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Networks are bulking up their summer skeds with reality programming and game shows, along with a smattering of scripted fare.
ABC is launching five new series, along with returning shows The Bachelorette and The Mole, in the hopes of keeping its audience “all summer long,” says Jeff Bader, executive vp of ABC Entertainment (via Mediaweek). Bader says the large number of new shows is part of the notion of “year-round programming,” which NBC first verbalized (though other networks claimed they were already implementing a 52-week schedule).
ABC’s new shows include a stunt series, Wipeout, along with I Survived a Japanese Game Show and High School Musical: Summer Session.
CBS is bringing Million Dollar Password, Greatest American Dog and Jingles to life this summer, while NBC will launch Celebrity Circus, The Baby Borrowers and Celebrity Family Feud.
Fox is airing only returning series, with executive vp, strategic program planning Preston Beckman saying, “We’ve developed a solid stable of unscripted programming that can keep the schedule fresh in the summer without requiring a lot of marketing.”
NBC will air scripted horror anthology Fear Itself , while CBS will bring Swingtown to life along with cop drama Flashpoint, but the bulk of scripted programming will come from cable.
The writers strike does not seem to have had much affect on the summer season, though CBS’s Big Brother might struggle a bit. The show’s ninth season just ended, and the new season will begin July 13, so viewer fatigue could set it, according to senior vp, director of research at Horizon Media Brad Adgate. CBS claims not to be worried, saying the show was a “godsend” during the strike and pointing out that it has had a stable track record over the summer.
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