And if viewers don't like what they see, the panelists advised, let the networks know. The panel discussion, held at the Kennedy School's Arco Forum on April 4, was moderated by David Wilkins, Kirkland and Ellis Professor of Law. The picture they presented wasn't always pretty, but it did offer hope. The panelists discussed several occasions when they fought for a particular episode or character because of the good they thought it would do - and won. Ironically, that was the same character the network wanted to have lose her virginity two years earlier for May sweeps, Fales-Hill said.
Sweeps are when a show's audience is measured in order to set advertising rates.
The advertisers felt the nation had put its panties back on. It was more conservative and didn't want to see this kind of thing. After some negotiation, Fales-Hill said, they agreed to air the show unchanged, but with a warning that parents should watch with their children. The show, it turned out, had the second highest rating in the series' history, Fales-Hill said. Baer said they fought over it, and ultimately wound up silently mouthing the word during the episode.