The King of All Media is back on television, much to the delight of his
rabid fan base and much to the dismay of his legions of haters. From an
entertainment standpoint, NBC hit a big home run in getting Stern to
take on a prime-time gig on one of its most successful shows. Viewers
who know Stern will tune in, viewers who have heard of Stern will tune
in - and viewers who dislike Stern are "sure" to tune in. It's a
can't-miss victory in the short term for NBC and will probably generate
an enormous amount of buzz for the show.
For Stern, it's a bit of a leap to go from the comfort of his Sirius /
XM radio show to prime time television as a talent judge. But Stern is
well-equipped for the seat and NBC wanted him so badly that they are now
going to film the show in New York to accommodate Stern's radio
commitments. Those who have listened to Stern on the radio understand
his range - he's perhaps the strongest one-on-one interviewer in the
media and he can be extremely insightful and intelligent when he wants
to be. Of course, he's also happy to lower himself to
lowest-common-denominator humor, which is offensive to many. It's likely
that his NBC persona will only include the positive elements, but that
remains to be seen.
It's also comforting for NBC that Stern already has an established and
amicable relationship with Sharon Osbourne and Howie Mandel, both of
whom are fairly regular guests on Stern's radio show. Stern was already a
huge fan of America's Got Talent, often commenting about it on the air.
He's promising to bring a new culture of legitimacy to the judge's
panel.
Stern ranted on the air this morning, "This nonsense of Howie and Sharon
putting through less than talented people has got to stop. Under my
administration there will be no Frank Sinatra impersonators winning for
the year. If people think I'm the crazy man, I am not. I am the voice of
reason."
I guess we'll see about that soon enough.
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