’30 Rock’ reunion special won’t air on many NBC stations

What started as an additional dip in the Television nostalgia pool has ended up creating waves for NBC as most of its independently owned affiliates are pledging not to air Thursday night’s “30 Rock” reunion.

The prime-time reunion, made by and starring the group at the rear of the first NBC comedy mainstay, including Tina Fey, is scheduled to air Thursday night time at eight p.m. ET/PT. It will be in major U.S. marketplaces by means of the NBC owned stations and built offered throughout other platforms.

The information was to start with documented by Vulture and verified to Deadline by various resources with understanding of the problem. Stations owned by Nexstar, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Tegna, Grey Tv and other firms have all pledged not to air the display, resources said, although not a hundred% of their stations are element of the pullout. Area station officers, of course, usually have the choice of regardless of whether or not to air what the nationwide network is feeding them. From time to time, they refuse centered on their sense of what is in the finest fascination of their stations and the viewers they provide.

The conceit of Thursday’s episode from the beginning was that it would double as a auto for the network’s upfront messages even though also capitalizing on the modern flurry of reunions. In put of the NBCU extravaganza at Radio Metropolis Music Hall, which was scrubbed this 12 months because of to COVID-19, the prepare was hatched to use “30 Rock” to spotlight options for advertisers throughout NBCU. The network is also convening an on line “creativity summit” on Thursday. That event will attribute an advance screening of the reunion for media customers and push, so a person insider described any prime-time viewing of the display in prime time by lovers or normal audiences as a “bonus.”

Outside of the standard linear options for advertisers, NBCU is keen to encourage Peacock, the advert-supported streaming provider whose nationwide debut is Wednesday. It will make the “30 Rock” reunion offered on Friday. Peacock has rubbed lots of affiliates the completely wrong way for months given its prepare to stream late-night time reveals in primetime on the East Coastline and also have massive-ticket sports activities functions like an NFL playoff video game.

For lots of affiliates, the prospect of airing a comprehensive hour of advertising for not only NBCU cable networks like Syfy and United states of america but also for Peacock was unappealing. The actuality that the hour is also promoting-cost-free, amid a steep drop in advert paying hitting nearby broadcasters through COVID-19, also proved a offer-breaker for lots of affiliates.

NBC, meanwhile, is also in an unparalleled bind because of to the coronavirus, with its upfront stock nonetheless not completely offered and programming ideas in flux because of to the surge in infections in modern months. All broadcast networks commonly lock in as considerably as a person-3rd of their comprehensive year’s worthy of of advert revenue in the springtime, a process punctuated by lavish presentations held in New York in May well. This year’s pageant has gone by the boards, together with considerably else in society, placing strain on networks to provide. Most advert marketplace and Wall Avenue analysts be expecting network advert revenue to tumble any place from five% to ten% in 2020 when compared with 2019.

Associates of several of the station groups attained by Deadline declined to comment. NBC also did not weigh in on the problem.