[lbo-talk] dumping Donahue

[Eubulides]

At MSNBC, a cable TV news network, meanwhile, a six-month experiment to
develop a liberal programme featuring Phil Donahue ended just before the
war began, when Donahue's show was cancelled and replaced with a programme
titled Countdown: Iraq. Although the network cited poor ratings as the
reason for dumping Donahue, the New York Times reported that Donahue "was
actually attracting more viewers than any other programme on MSNBC, even
the channel's signature prime-time programme, Hardball with Chris
Matthews". Further insight into the network's thinking appears in an
internal NBC report leaked to AllYourTV.com, a website that covers the
television industry. The NBC report recommended axing Donahue because he
presented a "difficult public face for NBC in a time of war ... He seems
to delight in presenting guests who are antiwar, anti-Bush and sceptical
of the administration's motives." It went on to outline a possible
nightmare scenario where the show becomes "a home for the liberal anti-war
agenda at the same time that our competitors are waving the flag at every
opportunity".
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,995669,00.html