Eric Deggans

Tv and Media Critic for the Saint Petersburg Times

Eric Deggans appears in the following:

New 'Daily Show' Host Faces Criticism Over Questionable Tweets

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Less than 24 hours after "The Daily Show" made its announcement, new host Trevor Noah is facing backlash over tweets he posted where he ridicules Jews, lesbians and overweight women.

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Evaluating Whether It's Time To Cut The Cord

Friday, March 27, 2015

Several big media companies recently announced new ways to bring TV over the Internet. For example, HBO's streaming service, Sony's PlayStation Vue and a rumored service from Apple.

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James Corden Nods To Talk Show Tradition With CBS's 'Late Late Show'

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Looks like it took a 36-year-old comic actor from a small British town no one has heard of to bring back the oldest of old-school American TV talk show traditions.

That's how television fans with long memories may feel after watching James Corden's winning debut Monday as the new host ...

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In Move From Web To TV, 'Childrens Hospital' Could Set An Example

Friday, March 20, 2015

Childrens Hospital returns to Comedy Central's Adult Swim for its sixth season Friday. NPR's Eric Deggans spent a day on set and reports on how this niche comedy is swimming against the tide.

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Does Fox's 'Empire' Break Or Bolster Black Stereotypes?

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

As its freshman season ends Wednesday night, Fox's hip-hop family drama Empire has emerged as that rarest of birds in the broadcast TV industry: a show where the viewership is always going up.

When the series debuted Jan. 7, it drew a respectable 9.8 million viewers, according to the Nielsen ...

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Does Success Of HBO's 'The Jinx' Herald New Form Of True-Crime TV?

Monday, March 16, 2015

The docu-series ended Sunday with murder suspect Robert Durst seeming to admit guilt. NPR TV Critic Eric Deggans says that moment may also have created a TV genre with its own set of rules.

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New HBO Now Streaming Service Shows Consumer's Will Is King

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

There's a lesson at the heart of the announcement Monday by HBO that it was finally starting the standalone video streaming service they have been talking about for five months, HBO Now.

In a media world fragmented by digital technology, the consumer's will is king.

That's because HBO Now isn't ...

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Apple's Partnership With HBO May Redefine Cable TV

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Consumers will have to have an Apple device to subscribe to HBO Now, but then they can watch new and old HBO content on that device or their PC. It will cost $14.99 a month.

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Netflix Snaps Up TV Shows Rejected By Networks

Friday, March 06, 2015

Netflix on Friday releases Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, co-created by Tina Fey. It was made for NBC but the network let it go. Another NBC show, Community, moves to an online home, Yahoo!, on March 17.

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'Battle Creek' Tries To Shake Up CBS' Cop Show Formula

Sunday, March 01, 2015

In the first scene of CBS' Battle Creek, Det. Russ Agnew has a problem. A listening device he wants to place on his snitch Teddy isn't working.

"What wrong with the wire ... why isn't the red light coming on?" asks Agnew, beating the transmitter against the side of his ...

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Leonard Nimoy's Mr. Spock Taught Us Acceptance Is Highly Logical

Saturday, February 28, 2015

For this Star Trek fan, Leonard Nimoy was more than the guy who played one of the most popular characters in the most popular science fiction franchise on American TV.

He was a serious actor whose journey to accept his unique fame mirrored many fans' personal struggles for acceptance — ...

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'Battle Creek' An Attempt To Break CBS's Formulaic Lineup

Friday, February 27, 2015

On Sunday, CBS debuts Battle Creek, a new police drama set in small town Michigan that was dreamt up by the creator of Breaking Bad and executive produced by the creator of House.

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This Season On 'House Of Cards,' It's Tough To Be The Boss

Friday, February 27, 2015

New episodes of Netflix's House of Cards debut today, and NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says this season's challenges may please critics who say the show's vision of Washington, D.C., runs too smoothly.

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As CBS' 'Two And A Half Men' Ends, Questions On How It Lasted So Long

Thursday, February 19, 2015

As CBS' Two and a Half Men airs its final episode tonight, capping its 12th season, critics like me are stuck trying to answer a single, niggling question:

How did a show like this end up as the longest-running multicamera comedy in television history?

To understand our predicament, consider a ...

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The Success Of Fox's 'Empire' Reveals A Few Dos And Don'ts For TV

Sunday, February 01, 2015

The TV industry is scrambling to understand the runaway success of Fox's Empire, the story of a family-run hip-hop music company that has set ratings records in its four weeks on air.

The question, as always, is simple: Why are people drawn to this show? And how can a TV ...

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NBC Courts Women In Hopes Of Record Super Bowl Broadcast

Friday, January 30, 2015

This year's the Super Bowl telecast is targeting non-sports fans, especially women.

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Intended For Millennials, Dish's Sling TV Is A Cord Cutter's Dream

Monday, January 26, 2015

A few days ago, I entertained myself for a few minutes watching ESPN's Stephen A. Smith lose his cool — this time, over an "incompetent" NFL for not interviewing Patriots quarterback Tom Brady regarding the team's deflated football controversy.

But what made this moment noteworthy, was where I was watching ...

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Sling TV Could Be Cable-Cutter's Dream

Monday, January 26, 2015

Sling TV launches in a few weeks. That's the new streaming service from Dish that allows viewers to stream content previously only available through cable.

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Larry Wilmore's 'Nightly Show' Brings A New Voice to Late Night TV

Monday, January 19, 2015

The ex-Daily Show correspondent becomes the only black man to host an entertainment show in late night TV. And he starts on an important occasion; the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

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Amazon Gains Ground With Online-Only Shows

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

With the announcement this week that Woody Allen will write and direct a new television series for Amazon, the online retailer is now poised to be a major force in television.

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