When the Time Slot Doesn’t Fit . . .

Networks have found themselves under attack in recent years from parents groups and conservative advocates who question putting shows such as “Friends” and “Melrose Place” on at times when children are more apt to be watching. This season, some of that fire is coming from their own elite troops.

Two of television’s most prestigious show runners, “ER” producer John Wells and “Law & Order” creator Dick Wolf, have gone public with complaints about NBC’s decision to schedule their new programs--”Third Watch” and the spinoff “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” respectively--at 8 and 9 p.m., when both were created with the standards of a 10 o’clock drama in mind.

At issue is what distinctions, if any, networks currently draw between 10 o’clock shows and those aired earlier, given that the percentage of children in the viewing audience drops sharply in the last hour of prime time. “Third Watch,” which chronicles the exploits of police, firefighters and paramedics, was previewed Thursday in “ER’s” time slot but will regularly air Sundays at 8 p.m. This weekend’s episode includes a comical sequence in which a man is found cuffed naked to his steering wheel after an encounter with a prostitute, as well as some salty language generally associated with shows broadcast later in the evening.

“We feel some social responsibility to try to make sure what’s on the air is appropriate to the people who have access to viewing it,” Wells said. “I think we can all agree that 7 o’clock Central and Mountain time is a little early for ‘NYPD Blue.’ ”

At the same time, Wells maintained it’s difficult to soften a program that deals with these issues, noting, “The tendency is to build on what has gone before. I don’t think you can step backward creatively and have it seem realistic. . . . It puts [the producer] in a very difficult position. You have to do the show that you think is going to succeed.”

Wolf is similarly miffed about the second “Law & Order,” which focuses on the New York police department’s sex crimes unit, although NBC opted for the more advertiser-friendly “Special Victims” in the title. The first episode dealt with the search for the killers of a man found with his genitals hacked off.

‘I’m Not Going to Let My 12-Year-Old Watch’

“I’ve not made any secret about this,” he said. “I’m not going to tell you it’s an appropriate time slot. I’m not going to let my 12-year-old watch this. . . . This is a hard-core drama. It was designed to be a 10 o’clock show. Everybody knows that.”

Wolf feels the simple solution would be to flop his program with “Dateline NBC,” which follows at 10 p.m. and plays at different times throughout the week. Like Wells, Wolf doesn’t see any reasonable way to blunt his show to suit an earlier time period, nor has NBC asked either of them to do so.

“They’re not giving me any content notes, but it’s not where it should be. . . . All I know is I did not design it to be on earlier in the evening. [And] if I moderate it, it’s ‘Sex Misdemeanors,’ ” Wolf quipped.

NBC Entertainment President Garth Ancier conceded that he shares some of Wolf’s frustration regarding “Law & Order,” indicating that NBC News lobbied hard to retain the 10 p.m. slot for “Dateline.” Still, Ancier didn’t rule out a switch in the future.

As for “Third Watch,” Ancier sees the issue as somewhat different, saying, “It’s a rescue show updated to John Wells’ standards. . . . There’s nothing antisocial going on here. He’s not going to put anything in the show purely for salacious reasons. It’s saving babies out of burning buildings.”

Part of Wolf’s unhappiness also stems from the competition he faces at 9 p.m., airing opposite two established hits, “Everybody Loves Raymond” and “Ally McBeal,” as well as “Monday Night Football” in most of the country. “Law & Order” nevertheless performed well in its first airing, attracting more than 14 million viewers. NBC gave both new dramas a vote of confidence Friday by ordering an entire season’s worth of episodes after one telecast of each.

According to Wolf, networks assume that newsmagazines provide a better lead-in to late local newscasts, making them reluctant to relinquish 10 p.m. slots to dramas despite the fact top series such as “ER” and “Law & Order” are more than competitive with news programs, drawing more of the high-income viewers that advertisers covet.

Local news ratings have become a top priority for the networks, which often lose money on their network operations, reaping their profits primarily from the TV stations they own in big cities.

An Agreement on Standards Is Lacking

Yet questions regarding what networks put on at 8 p.m. go beyond commerce. Groups such as the Parents Television Council have urged broadcasters to adhere to the 1970s concept of a “family viewing hour”--running only programs appropriate for the whole family to lead off the night.

Wells suggests the real problem is that broadcasters have become too inconsistent about what their standards are.

“What troubles me about it is we haven’t all sat down and decided what we’re going to do,” he said. “Everyone is all over the map about this. . . . We’ve moved forward without any conversation about it. We’ve allowed it to become a political football.”

Network officials have pointed out that children have no shortage of viewing options, including videos and dedicated children’s channels such as Nickelodeon, which outrates all the major networks among kids with its prime-time fare.

Referring to Nickelodeon’s success with kids, NBC’s Ancier said, “To think you’re going to get them back--and, more ridiculously, that you’re going to get them back on all the networks--is just living in the past. . . . For kids, Nickelodeon is probably the first stop on the dial. You have to recognize that.”

As it is, Ancier said, the 8 o’clock Sunday hour offers several family-oriented programs on broadcast networks, creating a real opportunity for a somewhat edgier drama. The competition includes ABC’s “The Wonderful World of Disney,” CBS’ “Touched by an Angel,” the WB’s “Felicity” and “The Simpsons” on Fox.

“From the network’s point of view, this is excellent counter-programming,” Wells admitted.

Under a novel program-sharing arrangement, episodes of “Law & Order: SVU” will repeat 13 days after their first NBC exposure on USA network. The cable channel will air them at 11 p.m.

“I have no problem with that time slot,” Wolf said.