F in Fox stands for fix-it. Can it?

'The American Embassy'

'The Chamber'

'That '80s Show'

F in Fox stands
for fix-it. Can it?

Down 9% at midseason and hoping for new hits

By Kevin Downey

     It’s that time of year again for Fox, the network that's forever threatening to become No. 1--and might, were it not for its habit of struggling to midseason before rolling out many of its best shows.
    This midseason promises to be tougher.
    Fox’s adult 18-49 rating is down 9 percent compared to the same time last year.
    While Fox gained enormously in the November sweeps by having the World Series spill into the month, allowing it to promote its debuting fall shows, this also meant it was going up against shows that had already gained audience.
    That hurt.
    "The fact that we had to launch 60 percent of our schedule against the other networks' best schedules put us in a position we’ve never been in before," says a Fox spokesman.
    Now, at midseason, Fox must recover. Whether it will is another matter.
    "No matter what you do, if you go back over the past 25 years, something close to 72 percent of new shows don’t make it," estimates Don Cole, director of media at Fletcher, Martin, and Ewing.
    "Lightning may strike with midseason replacements, but I wouldn’t bet the ranch on it."
    The network’s midseason lineup of new shows includes "The Chamber," a short-run unscripted show that has sparked a legal dispute with ABC’s similar game show, "The Chair."
    "The Chamber’s" premiere won its time slot last week with a 4.8 overnight rating.
    Starting this Wednesday at 8 p.m., "That '80s Show" extends the franchise of "That '70s Show," one of Fox’s strongest among the 18-49 demographic.
    And "American Embassy" is taking over "Ally McBeal’s" Monday time slot for six weeks beginning in March. The drama was originally called "Emma Brody" and is from the producer of the hit movie "Erin Brockovich."
    Two other comedies have not been scheduled yet.
    "Andy Richter Controls the Universe" stars the former "Conan O’Brien" sidekick. And "Greg the Bunny" is a sitcom with sock puppets.
    Ironically when the season began, Fox appeared to be a shoo-in to challenge NBC for the top spot among adults 18-49.
    It came within one-tenth of a rating point during the November sweeps on the strength of the seven-game Series, which was pushed back a week because of the events of Sept. 11.
    And the network had a slew of critical favorites debuting with "24," "Bernie Mac," and "Undeclared."
    For whatever reason, though, none are outright hits.
    "Bernie" was Fox’s 11th-highest-rated show last week with a 3.4, adult 18-49 rating.
    "24" is holding up on Tuesdays against stiff competition from ABC’s "NYPD Blue" and NBC’s "Frasier," but only ranked No. 36 overall.
     "Undeclared" is going on hiatus after losing roughly 25 percent of lead-in "That '70s Show’s" rating.
     Fox’s main trouble this season, however, lies with some of its ongoing shows.
     Based on most recent episodes, "Dark Angel’s" audience has dropped about 37 percent on a new night compared to last year’s average.
     "Ally McBeal" has lost 16 percent of its viewers.
     And it was announced at this month’s Television Association Critics press tour in Pasadena that "The X Files" will finish its run this year. Its audience is down 34 percent.
     "Most shows get a little tired," explains Cole. "If you look back at ‘L.A. Law,’ that show was great for the first few years and then got a little self-indulgent or started to lose it.
     "Another one that went that way was ‘Moonlighting.’ The first few years of ‘Northern Exposure’ were brilliant, and then it slipped. ‘ER’ has that too; you don’t get the buzz at the water cooler that you did several years ago."

-Kevin Downey is a staff writer for Media Life.

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