The Doctors (talk show)

The Doctors is a daily American syndicated talk show featuring medical advice. It debuted on September 8, 2008 and aired until August 8, 2022.[2][3] The hour-long daytime program is produced by Phil McGraw and his son Jay McGraw and is distributed domestically and globally by CBS Media Ventures. The series is a spin-off of Dr. Phil and is the first talk show to be a third generation talk show spin-off, as Dr. Phil itself spun off The Oprah Winfrey Show.[4]

For other uses, see The Doctors.

The Doctors
Created byPhil McGraw
Starring
Theme music composerMoon Martin
Opening themeAdaptation of "Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)"
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons14
No. of episodes1,900+
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Veronica Torres
  • Lisa Williams
  • Michelle Wendt
  • Joyce Coleman-Sampson
  • Jay McGraw
  • Carla Pennington
  • Dr.  Phil McGraw
  • Andrew Scher
  • Jeff Hudson
  • George Davilas
  • Rich de Michele
  • Kathy Gulinello
  • Sarah Rogers
  • Shannon Hunt
  • Veronica Torres
  • Lisa Williams
  • Joni Busby
  • Nicole Petreshock
  • Michelle Wendt
  • Lauree Dash
  • Paul Lutz
  • Jennifer Sherry
  • Stephanie Berk
  • Josie Viviano
  • Jeannine Denholm
  • Daniel Primer
  • Stacy Tobin
  • John Pattyson
  • Michael Weaver
  • Andrea Masimitsu
Camera setupMultiple
Running time42 minutes
Production companyStage 29 Productions[1]
Release
Original networkSyndication
Original releaseSeptember 8, 2008 (2008-09-08) –
August 8, 2022 (2022-08-08)
Related
Dr. Phil

Details

The concept, which originated on Dr. Phil, mostly focuses on health and medical issues, as a team of medical professionals (and sometimes celebrity guests/speakers) discuss a range of various health-related topics and answer questions from viewers who are too embarrassed to ask their doctors.

The series was hosted by emergency room physician and former The Bachelor participant Travis Stork who has appeared frequently on Dr. Phil, with pediatrician Jim Sears,[5] obstetrician/gynecologist Lisa Masterson, and plastic surgeon Andrew Ordon rounding out the discussion panel.[6]

On May 6, 2011, it was announced that Jillian Michaels had been added to the cast of The Doctors doing mainly segments outside the studio, along with serving as a "special correspondent" on Dr. Phil.[7] Wendy Walsh, a psychotherapist and relationship expert seen usually in pundit panels on CNN and HLN, was announced as a fifth regular panelist to the show on September 1, 2011, to start as of September 12, 2011.[8] In 2013, OB-GYN Jennifer Ashton joined the show as a recurring co-host, a role she filled until 2016.[9]

During the holiday break at the end of 2011, Michaels left the show to return to The Biggest Loser, with Walsh also departing the series and returning it to the original four-doctor format for the 2012 season. Lisa Masterson did not return for the sixth season. Urologist Jennifer Berman and family medicine physician and sexologist Rachael Ross, who has joined comparisons to sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer, joined the series.[1][10]

Beginning in 2017, Sako Karakozian, a dentist practicing in Studio City, Los Angeles, has made appearances on the show offering dental advice.[11] OB-GYN Nita Landry joined the show in 2017 as a recurring co-host.[1]

On August 12, 2020, it was announced that the series would undergo several major changes for season 13, including production moving to Stamford, Connecticut, and a revamped format with a new singular host Ian K. Smith, and a theme of "[taking] your power back" amid uncertain times.[12][13] Smith was later replaced by Ordon.[14]

In the spring of 2022, the show was canceled after 14 seasons.[15]

Reception

Ratings

The show had not ranked in the top 20 syndicated programs at all during the beginning of its first season, coming in behind the syndicated version of the game show Deal or No Deal among new syndicated programs, garnering a 1.3 rating at the time of its launch.[16] In 2009, it had a 1.5 rating by the end of October, up to 1.9 by December, and 2.3 by January, surpassing Deal or No Deal; the show remained the top new talk show of the season.[17]

In Buffalo, New York, the show was credited in 2008 with increasing the lead-in for WKBW-TV's 5:00 newscasts, to the point that the station was competitive with other stations in the market.[18]

Quality of advice

A 2014 study in the British Medical Journal examined 40 randomly-selected episodes of The Doctors and studied the veracity of 80 randomly-selected statements or recommendations made in each episode. The study determined that "evidence supported 63%, contradicted 14%, and was not found for 24%" of recommendations made by the panel of doctors, and advised that "the public should be skeptical about recommendations made on medical talk shows".[19] However, the limitations of that study included "the inherent complexity of the shows, including the subjective nature of the recommendations such as distinguishing between what was said and what was implied".[19]

Non-American versions

In the Canadian province of Quebec, a French language version called Les Docteurs aired on Radio-Canada (simultaneously with The Doctors, which airs on a different channel at that time) from 2011 to 2013, with doctors Alain Vadeboncoeur, Chantal Guimont, Gaëlle Vekemans and Jacques Toueg. The show, whose format was identical to the previous seasons of the English version, features French-Canadian doctors in a similar-looking set with the same color scheme and French wording, though it did not license the theme song and goes without sound effects.[20][21]

In Argentina and Mexico, a Latin American version called Los Doctores is airs on Televisa and Telefe.[22] In Malaysia, a Malay version of The Doctors called MY Doctors airs on Astro Ria. In Lebanon, an Arabic version of The Doctors is aired on MTV and Dubai TV and AWAAN. In Vietnam, the program is called Các Bác sĩ nói gì? (What do the Doctors say?). In Portugal, the show airs in English with Portuguese subtitles on SIC.

In Egypt, after the end of Al-Bernameg, rumors surfaced on the internet that Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef will return with a new program on Egyptian television that has no relation with satire and politics. Bassem denied the rumors.

References
  1. ""The Doctors" Kicks Off Its Sixth Season This Monday, September 9 with New Additions to the Team". The Futon Critic (Press release). Retrieved September 6, 2013.
  2. "From The Futon Critic". Thefutoncritic.com. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  3. "from Variety (October 24, 2007)". Archived from the original on February 13, 2008.
  4. "From TV Week (December 9, 2007)". Tvweek.com. December 9, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  5. "Urine as a health elixir? 'The Doctors' hosts put urine facials, drinks to the test". NY Daily News. May 27, 2010. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
  6. "From The Futon Critic". Thefutoncritic.com. October 24, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  7. Lesley Goldberg (May 6, 2011). "Jillian Michaels joins "The Doctors" as co-host". Reuters. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  8. "Dr.Wendy Walsh Joins 'The Doctors'". TV Newscheck. September 1, 2011. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  9. "OB-GYN Dr. Jennifer Ashton Joins the Medical Team on The Doctors". thedoctorstv.com. October 15, 2013. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
  10. philip.potempa@nwi.com, (219) 852-4327, Philip Potempa (September 15, 2013). "OFFBEAT: Gary physician Dr. Rachel Ross now hosting on TV's 'The Doctors'". nwitimes.com.
  11. "Dentistry". The Doctors. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
  12. "'The Doctors' Reveals Host for New Season Tackling Health Challenges Amid Uncertainty". The Hollywood Reporter. August 12, 2020. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
  13. Gelman, Vlada (August 12, 2020). "The Doctors Shake-Up: New Host Named Amid Major Format Revamp". TVLine. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
  14. "Meet the Doctors".
  15. "Pair of Dr. Phil-Related Series Canceled".
  16. Fitzgerald, Toni (October 17, 2008). "Hot thing in syndie 'Deal or No Deal'". Media Life. Archived from the original on October 23, 2008.
  17. "Travolta Tragedy Affects Syndie Mags". Broadcasting & Cable. January 21, 2009. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
  18. Pergament, Alan (November 18, 2008). "Channel 4 returns to the lead, but cable quarrel boosts Channel 7". The Buffalo News.
  19. Koronyk, C.; et al. (December 17, 2014). "Televised medical talk shows—what they recommend and the evidence to support their recommendations: a prospective observational study". The British Medical Journal. 349: g7346. doi:10.1136/bmj.g7346. PMC 4269523. PMID 25520234.
  20. "Les docteurs". Radio-Canada.ca. August 29, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
  21. Therrien, Richard (November 6, 2012). "L'émission Les docteurs ne reviendra pas à l'automne 2013". Le Soleil (in French). Archived from the original on June 22, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2019.
  22. "Carla Estrada lista para Los Doctores". Televisa.com. August 13, 2012. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
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