CBS is serious about tackling broadcast TV's summer problem, and to prove it, the network is hauling out two big names: Steven Spielberg and Stephen King.
The Steves are behind the upcoming 13-episode CBS summer series Under the Dome, based on King's best-selling thriller about a New England town that becomes sealed off from the rest of the world.
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A few quick thoughts about tonight's TV playlist:
You know the Obama campaign has to be counting on the youth demographic to once again "rock the vote," as they used to say, so the timing is curious for MTV's annual Video Music Awards extravaganza from L.A.'s Staples Center to encroach on the climactic night of the Democratic National Convention from Charlotte, where President Obama's speech is the main event.
Maybe there will be cutaways? At any rate...
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If the stars and negotiations align, Modern Family should continue as planned.
"I expect the season to start on time," ABC chief Paul Lee told reporters at the Television Critics Association fall TV previews on Friday. "We're in the middle of negotiations. We're hopeful and optimistic to resolve it."
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ABC has renewed Rookie Blue for a fourth season, the network announced on Tuesday.
Season 3 of the cop drama, which stars Missy Peregrym and Gregory Smith, premiered to 6 million viewers last month. Its most recent telecast garnered 5. 5 million viewers.
Check out photos from Rookie Blue
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A few years ago, the broadcast networks finally woke up from their summer slumber and realized they'd ceded too much ground during the warmer months. Cable was winning the battle for the hearts and eyes of summer TV viewers by offering heavily promoted scripted fare — and the networks were mostly in rerun hell. "People got used to going away from the broadcasters in the summer," says The CW president Mark Pedowitz. "Now you're dealing with viewing patterns and trying to change them."
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