Annual Series that reads, rates and dissects each network’s pilot pick ups before they go into production.
3 - TELEVISION NEWS
The Runway – CBS Upfronts: What Got Picked Up, What Didn’t, And Why
I’ll give this to CBS: they are completely unapologetic. People say their shows are too white, don’t have enough female leads, that their dramas are too procedural, that their comedies are hacky. If you go purely by Nielsen ratings, I guess they’ve done OK with that strategy to date.
ABC probably had the most interesting pilot season among the networks. Unlike the competition, they filmed a pretty healthy number of pilots and picked up a pretty large percentage to series, granted many will be mid-season premieres. 
Like NBC, Fox didn’t pick up as many pilots this year. They did, however, pick up a pretty large percentage of those pilots to series, particularly on the drama side. Does that mean they’re giving up on comedy? Not really.
It was a weird pilot season. No network embodied that statement more than NBC. The craziness in a nutshell: the most coveted timeslot in all of television, between Will & Grace and This is Us, is going to sophomore series Great News, whose renewal was iffy as recently as two weeks ago.
Last year’s crop of CBS pilots were lackluster, and of those ordered to series, only Bull and MacGyver have been renewed so far. With Doubt already canceled, and Training Day and Pure Genius unlikely to be renewed, CBS has plenty of room on its fall schedule. 
New ABC Network president Channing Dungey had an important decision last year: greenlight more family comedies or add other types of comedy to their strong lineup. She went with a bit of both and now they are bursting at the seams with half-hours.
Last year, Fox was all about IP and filling a gaping, American Idol-sized hole. Its development was all over the place. This year, much like NBC, Fox seems to have found its groove as well. 
A few years ago, NBC comedy was in a bad place. Though critically adored and beloved by many, flagship shows Parks & Rec and 30 Rock simply weren’t ratings juggernauts, so NBC had a choice to make: go broader with comedy development or continue to focus on smaller, quality projects. As with most things in television, the pursuit of money won out.
The Tracking Board presents the 4th annual edition of The Runway! The premise is simple: we read, review and prognosticate on the future of every single network show picked up to pilot. So fasten your seatbelts, because pilot season is about to take off.
