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Rachel Maddow
MSNBC, boosted by Rachel Maddow, was the most-watched cable news network overall on Friday, although Fox News had three of the five most-watched shows among total viewers, and CNN had four of the five most-watched shows among viewers in the key demographic of viewers age 25-54, according to Nielsen data. In total day viewers, MSNBC averaged 1.84 million overall, and 260,000 in the demo. Fox was second, with 1.51 million total viewers, and 242,000 in the demo. CNN had 1.47 million total viewers, the fewest overall, but won in the demo, with 356,000. MSNBC also had the most viewers in prime time, 2.57 million, but the fewest in the demo, with 344,000. Fox was second in both total viewers, 2.4 million, and in the demo, 393,000. CNN had 1.98 million total viewers, and the most in the demo, 485,000. MSNBC won in both total and demo viewers in the early morning, with Morning Joe getting 1.53 million total viewers, and 270,000 in the demo. Fox and Friends was second in total viewers, 1.08 million, and 196,000 in the demo. CNN’s New Day averaged 818,000 total viewers, and 205,000 in the demo.
The Rachel Maddow Show had 3.33 million total viewers Friday, and 478,000 in the demo. Tucker Carlson Tonight was second in total viewers, with... [READ MORE]
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 | MEDIA LOSER:
Super Bowl LV
Super Bowl LV attracted far fewer viewers on Sunday than in recent years. CBS’s broadcast of pulled 96.4 million viewers on Sunday according to the network, citing data from Nielsen. The numbers show a huge drop from Fox’s broadcast the year before, and the lowest numbers since 2007. During the 2007 game, which was also broadcast on CBS, the Indianapolis Colts played the Chicago Bears, and attracted 93.1 million viewers. Last year’s game averaged roughly 102 million viewers across Fox and streaming platforms, according to CNN’s Frank Pallotta. The game also earned a 41.6 household rating, meaning 41.6 percent of all United States home TVs were tuned into the game. Although not a great showing for CBS, the network did score the most watched show of the past year and Sunday’s game was the most live-streamed Super Bowl in history, averaging 5.7 million viewers per minute, according to Deadline. Although ratings are typically released the day after the big game, Nielsen experienced unexpected delays throughout the day Monday — pushing the release to Tuesday. “Super Bowl numbers are still being processed and verified,” a spokesperson for Nielsen said on Monday. “We anticipate that final viewing figures, which will include Out Of Home (OOH) viewing, will be available to the media tomorrow. We will update the press and the industry accordingly when a final timeline is confirmed.” Nielsen did not originally disclose why they were facing delays, but Deadline’s Dominic Patten suggested incorrect metrics, which forced Nielsen to re-process their data, led to the holdup. |
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| IMPEACHMENT The House managers for the impeachment of Donald Trump led the Senate trial against the former president with a devastating video montage of his supporters laying siege to the U.S. Capitol just one month ago. Lead Impeachment Manager Jamie Raskin started the trial by condemning the idea of a “January exception” — the notion that Trump cannot be impeached for incitement of insurrection because he was an outgoing lame duck president at the time. “If we buy this radical argument that President Trump’s lawyers advance, we risk having January 6 become our future,” Raskin said. “What will that mean for America? Think about it. What will the January exception mean to future generations if you grant it?"
"I’ll show you," he said. And did.
The jaw-dropping video caused quite a reaction, and rather immediately, as one would expect.
On CNN, Jake Tapper said the video evidence won't make much difference. Even had Vice President Mike Pence or members of congress been successfully tracked down and killed, "I honestly don't think that anything would be different on the floor of the Senate," he said.
"Dad, I don’t want to come back to the Capitol"
Rep. Raskin got emotional, later, as he delivered closing remarks. The riots took place just one day after Raskin buried his son Tommy. He told senators that his daughter and son-in-law were with him at the Capitol. What he described was a heart-wrenching scene:
“When they were finally rescued, over an hour later by Capitol officers, and we were together, I hugged them and I apologized and I told my daughter Tabitha… how sorry I was and I promised her that it would not be like this again the next time she came back to the Capitol with me. And you know what she said? She said, ‘Dad, I don’t want to come back to the Capitol.’ Of all the terrible brutal things I saw and I heard on that day, and since then, that one hit me the hardest.
"Senators, this cannot be our future. This cannot be the future of America," he said.
"This speech is like a Phish show and Trey is just going on a fantastic guitar solo. go with it."
Bruce Castor, one of the lawyers representing former President Donald Trump in his impeachment trial, gave an opening statement Tuesday that baffled a great deal of political observers.
Admitting It Out Loud Castor did, however, make an extensive argument that the 2020 election was indeed legitimate. "It happens," he said without offering any apology for ... everything.
QAnon Shaman’s Lawyer
CNN'S Chris Cuomo had on his show on Monday the attorney for the so-called "shaman" who was the most visible face of the riot. For some reason.
"Without Merit"
A federal judge in Florida ordered right-wing political commentator Dan Bongino to pay The Daily Beast more than $30,000 in attorney’s fees stemming from a defamation lawsuit he filed against the news organization that was previously dismissed as being “without merit.”
"Blindsided"
CNN contributor Van Jones is displeased with his “unprofessional” treatment by co-hosts of The View, who ran roughshod over him during a Friday appearance.
How Cable News Anchors and Reporters Are Rigging Impeachment Trial in Trump’s Favor OPINION Former President Donald Trump’s Senate impeachment trial for inciting the Capitol insurrection starts Tuesday, but TV news anchors and reporters have been spending weeks helping to rig the results against conviction. Since the House voted to impeach Trump not even a month ago, variations on the sentiment “Senate Republicans are unlikely to convict” have been uttered hundreds of times by television news anchors, reporters, analysts, and others — according to the Internet Archive. That air of inevitability is exactly what Republicans have taken great pains to project in order to avoid the political consequences of a devastating vote, and news anchors and reporters who go along with it are drafting themselves as propaganda tools.
I’m not going to call them out by name because it is literally almost all of them, but... [Read the rest from Mediaite's Tommy Christopher] 6.5.0 |
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| ‘I Am Not a Cat’ Judge Roy Ferguson presided over a Zoom court meeting that took an abrupt turn when he noticed that one of the lawyers, Rod Ponton, had a virtual cat filter over his face. As Ferguson recommended Ponton turn the filter off, the lawyer was flustered — explaining to the judge that he didn’t know how. “I’ve got my assistant here and she’s trying to remove it but uh…I’m prepared to go forward with it,” Ponton said. “I’m here live. I’m not a cat.”
You have to understand, this wasn't whiskers. The man's face was gone and a cat was there, mouthing his words. It's ... breathtaking. Truly one of the great moments in jurisprudence. |
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