FX’s “Louie,” HBO’s “Girls,” the BBC’s “Doctor Who” and TNT’s “Southland” were among the TV series honored this year with Peabody Awards.
The Peabody Awards, now in their 72nd year, are designed “to recognize the most outstanding achievements in electronic media, including radio, television and cable.” The eligibility period covers a calendar year, so “Girls” was being honored for its first season, while “Louie” for its third, both of which aired in 2012. There are also some institutional winners, honored for years worth of work, that this year included “Doctor Who” (celebrating its 50th anniversary), “Saturday Night Live” creator Lorne Michaels,” and Michael Apted’s “Up” documentary series.
Other entertainment winners this year included ABC Family’s “Switched at Birth,” the HBO movie “Game Change,” and the Comedy Central special “D.L. Hughley: The Endangered List.” The full list of winners is here.
Though I wasn’t a fan of “Game Change,” overall, it’s an impressive list that covers some of the best, most distinctive programming on television that hadn’t yet won a Peabody. (Given the sort of shows that tend to win, it’s surprising that “Louie” didn’t get one a year ago after its brilliant second season, even if last year’s group already included “Game of Thrones,” “Homeland,” “Parks and Recreation” and “Tremé.”) It’s nice to see “Southland,” which doesn’t really get any awards love, be recognized, though I doubt it will do much good; two years ago, the Peabodys honored another TNT show on the verge of cancellation, “Men of a Certain Age.”