Q: Why are they taking “Blue Bloods” off the air? I don’t believe their ratings suddenly fell. I think it’s because they prayed on every episode!
— Eileen, Hempfield
Rob: That doesn’t pass the logic test. If the family praying, which viewers have seen since the beginning, was a problem for the network, wouldn’t the network have canceled the show before — checks notes — 14 seasons had passed?
As with most cancellations, it’s likely related to finances. Every year a show is on the air, the people who work on it expect raises. At some point, regardless of ratings, a show becomes too expensive to justify its continuation. That’s likely what happened to “Blue Bloods,” which returns for its final run of episodes at 10 p.m. Oct. 18.
Q: Why did WPXI-TV drop “Sherri”? Her talk show is amazing! I DVR “Sherri” and watch her every day!
— Jimmy, via email
Rob: I suspect Channel 11’s decision to drop “Sherri” was less about “Sherri” and more about another opportunity.
As noted in the fall daytime TV preview, Channel 11 had success with “Judge Judy” in the afternoon as a lead-in to its 5 p.m. news. When the Judge Judy-starring “Judy Justice” became available, of course station executives jumped at the chance to use “Judy Justice” as a lead-in to the station’s 4 p.m. newscast. With those wheels in motion, some show was going to get squeezed out.
Looking at the May 2024 Nielsen ratings, “Sherri” was the lowest-rated daytime show on Channel 11 in homes and viewers ages 25-54. That’s likely why “Sherri” was the program that got cut.
The new season of “Sherri” began Sept. 23 and Pittsburgh viewers can still access episodes on the show’s website, sherrishowtv.com/episodes.
Q: I see that “Judy Justice” is now on WPXI. Has “Justice for the People with Judge Milian” been renewed? Are there any other new judge shows?
— Theresa, Irwin
Rob: I’m not aware of any other new court shows in daytime syndication other than the “Judy Justice” reruns from Amazon on WPXI. But I could have missed one. Many of these shows are produced by rinky-dink outfits with limited promotion and publicity rather than major studios.
That includes “Justice for the People with Judge Milian,” produced by Allen Media Group, where it is difficult to get ahold of anyone (a contact form on its website asks for a phone number but then won’t submit unless you instead enter an email address where it asks for the phone number). It appears that reruns of “Justice for the People” are airing at 1 and 1:30 p.m. weekdays on WPGH-TV, Channel 53, but I could find no reporting to confirm that the show was either renewed or canceled.
And the show’s own website doesn’t even show it airing on local stations, only on cable/streaming channels, including cable’s Justice Central.
Q: What’s the deal with the History Channel’s “Forged in Fire”? Word from a judge commenting on Facebook is that 35 new episodes are in the can but they haven’t aired any new episodes since last fall. Why are they holding so many episodes? Each episode features a smith who won and they all deserve to be seen.
— Doug, McCandless
Rob: This question came in several months ago but I couldn’t get a satisfactory response from the network at the time. Earlier this month History finally announced a premiere date.
“Forged” returns with a two-hour episode Oct. 2 at 9 p.m. before returning to its regular 10 p.m. Wednesday time slot on Oct. 9.
As for the reason for the delay, History would not say. But given that the show previously aired in the fall, it seems likely that fall is the season History prefers for new episodes to debut, possibly because they want fresh content for advertisers to buy ads in going into the holiday shopping season.
