MSNBC Boss Admits 2014 Stunk for Them, Blames. . . Technology?
By Tim Graham | December 29, 2014 | 5:00 PM EST
MSNBC boss Phil Griffin has sent around a memo to staff admitting the obvious: that 2014 was a very difficult year for MSNBC. But he blames technological change — not the rejection of the MSNBC agenda at the polls. America is “leaning backward” at the moment.
“It’s no secret that 2014 was a difficult year for the entire cable news industry and especially for MSNBC,” Griffin wrote. “Technology is continuing to drive unprecedented changes across the media landscape – and we all should be taking a hard, honest look at how we need to evolve along with it.”
Jordan Chariton at The Wrap reproduced the memo and interpreted through their reporting on the “news” network with the ratings problems:
Griffin also expounded on sending the network out “on the road” and outside of Washington, D.C.; as TheWrap exclusively reported in November, to combat poor ratings, Griffin has embarked on a plan to steer away from too much political punditry, opting for an increase in original reporting on MSNBC.
Insiders familiar with the network’s strategy told TheWrap the pivot from solely covering the nitty gritty of D.C. politics from studios to thrusting talent into the places most affected by the politics is just a small part of a broader strategy the network is still developing. As speculated, that could include programming and talent changes in the coming months.
There’s no change planned from the ultraliberal pose – just an attempt to go Outside the Beltway a bit. Griffin pledged to “stay true to what we do best: covering the issues that matter to all Americans, advancing the conversation, and finding the stories that celebrate the unique spirit and strengths of our country.”
Liberals never channel a “unique spirit” of America. They want America to be more like European socialist states.
– See more at: https://newsbusters.org/blogs/tim-graham/2014/12/29/msnbc-boss-admits-2014-stunk-them-blamestechnology#sthash.dEkGUDiA.dpuf
The problem for MSNBC is exactly the same as similarly audience targeted news/web sites. They cater to their base, which is the far left. Not centrist Dems, but the far left. What they see are very energetic and overly-enthusiastic viewers/commenters. These folks rule online comment boards because of their heartfelt passion and I suspect, a lot of free time. It creates the distorted impression that there’s a lot more of them than there really are. Air America died because of this same mistaken logic. Also, advertisers, which are the fuel that makes all these sites work, aren’t crazy about advertising their product on a site that appeals to anti-business types, and has lousy ratings. CNN is going down this route, now, too.
From barnhardt.biz last night:
So, you all realize that if you have cable or satellite, you are paying Al Sharpton’s salary, right? The reason channels like MSNBC continue on with sub-basement ratings is because the vast majority of their revenue comes from cable-sat licensing fees, not advertising revenue. It matters not how low the ratings are, these channels still receive a cut of every single cable-sat subscriber dollar, and since MSNBC is a “basic cable” channel, that means almost EVERY cable-sat subscriber is subsidizing Al Sharpton, MTV, the sodomite channel and all the rest. Even the most obscure channels receive high-eight figure annual licensing revenues. MSNBC probably receives into the hundreds of millions in licensing revenue per year. If you STILL have pay TV, you are lining that retarded, murderous jackass’s pockets. Are your precious “shows” more important than your civilization?