Tonight’s Finales
ABC: The Bachelor Presents: Listen to Your Heart at 8p
HGTV: Celebrity IOU at 9p, Watch Party with Ben and Erin at 10p

IN THE NEWS

2020 political ad spend is on track to “shatter” previous records, according to a report from Advertising Analytics and Cross Screen Media. Given the current political environment, the previous estimate was raised by 12%, to $6.7 billion (including $4.9 billion for broadcast TV, cable and radio), due to “historic levels of primary spending, record-breaking fundraising driving higher shares of budget to paid media, and increased levels of insight into digital video spending.” So far, $2.19 billion has been spent during the 2020 cycle, over $1 billion more than at the same point in 2016 and 2018.

Vice Media is laying off 155 employees, primarily around digital teams. Said CEO Nancy Dubuc in a memo to employees, “Our digital organization accounts for around 50% of our head count costs, but only brings in about 21% of our revenue….This imbalance needs to be addressed for the long-term health of the company.” The layoffs, which follow a 10% staff reduction in early 2019, affect 55 employees in the US and about 100 internationally.

CBS All Access picked up Star Trek: Strange New Worlds to series. CBS Television Studios, Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment will produce the latest entry in the franchise, which has Ethan Peck, Anson Mount and Rebecca Romijn reprising their Star Trek: Discovery roles.

American Idol was renewed for a fourth season on ABC; no word yet on whether host Ryan Seacrest or judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan will be back with it. The season three finale aired last night. Idol aired on Fox from 2002-2016, before being revived in 2018 on ABC.

Also picked up for season four is Good Girls, NBC’s #2 show on digital platforms. The series averaged 0.9 among A18-49 during its third season, cut short due to production shutdowns, and 3.4 million viewers in Live+7 Nielsens.

Despite AT&T CEO John Stankey’s assertion on Wednesday that upcoming streaming service HBO Max will be in “virtually all app stores,” Roku issued a statement to set the record straight as far as its participation. “As the #1 streaming platform in the US … we are focused on entering into win-win distribution agreements with all new OTT services as part of their launch strategies,” said Roku. “While we don’t typically comment on specific deal terms or negotiations, the fact is that in this instance while we believe that HBOMax would benefit greatly from distribution on Roku at launch, we do not currently have an agreement in place.”

SAG-AFTRA is requiring members to get approval from the union before accepting employment. “In light of the COVID-19 global pandemic and the attendant high risk to the health and safety of actors returning to work in the commercials and entertainment industry, no member should return to work under an existing contract or accept a contract for new employment without first securing the approval of the union,” said a notice to members, adding that the union must have established that the producer has made provisions for adequate health standards.

In more SAG/COVID-19 news, SAG is revising its rules for the SAG Awards to allow films with a planned theatrical release to be eligible for SAG Awards even if they were streamed or released on VOD first. The Oscars and Golden Globes had also changed their requirements after movie theaters were shuttered due to the coronavirus.

Facebook acquired GIF-making and sharing website Giphy, which will integrate with the Instagram team. “People will still be able to upload GIFs; developers and API partners will continue to have the same access to Giphy’s APIs; and Giphy’s creative community will still be able to create great content,” Vishal Shah, Instagram’s VP of product, said in a blog post. Vishal also notedd 50% of Giphy’s traffic comes from Facebook-controlled apps, with half of that on Instagram. “Both our services are big supporters of the creator and artist community, and that will continue,” he wrote. “Together, we can make it easier for anyone to create and share their work with the world.”

Join Cynopsis for this virtual event and interact with your peers as A-list speakers break down the new ways of doing business and how these methods will shape the risks and rewards that lie ahead for all segments of the sports sector. Hear from leaders at: Athletes Unlimited, Learfield IMG College, NASCAR, New Balance, NBC Sports Group, Pac-12 Conference, Riot Games, United States Olympic Committee and more.

REGISTER FOR FREE NOW

Wise Entertainment (East Los High) inked a first-look deal with Amazon Studios to develop and produce series to premiere exclusively on Prime Video. “Wise Entertainment is uniquely skilled at creating compelling entertainment that also tackles topical issues.” said Vernon Sanders, Co-Head of Television, Amazon Studios. “We share a common commitment to creating content for our global audience that tells an inclusive and diverse range of stories.

NEW SERIES

Trackers, an adaptation of the crime novel by Deon Meyers, debuts on Cinemax on Friday, June 5 at 10p. The six-parter about organized crime in Cape Town was shot in South Africa.

STREAMING SCOOP

BritBox has struck a deal with the estate of Agatha Christie to acquire further rights to films, series and audio plays. Added to the Christie catalog will be seasons 9-12 of ITV’s Poirot, as well as ITV’s Marple and Partners in Crime. “I am delighted to see all these shows available in the North America on BritBox,” said James Prichard, CEO and Chairman of Agatha Christie Limited. “They give a real flavour of the depth and quality of my great grandmother’s work, and I am sure audiences will enjoy them.”

COMING UP

MTV and Michelle Obama’s When We All Vote organization will host a virtual prom event for the class of 2020. MTV’s Prom-athon kicks off on Friday, May 22, with an all-day on-air takeover on MTV featuring prom-themed throwback movies, short-form original content, and highlights of 20 high schools and students who organized voter registration efforts, followed by a virtual prom party live streamed digitally at 9p on MTV YouTube.

The Dance isn’t over yet: ESPN host and NBA expert commentator Stephen A. Smith hosts prime-time special After the Dance with Stephen A. Smith: A SportsCenter Special on Tuesday, May 19 at 8p on ABC. Smith will be joined by basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson, along with other NBA legends, to discuss their biggest takeaways from hit series The Last Dance, chronicling the life and career of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls’ teams of the 1990s.

Apple’s workplace comedy series, Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet, returns Friday, May 22, with a special new episode – “Mythic Quest: Quarantine” – written, filmed and edited in quarantine. The half-hour installment finds the team behind the biggest multiplayer video game of all-time tasked with working from home.

COVID: Our Lockdown in Shanghai follows a British advertising creative and his wife trapped in their apartment in China as the pandemic descends, who capture their confinement on camera. One-hour doc premieres Monday, May 25 at 9p on Smithsonian Channel.

The Disney Family Singalong: Volume II will air again on Friday, May 22 at 8p. On its original broadcast on Sunday, May 10, the show was the night’s #1 broadcast program in Ad18-49 and reached 9.1 million total viewers in Live+3.

GOING GLOBAL

Banijay Rights struck a deal for a new local adaptation of its reality format, Survivor, in Mexico. Produced by Acun Medya for Azteca Uno, filming will take place in the Dominican Republic with the series due to launch later this summer.

The Cynopsis Adtech Awards
Enter By May 28th

During a time when in-person events have been cancelled, the adtech community is stepping up. They’re helping to guarantee marketers upfront inventory and preserve revenue for media owners by using breakthrough approaches and solutions. Adtech providers are a group that lives on the cutting edge of innovation, which is why we are celebrating their platforms, campaigns, and strategies in more than 20 categories. View them all

here.

TLC’s 9O Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days broke audience records on May 10, making TLC the #1 network in all of TV with women for the night and #1 in cable for the week (W25-54/18-49/18-34) and #2 with P25-54. With a record 4.08 W25-54 rating in Live+3 and 4.6 million total viewers, the episode ranks as the single-highest episode with key P/W25-54 and W18-49 demos of the franchise and TLC’s highest-rated telecast with P/W25-54 in 11 years.

The premiere of Food Network’s Worst Cooks in America: Celebrity Edition grabbed a 1.1 rating among P25-54 and 1.4 for W25-54 (Live+3), gains of +51% versus year-ago. The show ranked #5 in its timeslot among both demos, helping Food Network to the #4 spot for the night among cable.

The series finale of ABC’s How to Get Away With Murder on Thursday delivered 3.2 million total viewers, its largest audience since 2018. Among A18-49, the closer scored 0.7.

Discovery was the #1 cable network in Primetime among M25-54 on Tuesday, thanks to Behind Deadliest Catch and Deadliest Catch: Bloodline. Deadliest Catch was Tuesday’s #1 cable telecast among M25-54 and M18-49.

Univision Communications Inc. announced that its portfolio of television networks (Univision, UniMás, Galavisión and TUDN) are poised to conclude the 2019/2020 broadcast season with an average audience increase of +12%and +16%in primetime among A18-49 and A18-34, respectively. “The phenomenal growth across our portfolio this broadcast season speaks to the profound understanding and unique emotional connection that we have with our audience,” said Jessica Rodriguez, Univision’s CMO and President of Entertainment.

Broadcast Nielsen Ratings for Thursday, May 14
Show, P2+ 0000s, (A18-49)
ABC: Who Wants to Be a Millionaire 6.50 (0.9), Station 19 5.91 (0.9), How to Get Away With Murder 3.20 (0.7)
CBS: Young Sheldon 5.91 (0.7), Man With a Plan 5.67 (0.7), Mom 5.06 (0.6), Broke 4.65 (0.6), S.W.A.T. 3.21 (0.4)
CW: Katy Keene 0.41 (0.1), In the Dark 0.36 (0.1)
FOX: Celebrity Watch Party 1.60 (0.4), Mental Samurai 1.55 (0.3)
NBC: Council of Dads 2.78 (0.4), Blindspot 1.87 (0.3), Law & Order: SVU 2.31 (0.3),
TELEMUNDO: Cennet 1.30 (0.4) 100 Dias Enamorarnos 0.93 (0.3), La Reina del Sur 0.69 (0.2)
UNIVISION: Te Doy la Vida 1.78 (0.5), Amor Eterno 2.12 (0.7), Como tu no hay dos 1.80 (0.6)
Source: Nielsen live + same day time period averages

IN MEMORIAM

Comic actor Fred Willard died May 15 of natural causes. He was 86. In addition to film work, Willard memorably inhabited roles on Everybody Loves Raymond and Modern Family, for which he was nominated for Emmys, as well as Fernwood 2 Night, among others. “Fred Willard could not have been funnier. He was pure joy. And the sweetest person you could ever meet,” said Judd Apatow on Twitter.

Sportscaster and former Miss America Phyllis George died May 14 after a long fight with a blood disorder. She was 70. George was one of the first female broadcasters to cover the NFL. “Phyllis didn’t receive nearly enough credit for opening the sports broadcasting door for the dozens of talented women who took her lead and soared,” tweeted Brent Musberger.

Trading Spaces interior designer Frank Bielic died May 15 from complications following a heart attack. He was 72. Bielic appeared on the house-swapping reality show from 2000-2006, as well as the 2018 remake.

Director and producer Lynn Shelton died of a blood disorder. She was 54. Shelton’s TV credits include Glow, New Girl, Fresh Off the Boat and Maron, among others. “Lynn Shelton loved actors and we loved her back,” tweeted Mindy Kaling. “She was a dream on set.”

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
How many things was the title character in Monk (2002-2009), who suffered from OCD, afraid of? 312. Kudos to: Charles Lore/NYC, Rev. Mark Wajda/Lakeland, FL, Gerry Bixenspan-TV Marketing Inc./NYC, Jamie Bugner-AMC Networks/NYC, Synda Kollman-Charter Marketing Group/Boca Raton, FL, Paul Blutter-Walk and Talk Production Rentals/Burbank, Dan Haberer-Creo Entertainment/Playa del Rey, CA, David Garber-Loyola Marymount University/Playa Vista, CA, Andy Moore-TAMU/College Station, TX, Susan Nessanbaum-Goldberg-M and S Entertainment/LA

Today’s Trivia Question
Who played Sam Malone’s fiancée on Frasier (1993-2004)? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: a limit of four answers per time zone.)