Reality Sets In on Fall TV Season

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If you thought reality TV couldn't get more real, think again. As the fall season starts up, there will be nearly 20 reality shows on the airwaves. NBC kicked off its season last night, but its new Thursday night lineup doesn't look anything like it did in the powerhouse days of must-see TV sitcoms like Friends. Last night's headliner was The Apprentice. What's happening with television? Is network TV's shift away from sitcoms a matter of economics or demographics? What impact are younger viewers having on programming? Why is cable the home for cutting edge comedy and provocative drama? Guest host Sara Terry speaks with journalists, media experts, and writers and producers for network and cable television. Making News: Hurricane Ivan Bears Down on Jamaica It's the mid-point of the Atlantic hurricane season, but the hurricanes keep on coming. Hurricane Ivan is tearing through the Caribbean, heading towards Florida, perhaps hitting US shores by Sunday. Meteorologists say the past nine years have been a record-breaking decade of hurricane activity. William Gray, who heads the Tropical Meteorology Project at Colorado State University, says we've been lucky until this year. Reporter's Notebook: How September 11 Changed Wall Street Three years after September 11, it's clear that the physical landscape of Wall Street isn't the only thing that's changed. In the wake of the disaster, Wall Street firms have done a lot of re-thinking about how to do business, from war games and evacuation drills to setting up new office space. Roy Smith, professor of finance at New York University, considers the psychological upheaval to the American financial community.
If you thought reality TV couldn't get more real, think again. As the fall season starts up, there will be nearly 20 reality shows on the airwaves. NBC kicked off its season last night, but its new Thursday night lineup doesn't look anything like it did in the powerhouse days of must-see TV sitcoms like Friends. Last night's headliner was The Apprentice. What's happening with television? Is network TV's shift away from sitcoms a matter of economics or demographics? What impact are younger viewers having on programming? Why is cable the home for cutting edge comedy and provocative drama? Guest host Sara Terry speaks with journalists, media experts, and writers and producers for network and cable television.
  • Making News: Hurricane Ivan Bears Down on Jamaica
    It's the mid-point of the Atlantic hurricane season, but the hurricanes keep on coming. Hurricane Ivan is tearing through the Caribbean, heading towards Florida, perhaps hitting US shores by Sunday. Meteorologists say the past nine years have been a record-breaking decade of hurricane activity. William Gray, who heads the Tropical Meteorology Project at Colorado State University, says we've been lucky until this year.
  • Reporter's Notebook: How September 11 Changed Wall Street
    Three years after September 11, it's clear that the physical landscape of Wall Street isn't the only thing that's changed. In the wake of the disaster, Wall Street firms have done a lot of re-thinking about how to do business, from war games and evacuation drills to setting up new office space. Roy Smith, professor of finance at New York University, considers the psychological upheaval to the American financial community.
Guest host Sara Terry is an award-winning writer and photographer, who has written for the Christian Science Monitor, the New York Times, Fast Company, Rolling Stone and the Boston Globe. Her current photo-documentary project is Aftermath: Bosnia's Long Road to Peace. Among the new reality shows discussed in this segment, the following most aroused the curiosity of our guests:
The Wire on HBO
Lost on ABC
The Rebel Billionaire on FOX
Rescue Me on FX

National Hurricane Center

Disney CEO Michael Eisner's resignation letter

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Wall Street

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Warren Olney