How Zucker's Leno quick fix got NBC into a quagmire

The NBC executive apparently had moved Jay Leno to prime time to avoid losing him to rival networks and to keep a promise to Conan O'Brien. But the focus on short-term gains proved a costly blunder.

How Zucker found himself in such a fix is a study in how a chief executive, confronting wrenching changes to his business, reacts to challenges.

NBC's Leno flip-flop, which is shaping up to be one of the biggest debacles in television history, underscores how Zucker, who views himself as a maverick and a champion of change, now faces a decidedly different legacy. Instead of the mogul with moxie who transformed television -- he called for "a re-engineering of our businesses from top to bottom" -- Zucker might better be remembered as the guy who plucked the peacock.

Zucker's troubles were magnified this week when, with NBC facing a revolt by affiliate stations furious over their sinking ratings, he decided to move Jay Leno back to late night after less than four months. The unusual measure was an acknowledgment that Zucker's gambit to shift the comedian into prime time had failed.

Reporting from Los Angeles and New York — Jeff Zucker was a fearless news producer and fast-rising entertainment executive who was just 41 when he became head of NBC Universal. But in the last few years, the onetime whiz kid behind the "Today" show -- he turned Katie Couric into a star -- has made several costly miscalculations that have led to a spectacular fall by the country's premier television network.

Now the network is bracing for more fallout: Will Conan O'Brien, who last spring became host of the storied "Tonight Show," leave the network when Leno moves from 10 p.m. back to 11:35 p.m., which could happen as soon as March? Will Leno remain content with a half-hour show, signing off at 12:05 a.m. to make room for O'Brien, if he stays? And how will NBC plug five hours of programming each week in Leno's vacated time slot?

Some veteran TV executives believe the Leno imbroglio could ultimately cost more than $200 million, including the damage inflicted on stations' local newscasts, their ad rates and NBC programs, such as "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," which lost millions of viewers when its time period was changed. They predicted that it could take years for NBC to rebuild.

"Everything about this decision seems to have been a disaster," said Jeffrey Cole, director of the Center for the Digital Future at the USC Annenberg School for Communication. "It looks like NBC shot itself in the foot, the arm, the neck -- and everywhere else."

Zucker declined to be interviewed. A senior NBC executive defended Zucker, saying, "I think Jeff's legacy will be that of an innovator who was not afraid to take risks. Not all big swings will work, but many will. For those that don't work, you have to be smart enough to know when to make a change, and that is what he has done."

For much of his career, the 44-year-old Harvard graduate has been the master of the quick fix. Not enough hit shows on the profitable Thursday night? "Supersize" the sitcoms "Friends" and "Will and Grace" to 45 minutes. Don't want to lose Jay Leno to a rival network? Give the late-night comedian his own show at 10 p.m. That way, NBC could keep both Leno and O'Brien in the fold.

But while Zucker's facile management technique was suited for running a news operation, it's had different consequences on the entertainment side of the network, which Zucker took over a decade ago.

The implosion of NBC's prime time -- and potential damage to a TV institution, "The Tonight Show" -- can be traced to three major decisions: In 2004, assuming that the wry host Conan O'Brien was the future and Leno would be ready for retirement, Zucker agreed to give O'Brien "The Tonight Show" in 2009. At the time, it was a major coup for Zucker, the network's programming chief who was angling to be the next CEO.

But as 2009 approached, Leno continued to triumph in the ratings and was showing no signs of slowing down. He groused on his show about his upcoming retirement, taking his unhappiness public.