Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend The State Of The Entertainment Business With Jeff Ross
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Apr 23, 2026 
Jeff Ross, executive producer and long‑time comedy pro, offers an insider view of Hollywood and modern production. They discuss syndication shifts like Byron Allen buying time, whether Conan could thrive in daytime TV, why podcasting fits his young digital audience, rising overseas production and shrinking US jobs, and bold merch and niche product ideas.
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Linear TV Has Become Buyable Real Estate
- The late-night/talk landscape is shifting into treatable real estate where producers can buy time slots and control ad sales.
- Conan and Jeff discuss Byron Allen buying CBS time as an example, reframing linear TV as syndication-style ownership rather than network-controlled programming.
Buying A 4AM Slot Could Get You Back On Broadcast
- Conan jokes about buying a 4am network slot and squatting in it, which illustrates how time-buying can let creators return to linear TV.
- The exchange references Byron Allen's model and notes networks may simply sell time rather than program it themselves.
Daytime TV Wouldn’t Match Conan’s Audience
- Conan and Jeff discuss the idea of Conan doing daytime and note the mismatch with his younger, digital-first audience.
- They recount a past meeting pitched to Conan as a daytime host and conclude his podcast viewers skew young and mobile, making daytime TV a poor fit.