Gephyrophillia #230

Originally Posted on 03/23/2011 by Jeff Harris

I might surprise some people with what I'm about to say, but in the news of the search for the next head of the CW Television Network to replace Dawn Ostroff. Now, hear me out before you make a judgement against me. I've looked at the situation closely, and I'm going to offer a candidate who would be more than willing to guide the troubled network to a brand new era of entertainment.

And no, it isn't me. I don't want the job, I'm not interested in the job, and I barely even like the network.

What does The CW need? It needs to reevaluate what it's all about. Yes, they're considered the alternative to the Big Four, but they've yet to find a place in the world. They've abandoned urban audiences (which was one of the reasons UPN did better than The WB in its final years) and let a series that did quite well there, The Game, get away. It's one of the strongest non-children's scripted series on cable thanks to BET reviving the series in January 2011. The CW has largely abandoned male audiences, which was largely a calculated move by Ms. Ostroff. The series that emerged over the past couple of seasons has largely been aimed towards young, affluent, suburban teenaged girls and young women, but they're barely watching.

The CW needs someone who can rebuild a channel from the ground up. Someone with an eye on talent and quality, building up franchises, and launching brand new properties. They need someone not married to tradition of what the network was supposedly all about. They need an outsider, not someone already assimilated in the CW machine. The CW needs someone who has a proven track record of guiding and harnessing valuable programming.

The CW needs Rob Sorcher.

For five years, he transformed American Movie Classics into AMC. Sorcher was in charge of program development and supervised the scheduling of the network. He has also served as executive producer for its original programming and is credited with leading the network to noted ratings growth and expanding its original programming slate as well, including greenlighting breakout Emmy-winning hits Mad Men and Breaking Bad. Prior to joining AMC Network in 2002, Sorcher served as the very first executive vice president and general manager USA Network, where he oversaw the development of groundbreaking shows and miniseries, including the Emmy-winning Monk and The Dead Zone. In 1999, he served as the inaugural executive vice president of programming for the FOX Family Channel, creating a balanced entertainment channel that attracted all members of the family.

Currently, he's at Cartoon Network as a chief content officer, generally guiding the network in many directions. Yes, he has had many missteps, but that's because Sorcher doesn't quite get the market nor the audience. But he does get older viewers, and I feel Sorcher would make a greater head of a broadcast network than the programming head of an animation channel.

Keep creating.

Jeff Harris,
Creator/Webmaster, The X Bridge.