Its a holiday, so I feel like departing from my routine content. Before you read any further, answer this question: “Do you ‘get’ Jimmy Fallon?” If you said “No, I think his show sucks” then skip this post. If you have seen it and at the very least are intrigued by its format and content, read on.
WIRED magazine has an article this month entitled “
Jimmy Fallon is Out of Beta”
http://tinyurl.com/qrd2q6 In it the author discusses Fallon’s decision to design the show around technology, pop culture, and very hip music. It turned out to be a brilliant move.
Say what you will about Jimmy Fallon, his new Late Night Show defined the term “stroke of genius” when they decided to focus many guests and activities on the Web 2.0 tools; actively use the web to define their voice and create exclusive content as a way of building buzz; and sign The Roots as their house band. These seemingly simple things strike right at the heart of their target demographic, and constitute a brilliant marketing move.
Change in our day-to-day lives often occurs incrementally. Only by looking back can we understand how we got here. Advances in technology and how it has diametrically changed our lives is a perfect example. Mainstream media outlets (like the broadcast networks) like to think they are hip and edgy, but in reality are anything but. I applaud LNwJFS as a show that has changed the platform significantly, and is addressing the interests of its core audience more openly than any other current show. Those of us not in its core audience (like 61 year old farts who think they are hip) can come along for the ride and have a little fun along the way.
And, oh by the way…before you think that I stay up to watch LNwJFS every night at 12:35am, you are forgetting another technological advance: TiVo. I have yet to miss a single program since he began in March, and have yet to see it “live.”
Don’t read this post as a love letter to Jimmy Fallon…far from it; he is sometimes teeth-grindingly awkward. But do think about how he and his producers have tweaked the content and the format of the show to appeal not only to celebrity watchers, but have also uncovered a key to get the techno geeks among us to step away from the keyboard and turn on the box (or at least watch it online).
Will there be others who break from the ironclad traditions of network broadcasting and find a different voice (and pitch)? It’ll be interesting to see…
“Life can only be understood backward, but it must be lived forward.” --- Kierkegaard