There are many things one could say about Donald Trump and his successor, Joe Biden, but perhaps the only thing one might say that would unite critics and fans of both is this: Trump was vastly more riveting telly, whether you considered him the hero, or the villain. And with him gone, the TV network that profited more than any other from his Presidency is….. paying the price:
The drop CNN is experiencing is profound. On Friday, not one program broke 900K total viewers. Prime averaged less than 800K overall.
For comparison, the network averaged 2.74 million viewers in January, so we're talking about more than two-thirds of the audience – gone. https://t.co/a4f14QXStm
— Joe Concha (@JoeConchaTV) May 10, 2021
Losing two thirds of your audience in four months is not ideal.
The brilliance of Trump, from a media perspective, is simple: Most of the time, when people don’t like a politician, or a TV programme, they simply turn the channel. TV dramas that people do not like get cancelled. Sports teams with no fans do not get featured in live matches. With Trump, though, the more you did not like him, the more you tuned in – to shout at the television. And because the other side were tuning in to boo him, his own side had to tune in to cheer him. For television and media outlets, he was the perfect President.
But now he is gone, and Joe Biden – a perfectly decent, if somewhat doddery, chap – has replaced him. And let’s face it: Even if you really like Joe Biden, you are not going to tune in just to watch him talk.
For those of you odd people who are desperately wishing for a Trump second act, then, know hope.
With ratings in the toilet like this, the US TV networks have every incentive to bring him back as a main character in the national – and international – conversation.