Why do game shows skew so old?

[cmjb13]

Always wondered this.

Maybe because it's it's a simple game to follow?

[SplitSecond]

My theory is that, as people get older, they rely less on their own experiences for entertainment - because of increasing financial and/or physical constraints - and rely more and more on vicarious entertainment.  And what is a good game show if not vicarious entertainment?

[CaseyAbell]

Well, yeah, but you could make the "vicarious entertainment" argument about lots of other kinds of programming.

My guess is it's...DA RULES. You know, all those persnickety rules and regs about how you wait your turn and play the game and win the prizes. Younger viewers might get impatient with those irritating do's and don'ts. Don't hit the buzzer before Alex finishes, do phrase your answer in the form of a question...it's almost like your parents nagging you.

Sure, there are rules on a lot of the reality shows, which don't skew old. But there's lots of backbiting and whining and rebelling against the rules as well. You don't see that on Jeopardy, where everybody plays by...DA RULES.

By the time viewers get to where I am, the downslope after fifty, the rules don't look so irritating. They're just necessary to enjoy the game. They actually seem comfortable, make the game a more consistent experience.

Aw, who knows?

[SplitSecond]

[quote name=\'CaseyAbell\' date=\'Aug 4 2004, 05:13 AM\'] Well, yeah, but you could make the "vicarious entertainment" argument about lots of other kinds of programming. [/quote]
 Right, but would you, as a 72-year-old, rather be imagining yourself as the guy in the Hot Seat who just won a million dollars for answering a mere 15 questions, or the guy who has to happen upon a dead body on a weekly basis and make a snarky comment before the opening titles?

[Chelsea Thrasher]

Of course, consider that Nielsen doesn't measure the viewership in college dorms, where there are QUITE frequently GS' on a number of televisions (Especially Price, but also other shows to a lesser extent)

[CaseyAbell]

Matter of personal preference, but I'd rather have the million than the dead body. But you could probably say that about most 29-year-olds, too.

Game shows require you to accept confines, limits, things you can and cannot do. It's an oddly conservative form of entertainment, not in the narrow political sense, but in the general sense that the format is set down and we have to follow the rules. Even on shows like Dog Eat Dog and Street Smarts, which actually try to appeal to younger viewers, the rules are always with us and there are penalties for not meeting the requirements.

Man, this is getting so deep I have to hold my nose. Anyhoo, that heavily structured format probably appeals to older folks who don't mind order and consistency. But it's exactly the kind of thing that younger viewers tend to rebel against.

Sure, you could say that there's nothing more formatted than MTV. But superficially, those young-skewing programmers try to make their stuff look rebellious and rule-breaking and, I don't know, unconfined.

Aw, like I said before, who knows?

[SplitSecond]

I believe that your point is equally as valid as mine.  I still assert, however, that my point is a valid one.

For a good, fictional (if disturbing) illustration, go rent "Requiem for a Dream".

[Shredder]

I dunno why, but the commercials for Wheel chairs, Alex Trebek insurance, and good old Whinferd Brimley get really tiring after the 5th time that week .  That's why when I do feel like watching Price these days, I usually tape it.

If they look at the audience of price, it's mostly people in their 30's.  You'd think they'd skew the commercials to fit those people..

[Jimmy Owen]

My thought is that the measurable available audience for daytime TV now is limited to those at home not in the workplace.  There are no housewives anymore and most of the women I work with have their VCRs running to catch the soaps and are usually loyal to just one network's soaps.  They don't bother to tape TPIR, but they'll watch it for five or ten minutes if it's on in the break room.

[uncamark]

The thing is that it's always been that way, but that people weren't that concerned about it until the last decade or so.

It always seems that the most loyal audiences among game shows were kids and the elderly, which is why game show ratings always went up during the summer when the kids were out of school.  (And that's also why Nickelodeon did "Double Dare" in the first place--all of their research showed that their audience would eat a game show up.)

And even in an era where networks were less concerned about young demos, the G-T old standbys were all dropped from CBS in 1967 for attracting mostly-elderly audiences (and yes, smaller audiences than at their peak).  Similar factors (and the Prime Access Rule) sent CBS' rural shows packing in 1971 (but we all know what the Prime Access Rule did for "Hee Haw" and game shows).

What kept game shows on were their low cost--when the cheaper-to-produce relationship talk shows came along in the early 90s and attracted younger demos, game shows were on the ropes and haven't really gotten back to the center of the ring yet, "WWTBAM" notwithstanding.

[BrandonFG]

[quote name=\'uncamark\' date=\'Aug 4 2004, 11:32 AM\'] What kept game shows on were their low cost--when the cheaper-to-produce relationship talk shows came along in the early 90s and attracted younger demos, game shows were on the ropes and haven't really gotten back to the center of the ring yet, "WWTBAM" notwithstanding. [/quote]
 But with trashy talk shows dying out (Springer has one more season, then it's just Maury), does this give game shows a better chance of getting back to the "center?" Or do they now have to get through the makeover shows?

[tyshaun1]

[quote name=\'fostergray82\' date=\'Aug 4 2004, 11:48 AM\'] [But with trashy talk shows dying out (Springer has one more season, then it's just Maury), does this give game shows a better chance of getting back to the "center?" Or do they now have to get through the makeover shows? [/quote]
 Well, there's the makeover shows (Starting Over), the Dr. Phil ripoff (Pat Croce), the View clone (Life & Style), the Ellen copy (Tony Danza), the Oprah wannabe (Jane Pauley), and then all the reality shows. IOW, game shows stll have a ways to go. The problem is not the ratings, it's demographics, witness Blind Date's lousy ratings hovering around a 1.5 for the past couple of years, but most of the that is in the "desirable" demos, whereas Pyramid pulls a 2.4 but gets canned because of its lousy demos, and the fact that Sony had "Life & Style" in the wings which they obviously feel will pull good demos.
Does anyone remember when actual ratings mattered?!

Tyshaun

[Jimmy Owen]

Overall great ratings is somewhat like having a store that is packed with browsers.