Networked Insights: CBS

NEW YORK: The return of Lost‘s Josh Holloway to television in Intelligence is delivering positive social-media engagement for CBS, according to Networked Insights, which sees the midseason drama as a strong contender on the network’s upcoming schedule.

The firm, which analyzes conversations in social media to gauge how a show will do when it premieres in the fall or spring, says that Holloway is driving 49 percent of the social engagement with the new series. Sean Reckwerdt, lead television analyst at the company, does note, however, some hesitation from potential viewers that the series may bear too many similarities to NBC’s cancelled Chuck. "There’s concern people are burnt out by the spy dramas," Reckwerdt says.

Mom is also generating positive buzz, largely due to Chuck Lorre’s devout fan base from Two and a Half Men and The Big Bang Theory. "He’ll bring in a big audience," Reckwerdt says, adding that star Anna Faris is also of appeal to potential audiences.

The other comedy that was driving positive engagement on social media was The Crazy Ones, featuring Robin Williams and Sarah Michelle Gellar. "People love that pairing. Sarah Michelle Gellar was discussed by far more than Robin Williams was. And then David E. Kelley was brought up by more of the media people than he was by the hard core TV fans."

The show that failed to catch on among social media users was Hostages, which Reckwerdt puts at the "low end of the drama pool right now. People like Toni Collette as the show’s lead but [they think the] plot sounds boring."

In the middle of the pack is We Are Men, with a cast that includes Tony Shalhoub, Kal Penn and Jerry O’Connell.