NBC risks a lot by giving Leno a slot in prime time

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. — What do critics think of NBC's decision to turn five hours of prime time over to Jay Leno?

An informal survey of a few of my TV critic pals indicates — not much.

As the network prepares to turn over Monday-Friday, 9-10 p.m. Mountain Time to the soon-to-be-former "Tonight Show" host in the fall, there's a feeling of sadness. NBC was, for so many years, the home of great dramas that aired weeknights between 9 and 10 p.m. Mountain Time.

And, for those of us who love television, it's been painful to watch the network fall into this pit it can't seem to escape.

(Yes, most TV critics actually do love television. Good television, that is.)

Desperate networks do desperate things. And putting Leno on in prime time is a desperate move.

There's not a lot of love for the people who are running NBC these days. And that's putting it mildly.

(It wouldn't be too extreme to start tossing around words ranging from "dislike" to "contempt," as a matter of fact.)

Most of us don't think putting Leno in prime time will work. That he will be able to compete on a regular basis with the programming on CBS and ABC.

And, as one of my friends put it, even if it does work, what happens if Leno gets hit by a bus?

(And my friend is a far nicer person than I am, by the way.)

Putting Leno in prime time is as much (if not more) about late-night than it is about prime time. NBC execs were scared to death that Leno would leave for ABC and take his viewers with him, leaving Conan O'Brien's "Tonight Show" in a tough spot.

Of course, I'd argue that putting what's going to amount to "The Tonight Show" on before the late local news is going to hurt O'Brien's "Tonight Show" that follows the late local news. So NBC is going to lose either way.

It's all about money, of course. Broadcast networks are for-profit businesses.

And Leno's "Tonight Show" has been a profit center for the struggling network. NBC execs are hoping that, even with less-than-great ratings, Leno in prime time will turn a profit because of lower production costs than hourlong dramas. Which is a possibility.

One TV critic I know thinks NBC moving Leno into prime time is a "brilliant move" that's win-win for the network.

His thinking is that if Leno succeeds in the 9 p.m. time slot, that's good for NBC. Which is rather elementary.

But if Leno fails, he's damaged goods. He won't be able to ride off to ABC on a white horse with any kind of momentum — he'll be seen as a failure.

It's an excellent point that I had not considered.