words from SutterInk

As you've no doubt surmised, I don't always excel at expressing my thoughts on the subject of this blog. So, I love when someone else can do a much better job of writing what I'm thinking. Kurt Sutter is the executive producer of Sons of Anarchy on FX- an excellent show that's finally starting to get the recognition it deserves. Kurt also writes a blog called SutterInk.

He recently posted some thoughts about NBC's choice to move Jay to the 10pm slot, thereby crippling the network's ability to produce quality one-hour dramas. It's exactly what I hoped to express on this issue, but I'm infinitely less cool. Here's an excerpt:

But my beef -- and I think this is true for a good chunk of the creative community -- was never with Jay. Leno's an artist looking for a good gig like the rest of us. The truth is, NBC should have NEVER bumped him out of the 11:30 spot. No one bumped out Carson. Why Jay? His ratings were solid, he had a loyal following and he was constantly doing what he could to keep his show fresh -- dude is one of the hardest working cats in town. And it's obvious Conan's "younger" humor works way better in the later hour. The bigger concern is the potential dangerous trend that NBC is setting by putting Jay in the 10 pm spot. As Peter Tolan said, "...NBC is raising the white flag", essentially giving up on scripted dramas. And why is that? For all the reason I've mentioned in the previous blog -- to succeed in dramas you need employees who are intelligent, patient and creatively nurturing. Instead of fixing their system, NBC is creating a new one. An easier one. A cheaper one. One that doesn't demand talent. One that can be run by suit-monkeys and accountants. That's the core fear we are all experiencing. We realize that public consumption is changing. We are the ones who created Jon and Kate, TMZ and the gangsta paparazzi. We are the ones veraciously consuming rag-mags and reality TV. Losing five hours of episodic television is the result of that trend. And we all know it ain't going away. It's growing.

You can read the entire post here.