CBC in a Coma

jPod has been sacrificed on the alter of TV ratings, as the CBC ignores the rest of its cultural mandate to "tell compelling, original, audacious and entertaining Canadian stories in a way that Canadians want to watch."

Based on Canadian author Douglas Coupland's work of the same name, jPod took place in Vancouver and was produced by a Canadian crew. With grow-ops, video game productions, Hollywood North and gangs (both Asian and biker) it was certainly telling an original and audacious Canadian story. Whether it was entertaining is a matter of taste (I'd say it was), but the numbers weren't to the network's liking, so down came the axe.

So what should that number be? A couple of years ago CBC TV Executive Vice-President Richard Stursberg suggested the network would need to attract audiences of a million for drama or comedy programs, which is a high bar for the CBC. Only the Rick Mercer Report and Little Mosque on the Prairie crossed that barrier during the latest ratings periods.

The CBC is also trying to attract a younger audience to replace its aging demographic, which led to a slate of youth-skewing launches this January, which included The Border, jPod, MVP: The Secret Lives of Hockey Wives and Sophie. The Border has been renewed with an average audience of 700,000, as has Sophie which had 389,000 viewers in the most recent ratings (though that was reported as a lower-than-usual number).

The ratings for jPod ranged from 159,000 to 312,000 (it is hard to find average Canadian TV ratings), so it was obviously not a hit, but is that the business that the CBC should be in? Clearly they shouldn't be losing money, but if the mandate is telling Canadian stories and reeling in younger viewers, shouldn't it get more then 10 episodes before being put out to pasture?

TV writer Denis McGrath over at Dead Things on Sticks argues that the CBC needs to adjust its expectations and be happier with smaller numbers, especially if it is the right audience. TV critic Bill Brioux over at TV Feeds My Family says he liked the show but it's just business, and that's a good thing.

For my part, my wife and I never missed an episode and I heard people talking about jPod at work, one of the few times I'd ever heard people talking about CBC TV, outside of the news, hockey or Rick Mercer.

I just don't know what is going on over there — perhaps they ought to put the radio people in charge.