Shaunie O'Neal and VH1 re-up for more "Basketball Wives"

By TV Maverick
JR Staff Writer

VH1 has had a stranglehold on the black audience ever since the days of "Flavor of Love." Following the success of that show, the cable network has given the green light to many other black oriented shows. Other struggling cable networks have copied VH1's formula in an effort to gain ratings.

Bravo, another cable network struggling for viewership, began broadcasting "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" in 2008. While the advantage still belongs to VH1, a major dent was created with this show. As she was divorcing NBA star, Shaquille O'Neal, Shaunie O'Neal needed something of her own to live from.

She had been watching "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" and decided to create a similar show with some of her friends. VH1, ironically, was looking for a similar show to compete with Bravo's hit. Early in 2010, a match made in heaven was found when Shaunie O'Neal pitched her new project to the network and they quickly agreed to do a deal with the network.

The first season of "Basketball Wives" was more successful than "The Real Housewives of Atlanta." Through that series, VH1 was able to gain a lot of viewership from Bravo. But, "Basketball Wives" has been on hiatus since the summer. Meanwhile, "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" has returned from hiatus and is back making headlines. Realizing this, VH1 recently called for a meeting with Shaunie O'Neal and they decided to come back with more episodes of "Basketball Wives."

The new season of "Basketball Wives" will premiere on December 12 at 9:00 pm.

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Shaunie O'Neal takes aim at "The Real Housewives of Atlanta"

Now that she is seeking to gain independence from her larger-than-life husband, Shaunie O'Neal has become a reality television star. For this new reality show, O'Neal has taken the theme of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta." Because she has lived the life as the wife of a basketball player, Shaunie has recruited many other basketball wives to uncover the real behind the scenes life.

Over the past few years, VH1 has become the top channel for black reality shows. But, in recent years, a competitor has risen in Bravo and they have taken a chunk out of VH1. The main reason that they have become a competitor to VH1 is because of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta." While the edge still remains with VH1, Bravo has taken their audience and VH1 wasted no time in dealing with Shaunie O'Neal.

Because of the theme of her program and the fact that VH1 hopped on the opportunity to broadcast it so fast, many people have called her program a rip-off of the Bravo hit. After hearing this comparison for months, Shaunie O'Neal has responded to the critics. She said that there are similarities between the two programs. However, the only difference is that on her show, the women actually get along with each other and act in a professional manner.

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