Category Archives: Jericho

January 15, 2008 · 8:30 am

This Ain’t Pandora’s Box – The (Non-)Impact of the Jericho Screener Leak

Have you ever felt that your nose was just a faucet that wouldn’t shut off? It’s a bizarre and rather grotesque image, but “snot faucet” most aptly describes my weekend experience. It was unpleasant, sure, but by the end of the weekend it was mostly gone. There are some leaks, however, that are somewhat more volatile – these are the leaks that are, for better or for worse, not gone by the end of the weekend.

I speak, of course (As if a runny nose opening could lead to anything else), about the fact that the three-episode Jericho screen sent to critics over the past few weeks has become available online through less than legal means. Now, I’ve written on this subject in the past in terms of pilots, and I want to focus on one of the things I emphasized in that instance:

“On the one hand, uptight network executives are probably concerned that their premiere ratings might go down as people watch the show ahead of time, or that bad buzz will take down the series before it can even get started. To those executives I make the following case: premiere ratings don’t matter, and the audience watching these shows online will not penetrate the casual mass of fans who make Two and a Half Men a comedy sensation. What you want to be doing is creating a fan base, something that this actually helps far more than it hurts.”

While I still believe everything I wrote there, the situation gets trickier in the case of Jericho. With Jericho, the premiere ratings do matter, as returning to middling returns will all but sink the show’s chances of gaining a season three if the initial cancellation hasn’t already done so. And Jericho already has a fan base of internet fans, they worked tirelessly to save the show back in June. So the problems facing a new show aren’t quite the same as the problems facing Jericho’s second season, and thus there is some concern that this could sink the show’s chances.

And I’m here to tell you that the answer to that concern?

“Eh, not really.”

And here’s why.

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January 8, 2008 · 9:00 am

10 Shows to (Hopefully) Watch in 2008 – #1 – Jericho

When it came to selecting which series would be number one on Cultural Learnings’ list of 10 Shows to (Hopefully) Watch in 2008, I had to make a decision that perhaps doesn’t reflect my own personal taste. In terms of shows I’m most looking forward to watching, I can’t possibly rank anything above Lost or Battlestar Galactica, two series I can’t get enough of. However, last summer it became very clear that in covering TV it is important to not just use your own opinions to guide you, but also to recognize shows and fans who go above and beyond, and whose impact on television as a whole is sure to be one of the biggest stories of the year. As a result, here is the number one selection.

A year ago, I had written off Jericho. After losing interest shortly before the series went on hiatus in the fall, I was barely paying attention when the series returned in February only to struggle against tough competition. As its fanbase eroded, and as CBS left it off of its fall schedule, I was amongst those who rationalized its demise – it was never a strong demo performer, CBS can fill the slot with CSI Reruns and get better ratings, and the show never really set the world on fire anyways. And now, half a year later, I believe that Jericho is the most intriguing series to be airing in 2008.

The Nuts for Jericho campaign which emerged last summer was at first charming, and then interesting, and then mindblowing. It transitioned from a small-scale fan initiative to something that has changed the way viewers interact with networks. On one hand, I think that some fan groups have the wrong idea – it isn’t that Jericho fans sent food that made them successful, so the recent Journeyman campaign featuring Rice-A-Roni isn’t quite as effective. It was that the nuts which made their way to CBS headquarters were both intrinsically linked to the series and part of an outpouring of support which was spontaneous and powerful.

While there will be further fan campaigns, there will never be one as surprising and effective as the one to save this CBS drama – fans who had been discounted by the network turned out in large numbers and mobilized in record time. Whether the fans were posting on the CBS Message Boards or starting their own blogs (Such as Jericho Monster, Jericho Junction or Jericho on CBS), ordinary people from across America and across the world were uniting behind a show that they loved. The result was perhaps the greatest comeback story in the last decade of television, and a story that captivated the attention of bloggers everywhere, particularly here at Cultural Learnings.

But if 2007 was the year in which Jericho rose from the ashes, it is in 2008 that it must prove itself. While the show earned a shortened second season of seven episodes thanks to the efforts of fans, the series must rely on those fans to turn out when the show returns to CBS at 10pm on February 12th. While a fantastic story unfolded last year, it is now time to see whether midnight will strike before this Cinderella story can continue. Will Jericho’s return be a final hurrah before the show leaves the airwaves for good, or will this comeback stretch on into 2009 and beyond? Well, it’s kind of hard to tell at this point.

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December 3, 2007 · 8:36 pm

‘Jericho’ to Return to CBS on February 12th

It was a long road for fans of CBS’ Jericho this past summer, but the end of that road is officially in sight. CBS announced their Spring schedule today, and Jericho will be airing its 7-episode second season at 10PM EST on Tuesday Nights starting on February 12th.

From Zap2it.com:

Let’s get the important business out of the way: Rescued from cancellation by an outpouring of nuts, “Jericho” will begin its seven-episode second season on Tuesday, Feb. 12 at 10 p.m. ET, airing in the time slot where “Cane” is currently struggling.

What does this mean for the series?

Competition: Law & Order SVU and Boston Legal – both shows have shown some slight decreases this year, although it didn’t help previous occupant Cane which could never gain traction in the time slot.

Lead-In: The show will be following a Spring Season of Big Brother, which was widely anticipated considering the Writer’s Strike. This could be postponed if the writers return in the very near future, which I think would benefit the show – while Big Brother is important to Jericho, it serves what I believe to be a considerably younger audience than the average Jericho fan. The Unit, the show usually in the timeslot, speaks better to some of the show’s more difficult serial elements. Still, at the very least the timeslot ensures that even if the Writer’s Strike continues, Jericho will be following new programming.

Schedule: By this schedule, Jericho’s episode would likely run out at the end of March. This would mean two straight months of Jericho episodes, with half of them occuring during the all-important February Sweeps period.

In case you were wondering, there are only 71 days remaining until Jericho returns to the airwaves. While this particular premiere date falls smack dab in the middle of my thesis deadlines, I will do my best to make sure there is plenty of coverage to drum up the show’s return.

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October 22, 2007 · 12:04 pm

A Home for ‘Jericho’?: Could Replace ‘Viva Laughlin’ on Sundays

[Edit: CBS now confirms that, for better or for worse, Jericho will not be taking the place of Viva Laughlin. Instead, The Amazing Race will reinherit the timeslot at some point in the future. At this point it will be replaced with CSI repeats. Looks like Jericho is waiting until at least TAR finishes its season, if this is the timeslot they’re destined for.]

After a disastrous Thursday preview, Viva Laughling didn’t magically improve when it debuted in its timeslot last night. The series dipped even further, with downright embarassing ratings in every account. The beneficiary could be fans of CBS’ almost-canceled series Jericho.

From PIFeedback.com:

But CBS has sprung a major leak at 8 p.m., with the time period-premiere of musical drama Viva Laughlin at a mere (and fourth-place) 6.77 million viewers and a 1.2/ 2 among adults 18-49. Comparably, year-ago occupant The Amazing Race 10 averaged 10.89 million viewers and a 3.8/ 9 in the demo (on Oct. 22, 2006), with retention out of lead-in 60 Minutes (Viewers: #2, 11.14 million; A18-49: #2, 2.2/ 7 at 7 p.m.) of just 61 percent in viewers and 55 percent in the demo. Viva Laughlin also dipped in the second half-hour by 1.60 million viewers (7.57 to 5.97 million) and 29 percent in the demo (1.4/ 3 to 1.0/ 2). My prediction is that CBS will pull Viva Laughlin off the schedule either this week or definitely next week.

Now, since CBS is likely to cancel the series soon, this is going to be their first timeslot to open up in which benched Sophomore series Jericho can rise again. It makes sense for a variety of reasons:

  • Jericho has only seven episodes in its second season, which would be perfect for the network as it would allow The Amazing Race to return to the slot in January.
  • Jericho skewed older than a lot of shows, which makes it a decent leadout from 60 Minutes.
  • If they don’t start airing Jericho soon, the show will lose all of its momentum which is slowly leaking away despite the efforts of fans.

However, it also reflects a lot of the concerns that Jericho fans have: it’s still an early evening timeslot, it has tough competition in the form of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, and it would mean rushing the show to air likely without the proper advertising campaign.

Either way, fans should prepare: there’s a good chance Jericho might return to the air during November Sweeps.

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October 10, 2007 · 12:26 pm

Sound Off! Week – Hey! Nielsen – The Spamming Question

With a confusing system and a new form of social networking, the right way to go about getting used to Hey! Nielsen is taking one’s time. You step back, view the situation, and based on that engage the new medium with a fresh eye.

But fan movements aren’t about taking their time: for better or for worse, they are about mass movement and mass impact, something rarely associated with stopping to smell the roses. The result was a huge swarm of Jericho and Supernatural fans as they rose to the top of the charts, which is seemingly “good” based on the site’s attempt at measuring fandom. However, it was clear that in the hustle and bustle there had arisen some hard feelings. Jericho and Supernatural fans were labeled “spammers,” flooding the site with too many opinions and only focusing on a single series.

While here at Cultural Learnings we provided a certain level of warning to fans about this, we did make note that those who attacked fans for this were missing the point. This was echoed by fans who responded, upset at the lack of patience on the other side of the fence.

“To generalize our fandom like that makes me a little upset,” Supernatural fan Brooklyn writes, “because some of us know how to conduct ourselves accordingly. I also want to say that I think one reason we were so zealous is because we saw this as an opportunity to really get the word out on our notoriously over looked show.”

Similarly, Jericho fan Starfire felt “people should use the Grandmother principle: as in “What would your Grandmother think of your actions – if she would give you a pinch – don’t do it.” However, all sides agreed that a certain level of negativity is to be expected; unfortunately, however, negativity is something that can go too far.

These two fan groups, with so much in common, found themselves not only pitted against overzealous users from other areas but also against one another. A lot of this can be linked to the competitive element of the website: fans from one side trying to regain the top spot placing negative views on the other show in question.

One Supernatural fan notes that they “don’t like Jericho, but I’m not over in the sandbox mucking up thier threads. It’s silly and childish.” And many others agreed: the competitive element of the site brought out some unfortunate behaviour that is not likely to be indicative of normal internet etiquette. It became a race to become #1 as opposed to promoting their show through non-numerical, non-quantitative ways.

And I don’t understand this, I’ll be honest: Jericho and Supernatural fans have a lot in common, and attacking one another was in the best interest of no one. I understand that being #1 became important, but was not also the public perception of one’s fandom through comments/reactions part of that concern. These are two fan groups that should be working together, not at each other’s throats.

There were also other individuals who began attacking this rising fandom by placing negative reactions on all things Jericho, Supernatural, Stargate: Atlantis, Dresden Files and everything else. I think this is the exact opposite approach one should take. These fan groups were overeager, maybe, but is eagerness really such a sin?

However, these fans are not dwelling on the negativity. As Jericho fan foxgray1 notes, “I feel it is the nature of humanity for some people to be heavily defen[sive] in their own thought systems[;]…also, some people will fight just for the sake of fighting.” This attitude promotes the message I received from most fans: they accept the negative comments, feel they’re slightly out of taste, but have not been distracted from the thing that brought them there in the first place: promoting the show(s) they love.

Which is why this isn’t a problem that Hey! Nielsen can really fix. The competitive nature of the site will always bring out the worst in everyone, and it’s up to fans to keep it from surfacing and to not let it distract from the real purpose. This is a solution that is about fans, users and Hey! Nielsen being more understanding of the fandom out there, and I don’t think there’s a “plan of action” that could solve these concerns. However, really, this is more for the fans to decide. I’ll post more of their comments below, and then hopefully more might offer their own solutions to this concern.

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October 9, 2007 · 11:40 am

Sound Off! Week – Hey! Nielsen – A Land of Confusion

Sound Off! on Hey! Nielsen

A Land of Confusion

Yesterday, in discussing the problem of points of origin, it was inevitable that we’d leak into today’s issue. The established knowledge of other sites is a barrier of entry, but it is only one cause of the confusion that many fans delved further into within the comments section yesterday. Hey! Nielsen’s general design is, in itself, confusing even without any pre-existing views on what social networking represents.

WelcometoCO, a Jericho fan, found that “the Comment, Reaction, and Opinion options sound and seem like one and the same to me, and it took a long while before I could find any explanation that attempted to differentiate them. For that reason, I had already “klutzed” my way through the site and probably violated the intent for each of the options offered — becoming one of those dreaded Jericho ‘spammers’ who were so roundly criticized.”

What I want to do, based on this comment, is actually look at the intention behind the Opinion, Reaction and Comment options to attempt to figure out why they’re there, what they should be used for, and how they are confusing even once you’re used to the system (I’ll be getting to the spamming tomorrow).

Opinions

Opinions are something I equate to a message board post, but they’re also an unfortunately blank template. The purpose of an opinion is simple: expressing one’s opinion. And while I know that it is taboo to tell people what to say, I am personally open to a bit more guidance as to what makes a good or bad opinion.

Opinions have ranged from detailed analyses of new series or premiere episodes to simple statements of like or dislike without any further analysis. Are these examples of good or bad opinions? We don’t really know.

“The main detractor, as many have already said, is a lack of topic direction,” fan BlackLid noted in yesterday’s comments section. “Regardless of the site, what all social networking areas have in common is a category and then a subject to which other users can respond. There are clearly acceptable categories and clearly unacceptable ones.”

This seems like a great way to further provide a framework to opinions: opinions about the cast could be separated from general opinions, for example. It doesn’t fix every problem, but it might provide more thought being put into each individual opinion: as BlackLid pointed out, a series of dropboxes would help in streamlining this process.

Reactions

Reactions, meanwhile, are somewhat easier to understand: you agree or disagree with an opinion. However, the problem with Reactions is that I often don’t quite know what I’m reacting to. If someone posts a negative opinion of a series, and I disagree with it, is that registered as a negative reaction to the show or to that opinion? I’m still not entirely sure, but I think it is relevant information that would (for me) clarify the situation.

Comments

I think that, in comments, there lies a great deal of the site’s content potential. In commenting, people are able to enter into a discourse, and there is a sense that each opinion is in fact a discussion, which elevates that discourse to a more interactive level.

But no one is using them: an opinion might have sixty reactions, but only 5 comments. For me, comments are an integral part of people understanding this process: you could make a great opinion, but commenting on others is just as important to the discourse that will follow. If you want to create a social networking community, comments are essential. I think that a larger focus on the importance of this element, even though it is more difficult and time-consuming than a two-click reaction, would help avoid the spamming issue as well (Which, as noted, we’ll get into with greater detail tomorrow).

Conclusion

This is not to say that it is impossible to figure the system out. There exists a certain level of quality in the organization, and it’s certainly possible to have a decent discussion. But, in the interest of more people being involved, it would be great if these three new forms of communication could be both better explained and streamlined to be as representative as possible of their true purpose. There is, in other words, light at the end of the tunnel.

“I was [confused], briefly,” says Supernatural fan Shoi. “I can see where it’s a little difficult to tell how to leave feedback, but I figured out it by going slowly and taking my time. ”

Shoi set a good example, as did several of the other fans who contacted me. However, in a world where many people don’t take their time, I believe we have plenty of suggestions on what Hey! Nielsen could do to improve. For more, continue reading below.

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October 8, 2007 · 9:51 am

Sound Off! Week – Hey! Nielsen – The Problem of Points of Origin

Sound Off! on Hey! Nielsen

The Problem of Points of Origin

One of the problems that Hey! Nielsen faces is that the fans who reach the site are almost all primarily arriving via other forms of social networking: Message Boards, MySpace, LiveJournal, etc. The problem is that many of these people, then, are used to the systems already in place, and a whole new interface (And a confusing one: opinions, ratings, comments are all unique measurements to the site, as we’ll get to tomorrow) is nearly impossible to understand immediately.

The Problem 

Supernatural fan Franzi, a Livejournal user, notes that “the way livejournal works, it would never occur to one that a new opinion is like an entire livejournal post; at best, we’d think it was the start of a new comment thread and at worst, a single comment. Quite simply: we do not use social networking sites or message boards to any significant degree.” This problem is not new: a great deal of television fans are not tech savvy twenty-somethings who can easily adapt to a new social networking system.

Jericho fans, meanwhile, heard about it through their most universal form of communication: the CBS Message Boards where much of the Nuts for Jericho campaign originated (Although it has grown into a large and great series of other sites).

“I first heard about Hey!Nielsen on the CBS/Jericho Message Board,” says Jericho fan WelcometoCO. “Somebody’s posting listed a link in which you could express your interest in Hey!Nielsen.”

While Jericho fans come primarily from a message board environment, they still faced the same problem: spurred on by calls to action, they jumped into Hey! Nielsen and saw it as an avenue for their fandom. This is fandom that has been well-developed within a certain environment, but when unleashed on something different in even a direct fashion it will (inevitably) run into a few hiccups.

The Root of the Problem 

Therefore, when it comes to the problems that Hey! Nielsen needs to address, the root of their confusion issue (Which will be discussed in further detail tomorrow) is that their learning has often been limited to certain systems. The large glut of social networking sites have not forced everyone into conformity, but rather created a dozen different skillsets that are not always transferrable.

In developing the site, then, this really needed to be considered. There is nothing that really explains what Hey! Nielsen is: it’s really an amalgam of Digg, with a little bit of Facebook/MySpace thrown in for good measure, but taking two popular mediums and combining them does not mean people will understand. Fans are a diverse group of people, and any new social networking site needs to reflect this within its design and mission statement.

The Solution

A relative tutorial that explains what each of the site’s options is compared to other social networking forms. When I first equated “Opinions” to message board posts, fans were shocked that this was the case: if that had been done in the first place, I don’t think that there would have been the same level of problems. Creating an entire new lexicon of terms might sound like a good idea, but all it creates is confusion. Understanding those differences and adapting the system to reflect that is a great way to solve the problem fans have put forward.

For all of the Jericho and Supernatural fan responses regarding how they came to Hey! Nielsen, keep reading after the jump.

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October 7, 2007 · 10:54 am

Sound Off! Week: Jericho and Supernatural Fans on ‘Hey! Nielsen’

On a personal level, I think that Hey! Nielsen is an intriguing social networking experiment that, unfortunately, doesn’t fit the type of television discourse I prefer. It is a system based on popularity and volume, whereas I tend to search for more analysis-based discussion. Some users are of the same mind, but it seems like the mass hysteria keeps those elements from resonating.

But this is reasonable, because the site really isn’t designed for me. Rather, it is designed for fans who want a new way for their fandom to be measured. So, when it came time to analyze Hey! Nielsen’s performance over its first two weeks, I decided to go right to the source: the fans of Jericho, oft-covered on this blog for their passion and determination in reengaging their show, and the fans of Supernatural, who fear that their show could end up in Jericho’s boat eventually.

But the site has not met their needs, which is a consensus amongst all of those who responded to a call for feedback posted to various social networking forums. The earliest of the heavy users, these two groups have a lot to say although the main message is clear: fans want a clearer format, a better sense of direction, and to receive something out of the system. Whether or not these problems are solved may well dictate whether Hey! Nielsen can gain any level of relevance within a crowded social networking market.

Over the next week, I am going to highlight five different problems that face the site for new users, and will be posting the feedback I received from a range of Jericho and Supernatural fans. So, come back each day for another glimpse into a fan’s experience of a new social networking forum, and perhaps offer your own views if you’re a user yourself. The more opinions we get, the better Hey! Nielsen can implement these changes. This is a public beta, after all: the whole point is that feedback can and should change the existing model.

And I want to make sure that this happens.

Cultural Learnings’ Sound Off! Week

Jericho and Supernatural Fans on Hey! Nielsen

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

  • The Spamming Question

Thursday

  • Does Hey! Nielsen impact television REALLY?

Friday

  • Suggestions on Improving Hey! Nielsen

So stay tuned to Cultural Learnings for all the feedback over the next week, and be sure to have your voice heard in the comments section! We want to make sure that the voices of these fans are heard loud and clear, so that Hey! Nielsen can live up to its full potential in the months to come.

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September 25, 2007 · 1:02 pm

A Friendly Warning to Supernatural and Jericho Fans Re: Hey! Nielsen

Over the first day of the public beta stage of Hey! Nielsen, the ratings company’s new online social networking site, there emerged a trend of sorts: mainly, two TV Series emerging from the pack to dominate the popularity charts. Those two series? Supernatural and Jericho.

In the case of Supernatural, the series has performed admirably in the toughest timeslot on television (Thursdays at 9pm), but is facing a new challenge this year: it is now in direct competition with NBC’s The Office, a huge hit amongst younger viewers. Perhaps anticipating this move, fans are banding together with sites like Supernatural Underground to make sure that their show gets the appreciation they believe it observes.

Jericho fans, as I’ve documented in the past, are fighting to keep the promotion of their series going while its 7-episode order awaits a spot on CBS’ schedule. They’re currently dealing with some internal struggles, but there remains a group devoted to promoting the show to new fans and ensuring that the series has a future on television.

And the devotion of both of these fan groups is palpable: they are #1 and #2 respectively on the Hey! Nielsen website. However, as much as I respect and honour the dedication of these groups of fans, I want to warn them that as with any other social networking there is a distinct possibility that some of this support may backfire. And, although I would never attempt to tell anyone what to do, I want to make a suggestion.

On a message board, there’s a general rule that if there’s a thread of discussion open about something, you should comment there as opposed to starting your own. This becomes more subjective when it comes to “Opinions” as Hey! Nielsen labels them, but I think it applies in this instance as well. Within both of the above camps there has been opinions which are nearly identical, but are posted separately.

This creates more opinions, yes, but also more backlash from the outside community: there are people who are deliberately going into opinions about these two shows and reacting negatively against them purely due to volume. There’s even an opinion on the subject from someone who enjoys the show (And has been involved in developing the site) regarding the overpopulation of Jericho Opinions.

Can Jericho Fans Talk About Anything Else? – Hey! Nielsen

And while I think that the point could have been made in a slightly less antagonistic fashion, I agree with her: I think there are too many opinions about Jericho, and Supernatural for that matter. This is supposed to be about promotion, but it is losing the key aspects of a strong promotional drive.

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September 14, 2007 · 8:00 am

Why CBS Wishes it was the Home of the Emmys in 2007

Although it is officially Emmys week here at Cultural Learnings, Fridays always bring forth a certain level of Jericho consciousness. As a result, I started to think about ways in which Jericho’s plight could have been improved by the Emmy Awards. Fans already let the world know that Jericho deserved Emmy nominations here at Cultural Learnings, but the show unfortunately didn’t get a nomination.

However, that doesn’t mean that the Emmys couldn’t have been a boost to Jericho and the rest of CBS’ 2007-2008 lineup. Each year, the host network of the Emmys (It rotates each year) is in the position of being able to use an audience of tens of millions of potential viewers to promote its new fall shows as well as returning programs. And what better stage for promoting Jericho could CBS have than TV’s biggest night?

Unfortunately, of course, FOX is hosting the Emmys. But it’s impossible to ignore how much CBS needs this right now.

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