Veteran director/producer says producers and studios must share fiscal responsibility in TV's new economics. 

As an executive producer on major-budget shows like The West Wing and Studio 60, Thomas Schlamme knows the big-money world of network television well. Now he's directing the Matthew Perry pilot Mr. Sunshine for ABC, and he's back on NBC this season with the Tuesday-night drama Parenthood, which is filling one of the 10 p.m. hours previously occupied by The Jay Leno Show. And while Parenthood slipped 16% in its second outing last week, Schlamme is optimistic about his show, and the ability for producers and studios to find news ways to work as the TV model evolves.

Schlamme spoke to B&C Programming Editor Marisa Guthrie about the changing economics of TV production, the post-Leno reality and how much things haven't changed. Following is an edited transcript of that conversation.

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