TNT Turns to Fan Quotes to Promote "Dark Blue"

TNT is trying something new in spots for one of its freshman dramas – and it has to stop!

I’m talking about the network’s new adventure in on-air promotion: Running excited quotes from viewers during commercials for its grim undercover detective series Dark Blue. I’ve noticed this twice now, both times while watching episodes of its super sophomore action-adventure Leverage. Right there in the middle of commercial pods are promos for Dark Blue filled with quotes that appear to be taken from reviews by professional television critics. But a closer look – and also a listen – reveals that these are actually comments made by viewers about the show.

I understand that rave reviews for Dark Blue have been few and far between. In my humble opinion the show got what it deserved, at least back at the beginning. The pilot was nothing special and the second episode was just plain dumb. I’m told it has improved over time, but that’s no excuse to mislead viewers, advertisers and anyone else who might be interested into thinking that critics are heaping praise on this program.

Some might say the term “mislead” is too strong. After all, an announcer declares at the top of one spot, “Viewers Can’t Get Enough of Dark Blue!” and cheers at the top of another, “Viewers are in deep with Dark Blue!” So for anyone paying full attention the distinction is made. The question is: Are viewers paying full attention to commercials on TNT or anywhere else? In most cases, I doubt it.

After the announcer makes his declarations comments from fans fly across the screen looking just like the pull-quotes from professional critics we have seen in hundreds if not thousands of commercials during our lifetimes.

"It’s the Best New Show!” raves Erwin6676.

"This Show Kicks Ass!” cheers Lalalady.

"I’m Hooked!” admits Vince01.

"Top Notch!” says DancinDonna.

As Jerry Seinfeld might say, who ar-r-re these people?

I have nothing against fans expressing their enthusiasm for television shows or movies on any screen. I enjoy those commercials for movies and theatrical productions featuring brief man-on-the-street testimonials shot outside of theaters. In fact, in my previous life as a publicist for an independent movie studio I used to help produce the damn things! I brought camera crews to advance screenings of our movies and recorded reactions that were later used in commercials for them when they opened. The facts were these: Anyone who agreed to be filmed had to first fill out a form and sign a release. They were free to say what they wanted and we were free to use or reject what they said. They would be seen in the commercials if their comments were accepted – and viewers would get to see the people who were championing our movies. If a rave from a hyper teenager meant anything to a potential viewer or a thoughtful opinion from a refined culture vulture peaked someone’s interest that was great. In truth, some of them really were wretched (the movies, not the fans). But if somebody had the balls to be seen on TV raving about a piece of cinematic crap they were free to express themselves on the subject. We loved them for it.

Graphic displays of quickie quotes (or tantalizing tweets) in television commercials are another matter. For one thing, media and technology companies have in recent years been doing everything they can to encourage television viewers to record programs and ignore commercials. I likely wouldn’t have noticed these Dark Blue spots at all if I had recorded those episodes of Leverage and been playing them back, speeding through commercial pods as I went. But I actually watched them live and paid attention to the commercials, too. (I’ll admit: I sometimes enjoy watching TV on its own terms. I find that there are gems among all those commercials out there. There should be many, many, many more of those gems, but that’s a topic for another column. If this makes me a dinosaur, toss me into the nearest tar pit.)

Unless viewers are paying full attention during those Dark Blue spots (and millions surely are not) they might come away with the idea that hard-working television critics and bloggers love the show. In a general sense I don’t believe that’s true, but I know of a few who do. For example, veteran critic Diane Holloway, a contributor to the savvy television criticism Web site TVWorthWatching, gave it an unqualified rave, calling Dark Blue “increasingly riveting television.” (Full disclosure: I am a sometime-contributor to TVWW.) Tellingly, Holloway weighed in after the series had been on for several weeks rather than after sampling one or two episodes at the start, as so many critics unfortunately do.

Also in the plus column, critic Alessandra Stanley of The New York Times found a couple of nice things to say about Dark Blue in an otherwise neutral-to-negative review of the first two episodes, prompting TNT to grab the word “gripping” out of her column and splash it across the screen during another Dark Blue spot. I suppose that was misleading in an altogether different way, but such out of context lifts occur all the time in the wonderful world of television marketing and promotion. Stanley used the word “gripping” in writing about the opening episode, not the series itself – but at least viewers have the option of Googling her review (or finding it here) and reading her entire take on it. Further, it is possible for viewers to read other columns by Stanley (or other critics whose quotes catch their eye) and decide for themselves whether or not she is worth paying attention to. But who the heck are Erwin6676 and DancinDonna? What do we know about them and why should we give special consideration to what they have to say about Dark Blue or anything else? For all we know, they might be on the production crew. Or they might be secretaries at Turner. Or programming executives!

Okay, I’m very sure that’s not the case – but such deviousness could occur somewhere, sometime, especially if this unfortunate practice turns into a medium-wide trend in television promotion. Quotes used in advertising for television entertainment and presented in a traditional manner should come only from professional television critics and journalists as well as bloggers and Web-site writers who have demonstrated a sincere and ongoing dedication to the medium. Fans’ opinions are important, too, but let’s leave them to those comment columns that run after almost everyone’s work online and are open for all to read and respond to.