• by David Kaplan , April 15, 2005

If you want to know the age of someone who watches the comedy series "Everybody Loves Raymond," ask them whether they watch it on CBS or TBS, or even syndication.

In their upfront presentation Tuesday, TBS executives sought to highlight the appeal of the network to younger viewers by pointing out that people who enjoy laughing at the comic travails of family man Ray Romano on the cable channel are, on average, 10 years younger than the people who get enjoyment from watching the same exact show when it's on CBS.

The disparity surprised at least one top media buyer, who attributed it to the aggressive promotional stance of TBS to brand itself as "sitcom central" with younger viewers.

"I think it really demonstrates that we can't think of genres anymore to describe how networks try to reach viewers," said Mike Drexler, CEO of Optimedia USA. "TBS has turned the sitcom in a new direction. A show like 'Everybody Loves Raymond' can now attract individuals who are almost 10 years younger than the ones watching on CBS. Granted, cable has been trending younger for some time. But the exact same show? It just makes you instantly wonder, 'Why is that?'"

About two years ago, TBS began marketing itself as a destination for sitcoms. Last year, the network gave itself the confident tag "we know comedy." And it's paid off, especially for "Raymond." Since its July 5, 2004, launch on TBS, "Everybody Loves Raymond" has delivered an audience with a median age of 42.2, which is 8.1 years younger than the median age for the show on CBS (50.3) during the same period.

Answering his own question, Drexler has a few theories behind the older/younger dichotomy between the TBS "Raymond" and the CBS "Raymond."

"We know younger people are more attracted to cable channels than older people," he said. "And younger people do a lot more channel surfing. Is it that older people have settled in with CBS and are less willing to explore other channels? Maybe. Or is it that TBS is so strongly branded with comedy that it helps attract those younger viewers to a show that currently airs on network to an older audience? People tune in to TBS because they know what to expect. The networks have hung their hats for so many years on program scheduling, audience flow--and if that has a lot to do with how different demographics are realized from one show to another, that notion is virtually dead. It's dying with channel surfing, and once you get to TiVos, VODs, and DVRs, it's not going to mean anything."

Still, other media buyers, while noting TBS' prodigious efforts to shape itself into a comedy-audience cynosure, say it's the programming environment that makes more of a difference than a network's developing a singular brand identity.

"The big help to 'Raymond' on TBS is that it's sandwiched between 'Friends' and 'Seinfeld,'" said Laura Baruch, Entertainment Supervisor, Starcom Entertainment.

"I can assure you that if TBS surrounded 'Raymond' with shows like 'Green Acres' and 'The Andy Griffith Show,' that audience wouldn't skew younger than the one watching CBS," said Brad Adgate, senior vice president, director of research for Horizon Media.

The creation of comedy blocks at unusual hours also helps 'Raymond' when it's on in syndication, said Steve Sternberg, executive vice president, director of Audience Analysis for Magna Global USA.

"TBS has been successfully branding itself as a place for comedy, but 'Everybody Loves Raymond' is also seven years younger in syndication than on broadcast," Sternberg said. "CBS is older overall than TBS, so Raymond naturally skews younger on TBS than on CBS--the time of day it airs and competition also have some impact. Most older-skewing broadcast shows tend to skew younger on cable and syndication, while most younger-skewing broadcast shows tend to skew slightly older in syndication and cable."

The ubiquitous blocking of classic comedies makes it even more difficult for networks to attract viewers to its current comedies.

"What show is on now that can compete with institutions like 'Seinfeld' and 'Friends'?" Adgate said. "Shows like 'Arrested Development' and 'The Office' are critically acclaimed, but a successful show takes time to connect with audiences. Even 'Seinfeld' was not that popular when it first aired."

In some cases, the classic shows are all the networks have.

"I think the hope TBS has in airing these shows is to attract younger viewers, and hope they'll stay for their new offerings, which have not been faring very well lately," said Meghan Stutzman, senior entertainment supervisor, Starcom Entertainment.

In general, Stutzman and Baruch--along with their colleague Tom Weeks, Entertainment Director at Starcom Entertainment--all considered the original programs presented by TBS to be lackluster.

"We were not impressed with shows like Pauly Shore's 'Minding The Store' or the second season of 'The Real Gilligan's Island,'" Weeks said. "So it's a good thing they still have the older shows."