Masked Scheduler's Ratings Smackdown

Have not seen the final episode of "24: Legacy," but if I were still at FOX I would not recommend returning the series that quickly. It got the big Super Bowl push and quickly settled under a 1 rating in live plus same-day, so there was little urgency in viewing it.

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I will solve the problems with the 10 p.m. time period tomorrow, but I received this tweet from one of my favorite Masketeers that seemed more immediate:

@maskedscheduler Could you address the possible writers' strike, including such a strike's effects on viewers?

I have learned the hard way that, as insignificant as I am, public statements come back to bite me in the butt. I did say that I would not be surprised if there is some settlement to avoid a strike and I was taken to task for that statement.

I will say that, given my limited understanding, this issue has exposed the myth of Peak TV in that there may be more shows, but the actual number of episodes has not grown proportionately so working on a show means less fees and more uncertainty about future work.

What this would mean to the viewer is more reality and news magazines as well as more repeats. Also, depending on the length of a strike, it would possibly mean a delay in the start of the fall season. In addition some of the product that the networks were citing as original summer fare, but that was actually burn off, could be pushed to the fall.

I was at FOX for the last WGA strike, and we were told by our leadership to be prepared for a lengthy strike. My partner MJ LaVaccare and I took those orders seriously, and we survived and prospered. It helped to have "American Idol" at its peak.

The "fun" part of the strike was dealing with the aftermath, i.e. planning how to bring the network back. That meant meetings with the producers of "House" (who were fantastic) and having to sit in a room with Jack Bauer and tell him his show was being delayed for a year because we would not split "24" over two seasons. That didn't go as well. Also had to give Steve Levitan some news he didn’t want to hear which, to this day, I believe cost us a shot at "Modern Family."

I hope that this is resolved in a way beneficial to all, but I'm a realist.

Dodger game last night so a night off from TV, but I did take in the first four episodes of "Chewing Gum" Season 2 on Netflix, which continues to be wildly entertaining.

Twitter @maskedscheduler, or use the email masked.scheduler@gmail.com.