| Good afternoon from Los Angeles, wherever you may be. Sorry the newsletter has been inconsistent of late. I took the last couple weeks of the year off, and suffered a concussion on the fourth day of the new year. I'm semi-retiring from full-court basketball, and in dire need of tennis partners, if you know anyone. Let's start with the biggest story in TV the past couple weeks… "Jeopardy." A match-up between past jeopardy champions generated huge ratings for ABC. The four episodes of "Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time" averaged 14.6 million viewers. Only four prime time programs averaged more viewers in the entire 2018-2019 season (and one was football). While this particular installment of "Jeopardy" may be a one-off stunt, those stunts will be more and more common on TV going forward. TV networks make money by selling advertising, and charging pay-TV distributors to carry them. Networks' ability to extract more money depends on their ability to reach a lot of people. TV networks can no longer rely on scripted dramas and comedies to deliver the audiences they once did. More and more viewers are watching scripted shows online, and on-demand. And as streaming services offer hundreds of new shows, audiences for all entertainment programming will be more fragmented. Networks have still eked out gains in advertising because broadcast remains the best place for advertisers to reach a mass audience at the same time. More people tune in to "Young Sheldon" every week than bought tickets to see Elton John or the Los Angeles Lakers all of last year. But think about the biggest events. While "Dallas," "ER" and "Seinfeld" used to be the biggest shows on TV, they aren't anymore. That title goes to Football. Football. And more football. Facing this environment, broadcast networks are shifting to air more events that people have to watch live. That's why Fox bought the rights to "Thursday Night Football," "SmackDown" and the XFL. The network can devote two or three nights a week to live sports, programming that still draws a devoted audience. It can also rely on "The Masked Singer" because reality TV has proven more stable in the on-demand world. NBC has aired live musicals, while ABC has experimented with "Jeopardy" and restaging old sitcoms in front of a live audience. You can fully expect Disney to put the NFL on ABC under its next rights deal, both because the league wants it and because it will boost viewership of ABC. Broadcast TV used to be the home of the most popular (and iconic) TV shows in the U.S.. Every year that goes by, that is less and less the case. But these networks need not shrivel and die. They can adapt. – Lucas Shaw Comcast lets the bird fly  Photographer: Peacock Comcast unveiled Peacock, a new streaming service, at an investor day in New York. All of these services and investor events blend together, so I think the quickest way to explain Peacock is a brief Q&A. What shows will Peacock have? All things Dick Wolf ("Law & Order," "Chicago Fire"). Comedies ("The Office," "Saturday Night Live"). Originals (a "Battlestar Galactica" reboot). Sports, news and reality TV. How much will it cost? It's free. Oh so free. Comcast will offer hundreds of movies and TV shows at no cost. It will offer even more shows and movies if you pay $4.99 a month, and will offer all those programs without ads if you pay $9.99. Ads? What are those? While Disney, Netflix and HBO are all eschewing ads, Comcast says advertisements are key to its proposition. Offering a service without ads will allow the company to sell across broadcast TV, cable and streaming, competing with the biggest advertising companies in the world (Hi Facebook! Hi Google!). When is Peacock available? The service will become available for Comcast cable and internet customers in April, and to everyone else over the summer. What makes Peacock special? The price, really. Its offering of TV shows and movies won't be as deep as Netflix, Hulu or HBO Max. It won't have as many blockbusters as Disney+. It won't include rentals like Amazon. Peacock's premium service is also free to Comcast cable and internet customers, which is a key point. Comcast, the largest cable company in the U.S., doesn't actually want to accelerate the decline of cable. 'Bad Boys For Life'  Will Smith and Martin Lawrence star in Columbia Pictures' BAD BOYS FOR LIFE. The No. 1 movie in the world is "Bad Boys for Life." The third film in the action comedy franchise grossed an estimated $68 million in North America over the holiday weekend, and more than $100 million worldwide. I absolutely love "Bad Boys" movies and was very nervous when I saw Michael Bay did not return to direct them. But critics said this movie is even better than the previous two. (I am seeing it tomorrow.) "Dolittle" bombed. The $175 million film will limp to $30 million this weekend. The No. 1 album in the U.S. is Roddy Ricch's "Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial." The 21-year-old Compton rapper has the top song and album in the world's largest music market. The week that was - ``1917'' won the top prize at the Producers Guild Awards Saturday night. In the wake of its victory at the Golden Globes, the World War I film is now the frontrunner for the Oscars. Of the past 30 movies to win the top prize at the PGAs, 21 have won the Oscar for best picture.
- Oprah Winfrey withdrew her support for a documentary about rape allegations against Russell Simmons. Simmons had pressured her, according to a report in the New York Times.
- Spotify is in talks to buy The Ringer, the sports and pop culture site run by Bill Simmons.
- The Recording Academy placed President Deborah Dugan on leave just a week before the Grammy Awards. Dugan was brought in to replace Neil Portnow, who was criticized for comments dismissive of the lack of diversity among Grammy nominees and performers.
- iHeartMedia, the largest radio station owner in the U.S., fired hundreds of employees this week.
- Billie Eilish is singing the title song for the new James Bond movie.
- Netflix is making a big push into France, where it will make more than 20 original programs this year.
- Facebook cancelled two shows as it scales back its investment in scripted programming.
Weekly playlist Warner Bros. Records released a posthumous album from Mac Miller. Fans love it. Critics love it. I love it. Happy long weekend. | 
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