Press Release with Dixie Carter about the "real" future of Impact

[Snowman1]

TNA IMPACT WRESTLING announced today that the highly-rated weekly series will be making changes to its programming to include a hybrid of reality and explosive action each Thursday, live on SPIKE TV at 8:00pm/ ET. The reality elements and production technique represent the most significant evolution in this genre in more than 15 years.

“We took a step back to look at our product with fresh eyes,” says TNA IMPACT WRESTLING President Dixie Carter. “People watch TV differently today than before, and the wrestling format itself has become stale. What happens backstage, in the office and on the road is so entertaining that we decided it was time to pull the curtain way back and give viewers a peek at that world as well. Over the next few weeks and months, viewers will continue to see our show evolve as we expose more real aspects of our business that have always been sacred,” she continued.

This announcement is a key component in the continued growth of the TNA IMPACT WRESTLING brand that is bringing game-changing programming to the world of professional wrestling. Cameras will be everywhere. Meetings will be shot in real time and unscripted as we capture moments; not produced segments. Access to conversations and vantage points that have never been seen before, such as production meetings, talent evaluations and post match critiques, will be revealed. Combined with an emphasis on story structure, long term character and story development, these changes will help IMPACT WRESTLING pioneer the next generation of wrestling entertainment programming.

Going live allows IMPACT WRESTLING a deeper connection with our audience via social media. Starting with the May 31st broadcast, IMPACT WRESTLING will be the most socially interactive television program in the history of professional wrestling. Viewers will have a variety of unique opportunities to participate and influence certain elements of the program through various social media platforms. Also, backstage will take center stage, as fans will have access to live interviews being conducted featured on www.impactwrestling.com.

This is certainly interesting, we'll see how it works.
Love the quote about the wrestling format being stale and trying to have a fresh approach on things. TNA is trying something new, lets hope it works.

Although I'm afraid they won't have enough time for stuff like this. They really need a second weekly show.

 

[Crayo]

Ugh, this just screams more kayfabe breaking segments weekly. I'm not on board with that. I was a hater of the kayfabe breaking month of WWE we had after Punk's shoot. Without that "wrestling reality" it can become really hard to create really interesting story-lines.

 

[Dolph'sZiggler]

Hopefully this means more things styled like the opening segment last week.

__________

"Going live allows IMPACT WRESTLING a deeper connection with our audience via social media."

this blows though. Get ready for some Michael Cole circa 2011 Twitter mentions. fml

 

[Snowman1]

TNA, please, for the sake of wrestling fans everywhere, stay on the same path. Don't waver if being live does not deliver the dividends you want right away. Don't hot-shot like you did on Monday nights because you feel pressure. Just produce a good wrestling show with a different product than WWE currently offers. If you do build that product, fans will show up and stay.

http://www.prowrestling.net/artman/publish/pruettblog/article10025433.shtml
^Great little blog post about this.

However, Dolph's, lets see how they do it first. If they use it the way they did with "Send in your fan Questions for Austin Aries or Bully Ray", that's great! If it's "Lets get #TnaSacrifice to trend on Twitter" or "Who's team are you on? Team Roode or Team Storm" then they can drop that shit faster than they dropped Gunner's push. But adding more fan interaction to the show will also take up more time on the show, and they need all the time they can get.

 

[Testify]

Cool to see they're trying new things. The change is always welcomed. It's time to make this shit cool again. :boss: