The CW Is Certainly Woke

Without Disney's cash, they would be broke. The CW Will Be A Profitable Network By 2025, With Broader And Cheaper Programming, New Owners At Nexstar Signal

“It’s no secret that the CW is not profitable,” [Nexstar Media Group CFO Lee Ann Gliha] said, “but this is not typical for fully-distributed broadcast or cable networks. In fact, according to SNL Kagan data, no other broadcast network operates at an ongoing loss.”

One key step on the path to profit will involve a significant reduction of expenses. “We expect to invest a low 9-figure amount over this 3-year period as we implement our plan,” Gliha said. “We view this amount as a proxy for a purchase price – or an investment made over time — rather than an ongoing drag on cash flow. You know us. We are profit and cash flow focused and expect this asset to achieve profitability.”

The continuing dumping of cash into The Arrowverse programs is one of the problems you get when you don't pay attention to your viewers. The people at CW were making the shows they wanted, not the shows their customers wanted.

The demographic focus of the CW will also change over time, [Nexstar President and COO Tom Carter] said. Historically, shows like Riverdale, All American, Arrow and Supernatural have focused on viewers in their teens through their 30s. The reality, though, is that the average CW viewer is 58 years old, and Carter said that schism explains why the CW is the lowest-rated broadcast network.

Say it again: "lowest-rated broadcast network."

When the CW finally cancelled Batwoman back at the end of April, Critical Drinker wondered how it managed to lurch on for 3 years in the face of abysmal ratings, and financial loss: Batwoman Cancelled - This Is The End! (That is a 6 minute video.)

But that is the beauty of the world, as seen through the rose-colored glasses of the Woke; profitability does not matter. They think that they should be paid for supporting what Drinker calls The Message™. Filthy capitalism should be ignored.

But reality is true, even if you don't want it to be, and profits do matter.  And Batwoman was only one of their failures. And now that they have to stand or fall on their own, without the cash cushion provided by the Woke Scolds at Disney, things will change. Will they change for the better? I don't think things will get better, as Eric July notes in the video below, there is a question of whether anyone in Hollywood can write anymore. (There are exceptions - Nobody is great old-fashioned action movie, as is The Accountant. Both of those are exceptions to what is happening in Hollywood today.)

As Drinker says in the video:

Even the most stunning and brave shows can only ignore reality for so long.

And the same applies to Networks.

In this video Eric July states "I was right about The CW | Flat Broke". (He gets the hat tip.)