William Lindsey 1d ago

"It turns out that there isn’t a ratings bump for MAGA capitulation. ...

Status’ Oliver Darcy got ahold of some CBS News ratings data from the first quarter of 2026, and it is brutal. CBS Evening News has lost 7% of viewers year-over-year, placing it 'on track for its lowest-rated first quarter of the 21st century in both total viewers'" (continued in /2)

~ Matt Gertz

#CBS #BariWeiss #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #LarryEllison #Trump #MAGA
/1

https://www.mediamatters.org/bari-weiss/legacy-outlets-bent-knee-trump-havent-just-lost-credibility-theyre-bleeding-readers-and

Legacy outlets that bent the knee to Trump haven’t just lost credibility — they’re bleeding readers and viewers

Media Matters for America
Show threadWilliam Lindsey 1d ago

(continued from /1)

"'and the advertiser-coveted 25-54 demographic,' while CBS Mornings plummeted 13% and 'is pacing toward its lowest-rated quarter on record in both total audience and the key demo.' Meanwhile, the audiences of competitor shows at ABC News and NBC News grew over the same period."

#CBS #BariWeiss #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #LarryEllison #Trump #MAGA
/2

Show threadWilliam Lindsey 1d ago

"The ratings collapse is a devastating indictment of the strategy Ellison and Weiss are executing at CBS — and a blaring warning for CNN if Ellison is able to complete his takeover of that network and let Weiss run the same playbook there."

#CBS #BariWeiss #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #LarryEllison #Trump #MAGA
/3

Show threadThad1d ago
@wdlindsy Maybe so, but if the last three Warner buyouts are any indication the calculus is that if you disastrously mismanage it you can just sell it off, make a tidy profit, and then it's somebody else's problem.
Show threadcognitively accessible math
@Thad @wdlindsy also if you've basically gotten control of everything, ratings don't matter so much, period.
Mar 26 at 5:19pmWeb
Show threadThad1d ago

@geonz Maybe. As Gertz notes, losing money on their news operations may be worth it to people like Bezos and the Ellisons if it makes Trump friendlier to their other, more profitable business ventures.

OTOH, as Berlatsky points out these are men with fragile egos who are obsessed with keeping score. There's a reason "low ratings" is one of Trump's favorite insults.

Show threadcognitively accessible math1d ago
@Thad I try to remember also tho' that the puppeteers are just plain smarter and thinking long-term.