I’m afraid they’re going to put Joe Scarborough on the evening line up to replace Hayes. How to bankrupt a network 101.
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I think we can smack MSNBC management a lot on his failure. If you are considering a new host, plug them in as a guest everywhere … let them guest host and build interest, if not a following.
Rachel, as talented as she is, was well-known to regular viewers before she ever got her show. She was launched.
I am extraordinarily disappointed that they are cancelling Joy Reid. She personally has a fan base … bad time slot; weak lead in??
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Can we finally talk about Lawrence O’Donnell? He more and more does strange and superfluous reporting, and seems to be become obsessed with one topic and beats it to death, currently the trial of the ex-GI who killed the infamous and glorified sniper, which I think is nothing more than schadenfreude. Following Rachel is a tough act but he’s smarter than what he’s doing now and is becoming too self involved in his reporting on stories he deems important but aren’t.
Yeah, I don’t watch him for just those reasons. He was a much better fill-in than he is a full time reporter.
Joe would lose hours of programming and have to cram his smarmy crap in between commercials and I doubt he could bash on Mika like he does before people are fully aware in the early AM.
An evening Joe would be a different Joe, IOW.
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Will Ronan & Nick Kristoff blame this on Woody Allen too?
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One thing which is left unmentioned in this article (and seriously - who gives a flip about Ronan Farrow anyway?) is how things are very different technologically today than they were back in Olbermann’s MSNBC heyday. The cable-subscription business model is so horrible that i’m surprised any cable networks are still in business at all. (Except for Fox, which of course relies on an older audience who are likely more reluctant to change their viewing habits.) I like MSNBC, i want them to be successful, but even when i had cable i’d invariably watch Rachel et al on the website, at a time of my own choosing. This seems like another facet of the technology-driven change that has been battering newspapers, magazines, the recording industry, etc.
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I agree about not sitting in front of the boob tube all day. Unlike teabags, we got lives. MSNBC would be better off doing the politics on even numbered years, and I’d leave Jose Diaz-Balart on— what a find. Not only does he read the news, he actually seems to know something about it and can prove it without being a gasbag.
I’m afraid it always sounds elitist when I say I don’t watch daytime TV, and I’m retired so I’ve got the time. I don’t turn on the TV until Rachel, and usually O’Donnell, I have a pile of Netflix films on my table, and I have a pile of books as well. Daytime is for so many more things that don’t involve a sedentary and solitary pursuit. P.S. I was going to say boob tube as well but so few TVs today still have tubes.
I keep thinking about this…
Speaking to a group of Jewish Americans in South Florida, Wasserman Schultz suggested that MSNBC, CNN and even the broadcast media portrayed Palestinians as victims while ignoring the plight of Jews.
“Clearly, [MSNBC was] highlighting what Israel had done to Gaza and the plight to Palestinians, and my first thought was, ‘Where is the balance? Where is the spotlight on what Jewish children in Israel go through from being victims of rocket attacks?’” the chairwoman said.
The only reason this person got a show in the first place is his family name and connections and his pretty boy face. I’ve seen his show a couple of times and have seen him interviewed by Jon Stewart. His much-hyped brilliance was not evident.
What I can’t figure out is why it took them so long!
I’ve been watching Ronan at least half assedly, but I agree: man, if he ain’t Sinatra’s son then I’m a monkey’s uncle.
It’s not just that – the gullible cowards that comprise the Fox audience want to be constantly reminded who to hate. “Left wing” radio also failed. Those radio and TV ratings just don’t reflect the country’s political make-up.
Let’s also not forget that the #1 “cable news” programs get like a quarter of the audience for Real Housewives (in the non-geezer adult demo), which in turn is maybe half the audience of the #1 primetime cable show.
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Who?
They replaced Chris Hayes and Rachel with Mika and Co on the Friday before the Super Bowl. I thought it might be a trial balloon … I switched to Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives immediately.
Scarborough has already failed spectacularly on MSNBC prime time, as has Tucker Carlson (… can you believe it???)
Are they thinking of inviting Tucker back?
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Yeah, Lawrence can get obsessed but sometimes his obsession raises important points.
Example … the IRS ‘scandal’. He was the first, and for days, the only person discussing the tax code and an interpretation change under Eisenhower, rather that Issa’s rantings. This obsession bubbled up into other discussions, including members of Congress. It didn’t have huge traction, but it was a very important point to be made and no one else was making it.
Obviously, I like him for all his faults.
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The IRS “scandal” was stand out reporting, and when he gets into the minutiae of Senate maneuvering I’m eating up every word. I also miss him when he’s not on Fridays, so go figure.
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I, too, want him working 5 days a week.
His amazing insider view of the Senate and the sausage-making of policy may be boring for some, but I love the perspective and think it’s important to bring to light. And I delight in all of his stories of Daniel Patrick Moynihan … makes me wish I was tuned into politics then.
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No, he should just be a special correspondent. And cancelling Joy Reid is a crime.