AMC Networks boss Sarah Barnett dismisses algorithms: She says the key to TV success is finding offbeat ideas from unsung talent

The Atlantic

Barnett, the former head of SundanceTV and BBC America, was hired in late 2018 to oversee AMC and its three sister channels, BBC America, SundanceTV and IFC. Barnett is responsible for AMC Networks' critically acclaimed series like Killing Eve, Rectify and Top of the Lake. But how does AMC Networks still stand out in a crowded landscape? "Barnett is insistent that the answer isn’t all that revolutionary, and that it relies on the same tenets that have always informed groundbreaking television: voice and originality," says Sophie Gilbert in a profile of Barnett. "While more and more of her algorithm-driven competitors are seeking out demonstrable hits and versions of already proven concepts (think Netflix’s nostalgia plays or dystopian teen dramas), Barnett still thinks that the key to success in a crowded marketplace is seeking out the underdog, the offbeat idea, the unsung talent." Barnett, for her part, says: “There’s so much television today that I feel like, actually, the least safe thing to do is something safe because no one’s going to pay attention to you. If you’re not a huge platform, the only thing that stands a chance of working for you is something wildly different.”