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Problems at CBS

CBS was once the leading television network in terms of ratings, and today it is in third place among the three major networks and in some weeks has even dropped below the much smaller Fox network. The network's entertainment division is in disarray, with several programs that have long been popular slipping in the ratings because of changes in their time slot or new competition, and with no clear plan for the future. The news division has been slipping as well, with losses in viewership for its evening news broadcast and with various problems for its news magazine 60 Minutes, long one of the important money-making entities for the network. In part, CBS is being affected by changes in network television viewing across America, with new competition from cable and satellite television as well as from revitalized independent channels. Yet CBS seems to be facing more problems than this, since it has slipped so far from first place while ABC and NBC have been maintaining their place to a greater degree.

CBS has had a long history in broadcasting. William Paley had taken over leadership of the United Independent Broadcasters in 1928 and had become a leading figure in broadcast circles. UIB became CBS, and in 1928 CBS showed a net loss of $179,999. One year later the network made a profit of $474,000, and by the end of 1931 profits had reached $2.35 million. This was the more remarkable when considered against the background of the Great Depression then affecting the nation. By 1934 CBS radio had expanded its programming to 16 hours a day, and approximately one-third of the programs on the air had commercial sponsors, while the rest were sustaining programs which CBS made available to affiliates free of charge.

CBS continued to grow as the three-network structure developed into the 1940s. The Golden Age of Radio was coming to an end in 1946 and 1947 when radio was very profitable and when the networks were planning to use t...

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Problems at CBS. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 07:26, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1692840.html