Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Using Drake-ish spot placement in a TV format ...

Don't know if you ever watch this on cable, but I was cruising thru the channels looking for something mindless and found listed a few episodes I hadn't seen of Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm.

First, remember that WGN is a Tribune operation, managed by former radio magnate Randy Michaels.

So what did I see? A very carefully edited series of show scenes, each followed by one spot, another show scene, then a spot and a promo, and a third scene, then a spot and so on.

We already know this works for music formats. Ron Jacobs' hot clocks in his book about the hay-day of KHJ shows that clearly. But song sequencing is just a bit different than chopping up a tv show. Songs are stand-alones, whereas, if I remember my drama classes correctly, scenes combine in some sort of logical sequence to make up acts that make up a play.

It was very disconcerting. The scenes were just minutes long, about the same as a 1960's song, then suddenly to black and commercial and back to the next scene. Trib guys, it works with the hits, but not with the video.

Looked to me like the gang of idiots and pirates currently running TribCo are fussing with your stated preference for reasoned interruption. I blame Lee "I can fly on acid or in a Beechcraft Bonanza" Abrams.

They have nothing to lose by playing with a legendary station, of course. The courts and creditors will have them out of there and on to their next devastation pretty quick, I think.

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