Last Week Tonight with John Oliver season 1 explained

Bgcolour:
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Season Number:1
Image Alt:Photo of Oliver wearing a suit and glasses while holding another pair. The large text above him reads "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" and "Like the nightly news. Only weeklier."
Num Episodes:24
Network:HBO
Episode List:List of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver episodes

The first season of late-night talk and news satire television program Last Week Tonight with John Oliver originally aired between April 27, 2014, and November 9, 2014, on HBO in the United States. The season was produced by Avalon Television, and the executive producers were host John Oliver, Tim Carvell, James Taylor, and Jon Thoday, with Joe Perota as director.

The season contained 24 episodes, each featuring a main segment on that week's news story and several other smaller segments. Last Week Tonight aired on Sundays at 11 pm, each episode having been taped hours before. The season was generally well-received, and won an Emmy Award, Peabody Award, TCA Award, Webby Award, and WGA Award. It received an average audience of 4.1 million weekly viewers. The main segments were also posted to the show's YouTube channel after airing. The show's fifth episode, which dealt with net neutrality in the United States, was credited with influencing the Federal Communications Commission's decision to strongly regulate net neutrality, beginning a phenomenon dubbed the "John Oliver effect".

Background and production

The host of Last Week Tonight, John Oliver, was the British correspondent on Jon Stewart's The Daily Show.[1] In 2013, Oliver guest-hosted the show for eight weeks while Stewart directed his film Rosewater.[2] Oliver's time as host received positive reviews,[3] [4] [5] [6] with some critics suggesting Oliver receive his own show or take over The Daily Show once Stewart left.[7] [8] [9] Three months after Oliver's time as host ended, HBO announced it was giving Oliver his own late-night show.[10]

In an interview for U.S. News & World Report, executive producer Tim Carvell said the structure of the show was designed to provide short breaks in content so that the audience did not have "to hear anybody talk ... for a half an hour straight", given HBO's ad-free model.[11] These breaks were implemented using comedic act to split up the different segments of the show.[12] Carvell continued that the uncensored nature of HBO allowed for the producers to implement explicit content and for Oliver to swear unbleeped.

Season one aired from April 27, 2014, to November 9, 2014.[13] [14] Each episode was taped at CBS Broadcast Center a few hours before broadcasting at 11 pm.[15] [16] The first season was produced by Avalon Television and aired by HBO in the United States. The executive producers were Oliver, Carvell, James Taylor, and Jon Thoday, with Liz Stanton as producer.[17] Writers include Oliver, Carvell, Kevin Avery, Dan Gurewitch, Geoff Haggerty, Jeff Maurer, Scott Sherman, William Tracy, Jill Twiss, and Juli Weiner, with Joe Perota as director.

Reception

Critical reception

On the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 94%, with an average score of 8.5 out of 10 based on 31 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "John Oliver successfully transitions from correspondent to host in Last Week Tonight, a biting, often brilliant addition to the satirical news circuit."[18] Metacritic gave the season a score—a weighted average based on the impression of 14 critical reviews—of 76, signifying "generally favorable reviews".[19]

The first episode was generally well received.[20] [21] Many critics compared it to The Daily Show; some thought it did not set itself apart from The Daily Show.[22] [23] Contrarily, Darren Franich writing in Entertainment Weekly felt Last Week Tonight maintained similarity to The Daily Show, but set itself apart in the thoroughness and level of detail in the news stories presented; Franich gave the show an A− rating. Another reviewer opined that Oliver should have filled the Comedy Central slot left by The Colbert Report when it moved to CBS instead of "leaping at HBO's offer".[24] Tim Goodman writing in The Hollywood Reporter felt the 30-minute time slot was too short, and that the first episode felt "rushed and jam-packed with information".[25] Multiple reviewers praised Oliver's passion on the topics of the first episode.

Ratings

The first episode, aired at 11 pm, received 1.1 million viewers, rising to 1.4 million after a second play. In comparison, The Daily Show averaged 1.5 million viewers simultaneously, and The Colbert Report averaged 1.2 million viewers at 11:30 pm. Across TV airings, DVR, on-demand, and HBO Go, the first season received an average audience of 4.1 million weekly viewers, just over that of HBO's other popular late-night show, the older Real Time with Bill Maher.[26] In addition, the main segments of each episode were posted to Last Week Tonight's YouTube channel for free viewing; the show's segment on the 2014 Scottish independence referendum received 3 million views within its first week.[27] In April 2024, HBO announced that the full episodes of seasons one through eight would be released on the Last Week Tonight YouTube channel.[28]

Awards

See also: List of awards and nominations received by Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. Last Week Tonight was recognized with a Peabody Award "for bringing satire and journalism even closer together", particularly regarding the show's coverage of net neutrality in its fifth episode.[29] [30] Season one received the Emmy Award for Outstanding Interactive Program,[31] the TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in News and Information,[32] the Webby Award for Best Writing in Social,[33] and the WGA Award for Television: Comedy-Variety Talk Series.[34]

Influence

See also: Net Neutrality (Last Week Tonight with John Oliver). Coverage of an issue by Last Week Tonight has been credited with influencing US legislature and culture, a phenomenon dubbed the "John Oliver effect".[35] [36] The first season's fifth episode, covering net neutrality in the United States, was the first episode to have this effect.[37] After discussing the problems regarding a subject previously regarded as obscure and technical, Oliver argued the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had the power to fix net neutrality problems, and encouraged viewers to submit comments on the FCC's website. Soon after the episode aired, the FCC's website crashed.[38] The FCC chairman Tom Wheeler publicly addressed the video,[39] and the following year, the FCC implemented strong net neutrality rules that classified broadband internet service as a public utility;[40] Oliver was credited with helping to push this change.[41] Furthermore, the 18th episode covered the Miss America beauty pageant, in which Oliver exposed the false claim made by Miss America that they gave $45 million in scholarships yearly to competitors.[42] The Last Week Tonight writing team, which included four researchers with backgrounds in journalism,[43] analyzed the organization's tax forms and found that only a small percentage of the claimed $45 million was actually granted to competitors.[44] At the end of the episode, Oliver told viewers to donate to other women's scholarship organizations instead, specifically naming the Society of Women Engineers. Two days after airing, the Society of Women Engineers had received $25,000 in donations, which amounted to about 15% of the society's average annual donations.[45]

Episodes

See also: List of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver episodes.

References

  1. News: Carter . Bill . April 23, 2014 . Now Nattering on His Own Throne . . live . subscription . April 24, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140424124445/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/27/arts/television/john-oliver-launches-last-week-tonight-on-hbo.html . April 24, 2014.
  2. Web site: Fleming . Mike Jr. . March 5, 2013 . Update: Jon Stewart Taking Summer Daily Show Hiatus to Direct First Film and 'Challenge' Himself, John Oliver to Sub . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130807021758/http://www.deadline.com/2013/03/jon-stewart-daily-show-hiatus-john-oliver-hosting-rosewater/ . August 7, 2013 . August 16, 2013 . Deadline Hollywood.
  3. Web site: Paskin . Willa . June 14, 2013 . Jon Stewart Who?: John Oliver's Daily Show Is Almost Too Good . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130816042946/http://www.salon.com/2013/06/14/john_oliver_on_the_daily_show_is_almost_too_good/ . August 16, 2013 . August 16, 2013 . Salon.
  4. Web site: Grant . Drew . June 28, 2013 . The Daily Show Down: Why John Oliver Is the Best Thing to Happen to Late Night Since Colbert . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130724040421/http://observer.com/2013/06/the-daily-showdown-why-john-oliver-is-the-best-thing-to-happen-to-late-night-since-colbert-video/ . July 24, 2013 . August 16, 2013 . New York Observer.
  5. News: Carlson . Erin . June 11, 2013 . Daily Show: John Oliver Makes Hilarious Debut as Host . . live . August 16, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130617220005/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/daily-show-john-oliver-makes-566167 . June 17, 2013.
  6. Web site: Molloy . Tim . June 10, 2013 . Review: John Oliver's Daily Show Is Sharp as Ever . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130808183630/http://www.thewrap.com/tv/article/review-john-olivers-daily-show-sharp-ever-96536 . August 8, 2013 . August 16, 2013 . TheWrap.
  7. Web site: Fox . Jesse David . August 15, 2013 . We Can Now Consider John Oliver The Daily Shows Heir Apparent . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130817053456/http://www.vulture.com/2013/08/john-oliver-the-daily-shows-heir-apparent.html . August 17, 2013 . August 16, 2013 . . New York.
  8. Busis . Hillary . August 16, 2013 . John Oliver Bids Farewell to Daily Show Hosting Gig – How'd He Do? . live . . https://web.archive.org/web/20130816162624/http://popwatch.ew.com/2013/08/16/john-oliver-daily-show-last-day/ . August 16, 2013 . August 16, 2013.
  9. Web site: Holpuch . Amanda . June 11, 2013 . John Oliver Hosts The Daily Show Without Jon Stewart – Triumphantly . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130812223146/http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/us-news-blog/2013/jun/11/john-oliver-daily-show-jon-stewart . August 12, 2013 . August 16, 2013 . The Guardian.
  10. Web site: Andreeva . Nellie . November 14, 2013 . Daily Shows John Oliver to Host Weekly Comedy Talk Show For HBO . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20131220192006/http://www.deadline.com/2013/11/john-oliver-to-host-weekly-comedy-talk-show-for-hbo/ . December 20, 2013 . December 20, 2013 . Deadline Hollywood.
  11. Web site: Sneed . Tierney . April 22, 2014 . Why Last Week Tonight Will Not Just Be The Daily Show On Sundays . July 20, 2023 . . May 4, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140504081746/http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/04/22/5-things-to-know-about-last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver . live .
  12. Web site: Steinberg . Brian . July 2, 2014 . How John Oliver and HBO Shattered TV's Comedy-News Format . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210131160050/https://variety.com/2014/tv/news/how-john-oliver-and-hbo-shattered-tvs-comedy-news-format-1201257084/ . January 31, 2021 . January 26, 2021 . . en-US.
  13. Web site: Wright . Megh . April 28, 2014 . Watch the First Episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver . subscription . July 20, 2023 . . en-us . July 20, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230720133755/https://www.vulture.com/2014/04/watch-some-clips-from-the-last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver-premiere.html . live .
  14. Web site: November 11, 2014 . John Oliver's Last Week Tonight Ratings: 796,000 Viewers in Finale's First Run . July 17, 2023 . . en-US . August 19, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220819205136/https://deadline.com/2014/11/john-olivers-last-week-tonight-ratings-796000-viewers-in-first-season-finale-premiere-1201280776/ . live .
  15. Web site: Levin . Gary . January 10, 2014 . John Oliver Maps New HBO Series . July 20, 2023 . . en-US . January 16, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140116085547/http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2014/01/09/john-oliver-hbo-the-daily-show-jon-stewart/4399767/ . live .
  16. Web site: Weprin . Alex . June 6, 2023 . CBS Broadcast Center in New York Up For Sale From Paramount . July 20, 2023 . . en-US . June 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230629082849/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/paramount-explores-sale-cbs-broadcast-center-new-york-1235508240/ . live .
  17. Web site: Lowry . Brian . April 28, 2014 . TV Review: Last Week Tonight With John Oliver . July 17, 2023 . . en-US . May 28, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230528050216/https://variety.com/2014/tv/reviews/tv-review-last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver-1201163357/ . live .
  18. Web site: Last Week Tonight With John Oliver: Season 1 . July 17, 2023 . . en . February 21, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230221005005/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/last_week_tonight_with_john_oliver/s01 . live .
  19. Web site: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Season 1 . July 17, 2023 . . April 6, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230406210809/https://www.metacritic.com/tv/last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver/season-1 . live .
  20. Franich . Darren . April 28, 2014 . John Oliver's Last Week Tonight Premiere Review . July 18, 2023 . . en . April 7, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230407162418/https://ew.com/article/2014/04/28/last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver-review/ . live .
  21. News: Haglund . David . April 28, 2014 . Last Week Tonight: Like The Daily Show, With Unbleeped Swears! . en-US . . July 18, 2023 . 1091-2339 . April 9, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230409002712/https://slate.com/culture/2014/04/the-premiere-of-john-olivers-hbo-show-last-week-tonight-reviewed.html . live .
  22. News: Genzlinger . Neil . April 28, 2014 . Sit-Down Comic Takes His Place as Anchorman . en-US . . July 18, 2023 . 0362-4331 . June 16, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220616224534/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/29/arts/television/last-week-tonight-on-hbo-reviews-the-news.html . live .
  23. Breger . Esther . April 28, 2014 . Some Advice for John Oliver: Stop Imitating The Daily Show . . July 18, 2023 . 0028-6583 . October 7, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221007124057/https://newrepublic.com/article/117557/john-olivers-hbo-show-premiere-review . live .
  24. News: Lowry . Brian . April 17, 2014 . TV Review: Last Week Tonight With John Oliver . . live . July 17, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230528050216/https://variety.com/2014/tv/reviews/tv-review-last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver-1201163357/ . May 28, 2023.
  25. Web site: Goodman . Tim . April 27, 2014 . John Oliver's Last Week Tonight is Funny but Too Fast for Its Own Good (Analysis) . July 18, 2023 . . en-US . May 28, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230528085349/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/john-olivers-last-week-tonight-699241/ . live .
  26. Web site: White . Peter . September 10, 2021 . Real Time With Bill Maher Renewed At HBO Through 2024 . August 22, 2023 . . en-US . May 5, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230505211051/https://deadline.com/2021/09/real-time-with-bill-maher-hbo-renews-2024-1234830510/ . live .
  27. Web site: O'Connell . Mikey . September 25, 2014 . John Oliver's Talk Show Ratings Edging Out HBO Colleague Bill Maher . July 20, 2023 . . en-US . April 8, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230408101712/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/john-olivers-talk-show-ratings-735187/ . live .
  28. Web site: Tinoco . Armando . April 28, 2024 . HBO Dropping Last Week Tonight With John Oliver Season 1 Episodes On YouTube With Seasons 2-8 Coming Soon . May 27, 2024 . . en-US.
  29. Web site: 2014 . Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO) . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20190119121416/http://www.peabodyawards.com/award-profile/last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver . January 19, 2019 . April 1, 2020 . Peabody Awards.
  30. News: Ryan . Maureen . April 16, 2015 . Peabody Awards Go To Last Week Tonight, Jane the Virgin, The Americans And Other Shows . . live . April 1, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150722072943/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/15/peabody-awards_n_7073234.html . July 22, 2015.
  31. Web site: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150724012239/http://www.emmys.com/shows/last-week-tonight-john-oliver . July 24, 2015 . April 1, 2020 . Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
  32. News: Birnbaum . Debra . August 9, 2015 . Empire Wins Program of the Year at TCA Awards . . live . April 1, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150809154935/http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/empire-tca-awards-full-list-of-winners-1201561929/ . August 9, 2015.
  33. Web site: McCarthy . Sean . April 27, 2015 . Netflix, Funny or Die, Collegehumor, Fallon Among 2015 Webby Awards Winners . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20180107061430/http://thecomicscomic.com/2015/04/27/netflix-funny-or-die-collegehumor-fallon-among-2015-webby-awards-winners/ . January 7, 2018 . April 2, 2020 . The Comic's Comic.
  34. Web site: Petski . Denise . February 14, 2015 . WGA Awards: Budapest, Imitation Game Win Top Film Honors, True Detective, Louie Score On TV Side — Full List . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150430055511/http://deadline.com/2015/02/wga-award-winners-2015-writers-guild-awards-winners-list-1201373012/ . April 30, 2015 . April 1, 2020 . Deadline Hollywood.
  35. News: Luckerson . Victor . January 20, 2015 . How the 'John Oliver Effect' Is Having a Real-Life Impact . . live . July 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150810231912/http://time.com/3674807/john-oliver-net-neutrality-civil-forfeiture-miss-america/ . August 10, 2015 . 0040-781X .
  36. Web site: Dekel . Jon . February 18, 2015 . The John Oliver Effect: How the Daily Show Alum Became the Most Trusted Man in America . dead . https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20180727192525/https://nationalpost.com/entertainment/television/the-john-oliver-effect-how-the-daily-show-alum-became-the-most-trusted-man-in-america . July 27, 2018 . August 27, 2015 . . 1486-8008.
  37. News: Brody . Ben . February 26, 2015 . How John Oliver Transformed the Net Neutrality Debate Once and for All . . live . subscription . December 10, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150814011603/http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-02-26/how-john-oliver-transformed-the-net-neutrality-debate-once-and-for-all . August 14, 2015.
  38. Web site: Roppolo . Michael . June 3, 2014 . John Oliver's Rant About Net Neutrality Crashes FCC Site . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150815023746/http://www.cbsnews.com/news/fcc-comment-page-crashes-after-john-olivers-rant-about-net-neutrality/ . August 15, 2015 . August 27, 2015 . CBS News.
  39. Web site: Risen . Tom . June 13, 2014 . FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler: 'I Am Not a Dingo' . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20151117024329/http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2014/06/13/fcc-chairman-tom-wheeler-i-am-not-a-dingo . November 17, 2015 . August 27, 2015 . U.S. News & World Report.
  40. News: Ruiz . Rebecca R. . Lohr . Steve . February 26, 2015 . F.C.C. Approves Net Neutrality Rules, Classifying Broadband Internet Service as a Utility . . live . July 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150226212654/http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/27/technology/net-neutrality-fcc-vote-internet-utility.html . February 26, 2015.
  41. News: Brody . Ben . February 26, 2015 . How John Oliver Transformed the Net Neutrality Debate Once and for All . . live . subscription . July 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150814011603/http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-02-26/how-john-oliver-transformed-the-net-neutrality-debate-once-and-for-all . August 14, 2015.
  42. Web site: Rupar . Aaron . September 24, 2014 . John Oliver's Devastating Takedown of Miss America Has a Local Angle . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150829084844/http://www.citypages.com/news/john-olivers-devastating-takedown-of-miss-america-has-a-local-angle-video-6533952 . August 29, 2015 . July 29, 2023 . City Pages.
  43. Web site: Blake . Meredith . February 4, 2015 . Seven Things We Learned At Breakfast With John Oliver . subscription . July 29, 2023 . . September 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150926194527/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-john-oliver-last-week-tonight-season-2-20150204-story.html . live .
  44. Web site: Chung . Jen . September 22, 2014 . Video: John Oliver Shreds Miss America's Claim To Be 'Leading Provider' of Scholarships To Women . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150510013519/http://gothamist.com/2014/09/22/john_oliver_miss_america.php . May 10, 2015 . December 11, 2021 . Gothamist.
  45. Web site: Gregory . Ted . September 24, 2014 . 'John Oliver bounce' benefits Chicago-based women's engineering group . July 29, 2023 . . August 28, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150828031315/http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/tv/ct-pageant-engineer-scholarships-20140923-story.html . live .

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