SpoilerTV Article - Where has TV gone wrong?

Hey,

I have been soaking in the disappointing results that were the Friday Ratings for my current TV Craze 'Fringe' as well as other shows such as 'Supernatural' & 'CSI:NY' and I have to say that the TV industry in America, as much as I love some of its products is a very messed up place.

The networks want us to watch and love their shows but as someone who has gotten much more into TV I find a trepidation in starting anything new until I know I'm getting my time rewarded in watching. Herein lies the problem; if enough people think like me then every show is in danger. And people are beginning and will eventually follow this trend.

Why is it that often the shows which have casual fans tend to score large, these viewers tend to include the people oblivious to the world of TV ratings, leaving the people who actually care about TV in a world where you hate the foundations of the industry you love.
I would much rather, as a fan of Fringe, be enjoying debating about the Pregnancy storyline with other fans or haters without thinking that the show could be killed by falling ratings.

There is a simple truth in the matter, we only need to use a brain cell to see it. There are shows, Fringe, Supernatural currently, or Heroes & Flashforward from last year that have and have had a lot of fans. It's a fact. So why do we rely on a teeny percentage of people within America who have a Nielson box to keep the shows we love on the air.

It is about time that TV Networks realised something. TV is global and that they need to find a way to show original programming to the world. TV is no longer about one country, especially not US TV, when I watch something I then talk about it with people from all over the world, communicate with people from all over the world and read about it from articles written all over the world.

I know that if FOX gave me access to Fringe at 2 in the morning on my computer with adverts, I would watch it. It becomes unfair that we end up not enjoying a show but fearing for it; this a place which will always lead to disappointment, and in our world now will lead to a lot of programming becoming extinct.

Is there a solution? I feel it's simple. The networks should sit back, and open a computer and look. Who should give a f&%k about 1.4 ratings. There's millions of people watching Fringe online worldwide because they don't have access to it, and people nowadays don't like to be defined by being told to watch a TV at this time. Also the internet has created a world where if you don't get it at the same time, you are losing out on the new experience of TV; the articles, the reviews, the world behind the scenes.

So if they give it to us in a way that is useful to them, makes them money and we can watch it when we have the opportunity, online, on TV, who gives a flying monkey; just give it to us. Find a way to create TV programming that lets us know that the time we are willing to give to you is rewarded in return.

I hope this doesn't sound to preachy, it's more of a vent on my part :P (as such, apologies if anything didn't make sense)
But I figured it's a great thing to discuss with people who, like me actually passionately care about this, so please fire away and comment, tweet, facebook, email me if you wish.

I just had a point to make. Consider it made.

Twitter: AdDHarris
Adam