( CNN ) -- Summer offers lots of things to do outdoors , which is good for the many television viewers who complain about the quality of programming then . Showtime 's `` Nurse Jackie '' is one of the cable series providing a lift for summertime television viewing . It 's not that there are n't things to watch . On network television , there are plenty of repeats , reality shows and final episodes of series that have been canceled . But summertime viewing on network television can be a wasteland , especially for bloggers and critics whose gig it is to write and report on TV , said Kath Skerry , founder and editor of the Give Me My Remote blog . `` It 's borderline depressing , '' Skerry said . `` Between the onslaught of reality television and what I call filler TV -- shows that the networks may have under contract but they just feel the need to get out regardless of the quality -- it almost feels like [ the networks ] have given up . '' Variety , for many the bible of the entertainment industry , reported on the first four weeks of summer . It said viewership of ABC , NBC , CBS and Fox was down 9 percent , according to Nielsen . Even more distressing for advertisers , viewership was down 15 percent in the 18-49 demographic and 18 percent in the coveted 18-34 demographic . Skerry is n't surprised . The most quality she said she felt she has gotten out of network television this summer has been ABC burning off the final episodes of the canceled series `` Pushing Daisies , '' `` Eli Stone '' and `` Dirty Sexy Money . '' Otherwise , Skerry said , the great shows are happening on the cable networks . Joe Bua blogs at IAmATVJunkie.com and counts among some of his favorite summer shows HBO 's `` True Blood , '' `` Torchwood Children of Earth '' on BBC America and Showtime 's `` Nurse Jackie . '' `` Nurse Jackie '' and other shows such as `` Mad Men '' are luring viewers who want original quality programs . Fans are even showing up in big numbers for cable reality shows such as `` Jon & Kate Plus 8 '' ( currently on a break ) , and the `` Real Housewives '' franchise . Bill Gorman , editor of the TV rating and analysis site TvByTheNumbers.com , said the shift to cable has been a long time coming . `` It 's the continuation of a trend that 's been going on since the early '80s , '' Gorman told AfterElton.com . `` Viewers continue making the 30-year shift from watching broadcast to watching cable . '' Jonathan Storm , a TV critic for The Philadelphia Inquirer , said the apparent ceding of summer to cable by broadcast networks is rooted in tradition and the history of how television started . `` The car manufacturers came out with their new models in September , and the TV people said , 'We will give you new shows to advertise your cars on , ' `` Storm . `` That was part of it and that started in the 1950s . '' Storm said there is also a type of `` circadian rhythm '' to television in that viewers are more inclined to tune in when the days are shorter and colder . Broadcast networks once were able to afford 39 episodes a year , he said . Now economics often dictate a 22-episode season . Storm said networks now trot out cheaper-to-produce reality shows -- something CBS hit the jackpot with several years ago after the runaway success of the summer-debuted `` Survivor . '' `` The networks just could n't afford to make shows all summer long , '' said Storm , who will soon join his colleagues for one of their summer highlights -- The Television Critics Association 's summer tour in Pasadena , California . `` Now they 've found the answer , '' Storm said . `` They make all of these ridiculous Japanese game shows -- crash yourself into the red balls , 'Wipeout ' show -- and several shows that come on and vanish before most TV critics and the general public even know they are there . '' Ronnie Karam , senior editor at TVgasm.com , said he has been doing what a lot of viewers do during summertime -- checking out television shows on DVD that he had n't watched during the fall season . `` I think that putting television shows on DVD has changed the way a lot of people are watching , '' he said . `` During the summer , you feel like you are really scraping the bottom of the barrel . '' Karam said it 's a chance to check out critically acclaimed shows that viewers either did n't have the time for or the inclination to watch . Broadcast networks really have n't figured out what their strategy should be for summer programming , said Jace Lacob , the writer/editor of Televisionary . `` Years ago , you had Fox launching scripted shows early in the summer and you had shows like 'The O.C . ' , '' Lacob said . `` You used to have 'American Idol ' during the summer as well , which was huge for Fox . But [ networks ] really have n't gotten a grasp on their summer programming , so they are offering really random shows that nobody is really particularly interested in . '' Lacob said some of the offerings have been a mixed bag , such as `` The Listener , '' which did n't exactly catch fire , and `` I 'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here , '' which he believes was n't as popular with viewers as NBC had hoped . Blogger Kath Skerry said that even the publicity push around some of the shows such as `` The Listener '' and `` The Philanthropist , '' which broadcast networks have premiered during the summer , has not at all rivaled the fall season . `` The promotion around them , I feel like the lack of enthusiasm with how the networks have communicated with bloggers feels very different , '' she said . `` Whether it 's true or not , from my standpoint it feels like the networks are not very enthusiastic about the shows . ''
Summer seen as wasteland on broadcast TV for some critics and bloggers . Networks often run repeats and launch reality shows during summertime . Cable stations offer destination viewing for new , hot shows . Blogger says `` you are really scraping the bottom of the barrel '' for shows .