WWE asking fans why they don't WWE programming anymore

[C-Rock]

No not just for the nostalgia but because you knew 15 years ago when you tuned into WWE programing weather it be Raw or PPV's you were going to see drama, excitment, characters you believed in who were real and cutting edge and contraversal. WWE was you break from reality, larger than life. Cliff hanger finishes to Raw, were you had to tune in the next week, storylines you cared about that hit home in some cases. Theres none of that in WWE at the minute, there's no cliff hanger endings to Raw or Smackdown were you think I don't care if I get hit by a bus walking home from school I'm going to be smack in front of the TV when Raw comes on. The ratings, live attendences are showing that the demographic WWE are attempting to appeal to i.e. younger teens or whatever would much rather play outside or watch Ben 10 then tune into WWE programing. Forget the kids WWE they have enough on TV to statisfy them, there's not alot left for people the WWE demographic used to appeal to, to watch.

 

Another big thing that hasn't been mentioned I think during the attitude era, WWE drew in alot more new fans to their programing who read about WWE in the national press or by word of mouth. I remember when it was easy to sell to my friends the WWE product when I was at school because it was exciting now WWE doesn't have that appeal. Its lost what was important and thats its edge and uniqueness. Don't blame the WWE writers they are working with what they have on offer and doing there best but they dont have the charisma of the Rock or the rawness of Stone Cold or they in ring-abilities of Shawn Michaels. WWE during the attitude era, had something for everyone it was broad in its appeal and expanded its demographic. WWE has a smaller demographic which as a result and in return brings in lower ratings, live attendence and ultimatly less revenue, its common sense the less people you attempt to appeal to the less people who are going to watch.

[PowerButchi]

Don't blame the WWE writers they are working with what they have on offer and doing there best

 

They're exactly who I'm going to blame. Their best isn't good enough. A good writer can get over the fact he hasn't got the the charisma of the Rock or the rawness of Stone Cold or they in ring-abilities of Shawn Michaels by presenting the talent in a way which covers that up and accentuates the positives and draws money. It's what good bookers and writers have done since forever. It's what their job is.

[ThePhenom]

You know what, I remember hearing rumours that WWE was getting a new logo..well that was a while ago but they need to freshen the whole product up..look at TNA , its now Impact Wrestling new set up and stuff, (should have brought all this up earlier lol) WWE are still using the old scratched attitude logo, its out of date..they are no way atall attitude anymore..they need a new logo, DEFINATELY a new WWE Championship Belt (the spinner has been awful from the start and hope Punk or someone changes it) and after going back and looking at clips of 'Old School Raw' that happened last year, I'd say if they are gonna stay P.G, go back to using the old blue ring with the red white and blue ropes and stuff. I really and truely hope somewhere in the world, Vince is seeing comments like these and what everybody else has said on here and people are probz saying the same sort of thing we are all saying, and hopefully Vince reads these and realises that he is indeed in the shit and needs to make changes big time. I mean blimey, I can watch Warrior and be entertained and with Cena..I just simply..fall asleep.

I agree that they need a new WWE Title belt, and get rid of that hideous spinner design, but there is no need to bring back the Pre 1997 ring styles. I don't see the need for a new logo either, it's recognizable all over the world as wrestling.

 

They should do something different with the sets though, bring back the red ropes for Raw and give it a new logo. The TV themes are awful now as well, they are just so "cringeworthy" that it's not funny. Another thing that they need, is better commentary. I enjoyed Smackdown last week alot more because the commentary was funny and made me want to sit through. Raw's is atrocious though, I'd get rid of Lawler straight away. Another thing they need to change is what they shove down our throats as "comedy", such as Vickie Guerrero getting a cake pushed into her face every other week, or Hornswoggle involved in anything. I also wish they'd put more thought and attention into characters. I'm not talking about cartoon-ish or even Attitude Era characters like Gangrel and The Godfather, but any sort of character to sink my teeth into would be an improvement over the Ted DiBiase's of the world.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

WWE during the attitude era, had something for everyone it was broad in its appeal and expanded its demographic. WWE has a smaller demographic which as a result and in return brings in lower ratings, live attendence and ultimatly revenue.

Your talking like suddenly WWE went to PG and the boom period was over. WWE had to go into the PG format to allow sponsership deals and advertising and licensing to make up for the areas of business which was detrimental at the time. WWE since early 2001 has been on the decline. 7 of those years featured swearing and blood and all the other stuff. What exactly was WWE doing creatively before the PG era? Not much. The Attitude era was different and usherd in a success period of business. Something different needs to happen again. You cant go back to how it was. People have seen it all before.

[patiirc]

How does tonning down the product and booking your current champ like the guy who made you 25 years ago qualify as more progress?

 

Toning what down? The Attitude era only lasted for what, about 5 years before that it was PG based and wrestling managed to grow from that. Attitude captured the then Zeitgeist but wrestling and angles past that stage and even during that stage were lame it wasnt all paved with gold. Its a blip in wrestling history, that some are keen to go all out for as will be repeated success on the same scale is somewhat crazy.

 

TV and attitudes have changed in the states. American TV and sponsors have got ultra cautious following on from the fall out of Janet Jackson's Wardrobe malfunction, plus Linda's running for Senate or whatever plus all the crap following Benoit, plus the change in the fragmentation of TV and so on have all meant that that kind of TV just isnt viable. The risks and fines and huge, put the attitude stuff on now and WWE would likely be pulled quite quickly from the schedules or find a TNA niche market.

 

Hardly grounds for a massive expansion is it? They are pulling towards the lowest common denominator at the moment with Cena, as in he sells bucket loads of Merch, and whilst the ratings are falling its part of a wider problem, generally shit writing, and as mentioned in my post before throwing mud seeing what sticks, but then trashing it immediately if it isnt a big success. Sin Cara, Sheamus, Wade and whoever else comes along is promoted, badly, to the moon and dropped like a stone if doesnt do well. Mainly because they dont know how to do star makers very well at the moment and importantly keep them there.

 

They are doing enough to get by and the fact that they are starting to look at why buy rates and stuff are falling is suggestive that the WWE hasnt got a clue what it is doing wrong, let alone what it is doing right. Hopefully they will sort it out but going towards Attitude is definitely not the way about it.

[Jas]

I think its obvious that WWE in a sorry state of affairs when they have to rely on bringing back stars from the past such as the Rock and Stone Cold to boost ratings. Triple H was forced to work with the ever returning Undertaker at WrestleMania just to draw a little more interest in the card. These guys arent going to be around forever and one day WWE is going to have to really think long and how hard about how they are going to move the product into the future without the help of those big stars. Guys like Bigshow and Kane and perhaps John Cena arent going to be around in 5 years time or at least not working working a full time scedule.

 

I dont watch alot of WWE, I'll make sure I watch WrestleMania each year and watch the short results videos on WWE.com when I get the chance but looking at the roster of guys they have at the minute theres nobody with the star quality of a Rock or Stone Cold, all I see is cartoon charecters and clones of one another, the same formula over and over, short-rushed matches with very little to captivate you. The attitude era was filled with real 'Raw' drama and excitment and OMG whats going to happen next. Charecters who pushed boundries and the kinds fans could relate to and get behind. The weight of the WWE world rests heavy on the shoulders of John Cena at the minute and hes not good enough to carry the load but WWE are left with no choice as theres no one able to step up to share the top spot, WWE is filled with very talented mid card level wrestlers at best. WWE are taking guys like the Miz and Dolph Zigger and Jack Swagger who lower card wrestlers and then overnight thrust them into the spotlight, forcing WWE fans to accept that these guys with a little spit polish are main-eventers, it worked obviously back in the attitude era with 2 guys called Rocky Mivia and the Ringmaster but when the chance for them was given to take the ball and run with it, the boundries were much further apart i.e. Stone Cold cut they infamous King of the Ring promo and the Rock joined an all black faction which touched on colour and race something WWE couldn't do now.

 

WWE's biggest problem is they have limited themselves by becoming a PG product, they have boxed themselves in and left very little room to push the boundries. WWE rightfully changed there name from World WRESTLING Entertainment, cause theres very little in the way of true Wrestling action going on. Cage Matches, Hardcore Matches, Last Man Standing matches are all watered down, WWE fans have stopped viewing cause alot of them are fans who remember the old days and refuse to settle for what WWE is producing now, a cartoon show that would be better suited for the Disney Channel. WWE sold themselves out to the die hard WWE fan the moment they signed up to become PG or whatever they are. Why did WWE make that choice? If it aint broke done fix it and WWE wasnt broke in fact it was pulling in the best ratings they ever had and the product was must-see TV. WWE is trying to appeal to a younger audience but forgets that there younger audience's have bed times and perhaps arent allowed to stay up late to watch WWE programming.

 

WWE have tried to move with the times and thats something everyone and everything has to do at some point but like I said before I think the WWE has sold themselves out, WWE in the late 90's and early 2000's offered people something different, something edgy and contriversal, when Raw actually lived upto its name now WWE is failing to offer that its no longer must see TV, its losts it steam, its up a creek without a paddle, its stuck in limbo. WWE really needs to go back to the drawing board, WWE are to far gone in regards to pulling one big thing out the bag in order to boost ratings for a long period of time, they have flashes in the pan whenever they bring back the Rock or Stone Cold but thats never going to last forever, look at TNA with Hogan first couple of appearances TNA ratings went up but fans get bored, you see something or someone enough times your going to get board and switch off and thats exactly whats happening in the case of WWE but its not there fault they have to work with what they have which at the minute is very little in regards to talent which is obviously the key asspect to the WWE product. WWE is going downhill it wont happen over night and it will never die or go out of business obviously but I highly doubt we will see WWE get any better than it is now, not unless they break out the box and offer WWE fans something worth watching much like love him or hate him Eric Bischoff did with WCW and on a lesser extent Paul Heyman did with ECW. Bischoff broke down the walls and like he said once he made a massive bang and forced WWE fans to look away from them and instead look at the fresh, new and exciting WCW. WWE need to make a bang again, Bret Hart, the Rock, Stone Cold, Undertaker, Triple H those guys arent going to be around for much longer to get that flash in the pan ratings boost.

 

Drop the PG rating WWE and get out of the box and stop conforming to how you think the world wants you to be. Your a Pro Wrestling company, pro-wrestling has always been different and contriversal, don't sellout to the bright lights of Hollywood...lets see some blood! WWE is in a sorry state of affairs when a chair shot to the head during the Undertaker/Triple match at WrestleMania was all anyone could talk about after.

 

C-Rock this has been bugging me but are you 'wildmovieguy' from the wrestling forum on digitalspy?

[C-Rock]

Of course the writers are limited, look at a hollywood movie it could be the best script in the world but if you have untalented actors who arent going to make you believe in what your watching or sell the movie during the promotional build up, your not going to smash the box office. I'm not saying the attitude era or the writers in those days got it write 24/7 but it was alot more right than it is now and the ratings and revenue backs that up. When your top star is bland John Cena, you could write a Oscar worthy script and it isnt going to sell the fans....12 Rounds anyone?? the writting doesnt force a good believeable preformance out of somebody. the Rock and Stone Cold were given alot of freedom back in the day in regards to promo's and charecter development because they had the talent and charisma to get their shit over. WWE writers can only do so much at the end of the days of the day its a Professional Wrestling company at some point the talking has to stop and it has to be done in the ring which again in current WWE that just isn't happening. People are tuning in to see wrestling hot angles and fueds, explosive in-ring action, edge of your seat moments, moments that will go down in history, WWE is failing to give that to the people instead were getting Fruity Pebbles. the WWE writers aren't miracle workers top and bottom of it. Give the WWE writes some flexibility I'm sure they could come up with something that will work better than what we are being given now.

[C-Rock]

and no....im not iv never heard of that website lol I'm Chris, I worked with North-East based promotion Wrestle Zone Wrestling for 6 years mainly as a referee lol

[JNLister]

. People are tuning in to see wrestling hot angles and fueds, explosive in-ring action, edge of your seat moments, moments that will go down in history, WWE is failing to give that to the people instead were getting Fruity Pebbles. the WWE writers aren't miracle workers top and bottom of it.

 

They could always try not writing "Fruity Pebbles."

[Carbomb]

I always use WCW in 1996-98 as an example. No blood, no swearing, no weapons, no women with their lally's hanging out. But the show was violent, aimed at an adult audience, edgy and realistic. And it was beyond PG. They used to have a fucking Mascot with some kind of Dog's face or something in a pink bandana, but it didnt matter. And it had some of the best wrestling you will see and some of the biggest buyrates of the 90s. WCW proved it doesnt matter about the rating of the content. Its about how you present the content.

 

This, and hundred times again, this. Also, this.

 

Add to that that old-style Memphis was similar in their storylines, and it pretty much demonstrates that:

 

1. PG is not the problem, never has been. Bad writing is.

2. This is probably the direction WWE should be going in. Not just in terms of classification, but in terms of diversity of content.

 

 

 

I don't agree with NEWM's post, however. I agree with most of his stuff, but this, and no offence meant by it, just strikes me as "anti-smarkiness" for the sake of it. They're asking people why they've switched off - that means they KNOW people have switched off, and it's not in the small, niche numbers you're making out. They're a business who, as you will testify, know more than we do; it's therefore safe to surmise that they've noticed the figures, and realised it's not good for their business to continue with their current strategy. Seeing as their current target demo is children, you can't really go for a younger one, so the only way to go is older - and they know the majority of older viewers have switched off. That's logical.

 

I'm not saying they need to introduce Blood, Swearing & Rape, but they do need to think about several things:

 

1. Enough of the childish content. I don't mean making sure the programming is OK to watch, I mean less of the Poopy Gayness. Kids enjoyed watching WCW/nWo, and that didn't have much of it, if at all. If there's anything kids love more than childishness, it's straight-up coolness.

 

2. Get behind your future stars properly. I've said this plenty of times, and you can see it for yourself: most prospective main-eventers need that elevating, defining, "Welcome To The Main Event" win, and nobody's had one since Cena and Batista at 21. Most of the perennial or bigger guys had it: Undertaker from Hogan at Tuesday In Texas, Triple H against Foley, Austin against Bret, Rock against Foley(?), Lesnar against Hogan, Taker and The Rock FFS, Benoit against Triple H, Eddy against Lesnar, Cena against JBL, Batista against Triple H. Since then, who's actually ever had the trigger pulled on them? Sheamus won the belt by putting Cena through a table by accident, Edge, Swagger, Punk and Miz all cashed in their belts on weakened guys, and lord knows what they're planning with Del Rio or Barratt, but they're not looking strong right now.

 

To be fair, not every guy needs it - Bret, Shawn and Orton didn't, but they took the long route, and WWE don't seem to have the patience for that any more. These new guys NEED a main-event win, and that requires some of the current, established top guys to unequivocally and unambivalently do business.

 

3. If you're worried about losing out on Cena merchandise, you need to make someone else. Seriously. Hogan was better than Cena, and the crowd turned on him eventually. Vince had Macho and Warrior lined up originally. He fucked up with Macho because he kept going back to Hogan, and when he finally did rely on someone to carry the torch, it was the wrong guy - Warrior blew up in his face (and on the way to the ring). But if he'd gone with either guy, he'd have kept making money and drawing shitloads. He needs a Warrior to Cena's Hogan, because at some point Cena will HAVE to turn heel - he's not Ricky Steamboat or Sting, he's not likable enough to be a permanent face.

[cobra_gordo]

The current product just feel embarrasing for me to watch. The childishness, the bad writing, the lack of characters (other than Punk) that I would want to invest my time and money in. In 1998 wrestling was cool, they had Austin who fans could genuinely get behind, believeable writing and some cracking feuds, plus there always seemed to be plenty of other main eventers or guys being built as main eventers. I rarely watch WWE programming now but when I do nothing seems to have changed, its the same old shit.

[Loki]

WWE needs a star that MAKES people get into wrestling to have any chance of returning to former glories.

 

Hulk Hogan was the absolute personification of the brash, colourful, aggressive 1980s. He was Reagan-era Americana, a rock and pop cultural icon that people could get behind, and he brought millions of people into wrestling. Hogan was cool.

 

Stone Cold was the personification of the 1990s counter-culture movement, breaking down traditions and sticking the finger up to the man. He was bad, loud, abrasive and threw down in an instant. Stone Cold was cool, and so wrestling became something cool for the really important teenage demographic. He fit in perfectly with the music of the time, too.

 

Since then, the WWE haven't had a guy who did that. Someone who caught the zeitgeist, amplified it and sold it to mainstream America. Perhaps that's because there's not been as strong a cultural identity for a young generation since the 90s (I mean, how do you define the noughties), or perhaps it's that the WWE can't identify what it is, or who in their roster exemplifies it.

 

I think that's why we're all so excited about Punk. He's new, different sounding and looking, with a feel about him that is defined by being NOT-WWE (as epitomised by John Cena).

[C-Rock]

WWE need to take a page out Eric Bischoffs book (litterally its a very good book) and think outside the box but what im saying is they haven't got the talent in order to do that, they have tried everyone most recently R-Truth and it doesnt work. It doesnt matter how long you give a guy to get over or how much patience, if a guy hasnt got it he just hasn't got it. You can't make someone what they are not they tried with the Miz and it didnt work. Going down the PG route automatically puts in the barriers, creatively you havent got as much freedom. Your wrestlers (Im not going to call them superstars cause I fail to see a single one who deserves that title within the WWE's younger talent) need room to grow and expand on their charecters and being PG limits that from happening cause you can only do so much within the PG boundries. Nobody wants family friendly WWE, it would be like introducing Tinky Winky from the teletubies as the newst Mitchell in Eastenders. Don't blame the writers they havent got the talent its as simple as that. Alot of PG films top the box-office when they have Eddie Murphy or Jim Carey above the title but when you have John Cena above the title your shit just isnt going to sell it doesnt matter what your write.

 

WWE proved they can better their ratings in a PG environement, when they brought back Bret Hart and the Rock but without their assistance WWE can't maintain high ratings with the talent they have no matter how much patience you give them, face facts Steven Segal was no Al Pacino it doesnt matter how many films he's the lead in. So in that instance when your down on credible talent you need to think outside the box and go in a different direction and I just think the PG way is the wrong way. Current WWE talent might florish if WWE scrapped the PG rating it would allow for them to be more creative and actually allow them to make the charecters more believeable. I can't understand how people don't see my point when you put yourself in a box you can only manouver so much but take the box away then the possibilites are endless. I'm not saying go back to full on Attitude era because like its been said Wrestling is in a very akward place at the minute as far wrestling deaths and the Chris Benoit case but I'm sure WWE can afford to be a little more edgy. How can you promote the Hell in a Cell PPV when you know its going to basically be a run of the mill match inside of a cage with 2 wrestlers your really dont care about. There's no getting away from that unless you offer the fans something different that makes them want to pay however much it costs to watch a WWE PPV and thats just not happening.

[PowerButchi]

being PG limits that from happening cause you can only do so much within the PG boundries. Nobody wants family friendly WWE, it would be like introducing Tinky Winky from the teletubies as the newst Mitchell in Eastenders. Don't blame the writers they havent got the talent its as simple as that.

 

Ok then. Case study. Theoretically, PG has gone at the behest of Vince. Same blameless writers still have the pencil. How can not having the PG Rating and instead go back to TV-14 mean that the talent will be fresher, better and more relevant to the popular culture of 2011. You tell us how.

[LaGoosh]

Because they will say naughty words and fuck grannies I suppose.