Via Toon Zone comes news that Noggin and its evening version, The N, will be splitting into two separate, twenty four-hour networks on December 31.

Noggin will continue with programming aimed at the preschool set with programs like Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!, Oobi, Jack's Big Music Show, and Nick Jr. properties like Dora the Explorer, Blue's Clues and The Backyardigans.

The N, originally the evening version of Noggin aimed at teens (and "tweens" to use a meaningless marketing term), will expand to 24 hours with TEENick programming during the day (All That, The Amanda Show, etc) and original programming at night: Degrassi: The Next Generation, South of Nowhere, and Beyond the Break. The N also acquired rights to air reruns of That '70s Show starting June 2008.

(S03E20) Wow, what a great episode. So many standout performances, not to mention one of the most brilliant scripts I have seen in a long time.

Let's begin with the guest cast. I loved seeing Christian Clemenson again. Ever since he played Socrates Poole he has struck me as a hard working actor and I am always amazed at his ability to portray characters that are hilarious and pitiful at the same time.

The New York Times has an interesting article about Disney and its television properties quickly narrowing the gap between itself and Nickelodeon, the children's network that has been number one in ratings and revenue for quite some time. While Nickelodeon still has the top ten shows in the coveted "2 to 11" demographic, Disney has been getting more viewers with shows like High School Musical and The Cheetah Girls. The article has plenty of numbers, facts and figures for anyone who wants to check it out, but what I find most fascinating is how difficult it has to be to maintain a young audience. All television viewers tend to be fickle, but that's especially true of children, who are constantly bombarded with new cartoons, products and live-action series and can easily abandon one for another, given the increasing choices offered not only on television, but online as well. Nickelodeon maintains it's more interested in consistency and developing good shows, not series that may draw a large audience and then fade away over time.

[via Toon Zone]

Summerland, which aired for only one season on the WB, has been picked up by The N, which will air reruns of the show along with episodes of Dawson's Creek. I have not seen a single episode of Summerland, so I can't comment on that choice, but wasn't Dawson's Creek pretty much just a show about affluent, aesthetically flawless teens whining about their petty issues? That kind of show plays well on most networks, but I always thought of The N as having a more realistic approach to teenage life with shows like Degrassi. I'm sure it will attract kids, but I think The N may have lost what made it a commendable network in the first place. Summerland will begin airing May 1, with Dawson's Creek premiering on September 1.