How Watergate affected daytime programming

[chris12]

I was wondering how the Watergate coverage in 1973-74 affected daytime network programming. From what I understand it affected the game show sto the point that many celebrity game show weeks staggered and hosts couldn't say see you next week on a Friday show since it wasn't known when it would air. Also, I've herad that because some game show episodes may have gone unaired, some of the shows that have a handful of surviving episodes may exist for that reason as one example I've heard about is the one surviving episode of Winning streak from NBC which was believed to have been scheduled to air the day Nixon resigned.

 

[LKellerIII]

I was a bit of a Watergate hearing junkie, and had a night-job during that time. As I remember, there basically was NO regular daytime programming on the Big 3 networks when the hearings were on, which - as I remember - was 4 or 5 hours a day on most weekdays.

 

[azumanga]

Someone mentioned earlier that, eventually, the networks began to alternate coverage -- CBS one day, NBC the next day, ABC the next, then back to CBS, etc.

 

[kirkiefan]

All I remember from that daytime coveage was G. Gordon Liddy's infamous "two cents worth-in" line:

"I REFUSE TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION ON GROUNDS IT MAY INCRIMINATE ME!"

He still abhorrs me today with his self-righteous brand of arrogance to the point that I am tempted to start ranting!

 

[BRNout]

I just remember that, as a kid, I found it sooooooo boring because it was on every day and it was on every channel. At the time, I had no interest in it because it seemed like nothing more than one political team trying to tackle the other. Anyhow, there was nothing else on and it was as dull as ditchwater.

I played in the woods a lot that summer.... :

 

[Corky Marlowe]

One long running CBS soap, "The Secret Storm", was canceled in early 1974 after about 20 years on the air...Was that due in part to its constant pre-emption for Watergate coverage?

 

[bpatrick]

It was because CBS bought "The Secret Storm" from
American Home Products in the late '60s and proceeded
to destroy practically every reason people watched the
show: the Ames family (the core family) was practically
written out, some far-fetched plots meant to resemble
"Dark Shadows" (its ABC competition at one point) were
written in, and the show's time slot kept shifting. In
1968 it moved from its traditional 4 PM to 3 (ET), where
most soap viewers were committed to either "General
Hospital" or "Another World." In the fall of '72 it moved
to 3:30, against "One Life To Live." Finally, in the spring
of '73, it went back to 4, and sometime over the next
few months CBS sold it back to American Home Products,
the Ameses were brought back, and "Match Game" became
"Secret Storm"'s lead-in come July 1973. It didn't matter;
the audience was gone, and an attempt to keep it going
in syndication fell through before even one episode was
taped.

"Secret Storm" is one soap I still miss.

 

[Markxxx]

What about independent channels. I know in Chicago we had WGN, WFLD and WSNS (it was English then). Couldn't other independent stations take over shows? Or were they just not there to air?

I don't recall much about that time, cause I was a wee little shaver at the time and in the day we only could watch PBS. Mum didn't let us watch the good shows till the afternoon.

LOL

 

[azumanga]

What about independent channels. I know in Chicago we had WGN, WFLD and WSNS (it was English then). Couldn't other independent stations take over shows? Or were they just not there to air?

There weren't as many indy stations in 1973, as compared to, say, ten years later. Some cities still had two, or even one, local commercial station (or even station, period). For example, CBS would let WGN in Chicago, WNEW in New York and KTVT in Dallas have "The Price is Right"; however, it wouldn't be seen in places like Flint, Michigan (no indies until 1984) or Macon, Georgia (only had two commercial stations affiliated with networks, both sharing ABC).

 

[genius]

I seem to recall there was an uproar when CBS ran an I Love Lucy rerun one day instead of the Watergate hearing. The CBS president at the time ended up having to apologize. Anyone else know of that story?

 

[genius]

It was because CBS bought "The Secret Storm" from
American Home Products in the late '60s and proceeded
to destroy practically every reason people watched the
show: the Ames family (the core family) was practically
written out, some far-fetched plots meant to resemble
"Dark Shadows" (its ABC competition at one point) were
written in, and the show's time slot kept shifting. In
1968 it moved from its traditional 4 PM to 3 (ET), where
most soap viewers were committed to either "General
Hospital" or "Another World." In the fall of '72 it moved
to 3:30, against "One Life To Live." Finally, in the spring
of '73, it went back to 4, and sometime over the next
few months CBS sold it back to American Home Products,
the Ameses were brought back, and "Match Game" became
"Secret Storm"'s lead-in come July 1973. It didn't matter;
the audience was gone, and an attempt to keep it going
in syndication fell through before even one episode was
taped.

"Secret Storm" is one soap I still miss.

Funny you should mention about the syndication deal. On a website once someone posted an ad which was for The Secret Storm annoucing the move to syndication and having over 150 stations who signed up to air the program. Seems the deal fell apart in the eleventh hour.

 

[anotherguyTN]

I seem to recall there was an uproar when CBS ran an I Love Lucy rerun one day instead of the Watergate hearing. The CBS president at the time ended up having to apologize. Anyone else know of that story?

I'd find that one hard to believe because it seems to me that the uproar would have been in the opposite direction, with viewers angry because their favorite daytime shows (especially soaps) were dropped. I thought that was why the networks went to carrying the hearings on a rotating basis. And actually, wasn't I Love Lucy dropped from CBS daytime by then?

This is semi-OT, but I can remember when the senate hearings over Anita Hill's accusations against Clarence Thomas when he was nominated to the Supreme Court were carried on the networks on a Saturday morning in place of the regular kid's programming, complete with all of the sexual harassment accusations. I wasn't married or a parent at the time, but I thought that was one of the stupidest decisions that the networks ever made, especially considering the subject matter.

At least now if something like this were to happen most of the coverage could be on cable. I'd also think that if the big 4 networks were to try to cover congressional hearings in a similar way now, there's a good chance that local stations would drop the hearings during the times thay normally had local shows and refuse to carry the hearings. In that case for once I'd be with the local stations. also, I'd hope that the stations that actually do carry their network's programming in the daytime would raise a howl against regular programming being dropped. Otherwise it could cause even further erosion in network daytime coverage.

Something else I've wondered is how long were the schedules for game shows thrown off before thay got back on track, especially the ones with celebrity panelists, and which ones ran the longest with their schedules being thrown off? It seems like I can remember jokes being made on shows like Match Game about the problem.

 

[dhett]

I just remember that, as a kid, I found it sooooooo boring because it was on every day and it was on every channel. At the time, I had no interest in it because it seemed like nothing more than one political team trying to tackle the other. Anyhow, there was nothing else on and it was as dull as ditchwater.

I played in the woods a lot that summer.... :

I was 10 that summer and hated the fact that all my favorite TV shows were pre-empted. Problem is, we lived in Phoenix that summer and going outside to play when it was 110 degrees wasn't too appealing.

 

[KML0224]

Speaking of which, didn't the Iran-Contra hearings of 1987 have a similar negative effect?

 

[dhett]

Not really. By then, I was too old to go out to play, but even so, I lived in western New York, so the temps weren't quite the problem.

 

[ercjncpr]

I seem to recall there was an uproar when CBS ran an I Love Lucy rerun one day instead of the Watergate hearing. The CBS president at the time ended up having to apologize. Anyone else know of that story?

You are one decade too late. It was about 1965-66 and the CBS News prexy was Fred Friendly (Ed Murrow's old partner) who eventually quit over the issue. The prempted hearings were about the Vietnam War.

 

[FreddyE1977]

I was very young during Watergate, but as I recall there was no daytime TV during that period....it was
all-John Dean-all-the-time.

 

[genius]

I seem to recall there was an uproar when CBS ran an I Love Lucy rerun one day instead of the Watergate hearing. The CBS president at the time ended up having to apologize. Anyone else know of that story?

You are one decade too late. It was about 1965-66 and the CBS News prexy was Fred Friendly (Ed Murrow's old partner) who eventually quit over the issue. The prempted hearings were about the Vietnam War.

Thanks for the correction!

 

[gr8oldies]

It was all Watergate all the time (I'm just an old country lawyer) at first, then it did go to rotating coverage. Not sure what became of Friday cliffhangers on the soaps (really wasn't into them) or game shows where there were celebrity panelists on a weekly basis. After the rotation, if there was major testimony all three networks carried it.

 

[Kurt Toy]

I recall looking forward to seeing "Match Game" when it debuted and KDKA-TV Pittsburgh, which at first ran it on delay [in a morning slot] announced that due to Watergate they were unable to show it, so channel 2 ran, of all things, "The Bobby Goldsboro Show". IIRC.