Final Round in Late Night Fight?

For those following the NBC/ Jay Leno/ Conan O’Brian situation, an agreement seems in sight between the network and O’Brian. What seems to be the deal so far according to ABCNews.com is that O’Brian would leave NBC with a severance payment between $30 and $40 million and go to another network, allowing Leno to reclaim his late night spot. The “Tonight Show” staff, many of whom came with O’Brian from New York, would get severance and contract buy-out packages. As to where O’Brian will end up is still up in the air, though News Corp., owner of Fox, has been the most vocal. The final announcement could come as early as today. O’Brian’s last show is scheduled to air this Friday with him expected to be in television again by September or sooner.

Even with settlement within sight, one has to wonder what effects this will have on television in general. First off, Jay Leno, the talk show host they are keeping, has had his name dragged through the mud over this, despite it not truly being his fault. Second, NBC is losing one of their main draws, Conan O’Brian, and may end up having to compete with him on another station. Thirdly, NBC will have quite a time trying to salvage its reputation even after this whole fiasco is settled. As to what effects this will have on television in general will depend on where O’Brian decided to go.