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Television viewership has been in serious decline for several years now, as alternative forms of entertainment abound. (I personally don't even own a TV). According to an AP article from earlier this year, 2.5 million fewer viewers were tuned into the major networks compared to just one year ago.
It is also a fact that women watch more television than men in general and watch more drama-oriented stuff in particular. Thus, far from "Women are the new men on TV" having some sort of deep meaning, it merely reflects the demographics of the audience to which these shows are pandering. It IS, after all, a strictly commercial venture, with an expected payoff for the advertisers.
As a mocking William Shatner pleaded to a rabid group of Trekkies in a classic SNL skit: "It's just a TV show!"
It is. Really.
