KCRW's The Spin-Off Pre-Upfronts Edition: What's Hot? What Will Be Cancelled? (LISTEN NOW!)

Joe and I are back, this time with The Hollywood Reporter's Lesley Goldberg, for the latest edition of KCRW's The Spin-Off podcast. This time, we give a preview of what to expect at next week's network upfronts, as the FATE OF THE TV INDUSTRY IS DECIDED. (OK, not really, but sounds intense, right?) He's what we chatted about:

We've made it to May, and in the TV world, that means one thing: Upfronts. Some of us will be heading to New York next week, but before we go, we talk about what the lay of the land looks like for this year, and we check in on some of the pilots up for consideration.

Ahead of the upfronts, NBC announced three drama pickups, including Chicago Med from Dick Wolf, the same man who brought us Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. Will this year bring the return of the medical dramas? And what exactly do you do with all those superhero shows? It's a saturated genre, but perhaps there's a way to schedule them that makes sense.

And coming out of last weekend's massive boxing match, the CEO of Twitter announced that the big winner of the night was...Periscope, the video streaming app. Are apps like these going to be problematic for the TV industry, or should the networks learn to embrace them?

Plus, as always, we go around the horn for our Download segment and share the stories or shows that are top of mind this month.

Hey, go on iTunes and rate us/review us, will ya? And listen by clicking here!

KCRW's THE SPIN-OFF: Producer Julie Plec on Juggling Two Shows, Pilot Season and Losing "Vampire Diaries" Star Nina Dobrev

The latest edition of KCRW's The Spin-Off is up! Showrunner Julie Plec is having quite a moment. Her show "The Vampire Diaries" has been renewed for Season 7. The spin-off of that show, "The Originals," has been renewed for Season 3, and she's also got a new pilot in play this year.

In a rare moment of calm, she stopped by KCRW to talk with me and Joe Adalian about everything from how she manages to oversee 44 new episodes a year, to the joys and challenges of dealing with very vocal fans on social media. She also tells us why in the writing world, she still feels like "brand" is a dirty word.

Listen below!

MIKE ON KCRW: Talking Pilot Season on "Press Play"

On Monday's Press Play with Madeleine Brand, Diane Gordon and I talk about pilot season and other stuff:

The most popular television shows this year have been big on drama and big on crime, but not so big on laughs. Now the networks are kicking off their new pilot season, looking for the next runaway hit, and this year’s success stories could have a big influence on their decision-making. Does that mean another gritty lineup for the small screen? We discuss that and more in our weekly television news roundup.

Listen below:

MIKE ON RADIO: Discussing the Changing TV Pilot Season with KCRW's "Press Play"

On Tuesday's edition of KCRW's "Press Play with Madeleine Brand," I joined my former Variety colleague Cynthia Littleton to talk about the upheaval in the TV pilot process this season.

Here's how they described the segment:

We’re in the middle of March Madness - the basketball tournament - but that’s also a perfect name for TV’s pilot season. This is the height of the network’s annual scramble to produce new shows and roll out their Fall line-ups. It’s a costly and slightly crazy tradition - and it’s only gotten costlier and crazier. For years, network executives have said that they were going to do things a better way. Now it seems like that’s finally started to happen.

Listen below! The segment starts 16 minutes in.

MIKE ON RADIO: Oscar Ratings, Pilots and Jimmy Kimmel on KCRW's "Press Play"

Fun chat with host Madeleine Brand on Tuesday's edition of KCRW's "Press Play." We chat up Oscar ratings, the trends of pilot season and how Jimmy Kimmel's interview with Toronto mayor Rob Ford turned out. It's 20 minutes into this episode, stream it below:

MIKE ON RADIO: On KCRW's The Business, Discussing TV Critics Press Tour

On this week's edition of KCRW's "The Business," I called in from the Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena to give an update on the Television Critics Association press tour. Pilot season -- which we also discussed on this month's The Spin-Off -- was the hot topic. Listen to the "banter" segment that kicks off the show:

Mike on Radio: Bantering About Fox's New Sports Network and More on KCRW's "The Business"

I'm back on this week's edition of KCRW's "The Business," bantering with the Los Angeles Times' John Horn about:

- News Corp announces their answer to ESPN -- a new cable channel, FOX Sports 1 -- but can they take on this 30-year sports behemoth? - The broadcast channels spend big this pilot season hoping to find something that will stick after a lackluster year. Some familiar names are shooting pilots, including Robin Williams and Greg Kinnear - NBC begins to think about when and how Jay Leno will finally walk away from late night

Listen below!

Mike on Radio: Bantering About Pilot Season And More on KCRW's "The Business"

I'm back on KCRW's The Business this week, bantering with the Los Angeles Times' John Horn on topics including the shakeup at NBCUniversal cable; the mysteries of pilot season; and the massive layoffs coming to DreamWorks Animation. Listen below!

My Breakfast Chat with Fox's Kevin Reilly

Media Council Breakfast: Kevin Reilly, Fox Entertainment president/ Moderator: Michael Schneider, TV Guide Magazine

I sat down with Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly this morning to chat about the state of the TV biz for the Paley Center's Media Council Breakfast. We chatted about the mess that is pilot season, and how habits probably won't change; whether Nielsen's latest promise to retool the ratings system will fix things; how there will be a mountain of comedy on the air next season, including at Fox; whether "American Idol" is in need of change; if the networks are giving away too much of their content on other platforms; and much more.