change we can believe in.....Social Liberals are the new entertainment for my generation.

[Dustin]

Don't you people see what he's doing? He's failing miserably at running the country, so he has to manufacture distractions like this to keep you from throwing him out. Going on Leno, this "anger" towards AIG, these prime-time speeches, etc. They're all to keep the masses distracted from the issues!