A play on words

In May 1961 Newton Minow, then chair of the Federal Communications Commission, delivered a speech called "Television and the Public Interest." He hoped it would be remembered for the reference to the "public interest," but it has been remembered in the years since for something else:

"When television is good, nothing — not the theater, not the magazines or newspapers — nothing is better.

But when television is bad, nothing is worse. I invite you to sit down in front of your television set when your station goes on the air and stay there, for a day, without a book, without a magazine, without a newspaper, without a profit and loss sheet or a rating book to distract you. Keep your eyes glued to that set until the station signs off. I can assure you that what you will observe is a vast wasteland.

You will see a procession of game shows, formula comedies about totally unbelievable families, blood and thunder, mayhem, violence, sadism, murder, western bad men, western good men, private eyes, gangsters, more violence, and cartoons. And endlessly commercials — many screaming, cajoling, and offending. And most of all, boredom. True, you'll see a few things you will enjoy. But they will be very, very few. And if you think I exaggerate, I only ask you to try it."

The memorable phrase, of course, was "a vast wasteland," an assessment that outraged any number of television professionals (remember that the ill-fated boat in Gilligan's Island was named for Minow) but accepted as reality by many Americans.

And so it remains. The cynical estimate is that 90% of everything is crud, and that may be right . . . But then there's that 10%. And today, if we choose, we have all that to work with. And that turns out to be quite a lot - a vast greatland, to reword Minow.

Not so long long ago, television viewing was a one-shot experience. Producers of TV programs in the 50s and 60s had to assume that their shows would be seen once, maybe twice with a seasonal rerun, but after that never again. Even syndication was marginal until the 70s kicked in, and allowed for rewatching only a few programs. (Cases such as the original Star Trek, which may have been groundbreaking in television industry terms, were the exception.)

Then came television viewing on cassette tapes, on VHS - a popular way to record and rewatch programs. It was still clunky and cumbersome, but with DVD video and then streaming, television turned a corner. Not long ago, television was drivine wholly by the audience (and advertising charges) driving by numbers on one night of airing. That very "short-tail" approach has been turned into something "long tail."

Today, most of what's "on television" - meaning airing live on broadcast or cable - is still crud (by my estimates at least). But we have now two enormous advantages.

One is production by TV pros who recognize that their programming, if it has any large appeal, stands a chance of being watched and enjoyed by many people for many years to come. The quality of the best of television has shot through the roof; most of the best series ever produced have emerged in this new century.

The other is that streaming and discs have given us easy access to nearly a complete library of the best television has ever produced.

This blog is about the best dramatic programming available to viewers now. At our house, we never have to ask "what's good on TV tonight?" - only to come up empty. Instead, our TV watching is a matter of sifting through the best of what's out there. And the best is very good indeed.

A NOTE Yes, dramatic programs only, in this blog. Maybe we'll get to other forms (comedy, documentary and others) later, elsewhere. I'll let you know.