Firing Line - History and Format

History and Format

Firing Line began in 1966 as an hour-long show (including breaks) for commercial television, syndicated by WOR-TV in New York City, where it ran for 240 episodes. It was mainly seen on weekends in low-rated afternoon or late-night timeslots, because of the program's admitted appeal to a small, "high-brow" demographic group.

Buckley and his producer, Warren Steibel, used various methods over the years of bringing an extra perspective to the show. In the early years there would often be a panel of questioners. In 1977 the panel was replaced by an "examiner" who played a larger part in the proceedings. Examiners varied, with Jeff Greenfield, Michael Kinsley, Harriet Pilpel, and Mark J. Green appearing most frequently. When the show was shortened to 30 minutes in 1988, the role of examiner was eliminated, but there was often a moderator, whose role was similar to that of the moderator in a formal debate. The moderator would introduce both host and guest, and then ask the opening question.

In 1971, Firing Line moved to the Public Broadcasting Service under the auspices of the Southern Educational Communications Association, an arm of South Carolina Educational Television. This was somewhat unusual, given the reputation among many conservatives that PBS unfairly discriminated against non-liberal viewpoints in its other programming. SECA/SCETV, however, was one of the very few public broadcasting entities of that time that was sympathetic to the conservative movement. Because the program received a relatively unfavorable Sunday evening timeslot on PBS' schedule in the early 1970s, Buckley and Steibel briefly attempted to return Firing Line to commercial TV, but could not find sponsors (the probable reason the show moved to public TV in the first place). Thus, the program would remain on PBS until Buckley and Steibel discontinued production in December 1999.

For the show's 15th anniversary in 1981, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Vernon Jordan, Henry Kissinger, and Louis Auchincloss presided over a party for Buckley at the New York Yacht Club.

Starting in 1978, scattered among the regular broadcasts were occasional specials and two-hour formal debates, with opening statements, cross-examination, and closing statements. In 1988, at Buckley's request, the program reduced in running time to a half hour for regular shows; previous episodes had run one hour in length. Beginning in March 1993, the formal debate would often be followed by shows in which most or all of the participants engaged in informal discussion. The debate episodes were frequently broadcast on the Monday evenings after PBS pledge drives concluded, in the 1980s and 1990s. This practice was probably a gesture of appreciation to public TV's normal audience of highly educated viewers (Firing Line's most ardent fans) for their patience in being ignored during said drives, in order for stations to broadcast mass-interest special programming aimed at drawing financial contributions from a larger public.