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Also by Bill Carter:

The War for Late Night, November 2010
Hardcover
Desperate Networks, May 2006
Hardcover
The Late Shift, March 1996
Paperback

DESPERATE NETWORKS
By: Bill Carter

Starring Katie Couric Les Moonves Simon Cowell Dan Rather Jeff Zucker Teri Hatcher Conan O'Brian Donald Trump and a Host of Other Movers and Shakers Who Changed the Face of Primetime TV

Doubleday
May 2006
384 pages
ISBN: 0385514409
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction

In a time of sweeping media change, the four major networks struggle for the attention of American viewers increasingly distracted by cable, video games, and the Internet. Behind boardroom doors, tempers flare in the search for hit shows, which often get on the air purely by accident.
The fierce competition creates a pressure-cooker environment where anything can happen...

NBC's fall from grace--Once the undisputed king of prime time, NBC plunged from first place to last place in the ratings in the course of a single season. What will be the price of that collapse--and who will pay it?

CBS's slow and steady race to the top--Unlike NBC, CBS, under the leadership of CEO, Leslie Moonves, engineered one of the most spectacular turnarounds in television history. But in this ruthless world, you're only as good as last week's ratings....

ABC's surprising resurrection--Lost and Desperate Housewives--have brought ABC the kind of success it could only dream of in the past. So why don't the executives responsible for those hits work there any more?

The End of the News As We Know It--In a stunningly short period of time, all three of the major network news anchors--Dan Rather, Tom Brokaw, and Peter Jennings--signed off, leaving executives scrambling for a way to keep network news relevant in an era of 24/7 information.

Crazy Like Fox--They're outrageous, unconventional, and occasionally off-putting, but more and more people are watching Fox shows. Most of all they keep watching American Idol. How did Simon Cowell snooker himself into a huge payday? Stay tuned...

Media Buzz

Entertainment Tonight - December 9, 2008
Imus in the Morning - May 18, 2006
Late Late Show - May 10, 2006
Inside Edition - May 4, 2006
Early Show - May 3, 2006
Imus in the Morning - May 3, 2006
Day To Day - May 3, 2006
Fresh Air - NPR - May 3, 2006
Today - May 2, 2006
Marketplace - PRI - May 2, 2006
Imus in the Morning - May 1, 2006