Soap fans protest outside ABC upfront presentations

Several dozen soap fans protested outside ABC’s upfront presentations over the network’s decision to cancel All My Children and One Life to Live.

The disgruntled viewers were there to protest at ABC’s double whammy cancellation of two daily soap operas. According to The Hollywood Reporter around 30 fans took part in the protest outside the presentations – possibly meaning ABC was the only broadcaster to attract protest rallies this year. The protest was organised by SoapFansUnited.com who are hoping to wage a successful campaign to keep both soaps on-air.

All My Children and One Life to Live were cancelled by ABC last month and will be replaced by cheaper “life style” programmes. The two soaps were rumoured to be in danger of cancellation for some time but such rumours were always denied. The protestors handed out leaflets blasting ABC for axing the two soaps to replace them with “glorified infomercials appropriate for late-night basic cable channels, not for a major broadcast network.”

The soap genre in America has been in decline since the 1990s with CBS, NBC and ABC slowly cancelling their soaps in favour of cheaper programme in the face of declining ratings. In the past few years CBS has cancelled Guiding Light and As The World Turns while further back NBC soaps Passions and Sunset Beach were axed.