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Steve Sternberg
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Live TV viewing has significant advantages over DVR playback when it comes to commercial exposure and brand message recall. TV shows with a high percentage of live viewing are therefore substantially more valuable to advertisers than those viewed largely via DVRs. A logical extension of this is that commercials on... Continue reading
Posted Apr 11, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
This continues The Sternberg Report’s monthly series, where I review TV shows labeled the Good, the Too Bad, and the Ugly. Every issue will not necessarily contain a show in each category, and some will have multiple shows in a single category. This month’s report focuses exclusively on “the good.”... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
This is the start of a new monthly series, where I review new shows labeled the good, the too bad, and the ugly. Actually, last month’s column, when I reviewed the three latest Marvel series, Loki season two (good), Secret Invasion (too bad), and Echo (ugly), can be considered the... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
Over the past few years, one of the more controversial aspects of NFL football games is the idea of going for it on fourth down when a team needs two or three (sometime more) yards for a first down. The reason? Something called “analytics,” which has upended decades of NFL... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
Ten live-action TV series were produced for Disney+ between 2021 and 2024, with at least six more planned over the next couple of years. Some of these shows feature well-known characters who appeared in the theatrical films, while others pulled more obscure characters from the extensive Marvel comics library. Netflix-originated... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
The Emmy Awards telecast has traditionally alternated among ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox. Once seen as a major promotional vehicle for the broadcast networks (pre-2015 at least), the host network would win a bunch of awards and have commercials ready to immediately tout their wins. I’m old enough to remember... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
There have been 33 theatrical films released as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), which began in 2008 with the debut of Iron Man. The bulk of these movies feature The Avengers or individual members of that team, as well as popular characters such as Spider-Man, Black Panther, and... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
There have been 33 theatrical films released as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), which began in 2008 with the debut of Iron Man. The bulk of these movies feature The Avengers or individual members of that team, as well as popular characters such as Spider-Man, Black Panther, and... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
Since the beginning of television, various program genres have fallen in and out of favor with the general public. But none have been as consistently popular as shows depicting law enforcement (crime and punishment), whether they be police/detective series, procedural dramas, or shows featuring the FBI or CIA (or some... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
From the earliest days of television, live-action series featuring superheroes have had their ups and downs. Occasionally popping up in the 1950s through early 2000s, these shows were most often used as counter-programming in an effort to appeal to a younger audience. During this time, only a few enjoyed significant... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
I’m taking an August break from thinking too much or writing any deep analyses or television show reviews. Here are just some random thoughts that popped into my head as I was watching TV this month. Things that make you go hmmm… But first, I want to say that without... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
In a series of upfront presentations to advertisers, media agencies, and the press, the broadcast networks recently unveiled their respective primetime fall TV schedules. I’ve just started the process of reviewing the new series pilots for my annual predictions of hits and misses. The purpose here is to provide some... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
The short answer is no. Sellers want higher reported ratings, while buyers want stability. Neither is conducive to better, more accurate audience measurement. The long answer has a lot of extra words and exposition, but still winds up being no. Of course, advertisers want the most accurate data possible, but... Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2024 at The Sternberg Report
Of all the award shows on television, the Academy Awards is the most boring. It shouldn’t be and doesn’t have to be. But there has been little (or no) effort to make the broadcast more viewer friendly. And it would be so easy to do. Some have complained about the... Continue reading
Posted Mar 14, 2023 at The Sternberg Report
There are several top-notch original streaming series featuring spies, whether they be current or former CIA operatives, British MI-5 agents, or members of other international organizations. Some are action-packed from start to finish, while others are more deliberately paced. Here are six that are among the most bingeworthy. There are... Continue reading
Posted Mar 14, 2023 at The Sternberg Report
Procedural dramas have long been a staple of broadcast television, with particular appeal to viewers over 50. While skewing older on linear TV, surrounded by similarly older-appeal programming on a set lineup, the same genre tends to appeal to a younger audience on streaming services. Four vastly different procedural dramas,... Continue reading
Posted Mar 14, 2023 at The Sternberg Report
Two great new shows, each getting a lot of buzz. Both throwbacks to familiar genres, yet still somehow original, fresh, and compelling. Both center around rough-edged survivors traveling across the country (although for vastly different reasons). Both have a revolving cast of supporting characters and guest stars in each episode.... Continue reading
Posted Mar 14, 2023 at The Sternberg Report
When it comes to national television measurement used for the buying and selling of commercial time, Nielsen is an industry-mandated monopoly. While potential competitors have periodically emerged, they failed to sustain enough support to survive – not necessarily because Nielsen did anything to impede them, but because advertisers and networks... Continue reading
Posted Mar 14, 2023 at The Sternberg Report
By any normal metric, Netflix has enjoyed continuous and unparalleled growth and success since House of Cards became the first major streaming hit in 2013. The streamer has gained subscribers every year and has consistently had the most popular streaming shows on any platform – even during two years of... Continue reading
Posted Mar 14, 2023 at The Sternberg Report
More than 70 years of police portrayals on popular scripted dramas have contributed to public perception of police as the heroic good guys putting their lives on the line every day to keep us all safe. Doing whatever it takes to catch the bad guys, even if it means roughing... Continue reading
Posted Sep 27, 2022 at The Sternberg Report
With the Emmy Awards airing on Monday, I thought it was a good time to provide a review of the best new series of the year. Refreshingly original, uniquely inventive, and brilliantly conceived, Severance debuted on Apple TV+ in February 2022. It sits at the top of an impressive stable... Continue reading
Posted Sep 19, 2022 at The Sternberg Report
Co-created by Abbi Jacobson (Broad City), who also stars, and Will Graham (Mozart in the Jungle), and inspired by Penny Marshall’s pitch-perfect 1992 theatrical film of the same name, this new version of A League of Their Own has its own reason for being. As in the movie, this comedy-drama... Continue reading
Posted Sep 19, 2022 at The Sternberg Report
In a television/video world where there are more original scripted series than ever before, it is rare to find a new show that is truly original and immediately rises to the top of the heap. I came to The Bear knowing virtually nothing about it aside from a friend’s recommendation... Continue reading
Posted Aug 31, 2022 at The Sternberg Report
Evil premiered on CBS in September 2019. It was the network’s best new show of the year, but unfortunately not one of its most watched. In fact, for the full 2019-20 season, it was one of CBS’s lowest rated series, and a prime candidate for cancellation. It was simply another... Continue reading
Posted Aug 31, 2022 at The Sternberg Report
There are more great series on television today than any time in history. Sitting at the top of the mountain, if not alone then with precious few peers, is Better Call Saul, a show whose very reason for being I questioned before its premiere seven years ago. Having been a... Continue reading
Posted Aug 31, 2022 at The Sternberg Report