Growing up, ABC Family was a channel that played frequently in my house. It was home to some legendary re-runs: “Sabrina the Teenage Witch,” “Gilmore Girls,” “Seventh Heaven,” “Greek,” etc.
When ABC Family President Tom Ascheim announced the network would be renaming itself to Freeform starting January 2016, I had some mixed opinions about the change. Why would a network that has been so successful in the past want to change its ways?
Ascheim told the public this was part of a plan to keep up with its original demographic, the “millennial” generation, who focused more on traditional family-friendly values. Now that the original target audience is growing up, according to Variety.com, Ascheim said that it’s time for the network to grow with them.
Media consumers today want something more up to date, and Freeform is hoping to use new levels of social media and different platforms to rebrand itself. The change is focused around the consumers, and as Ascheim explained to the public, the network wants to use this change to reach out to viewers to hear what they want to say and what they want to see happen with the transition into Freeform.
The television shows that aired 10 years ago are significantly different to what airs today. Think of a show like “Seventh Heaven,” a family that upheld strict American values revolving around the rules of traditional marriage with having a big family in a small American town; it fit the norm of what society valued. However, that isn’t the norm anymore.
Today the network offers shows that represent the new interpretation of plausible circumstances faced by current Americans. “The Fosters” is a perfect example of this. It shares a story of a same sex couple with children and the hardships they face adapting to a modernized society.
Transforming the network into Freeform is simply a way for the network to tell society that they see the changes and they want to support these changes. The new network will still uphold classic traditions, such as ABC Family’s 25 Days of Christmas, and continue to air shows like “Pretty Little Liars,” “Baby Daddy” and “Young and Hungry,” but the rebranding of the network will bring new television dramas such as “Recovery Road” and “Shadowhunters.”
Infuriated ABC Family fans can now let the salt settle. The network’s move makes sense, because they are taking the proper precautions to ensure the network will not fall through the cracks. I’m anxious to see what the new network has in store for the world of entertainment.
