Perhaps Conan O’Brien’s show should move to the Internet. That’s where most of his audience lives, according to a story at Wall Street Journal. “TBS said that Mr. O’Brien continues to attract advertisers because he draws young viewers. According to TBS, the median age of his audience-32 years old-remains the youngest among the late-night talk shows. TBS also said that many of his viewers watch the show online, and don’t register in television ratings. His video segments and episodes on his website, teamcoco.com, surpass more than 1 million views each week.”
The TV ratings that WSJ is referring to are an abysmal 958,000 viewers in July, down from 2.4 million when “Conan” first debuted. Conan trails Leno, Fallon, Letterman, Stewart and Colbert. “Mr. O’Brien trails all major competitors on broadcast and cable during his 11 p.m. time slot. In certain weeks, he’s also fallen behind newer faces such as Chelsea Handler.”
TBS still stands behind their guy, supporting him by adding reruns of the popular sitcom, “The Big Bang Theory” on two nights of the week. Is this really support or the network just keeping their word on Conan’s 5-year contract with two seasons guaranteed? With George Lopez being canceled drawing just below 550,000 viewers, Conan’s reign may be coming to an end.
If Conan’s show is reaching one million views on the web, perhaps Conan can start a new trend of late night hosting on the Internet. If TBS doesn’t look to this option, in time, once Conan’s show is canceled, the red headed comedian may take it upon himself to go voluntarily. I’m sure this won’t be the last of Conan; he’s talented, smart and has somewhat of an audience. Going to the Internet could be beneficial in terms of costs and demand.