Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In recent years, the media has been awash in exuberant tales of the arrival of the information superhighway, when television will explode with exciting possibilities, offering some 500 channels as well as a marriage of TV and computer that will provide, on command, access to the latest movies, magazines, newspapers, books, sports events, stock exchange figures, your bank account, and much, much more. And the major TV networks, pundits add, will be doomed to extinction by this revolution in cable, computers, and fiber optics. But in Television Today and Tomorrow, Gene Jankowski--former President and Chairman of the CBS Broadcast Group--and David Fuchs--also a former top executive at CBS--tell a different story. They predict a bumpy road ahead for the information superhighway, and the major networks, they say, are abundantly healthy and will remain so well into the next century. The information superhighway, Jankowski and Fuchs admit, will dramatically increase the distribution channels, but it will have little impact on the amount of programming created--and this may spell disaster. The authors show how the networks began as a way to provide programs to local stations (who could not afford to produce their own), who in turn provided the distribution that gave networks access to mass audiences and ultimately large advertising dollars. They then offer us an inside look at television production--showing us, for instance, a veteran scriptwriter putting together a breakfast table scene for "Cloud Nine"--to underscore how much effort goes into producing just two minutes of primetime programming. They reveal that the present 20 channels require some 20,000 hours of programming each year, which is more than all the Broadway plays produced in this century, and they conclude that without a dramatic increase in programming (which won't happen if only because of the very finite supply of talent), the superhighway will be jammed bumper-to-bumper with reruns, old movies, and inexpensive programming aimed at tightly focused audiences ("narrowcasting" as opposed to "broadcasting"). This is hardly the bonanza the pundits have promised. The authors point out that the media blitz about the new technology has hardly focused on programming, or on funding, or on what needs these 500 channels will fill. The major networks, on the other hand, will remain the only means of reaching the whole country, and the only channels that offer a full schedule of current, live, and original programs, free of charge. And thus they will continue to attract most of the audience of TV viewers. The real loser in the cable revolution, the authors contend, is PBS, whose role as an alternative to network TV has been usurped by cable stations such as The Discovery Channel and Nickelodeon. This is a brass tacks look at television with an eye on the bottom line by two men who boast over sixty years of experience in the medium. If you want to understand television in America, where it came from and where it is going, you will need to read this book.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Preface (p. v)
• Acknowledgments (p. ix)
• Introduction (p. 3)
• Chapter 1 A Brief History of Broadcasting (p. 9)
• Chapter 2 The Creative Product (p. 27)
• Chapter 3 Where the Money Comes From (p. 49)
• Chapter 4 Television and Washington (p. 97)
• Chapter 5 Television and Its Critics (p. 121)
• Chapter 6 The Future (p. 153)
• Postscript A Failed Takeover Attempt (p. 213)
• Appendix CBS Memorandum (p. 215)
• Glossary (p. 223)
• Bibliography (p. 227)
• Index (p. 233)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

The title might have included "yesterday" because the authors, former CBS Broadcast Group senior executives, begin by tracing the history of television. Emphasized are the production-distribution-funding paradigm, the unique network/affiliate system, and such seminal events as Newton Minow's 1961 "vast wasteland" speech. The authors believe that traditional networks and additions like Fox can thrive; they argue that centrist networks alone can serve a mass public with news and entertainment, while specialty channels will serve specialty audiences. Along the way, they chide intellectual elites who want TV to raise the cultural standards of common folk. The last of six chapters deals specifically with the future, including views by such TV luminaries as Walter Cronkite and Bill Moyers and a thought-provoking‘and timely‘analysis of public broadcasting. Appropriate for larger public as well as academic media collections.‘Kim Holston, American Inst. for Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters, Malvern, Pa. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly Review

Jankowski, former president and chairman of the CBS Broadcast Group, and Fuchs, a former senior v-p there, here present a comprehensive history of TV, new developments in the industry, and what they predict the future holds: network TV will better than hold its own. They point out that cable TV ``began life as a reception improver, not a maker of products.'' They also demonstrate that CBS's and NBC's ventures into cable have been unsuccessful and a drain on their resources. Network balance sheets are examined, showing why, in 1991-92, ABC finished third in the ratings but made a profit, while CBS was rated first yet had a loss. We also learn that news programs such as 60 Minutes and 20-20 are popular with producers because of their low production costs; the importance of NFL football, whose defection devastated CBS, which lost many affiliates to the fledgling Fox network; and why Fox has had a bigger competitive impact on the other networks than all of cable combined. FCC regulations are scrutinized, as well as the impact of PBS and whether television remains a ``vast wasteland.'' This textbook on how TV works will appeal most to those involved in the industry. Photos not seen by PW. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

CHOICE Review

Two former senior CBS officials review the present situation and the likely future of "their" medium in a book based on a Michigan State University course taught recently by Jankowski, former CBS Broadcast Group president. The book offers chapters on the history of the medium, the creative product (i.e., programming), where the money comes from, the television industry's relationship with Washington, television and its critics, and ideas about the future (based mainly on long quotes from industry figures interviewed by the authors). An interesting appendix reprints an internal CBS memorandum at the time of Ted Turner's 1985 attempt to take over the network. Those knowledgeable about the television business will not find much new here--the book is written for a general audience of television watchers, including undergraduates--but the authors' viewpoints are often interesting. C. Sterling; George Washington University

Booklist Review

Since many writers would, for obvious reasons, like to see television vanish, there has been no shortage of books chastising the medium or predicting its downfall. Jankowski and Fuchs, former top CBS execs, provide an interesting view of TV's influence from a perspective not always directly seen on the printed page. They spend much of the book describing the major networks' health and predicting that, despite the cable and interactive revolutions, they will keep the bulk of the viewing audience for a long time to come. Further, despite what some critics say, they say this audience is not mindlessly passive. "On what grounds does anyone have the right to say that reading something is inherently superior to watching Oprah?" they demand. Not surprisingly, they take a sink-or-swim, laissez-faire approach to public television. Although they are still shilling somewhat for their old network, their writing reflects deep knowledge of the industry. Excluding their voices from media studies shelves would be anathema to open debate. --Aaron Cohen

Kirkus Book Review

The former president (Jankowski) and senior vice president (Fuchs) of CBS consider television's future and find the corporate networks in great shape despite cable TV's rise. The authors argue that the networks possess inherent strengths that will keep them powerful for many years to come. These include: tremendous concentrations of money, talent, and experience with long-established methods of creating popular entertainment; alliances with affiliates that pool news and other resources; and enormous audiences that will continue to lure advertisers. The virtues of the network concept explain Rupert Murdoch's recent success in building Fox and Ted Turner's attempted takeover of CBS, which occurred even as the media was sounding the networks' death knell. Meanwhile, a growing number of cable channels and emerging alternatives, though hobbled by a scarcity of money and talent, must fight for ever tinier slices of the viewer pie. This argument may be seen as self-serving, given the authors' backgrounds, and much of the rest of the book is little more than an apologia for TV. Sections on violence fail to consider important evidence of links between television and real-world violence. Other arguments- -that Americans want lowest common denominator entertainment, and that TV can't provide more balanced electoral coverage--also fail to persuade. But there's a strong dose of common sense in the authors' skepticism about the threat posed by cable and by developments like high-definition television, pay-per-view, and home shopping. The book also offers a solid overview of how networks function, of government regulation of TV, and of public television. Anyone betting heavily on the ``information superhighway'' should consider this bottom-line view. Take the rest with a grain of salt.