David Zaslav To Kill Another Legacy Network At Warner Brothers Discovery

By Andrew Sanford | TV | August 5, 2024 |

By Andrew Sanford | TV | August 5, 2024 |

There are generations of people who were raised on re-runs. Instead of endless choice, these folks watched things because they were on. They parked in front of their televisions and were treated to programs twenty, thirty, and even forty years old. If consumed correctly, it gave these observers reference points for bygone eras. They learned how to communicate with people older than them. New favorites were discovered simply by being open to whatever came on next.

Now, people are bombarded with choices. They are overwhelmed with content, some of which was thrown together simply to make said people overwhelmed. There’s less of a focus on the past. Instead, streaming services have taken to shoving the next shiny new thing under people’s noses, only to replace it with another new shiny thing again and again. It has made viewing things less about appreciation and more about consumption.

The old ways weren’t perfect. I can understand the lack of choice being a turn-off. There is also something to be said for who was curating the shows and movies that were on TV. It wasn’t guaranteed that the people in charge had diverse backgrounds, so the content displayed wasn’t always that diverse. I mean, a perfect example of someone who wanted to share a specific love with the masses was Ted Turner. He was a straight, white billionaire, and he loved cartoons.

There’s no such thing as a perfect billionaire. You don’t acquire that level of wealth without doing some nefarious deeds. Regardless, Turner would often be my benchmark for a rich guy that I like. The main reason? In the early ’90s, Turner purchased Hanna-Barbera studios, famous for such classic cartoons as The Jetsons, The Flinstones, and Scooby-Doo Where Are You? He then created a network to ensure those cartoons could be shown to new generations.

Turner launched the Cartoon Network, which began by airing the catalogs he had purchased, and eventually began airing original content. It was a smash success and original shows quickly began to air on the network as well. As more original programming began to air, Cartoon Network was eventually splintered into two. Boomerang was born. It was essentially a TV Land for animated series, showing older cartoons to a new audience. Now, Boomerang is staring down its final days.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Warner Brothers Discovery will be shuttering Boomerang on September 30th. Some of the programming will migrate over to Max at a discounted price. How long that will last is anyone’s guess. Shows and movies are removed from Max at the drop of an ill-fitting hat. This is the latest in the effort to gut the famed company of its assets to appease shareholders (or some such soulless nonsense). It’s safe to assume that it has David Zaslav’s caviar-covered fingers all over it.

Zaslav is the CEO of Warner Brothers Discovery and has the artistic integrity of a villain in an ’80s movie. He has already throttled Turner Classic Movies and Cartoon Network, shelved movies for tax purposes, and dressed like there aren’t any lightbulbs or mirrors in his house. I’m sure that someone will tell me something bad about Ted Turner in the comments, but I can guarantee it won’t hold a candle to the shameless, naked greed of David Zaslav.