Networks Wrestle With Fall Uncertainty

Still reeling from the writers strike and dealing with the threat of an actors strike, network TV faces an uphill battle for viewers this fall. On the eve of the annual dog-and-pony show to introduce new shows to critics, USA Today TV expert Robert Bianco looks at the uncertainty plaguing the once-reliable fall TV season and the straws the networks are grasping.

"September is not that far away," Bianco writes, "and when it comes to new offerings—the prime drivers of new-season buzz—the networks are understocked and, in many cases, unprepared." (More television stories.)