Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Wednesday, June 28th, 2023

Is there a term that means the opposite of "Crisis Management?"

Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Wednesday, June 28th, 2023.

THIS IS WHY GOOGLE SUCKS
As I write this, official word has just been released that Madonna had been found unresponsive and taken to the hospital. Although a spokesperson is also saying she is expected to fully recover.

But thanks to Google’s search algorithm, when you search for news about the story, the top choices are a mix of “Madonna is an anti-vaxxer” pieces, even though she donated more than a million dollars to COVID-19 research and has said vaccinations should be mandatory. Also, vaccines had nothing at all to with her illness:

HULU IS REMOVING SOME TV SHOWS EARLY....BUT HOW MUCH DOES IT MATTER?
Every day seems to bring another round of titles being removed from streaming services in order to write down the content costs, save on residuals and perhaps license them off to rivals.

Today's news came from Hulu, which is removing two recently-canceled ABC shows from the streaming service several months ahead of schedule. Alaska Daily and The Company You Keep were both scheduled to stay on Hulu through at least September, but Deadline notes they are both leaving next month.

I frequently remind readers not to conflate what is going on in the American streaming video market with what is happening outside the U.S. Depending on the series, a show that disappears from the U.S. version of a streaming service may not leave on the versions of the same service located in other countries. And in some cases, the show is already licensed to a local or regional streamer.

For instance, while much was made of the news that Paramount+ removed a number of shows from its service yesterday, it's worth noting that according to Dan Barrett's great Always Be Watching newsletter, that's not the case in Australia:

I note that while Star Trek: Prodigy and other Paramount+ shows are disappearing from that service in the US, they are still available on the Australian Paramount+.

And then you have third-party licensing deals, which I mention as only to remind people that they can and should watch the recently-removed from Max HBO drama Mrs Fletcher on Aussie streamer Binge.

That will also apparently be the situation with The Company You Keep, which is already licensed to several smaller regional streamers in Asia and Africa. So while it will disappear from Hulu, it will still be available for fans in a number of other countries.

I am endlessly fascinated by these content permutations. Although it is incredibly hard to track from the outside. Smaller regional deals tend not to get a lot of press coverage and the companies themselves aren't interested in discussing the issue. But I think it's important to keep reminding people that the streaming business is more than just what happens in North America.

SPEAKING OF WEIRD LICENSING ISSUES
This is really in the weeds and I apologize upfront for how micro this might be for most of you. But honestly, these are the stories that I spend way too much time trying to figure out.

When I wrote a recent piece about the impressive number of so-called "zombie networks" owned and operated by Warner Bros. Discovery, I mentioned that the Cooking Channel has cut back its original content production to 4-5 episodes a month and some of those are just episodes recycled from sister networks. In July, the channel's entire original content lineup is four episodes of the long-running series Carnival Eats. I was curious about whether the show was available on Discovery+ and/or Max and discovered something very strange.

While nearly every episode of the show's previous ten seasons are available on Discovery+, only 5 of the show's season nine episodes are available for streaming. And weirdly, of the 17 episodes that were originally aired, you can only stream episodes 1-4 and 7 (which the streaming services label as episode 5). Nothing else from the season is available, either on Discovery+, Max, on demand or on the network's TV everywhere app.

And there doesn't seem to be any reason for their absence. There is nothing special about the episodes, nothing changed in the show's production. They are randomly just missing in action. 

I've noticed this a few times with Food Network/HGTV shows. Random partial season or episodes aren't available for reasons which aren't at all apparent. 

It's not a big deal in the scheme of things. But it does drive me nuts not knowing the answer.

TWEET OF THE DAY

IS THERE A TERM FOR THE OPPOSITE OF CRISIS MANAGEMENT?
If Warner Bros. Discovery's C-Suite has a unique skill, it's the ability to consistently take the wrong approach to any PR problem. The company continues to go through this cycle where upper management makes a decision that garners bad press, they don't make a public comment for several days, then announce a new approach, pretending their earlier decision never existed. And often, the new decision is framed in a way that implies it was the decision they wanted to make all along. 

This week's example of this super power is the result of a recent decision to get rid of the top executives at Turner Classic Movies (TCM). That sparked complaints from a wide range of celebrity fans of the network and there were legitimate fears the network would become a hollowed-out shell.

Today, Warner Bros. Discovery announced that Turner Classic Movies programming executive Charles Tabesh will remain in his post and that WBD has set a partnership with filmmakers Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and Paul Thomas Anderson to help curate content for TCM:

“TCM is a cultural treasure, and we are honored to help steer the future direction of this beloved brand with the partnership of three of the most iconic filmmakers of our time, Steven, Marty, and Paul,” De Luca and Abdy said. “David Zaslav led the charge, driven by our shared love of storytelling, to bring us together for a project about which we are so passionate. Over the last year, we have meaningfully increased our content investment in TCM, and intend to further enhance TCM’s on-air programming and engagement with fans.”

See? David Zaslav was the hero here! He saved TCM from the deep cuts imposed by (checks notes) executives tasked with cutting costs by David Zaslav.

ODDS AND SODS
* The fourth and final season of Breeders will premiere Monday, July 31st on FX.

* The long-running TV ratings site ShowBuzz Daily is shutting down after this week. 

* Bloomberg is reporting that Warner Bros. Discovery is exploring the idea of adding a CNN live feed to Max outside the U.S.

* NatGeo is premiering a ten-episode look back at the 1990s in the new series Rewind The 90s, which premieres Monday, July 31st.

* National Geographic Magazine has laid off the last of its full-time staffer and will end its print run next year.

* Netflix canceled Warrior Nun, although the show is apparently returning...somewhere.

WHAT'S NEW FOR THURSDAY:
* Christina On The Coast Season Premiere (HGTV)
* Generation Gap Season Premiere (ABC)
* Lace Season Premiere (ALLBLK)
* Lust Stories 2 (Netflix)
* Ōoku: The Inner Chambers (Netflix)
* Press Your Luck Season Premiere (ABC)
* Revealed Series Premiere (HGTV)
* Secret Chef Series Premiere (Hulu) - [first look video]
* Swiping America Series Finale (Max)
* Ten-Year-Old Tom Season Two Premiere (Max)
* The Chase Season Premiere (ABC)
* The Real Wild West (Curiosity Stream)
* The Witcher Season Three Premiere (Netflix)
* Warrior Season Three (Max)

Click Here to see the list of all of the upcoming premiere dates for the next few months.

SEE YOU THURSDAY!

If you have any feedback, send it along to Rick@AllYourScreens.com and follow me on Twitter @aysrick.