The one area that hasn't really changed all that much is the executive suites where almost all these companies are still run by white men. Most writers or producers of any renown have an overall deal at a studio which gives that studio first right to make whatever idea they have. Often times that person is also attached in some way to a TV network or streaming service and they're trying to funnel all the best ideas from their studio to the service. Disney is probably the ultimate example of this where pretty much anything you see on Disney Plus or Hulu has come from one of Disney's TV studios.
Remember when everyone loved to complain how there were 150 channels on TV and nothing good to watch? It’s pretty hard to say that now. There are so many good shows being made.
Our new complaint: how hard it is to watch all those great shows, especially when they’re spread across so many streaming services—and most of them you have to pay for.
How did we get here? Bloomberg media reporter Felix Gillette has answers. He’s the co-author of the book It's Not TV: The Spectacular Rise, Revolution, and Future of HBO.
Felix joins this episode to break down why TV has never been better–and yet has never been more frustrating to watch. Bloomberg’s entertainment reporter Lucas Shaw also stops in to explain how this shift has changed the way Hollywood decides which shows get made--and which ones don't.
This episode originally aired in October of 2022.
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