Watch out, Spike TV.
Fellow Viacom-owned network CMT is pursuing younger viewers and men with its largest unscripted programming slate yet, a push to have four nights of originals by 2016.
“We’re trying to create content that is bolder, louder and more repeatable,” CMT executive vp development Jayson Dinsmore tells THR.
To that end, CMT (formerly Country Music Television) has greenlighted seven new series — including My Big Redneck Family, Tobacco Wars and ?Death Valley — helping fill out three nights of originals. The network has scheduled producer SallyAnn Salsano‘s previously announced Party Down South for Thursdays at 10 p.m. in the hope that Jersey Shore viewers will flock to a similar show in the same time slot.
With 60 percent female viewership, CMT hopes to lure more men with former wrestler Steve Austin‘s “ultimate badass” competition, Broken Skull Ranch, which will join the male-focused Orange County Choppers. “We’re not abandoning the ship,” Dinsmore says. “We want to young the audience down over the course of our four-year plan.”
Here’s a look at CMT’s slate, which includes second-season renewals for Dog and Beth: On the Hunt and Guntucky.
Source: THR.com, 12/18/13
