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Post by arthuradams2002 on Jan 17, 2011 0:56:30 GMT -5
Did the whole PG era come about because of the Beniot incident ?
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Post by Curt Hawkins Fan on Jan 17, 2011 0:57:38 GMT -5
That, and Linda's Senate campaign.
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Post by arthuradams2002 on Jan 17, 2011 0:58:42 GMT -5
But I think the Beniot incident was the main driving force. They took a huge blow from it and really needed to clean up their image with the mainstream media.
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Post by cool guy on Jan 17, 2011 0:58:42 GMT -5
I doubt it.
Linda's campaign was pretty much it, that and them realizing that appealing to kids was a good idea, business wise.
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riseofsetian1981
King Koopa
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Post by riseofsetian1981 on Jan 17, 2011 0:58:57 GMT -5
It wasn't the sole reason for it, however, the Benoit incident played a huge role into the WWE going into the PG direction. Add in Linda's political campaign, the WWE's deal with Mattel, and of course soccer moms wanting a more family friendly show are part of it as well.
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Thrillho
Dennis Stamp
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Post by Thrillho on Jan 17, 2011 1:07:29 GMT -5
I think it was more to do with ticket sales dropping due to fans either growing up and wanting more than just blood and tits, or just not watching anymore. And they weren't bringing new fans in with the crude, "edgy"* style that they were using from 2002-2007. I'm guessing that switching to a more universally suitable approach was a definite plus after all the bad press that WWE were getting after Summer '07, although I think they would have went PG even if Benoit was still with us today.
*Proboards don't allow quotation marks big enough to go around the word "edgy" when describing WWE during the majority of the last decade.
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Post by celticjobber on Jan 17, 2011 1:09:07 GMT -5
I think WWE's contract with Mattel toys is the main reason for the PG rating. It's a huge money deal for the company, and Mattel insists WWE keeps its tv shows kid-friendly.
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Jimmy
Grimlock
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Post by Jimmy on Jan 17, 2011 1:09:44 GMT -5
I think it was more to do with ticket sales dropping due to fans either growing up and wanting more than just blood and tits, or just not watching anymore. And they weren't bringing new fans in with the crude, "edgy"* style that they were using from 2002-2007. I'm guessing that switching to a more universally suitable approach was a definite plus after all the bad press that WWE were getting after Summer '07, although I think they would have went PG even if Benoit was still with us today. *Proboards don't allow quotation marks big enough to go around the word "edgy" when describing WWE during the majority of the last decade.Actually they were doing good business in 07 and the beginning of 08 until things started to go south in the spring/early summer of 08. Then they officially switched to PG and buyrates just bottomed out. |
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Post by arthuradams2002 on Jan 17, 2011 1:09:45 GMT -5
I still watch wrestling, but the inconvenient truth is that a lot of people stop watching wrestling after a certain age, like they do with cartoons.
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Post by Sponsored by Groose Wipes on Jan 17, 2011 1:19:17 GMT -5
I think they noticed a good bit of the fanbase today that watches WWE is in the ages of 13-18ish.
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Post by celticjobber on Jan 17, 2011 1:21:58 GMT -5
I think they noticed a good bit of the fanbase today that watches WWE is in the ages of 13-18ish. Actually, the WWE TV viewing audience is getting older than ever. In 2009, the average viewer's age was 37-40. In 2000 it was 24-25. |
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Post by Summerfest on Jan 17, 2011 1:32:35 GMT -5
Soon they'll have guys feuding because one was on the other's lawn.
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Post by Jacob Lee on Jan 17, 2011 2:33:19 GMT -5
PG content can attract a larger advertising base which is quite important given the reputation of wrestling. The Benoit murders and Linda running for public office had very little to do with it. It was actually a pretty smart move on WWE's part given the state of the economy at the time.
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riseofsetian1981
King Koopa
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Post by riseofsetian1981 on Jan 17, 2011 2:34:48 GMT -5
Soon they'll have guys feuding because one was on the other's lawn. HA! ;D Although I'd watch it just out of morbid curiousity. But your post made me laugh so loud that my cat looked at me like I lost my mind.  |
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riseofsetian1981
King Koopa
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Post by riseofsetian1981 on Jan 17, 2011 2:36:14 GMT -5
PG content can attract a larger advertising base which is quite important given the reputation of wrestling. The Benoit murders and Linda running for public office had very little to do with it. It was actually a pretty smart move on WWE's part given the state of the economy at the time. How so? I don't think the economy would've hurt the attendance if the show remained TV14. I've always felt that people want escapism and I just feel the TVPG was done for Linda, Mattel, and what happened with Benoit just laid the groundwork for it. |
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Raging_Demons
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Post by Raging_Demons on Jan 17, 2011 2:41:18 GMT -5
Well some of it what was mentioned on the thread are probable causes but there are other causes. Since WWE loves to call themselves an "entertainment company" the legitimate entertainment companies, like Universal or CBS, prefer that most of their movies or TV shows should be around the G-PG 13 area in recent years because that will get the family out to watch them & spend money. More people to spend money, more profit. WWE saw that business model & took advantage of it. Also if you believe "Kal-El" a.k.a. John Cena, Cena's taking credit for pushing Vinnie Mac for making WWE more PG. www.wrestlezone.com/news/article/cena-talks-vince-into-pg-rating-for-wwe-beef-with-orton-83595 |
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Post by Jacob Lee on Jan 17, 2011 2:45:51 GMT -5
PG content can attract a larger advertising base which is quite important given the reputation of wrestling. The Benoit murders and Linda running for public office had very little to do with it. It was actually a pretty smart move on WWE's part given the state of the economy at the time. How so? I don't think the economy would've hurt the attendance if the show remained TV14. I've always felt that people want escapism and I just feel the TVPG was done for Linda, Mattel, and what happened with Benoit just laid the groundwork for it. We love wrestling. The world hates wrestling for the most part and it has a horrible reputation. By moving their product to PG they are able to diversify the people who pay to air a commercial during their block. I believe Impact is the opposite where Spike pays them for the show, but Raw needs advertisers who pay and pay very well. You'll notice that now they have some pretty big name sponsorships during the show in comparison to five years ago. Every little bit of income is going to help when you just know attendance and buys are going to be down across the board. |
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The OP
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Post by The OP on Jan 17, 2011 2:52:26 GMT -5
I think it was a smart business decision to sort of go back to basics with it, and I think it's really helped the product. They had run out of ways to "go too far", and I don't think booking edgier material is their strong suit anyway. I'd give a lot more credit for the success of Attitude Era WWE to the talent and vision of wrestlers like Steve Austin or Mick Foley than to any of the booking during that time, with the exception of the Austin/McMahon program. I think they do much better programs when they have some restrictions, because they can't go the cheap route with bra and panties matches and stuff like that. It forces them to put more focus on actual matches and angles.
Lastly I'll just say that I don't think that what happened with the Benoit family led directly to PG but it definitely shook Vince up and seemed to kind of make him want to be good. I guess it could've contributed to the wind starting to blow in that direction.
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Post by Citizen Zero on Jan 17, 2011 3:13:42 GMT -5
The PG rating honestly doesn't bother me that much.
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Post by maxheadroom on Jan 17, 2011 3:28:34 GMT -5
The Nexus debut beatdown was more edgy than anything since 2002
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