Granite Flakes.

Why don’t we stop fooling ourselves?
The game is over, over, over
No good times, no bad times
There’s no times at all
Just the New York Times
Sitting on the windowsill
Near the flowers

Time
Is tapping on my forehead
Hanging from my mirror
Rattling the teacups
And I wonder

How long can I delay?

We’re just a habit
Like saccharin
And I’m habitually feelin’ kinda blue
But each time I try on
The thought of leaving you
I stop…
I stop and think it over

~Overs (Simon & Garfunkel)

This is a post for those of you who watched the TV show Granite Flats that appeared on BYUtv. This is an angry post. As the readership of this blog is rather diverse, I know that talking about a niche television show is not what everyone is looking for. Next week will be about a completely different (but yet to be determined) topic. As always, leave comments below if you so desire.

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I was a watcher of Granite Flats (From here on, GF). As you may know, GF was cancelled rather abruptly last Thursday. There had been suspicions that the show would not continue beyond the third season. The announcement last Thursday confirmed this suspicion. BYUtv released the third season this past April (online only). I guess they plan to show the third season episodes on BYUtv this coming October. As the show has been cancelled, I doubt they will get much of a viewership. Although BYUtv is not exactly the model for marketing prowess. The only advertisements they seem to have are about food hoarding or local law firms. You would have to be rather dedicated to GF to tune in in October. It is like watching the Super Bowl a week after it happened. You already know that your team lost. Why watch it?

As those of you who have seen the third season of GF know, the final episode does not exactly have a positive resolution. Having the lead suspect in a murder escape from prison while the main character's father is at an undisclosed location (and maybe dead, maybe alive) is not exactly a good way to tie up a show. I had hoped that at the very least BYUtv would make some sort of two hour special to wrap it all up. It now seems that this is rather unlikely.

In thinking about the cancelling of the show, I came to the conclusion that we are not getting the full story. We were just told that "it’s time for the Granite Flats chapter to come to a close." (This is from a PR drenched letter to fans posted on the BYUtv website). My personal guess is that the monetary resources for GF were taken to be used elsewhere (i.e. for the football team). BYU Football had their media day on Wednesday last week. There have been announcements about a living stipend being disbursed to athletes this coming year. BYU is giving $4500 per school year as a stipend. This ranks as the 10th highest stipend in the nation. The administration of the team has also indicated that such a stipend is not sustainable currently (i.e. unless BYU gets into the Big XII). But in the mean while, BYU will just shift some funds here and there and find a way to pay the stipend. (In other words, cancel GF).

Now I do not know if this is the reason GF was cancelled. It is only a guess. Maybe BYUtv really is that bad at marketing. Admittedly, as a business model, a television station run by a religious institution like BYU is a difficult proposition. Most of what is advertised on TV these days cannot be advertised on BYUtv. Any caffeinated beverage is out. Any clothing is out due to perceived modesty issues. (Even capris could be too suggestive. Let's not get going on shorts). The list goes on and on. Furthermore, I understand that the purpose of BYUtv is not primarily to make money. BYUtv's aim is to provide positive entertainment that "uplifts." Although this move does not feel uplifting, it feels deceptive. It is like complimenting someone on their shoes to distract them while you steal their wallet.

Part of the reason that GF was started in the first place was "to create an innovative, purposeful scripted series to see if people would watch as families, friends and colleagues." (Again quoting from the BYUtv website). In the beginning, GF was an experiment. However, they seemingly took the word "experiment" too literally. All we really were is the test subjects I guess. They figured out people liked the show then cut funding for the experiment. We were not real viewers, we were just part of the experiment. Of course the show was moving towards a resolution. But they had not reached it yet. It was a sloppy and cheap way to go out.  I think they lost a significant amount of credibility by this move. People will begin to see them as the KBYU of old, a local station where you could pick up general conference biannually.

I will close with a letter I wrote to BYUtv about the cancelling of GF. 

BYUtv:

I am writing concerning your recent cancelling of Granite Flats. To begin with, I will be quite frank: Cancelling Granite Flats was a poor decision. Granite Flats was your flagship series both in terms of reaching a diverse audience, as well as presenting your declared mission of "purpose driven programming." The show was the medium through which you were able to present entertainment that was different, entertainment that was positive. However your abrupt ending of the show without resolution showed BYUtv is a fake and a pretender. Granite Flats was all a big lie I guess. The development with Wallace Jenkins? Fake. The growth of Herschel Jenkins? Totally fake. Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic. Ezekiel Scott and his dream of racial equality? Complete fiction. The Andrews and issues of conscience? Obviously fake. Pretenders have no need of a conscience. That's what the curt and unceremonious cancellation of Granite Flats showed. It was just a bunch of flap jaw. You said good things, but never were able to really stand by them in the end. Instead of showing resolve to stand for good, you fled at the very moment the cause gained momentum. 

Understandably, the Granite Flats project could not be perpetuated forever. The show naturally had to end at some point. This ending, however, was anything but natural. This ending was sloppy. It was ungracious and ungraceful. While you presented 24 hours of quality family entertainment, your 25th hour was not your finest moment. Unfortunately this is the hour that most people will remember. You came across as cheap and unprofessional, both to those who watched the show as well as to the writers and actors. Viewers are probably not going to forget this anytime soon. I know I will not. I have no plans to watch any further programming on BYUtv. Why would I invest my time in your shows, just to have them abruptly cancelled? 

In closing, I am aware that monetary considerations may have played a role in the cancelling of Granite Flats. The administration of BYU of course allocates more money to certain areas than others. Whatever your reason for cancelling Granite Flats in the brusque manner you did, I was disappointed as a BYU alumnus to see such poor representation of my university.