Why Is Every New Show Called Number One.
We see it all the time. When we’re watching our favorite morning news program before rushing out the door to work, or while flipping through the channels waiting for our favorite prime time drama to come on at night. A commercial will break in with a teaser for a brand new television series coming soon. The announcer in his deep booming voice, often says things like: “It’s the number one new prime time drama of the season”, “It’s being called the best new television series of the year,” “The number one show you won’t want to miss”, etc.
Why is every new show called number one? Could it be that one of the shows really is number one and the other networks are just telling a lie? Not likely. If a series has yet to be aired on television, it’s impossible for it to be officially rated “number one”, because it hasn’t been seen yet. Sure, it may have been shown to test groups to get an idea of its likability, but until it actually airs, there is no way to know what shows will rise to the top like cream from a freshly milked cow, and what shows will fall into the sad “Sea of Cancellation”.
The real reason every new show is called number one, is because networks want us to watch it, and they believe that if they tell us their show is number one, we’ll tune in. Why do they use this tactic? Because experience has taught them that people believe what they’re told when it comes from a television set. If you don’t agree, just look through your house and see how many items you have bought from an informercial, an “As Seen on TV” section of a store, or from a televised shopping network.