PRODUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
E! greenlit The Platinum Life, following an elite group of women in LA’s music industry and (of course) their significant others. STXtv and Tower 2 Productions are producing.
Sesame Workshop awarded development deals to two emerging TV writers from the inaugural Sesame Street six-week Writers Room fellowship program. After an open call in February, 8 fellows were selected to meet for 6 sessions in NYC with workshops and meetings. “Reflecting our diverse world has always been a core part of Sesame Street, and we hope that programs like this one will help a new generation of writers gain the access they need to produce rich, engaging, and relatable stories for all kids,” said Brown Johnson, Sesame Street Workshop’s EVP and creative director.
NEW & RETURNING SERIES
BBC America introduces 3-part documentary Wild West on Saturday, August 19 at 9p. The natural history program launches with a look at how animals survive in the desert heartlands.
TEGNA’s daytime news and entertainment show Daily Blast LIVE premieres Monday, September 11 across 36 TEGNA markets, and nationally on Facebook and YouTube. Among the hosts are Tracey Gold (Growing Pains), stand-up comic Al Jacksoon, Jen Widerstrom (The Biggest Loser) and former Dr. Drew co-host Sam Schacher.
Carlos Watson, Editor in Chief of OZY.com, will host a new, prime-time, cross-platform debate program, Third Rail with OZY. Co-produced by WGBH Boston’s Studio Six and OZY Media, the 7-part series will broadcast and stream Fridays at 8:30p, starting September 8 (check local listings).
A&E set Tuesday, August 15 at 9p as the date for the season 2 launch of Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath. The limited series was nominated for a 2017 Emmy for outstanding informational series or special.
The ripple effects of a murder are explored on new ID series Shattered, launching Wednesday, August 23 at 10p. Each episode starts with 3 people seemingly unconnected, but with links to the same tragic event.
ABC’s rejiggered Once Upon a Time will be back for season 7 on Friday, October 6. The news was shared yesterday at Comic-Con.
Discovery’s First in Human, a 3-part doc following “first in human” trials, or initial therapies tested on patients, launches Thursday, August 10 at 9p. Exec producer Jim Parsons (Big Bang Theory) also narrates.
COMING UP
TLC’s Growing Up Evancho looks inside the lives of 17-year-old singing star Jackie Evancho and her family, including 19-year-old sister and LGBTQ activist Juliet. One-hour special airs Wednesday, August 9 at 10p.
A&E goes back to the scene of the crime for Guilty: The Conviction of O.J. Simpson (wt), a 2-hour special analyzing the case that led to Simpson’s conviction for armed robbery. The show, announced Thursday, the day Simpson was granted parole, is slated for an October premiere.
The 30th Annual Hispanic Heritage Awards will be broadcast on PBS Friday, October 6 at 10p. The awards were established by the White House in 1988 to commemorate the creation of Hispanic Heritage Month in America.
AXS TV Classic Albums special Carly Simon: No Secrets uses archival footage, exclusive interviews and music videos to offer insight into Simon’s star-making third album, on Wednesday, August 9 at 9p.
MEASUREMENT Q&A
What are today’s biggest challenges when it comes to consistent data and measurement? Mark Risis, The Weather Company’s Head of Global Partnerships and Data Sales, shared his thoughts with Cynopsis (you can read the full Q&A here). Risis will serve as a moderator at Cynopsis’s upcoming Measurement and Data Conference. Be sure to register for the event here.
In what ways is the proliferation of new platforms making measurement and targeting harder? And on the flip side, what new opportunities are these shifts bringing?
The proliferation of services not only creates scale but also fragmentation…The idea of a rating becomes highly challenged, as its value is stretched to meet the reality of a 1:1 delivery across multiple platforms, and outside of the typical broadcast window, even when expanded by +3 or +7 days. At the same time, the underlying IP infrastructure [of the new services] allows for robust data collection about who watched what, when, and what else they also consumed.
Over the next decade, what do you think will be the biggest new challenges when it comes to achieving consistent measurement and transparency?
Managing the transition between controlled measurement – panels and focus groups – to measurement that uses naturally occurring data that is collected “in the wild” is incredibly challenging. It’s a world where a rating and an impression live side by side. The odds of both approaches yielding the same answers are low. They often tell very different stories. Thus, there are two parallel truths that can coexist at the same moment in time for marketers, and knowing how to accept this gray area during the transition from a “good enough” to a “much better but never enough” is something that requires confidence and resolution.
VIDEOS IN SHORT
A+E Networks is releasing short-form series Chloe Does It!, starring Chloe Lukasiak, on Monday, July 24. The Dance Moms fan fave has been collecting suggestions via YouTube about what her fans would like to see her do, and in the new series they’ll see her do it. Episodes will air on linear beginning Tuesday, August 8, leading into the new season of Dance Moms on Lifetime. “45th & Dean, our in-house storytelling digital hub, has been on a tear since opening our doors over a year ago,” said Paul Greenberg, EVP and GM, 45th & Dean and FYI. “This new series designed for the YouTube viewer is a great next step.”
A documentary short from Duplass Brothers Productions, Protect Our Access – Alaska’s Voices, demonstrates the vital role Planned Parenthood plays in Alaska, and the impact defunding could have on rural communities nationwide. The mini-doc was the brainchild of college student Lauren Budd, who spent her winter term interning and DBP.
DIGITAL DATA
Amazon Prime will add Picnic at Hanging Rock to its U.S. lineup in 2018, in a deal with FremantleMedia International. Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones) stars in the new series that’s a reimagining of Joan Lindsay’s Australian novel.
The Mindy Project’s final season 6 launches on Hulu Tuesday, September 12. More series on the way: The season 2 launch of Chance on Wednesday, October 11; Sarah Silverman’s I Love You America, launching Thursday, October 12; and season 2 of Freakish on Wednesday, October 18.
YouTube TV expanded into 10 new markets. Washington, D.C.; Houston; Atlanta; Phoenix; Detroit; Minneapolis-St. Paul; Miami-Ft. Lauderdale; Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, and Charlotte will have packages that include local feeds from ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC, while Dallas-Fort Worth will include local feeds from CBS, Fox and NBC, and VOD primetime shows from ABC.
ADVERTISING
Eighteen percent of ad executives believe their agency takes payments from their media suppliers to offset downward compensation pressure from clients, according to a survey from Advertiser Perceptions for MediaPost. 42% of the 310 surveyed in June said their agencies do not take payments, while 40% said they didn’t know.
How are marketers using first-party data in their TV and video strategies? Videology covered the question in the latest installment in its “Knowledge Labs” series. Findings from a July Advertiser Perceptions survey of advertisers and marketers suggest 69% of digital advertisers use their first-party data for media planning or buying, while 61% say they use it to develop insights about their customers, and about half use it to maintain customer relationships. All of the respondents said they use first-party data most often to retarget existing customers, but more than half are also using it to measure the effectiveness of a media campaign or tailor messaging based on past behaviors.
CASTING
Girls star Lena Dunham will appear on season 7 of FX anthology series American Horror Story. “Always wanted to work together, and now we r!” tweeted AHS creator Ryan Murphy.
Oscar winner Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland) will guest in a story arc on Fox’s Empire, as a music icon who gave Lucious his start. Season launches Wednesday, September 27 at 8p.
NYPD Blue alum Jimmy Smits landed a major role in a season 4 story arc on ABC’s How to Get Away With Murder….Suranne Jones (Doctor Foster) will star in HBO and BBC One drama Gentleman Jack, set in 1832 Halifax…Mitch Pileggi will be back as Walter Skinner for season 11 of Fox’s The X-Files….Shadowhunters’ Alisha Wainwright was upped to series regular for season 3.
GOING GLOBAL
UK’s Channel 4 commissioned Barcroft Productions for one hour doc Bear About the House: Living with My Super-Sized Pet. Featured are a 7-foot bear, a 9-foot crocodile and one-ton buffalo.
Alexa, what’s funny today? Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Trevor Noah is launching on Amazon’s personal assistant service in the UK. A Daily Show Flash Briefing will feature snippets from the show, and customers will be able to ask for information on where to watch it, and find out guest schedules.
BBC Four’s Bucket is moving to Australia. The dramedy will make its primetime debut on public broadcaster ABC later this year, thanks to a distribution deal by all3media International.
The BBC Four and James Corden’s Fulwell 73 are working on a live, weekly music show slated for fall. Six episodes have been ordered.
