NAB 2010: NBC Affiliates Board Pleased With Prime

The NBC affiliates board came out of its meeting in Las Vegas April 13 in an
upbeat manner, pleased with the strides NBC has made in primetime. Board
chairman Michael Fiorile said NBC updated the gathering on development. Rookie
shows like The Marriage Ref and Parenthood, he said, offer
quality product to viewers and advertisers alike. "We're very pleased with
primetime, compared to four months ago," said Fiorile.

NBC of course nixed the primetime Jay Leno Show
earlier this year after the affiliates voiced their dissatisfaction with its
ratings. Fiorile says Leno is putting up strong numbers again in his old time slot.

As he did with the other affiliate boards in Vegas, NAB
President/CEO Gordon Smith paid the NBC affiliate leaders a visit to talk up
his key issues. "He said we need to make sure we don't lose spectrum," said
Fiorile.

Fiorile said meatier issues will be tackled when the
affiliates meet in New York
May 17. The mood in the room in Vegas, he added, was overwhelmingly positive:
"If you look at where we were four or five months ago, we're feeling good."

Michael Malone

Michael Malone, senior content producer at B+C/Multichannel News, covers network programming, including entertainment, news and sports on broadcast, cable and streaming; and local broadcast television. He hosts the podcasts Busted Pilot, about what’s new in television, and Series Business, a chat with the creator of a new program, and writes the column “The Watchman.” He joined B+C in 2005. His journalism has also appeared in The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Playboy and New York magazine.