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Sci Fi Channel just does NOT get it
May. 19th, 2008 04:54 pmFound this article over at the New York Times: At Sci Fi Channel, the Universe Is Expanding and the Future Is Now
Yea, the title doesn't say much. But the article says some very interesting things:
So.. all you women out there watching wrestling on the Sci Fi Channel, please stop! Maybe then they'll find room in their schedule for something decent.
When the Sci Fi Channel was first announced, I was anxiously wondering whether we'd be getting it. I mean, think of it, an entire channel devoted to shows like Star Trek and My Favorite Martian! What's not to love?
They've been a disappointment ever since.
Of course the Sci Fi Channel can show fantasy. We're used to fantasy being paired with science fiction. Of course that's going to include some horror as well. Fine. I even like a bit of the paranormal, especially if it has to do with UFOs or psychic abilities. That's often at least pseudo-science fiction, right? But.. not too much of it. Your core programming should still be science fiction if you're going to call yourself the Sci Fi Channel.
What are women watching on the Sci Fi channel? The ones I know are watching BSG and some Stargate. Me, I don't watch those. The reruns of Doctor Who (two weeks after I've already watched them is a rerun) are, of course, awesome. But, hello, those three shows are SCIENCE FICTION. You don't even have to stretch the definition very far! Space! Time Travel! Aliens! Robots!
Old shows popular with women that they could also show are Quantum Leap, Blake's 7 (which I never have seen), Highlander, Forever Knight, Beauty and the Beast, Star Trek, Alien Nation, old Doctor Who, and on and on. Some of those are fantasy titles, sure, but only a couple. The fanfic, particularly the slash fanfic, doesn't write itself, people! And there's precious few men writing it.
Instead Sci Fi Channel runs monster movies ad nauseum and hunts for ghosts. Nothing's more exciting than night vision shots of people fiddling with recording equipment.
By all means, play up the people and "emotions" of Battlestar Galactica. It can't hurt. Except when you do it badly. Which of course they do. The main photo on their BSG page shows a blond chick in a low-cut red dress center stage, a 7 to 5 male to female ratio, and apparently only one person who isn't white. Three things that'll turn me off and not much that'll turn me on, since there's no science fiction element in there! If it looks like anything, it looks like some sort of CIA or military show in an underground bunker. Not to mention The Last Supper imagery isn't doing it for me.
It's my belief that if Sci Fi is getting more female viewers, it's despite their efforts to do so and not because of them. They lucked into a show that women respond to. Not that they haven't done before. Cancelling Farscape was a brilliant move, truly. Which they reportedly did because they had too many "space" shows and were moving away from that. How's that working for you, Sci Fi?
It's just sad when Spike, the channel for MEN, has more science fiction shows I'd rather watch than this supposedly newly female-friendly channel devoted to the genre.
Yea, the title doesn't say much. But the article says some very interesting things:
[...]the network has expanded its audience, especially among women, chiefly by stretching the definition of science fiction.
[...]
“It’s not just aliens, spaceships and the future,” said Dave Howe, who was promoted to president of Sci Fi from general manager in January. “It’s about asking that simple question, ‘What if?’ ”
The changes evolved over several years. One result is a widening audience, especially among women. In April, for example, Sci Fi ranked sixth in cable networks in the 25-to-54 age group. Growth in female viewers outpaced that in men; 43 percent of Sci Fi’s viewers are female.
[...]
The network has drawn more women by making subtle tweaks to marketing and programming. In marketing materials for “Battlestar Galactica,” for example, there are no spaceships, and the story lines try to create more of a balance between action and emotion.
[...]
“There were a lot of misperceptions that Sci Fi was for men, that it was for young men and that it was for geeky young men,” said Bonnie Hammer, the president of NBC Universal Cable Entertainment, which oversees Sci Fi. “We had to broaden the channel to change the misconceptions of the genre.”
[...]
So.. all you women out there watching wrestling on the Sci Fi Channel, please stop! Maybe then they'll find room in their schedule for something decent.
When the Sci Fi Channel was first announced, I was anxiously wondering whether we'd be getting it. I mean, think of it, an entire channel devoted to shows like Star Trek and My Favorite Martian! What's not to love?
They've been a disappointment ever since.
Of course the Sci Fi Channel can show fantasy. We're used to fantasy being paired with science fiction. Of course that's going to include some horror as well. Fine. I even like a bit of the paranormal, especially if it has to do with UFOs or psychic abilities. That's often at least pseudo-science fiction, right? But.. not too much of it. Your core programming should still be science fiction if you're going to call yourself the Sci Fi Channel.
What are women watching on the Sci Fi channel? The ones I know are watching BSG and some Stargate. Me, I don't watch those. The reruns of Doctor Who (two weeks after I've already watched them is a rerun) are, of course, awesome. But, hello, those three shows are SCIENCE FICTION. You don't even have to stretch the definition very far! Space! Time Travel! Aliens! Robots!
Old shows popular with women that they could also show are Quantum Leap, Blake's 7 (which I never have seen), Highlander, Forever Knight, Beauty and the Beast, Star Trek, Alien Nation, old Doctor Who, and on and on. Some of those are fantasy titles, sure, but only a couple. The fanfic, particularly the slash fanfic, doesn't write itself, people! And there's precious few men writing it.
Instead Sci Fi Channel runs monster movies ad nauseum and hunts for ghosts. Nothing's more exciting than night vision shots of people fiddling with recording equipment.
By all means, play up the people and "emotions" of Battlestar Galactica. It can't hurt. Except when you do it badly. Which of course they do. The main photo on their BSG page shows a blond chick in a low-cut red dress center stage, a 7 to 5 male to female ratio, and apparently only one person who isn't white. Three things that'll turn me off and not much that'll turn me on, since there's no science fiction element in there! If it looks like anything, it looks like some sort of CIA or military show in an underground bunker. Not to mention The Last Supper imagery isn't doing it for me.
It's my belief that if Sci Fi is getting more female viewers, it's despite their efforts to do so and not because of them. They lucked into a show that women respond to. Not that they haven't done before. Cancelling Farscape was a brilliant move, truly. Which they reportedly did because they had too many "space" shows and were moving away from that. How's that working for you, Sci Fi?
It's just sad when Spike, the channel for MEN, has more science fiction shows I'd rather watch than this supposedly newly female-friendly channel devoted to the genre.
