‘The Tonight Show’ Offers Some Sound Programming Advice

I’ve been a regular viewer of NBC’s late night “The Tonight Show” since the days of Johnny Carson. The show has endured only three host changes, with Jay Leno, Conan O’Brien for a short time, and now, Jimmy Fallon. If you look back, you can see that the producers had a knack for tailoring the show for the specific host. Each iteration had a slightly different personality, but with the same brand message throughout – FUN!

This all moved along quite nicely through the years until 2020, when that monster known as the pandemic showed up and everything changed. Late night television became one big Zoom, for the most part. No sets, no band playing, no live in-studio guests … as a matter of fact, no in-studio, period.

Hosts like Fallon had to conform to the situation and, although he did that fairly well, some had noticed that the show, and Jimmy, seemed a bit too serious coming out of the pandemic, and “The Tonight Show’s” ratings were dipping. Lots more political humor than before, and the absence of those fun games that had become Jimmy’s signature.

Then, in stepped a producer/showrunner by the name of Chris Miller, whose previous experience was spent working for 20-plus years with Drew Barrymore’s production team alongside Fallon’s wife. No accident that he was brought in, and you’ll see why.

I was noticing a distinct difference in the show this past September, not knowing anything about any changes until I came across a mid-December article in Variety magazine about Miller and his influence on the show. The piece is a literal clinic on how to reimagine a once very successful franchise. The process, detailed below, has four definite parallels for any radio station experiencing the same issues affecting a ratings decline.

1. Identify Your Most Critical Issues
   - For “The Tonight Show,” it was the effects of the pandemic. Viewers were fatigued on politics, COVID, etc., and were looking for some pure fun. For your station, it could be a new competitor or a ratings-challenged morning show, among others.
2. Create A Specific Plan For Your Goal
   - For Chris Miller, it was bringing fun back into the show and letting his host, Jimmy Fallon, BE Jimmy Fallon (as he states in the article).
   1. Formulation of a Game Camp – An eight-week off site to create new contesting for the show
   2. Bring in a key group of creative people to help lead the way (a new guest booker and two new comedy writers)
   3. Examine what worked in the past and enhance it
3. Make Your Key Talent A Part Of The Creative Process
   1. Miller involved Fallon in the formulation of show benchmarks, combined with what worked pre-pandemic, to find some fresh bits and contest segments.
   2. Use anything that can ensure the success of the talent, in this case, letting “Jimmy Be Jimmy.” How many times have show decisions been made without the input of the actual talent? This is critical.
4. Involve Your Entire Staff In The Creative Process
   1. Game Camp was an exercise with the whole staff. All were brainstorming new benchmarks for the show.
   2. Making sure the staff buys into the changes from the talent on down. Staff involvement is the other critical element, not just to carry out the plan, but to help formulate and develop it.

This entire process is a lesson for programmers in leadership, as Miller joined with his staff to create the new look and feel of the show; coaching as he worked with Fallon to bring more of his own self out in every show segment; and creativity in finding those new bits for the show that enhanced the brand message.

Some of the new look and feel of the show includes the active nightly participation of a Roots band member with Jimmy, occasional music “residencies,” as in the most recent one with Bruce Springsteen, and more participation in contesting and fun bits with show celebrity guests (see “Best Friends Challenge” and “The Whisper Challenge”).

Watch the show and you’ll see it all. Read the article (here), and save it.

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