The Relevance of Late-Night Television in the Age of Streaming | Art

As our world becomes increasingly reliant on technology, streaming services and on-demand media offer a convenience that is simply too good to pass up. Yet late-night television and its segments still appear to be an integral part of society’s cultural makeup.

Given the pervasive trend of splitting seasons that dominates platforms like Netflix — not to mention the generally large gap between seasons on other services as well — late-night television offers a consistent, reliable entertainment alternative four times a week. Late night television comes in different varieties: Traditional talk shows like NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” and ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” hosts celebrities and socialites every night, as well as sketch comedy franchises like “Saturday Night Live,” which features a new celebrity guest host once a week. Each of these shows offers viewers at home the opportunity to enjoy new content quickly and frequently compared to their long-winded, slow-production counterparts.

While it is important to note that fictional storylines on television are obviously different from late night movies and their comedies and commentary, there is much to be said about the instant gratification that late night provides. Because of their continuous production, late-night television shows have the undeniable ability to create segments or punchlines that fit trending topics or moments, effectively capturing their relevance before it is lost. Take “SNL” and their cold opens, for example. With a unique but stylistically familiar interpretation, actors Dana Carvey and James Austin Johnson play President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump, respectively, with comedic stances and not-so-subtle references to the political climate.

Beyond politics, “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” found success with its implementation of “Thank You Notes,” a segment in which Fallon addresses current news or trending events, allowing him to point out trending moments with his own comedic twist. When the delivery is often casual, the audience can enjoy the impact of the joke better than if it were delivered too enthusiastically. On “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”, Kimmel’s casual conversations with viewers at home and the live studio audience, particularly about current events, are also full of comedic interludes. In all of these shows – with original sketches and excerpts – the stage is open to conversation, and sometimes even one viral audio can come out of it.

There’s an element of unpredictability that makes late night such an entertaining format, and curated dialogue and improvisation allows viewers to resonate with the material and engage with it in creative ways. Take “SNL” and its current sketch “Bridesmaid Speech.” By using Billboard’s Top Global Song of Summer 2024 – “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter – and turn it into a catchy parodyThe television show had 13 million views on YouTube. Beyond YouTube, many parodies of the main character “Domingo” (Marcello Hernandez) have appeared on social media platforms such as TikTok, creating a new trend called “DomingoTok.”

With the now traditional streaming format of television shows, it is difficult to achieve this kind of engagement as quickly and as often as late night shows do, effectively positioning late night as a relevant feeder and confidant of the more popular Social media establishes platforms of today. In addition to leveraging trending content, late-night television benefits from featuring different celebrities on each show – allowing for limitless engagement with viewers and fan bases.

On that note, the ever-relevant Ariana Grande was also instrumental in the success of “SNL’s” “Bridesmaid Speech” sketch. Her unconventional singing – untraditional and unrealistic for the acclaimed singer – added to the comedy. with Grande being in the spotlight even more during her press tour for this highly anticipated film “Wicked”,The attention the episode received was crucial to its success. On many television shows, guests who are both new to and accustomed to the spotlight can provide unprecedented levels of viewership, especially if they also delve into trending topics or current events. In particular, “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon’s” decision to host TikTok stars Andrew “AJ” Befumo Jr. and Eric Justice Befumo (“Costco Guys”) alongside Christian Joseph’s “The Rizzler” was a smart one – The uploaded interview received almost a million viewsone of Fallon’s best-performing videos in the month it was released.

In summary, late-night television provides a connection to fast-paced entertainment and current events that streaming services and their shows take forever to deliver. While both can be equally valuable, the ingenuity of “Late Night” – particularly because it is live and unedited – offers a unique opportunity to deal with material that is authentically produced and quickly executed. Late-night television remains relevant despite its competition – an impressive feat for a supposedly “outdated” format.