Last night NBC wunderkind and Vulture hero Ben Silverman appeared for the very first time on Charlie Rose to share some of his exciting opinions. Sadly, the conversation hewed mostly to TV and advertising (seriously, Charlie — not a single question about eyebrows?), but there were still a few magical moments. Silverman spun as a positive his decision to hold new episodes of 30 Rock until three weeks after Fey mania had already reached a crescendo, spoke reverently of his idol, legendary TV exec Brandon Tartikoff (“One of the only reasons Hill Street Blues stayed on the air was because NBC didn’t have more money to put a new show on in its place!”), and explained his network’s new philosophy on advertising (“If a 30- or 60-second spot used to help create a brand identity around a car, now it’s to help create that brand identity with a show. What does this car represent to the character? Does the car help him get out of a situation? Does the car’s owner’s wife think the car makes the driver look sexy?”). Also, he speculated on why companies have been slow to advertise on YouTube — “because that same image [of a scripted TV show, or a Couric-Palin interview] is next to a cat peeing in a toilet.” Video is (we hope!) forthcoming.
