April 5, 2011 - 2:09pm
NBC Debacle: Leno moves back to 11:30
BY ERIC CHIU
- Courtesy of NBC
Update:Bill Carter confirms it — NBC plans on pushing Leno to 11:35 p.m., Conan to 12:05 a.m. and Fallon to 1:05 a.m.
Bill Carter at the NYTimes says that NBC executives met with both Conan O'Brien and Jay Leno today, but didn't deny TMZ reporting that Leno could return to "The Tonight Show" at 11:30 p.m.
For NBC, it's the latest piece of bad press, but they’re used to it by now. While NBC has been quick to tout "The Jay Leno Show" 's relative success, ratings have been largely anemic since the show's debut. The show's low production price compared to the dramas that previously occupied the 10 p.m. slot make the show cost effective for NBC, but network affiliates have seen ratings for their local newscasts — an important source of income for these stations — drop.
NBC acknowledged as much in an earlier statement in response to an article from a website called FTVLive, which said that "The Jay Leno Show" would be canceled following the network's coverage of the Winter Olympics. It stated that the show "has, however, presented some issues for (their) affiliates."
For O'Brien, he was guaranteed "The Tonight Show" slot all the way back in 2004, and "The Jay Leno Show" was essentially built to keep Leno from defecting to an opposing network. If Leno actually returns to 11:30 p.m. and/or "The Tonight Show," it's hard to see too many reasons for O'Brien to stick around — getting stabbed in the back twice by NBC likely won't endear him towards staying with the network.
Plus, with Leno essentially being NBC’s new punching bag since "The Jay Leno Show" debuted, would having him back at "The Tonight Show" even help? Leno's "Tonight Show" dominated in ratings, but, if the reinstatement actually happens, the Machiavellian maneuvering at work only puts Leno into a less than stellar light. It'd be like The Late Shift redux or Carson taking over for Leno during his early (and incidentally, second place to Letterman) years.
If, god forbid, Leno actually does return to "The Tonight Show," it'd certainly be unprecedented, but given NBC's track record as of late, they're certainly used to breaking all the wrong precedents.
