In Support of Conan O'Brien

For as long as I can remember, I've been a fan of Conan O'Brien. Because of this, NBC's recent decision to modify their current late-night lineup frustrates me greatly. If anyone reading this does not know what I'm referring to, NBC has decided to move The Jay Leno Show to 11:35 and to push The Tonight Show to 12:05. This decision was reportedly reached based on low ratings attained by The Jay Leno Show and the needs of local NBC affiliates.

As a fan of Conan, I find this entire situation to be ridiculous. Six years ago it was decided that Jay Leno would leave the Tonight Show in 2009 and that Conan O'Brien would take over. Granted, Jay Leno is not an old man, and, given an intervening period of six years, he might reconsider leaving television.

Nevertheless, Conan took over The Tonight Show last June, and had almost no time to establish a fan base before The Jay Leno Show began at an earlier time in September. Few predicted success on the part of The Jay Leno Show. Many considered it to be stale from the start and it has not gained critical acclaim since its debut. Likewise, The Jay Leno Show's prominent use of product placement has perturbed many. Suffice it to say that The Jay Leno Show's ratings have not been very good.

From my perspective, The Jay Leno Show would have ratings problems regardless of the time at which it might air. This is less about when the show airs and more about the quality of the show. Putting The Jay Leno Show on at 11:35 and pushing Conan back might still fail to attract viewers.

I come from a science background, so I look at what NBC is doing as a sort of experiment. In good experiments, only one variable is modified at any given time. However, NBC modified two variables by giving Conan The Tonight Show and by putting Leno on before him. It's impossible to know how Conan would be doing now if Leno hadn't preceded him - and likely retained some of his old fans - for so long. Conan never had a true chance to establish a fan base at 11:35.

To me, it is ridiculous that NBC would rework an entire late-night lineup in order to accommodate a single comedian. It would appear that this move is more about trying to salvage ratings by moving backward, rather than giving a fresh Tonight Show a chance to stand on its own, without interference from The Jay Leno Show.

In my opinion, it would be a better decision to cancel The Jay Leno Show at the earliest possible point contractually and to go on without Leno on NBC. I recognize that Jay Leno has a long history with NBC, but so does Conan O'Brien. It is unfair and unwise to treat one host so horribly while catering to the other, and NBC is getting bad publicity from all sides for this.

Conan O'Brien has said that he's not sure what he's going to do if he ends up not working for NBC anymore. Regardless of what he ends up doing, I am confident that Conan will utilize his full creative talents to do it well. And if both he and Leno are on at 11:35, my decision of who to watch has already been made.