News
Netflix is rebuilding its cable package, but there’s one notable topic it’s avoiding
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A sign is posted in front of Netflix headquarters on April 20, 2022, in Los Gatos, California. The streaming giant has shown little to no interest in investing in live news or pre-recorded programming.
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CNN New York –
Netflix is rebuilding the cable TV package without one important ingredient: news.
The company, which exploded the decades-old linear television business and ushered in the costly and destabilizing era of streaming, is getting closer to resembling the entertainment giants of the past.
Netflix has added ads to its plans, a move it initially resisted for several years, promoting more than 40 million subscribers to the ad-supported tier as of Wednesday. It has added late-night live comedy, most recently with Tom Brady and John Mulaney’s version of “Everybody’s In LA.” And it has made great strides in the live sports arena, despite public statements saying it doesn’t want to go too far. such waters.
On Wednesday, the streaming giant announced that it had struck a groundbreaking deal with the NFL to stream not one, but two games on Christmas Day this year. These games add to the company’s growing portfolio of live sports offerings, including WWE “Raw,” which will stream exclusively on the platform starting next year.
“Last year, we decided to make a big bet on live streaming – tapping into big fans of comedy, reality TV, sports and more,” said Bela Bajaria, Netflix’s chief content officer, in a statement explaining the decision.
Notably absent from Bajaria’s statement and the company’s programming strategy, however, is the news. Netflix has shown little to no interest in investing in live news or pre-recorded programming (such as a show similar to “Vice News Tonight” or “60 Minutes”). To date, it has not publicly discussed or launched any such projects. And in conversations with talent agents, it became clear that the streamer has no interest in even getting involved in the news business.
“Entertainment platforms aren’t interested in news,” one talent agent told me, speaking on condition of anonymity. “Their audience doesn’t want that and that can be polarizing. It’s just not worth it to them.”
By actively avoiding the news, Netflix joins Meta as a pioneering technology and media company that has revolutionized the business models that news organizations have relied on for decades, only to turn their backs on the industry.
To be fair to these companies, there are many business reasons to avoid engaging with the news. First, news simply isn’t as popular as entertainment content. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly for these companies, the news has become incredibly polarizing in recent years.
The simple assertion that the 2020 presidential election was not stolen – a proven fact – alienates Republicans. This polarizing factor means that not only is it harder to sell ads around content, but that when running such programming there is a chance that a portion of the customer base will be turned off by the brand and motivated to unsubscribe.
Which means that Netflix’s investment in news programming would translate into spending money on content that is not as popular as other genres, but much riskier for the business overall. From a purely business point of view, it makes sense to avoid this type of programming.
Of course, the counterargument is that these companies may have a civic responsibility to invest in news and public affairs programs – especially since they have greatly contributed to the destruction of the business model that has supported television newsrooms for so long. Journalists are crucial to prosperous democracies, and the hollowing out of the news industry has vast implications for the future of the free world.
It is nothing unheard of for large media companies to invest money in journalism. Warner Bros. Discovery has CNN. Comcast has news from NBC. Disney has ABC News. Paramount has CBS News. The list goes on. And, at a time when cable was ascendant and disruptive, as Netflix is today, the major operators financed the birth of C-SPAN, offering the public a continuous feed of their government in action. So is it really out of the question to ask whether a streamer like Netflix should consider a similar move to offer news programming that informs and enriches its audience?
Rebuilding the traditional cable TV package without new features is the same as putting together a meal that includes steak, potatoes and ice cream, but no broccoli. Vegetables may not be the tastiest or most popular items on the menu, but neglecting them would not be healthy. Likewise, investing only in comedy and sports may be more satisfying for your audience, but it is certainly not a healthy choice for society.
This is the destination, however, where current decisions are leading. And as the streaming revolution continues to take the wind out of the traditional cable TV package by stealing the rights to live sports, the once-towering television news channels will shrink even further, making the situation even more dire.