Hey Broom, can I do a little "whinning" with you? LOL
I have to agree with you that OI seems to have received a lousy time slot and poor advertising and promotion from AP. I'm not sure if that's a reality or if it's just that "WE" are just more oriented towards orangutans! It does seem to make sense that if you put a program, any program in prime time and advertise it well, then it will do well, the adverse of that being a show in a lousy time slot with little advertising and promotion and a "split season" is less likely to do well.
The recent re-run of Chimp Eden, shown in prime time Friday, was just there to remind previous viewers and bring new viewers up to date on what Chimp Eden is all about. The first show of the new season of Escape to Chimp Eden followed the prime time re-run! That made sense to me, but then I'm easy to please...or at least I try to be! LOL If I recall correctly (and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong) OI had the prime time Friday slot in it's first season and then when that first season of OI ended Chimp Eden filled in that slot and is apparently going to be left in that time and day slot, while OI was moved to a less desirable day and time.....or at least it seems that way to me.
As for OI "not paying Discovery enough" well I certainly hope they're not paying Discovery at all!!! I guess maybe that was simply a figure of speech on your part, made out of understandable frustration!!
The way I understand it is that shows on AP are produced by a company (producer) who pays those in the show, and then the producer sells the program to the channels. It seems to me the producer, who has most of the costs would naturally get the bulk of the proceeds from the show, but certainly OI (Nyrau Menteng) gets paid for their participation in the show both financially and probably more importantly the public exposure and therefore support from viewers that they get because of the program.
Prior to my just happening up OI by chance and watching it because nothing else any good was on, I knew what an orangutan is and looked like but that was about it. I thought they lived in Africa, didn't know there are two distinct and different species of orangutans or that both species are highly endangered. To be perfectly honest about it: I didn't care either! Having watched that one show made me want to know as much as I can about orangutans and do whatever I can to save them. I do love orangutans now!
Escape to Chimp Eden is a substitute for me, that I enjoy during the off season of OI. While orangutans will always be first in my heart and mind, chimps are interesting as well and also endangered. I do believe that chimps have more general support and interest from the public than orangutans, but both need our help if they are to survive in the wild. I like the Escape to Chimp Eden plot better than OI. I like to be "educated" by what I'm watching and I think that by showing the rescues and rehabilitation at the Chimp Eden rescue center, rather than just showing the chimps interacting on their own in the enclosures to more informative and therefore interesting than OI. Just watching the Orangutans interact on OI, with only a few rescues and snippets from the actual rehab center is most likely more entertaining for the majority of viewers, but personally I like the presentation of Chimp Eden better.
I purchased the first season of Orangutan Diaries which is the BBC's version of OI and they showed more rescues and more of the actual daily workings of rehabilitation at Nyrau Menteng Center.....which I enjoyed more than just watching orangutans on their own on the islands in OI. Everyone is different however and so everyone has different likes and dislikes. I do know that OI has been extremely important to informing the public about the plight of the orangutans as well as their knowledge of orangutans and no price can be put on that! My greatest fear is that OI might someday be canceled and I hope that day never comes!
Dave
