Image Credit: Roman Kraft / Unsplash
Submitted by Steve Abramowicz of Heartland Journal –
There was a time when only three television networks were available in the United States: ABC, CBS, and NBC. These networks, known as the “Big Three”, dominated the television industry from the 1950s to the 1980s.
A fourth,the DuMont Television Network (DuMont) would be the only other full-time television networks during the 1940s and 1950s until May 1986 when the Fox Television Stations Group became our nation’s fourth major broadcast network, FOX Broadcasting Company in October 1986 when it premiered with the new late-night series THE LATE SHOW STARRING JOAN RIVERS.
Media mogul Ted Turner launched the Cable News Network—CNN—in Atlanta on June 1, 1980, as the world’s first 24-hour all news network. It wasn’t followed by Fox News until 16 years later. The channel was created by Australian-born American media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who hired Roger Ailes as its founding CEO. The channel was launched on October 7, 1996 to 17 million cable subscribers.
That same year, MSNBC and its website were under a partnership between Microsoft and General Electric’s NBC unit, hence the network’s name. Microsoft divested itself of MSNBC in 2005, and its stake in msnbc.com in 2012. The general news site was rebranded as NBCNews.com, and a new msnbc.com was created.
In recent months, major news networks like MSNBC, CNN, and Fox News have experienced significant declines in viewership ratings, a trend that has raised concerns within the media landscape.
Since October 2023, ratings for these networks have dropped by as much as 30% on average. This decline can be attributed to several factors, including viewer fatigue, the growing prevalence of alternative news sources, and shifts in audience preferences towards more localized content.
Online news sites have not been immune to this trend either, with many reporting a decline of approximately 20-25% in traffic and engagement. This drop has coincided with a troubling wave of local news outlet closures, with over 100 local newsrooms shutting down in 2023 alone. These closures have left communities with fewer sources of local information, further emphasizing the need for accessible and reliable local news.
Several reasons contribute to the decline in viewership for major networks. First, the polarization of news content has led many viewers to seek out alternative sources that align with their beliefs, often turning to social media or independent platforms. Additionally, high-profile layoffs at established outlets, such as the Washington Post, have raised concerns about job security within journalism, leading to a more cautious approach to news consumption.
Moreover, the recent salary cut for Rachel Maddow, a prominent figure at MSNBC, has sparked discussions about the sustainability of high-profile media personalities in an increasingly competitive cable news landscape. This move, coupled with overall budget cuts in major news organizations, has further fueled viewer discontent.
Despite the decline in ratings for major networks, the demand for local news remains strong. Communities are increasingly turning to online platforms for hyper-local reporting that addresses their specific needs. Local news provides vital information about events, politics, and issues that directly affect residents, fostering a sense of community engagement. As audiences continue to seek trusted, relevant sources of information, local news outlets are poised to fill the void left by national networks.
While the loss of trust from dishonest reporting lead to declining ratings for major news networks and online outlets is a significant concern, it simultaneously highlights the vital role of honest local journalism. As communities strive for connection and understanding, local news will undoubtedly remain in demand, adapting to the changing media landscape and the needs of its audience.
The rise of podcasts, like ‘Heartland Journal’ and our new ‘Turning the Page’ with Nova Page and social media platforms, particularly Twitter, has transformed how audiences consume news.
Podcasts have seen a hyper-growth in popularity, with millions of listeners tuning in for in-depth discussions, expert analysis, and diverse viewpoints on current events. This format allows for greater flexibility and accessibility, appealing to audiences seeking news on their terms.
Meanwhile, Twitter has emerged as a leading source for real-time updates and breaking news, with hashtags and trending topics driving conversations and engagement. As these platforms continue to evolve, they are reshaping the media landscape, offering alternatives to traditional news outlets and highlighting the shift towards more personalized and immediate news consumption.
2 Responses
The issue isn’t the sustainability of high profile media personalities, it’s the sustainability of high profile extreme LEFT media personalities from whence the “dishonest reporting” from LEFTIST “major news networks” occurs. Furthermore, the mention of Newsmax is conspicuously absent from this article. And Twitter is X. I am here for Tennessee Conservative, accent on the conservative. Sorry to be a curmudgeon, but just saying.
New Declaration of Independence
Coast to Coast, November 5, 2024
The unanimous Declaration of Sane People in the United States of America
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. – That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, – That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. – Such has been the patient sufferance of sane American Citizens; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present Dictator-elect is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over the United States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to the conspiracy theory world.
He has refused his Approval to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden State Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Approval should be obtained; and if they refuse to comply, he has utterly and maliciously targeted them.
He has refused to pass other Laws against the Gerrymandering of large districts of people, in order to relinquish the right of the peoples’ Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together foreign adversaries at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the awareness of the Public, for the sole purpose of entreating them into compliance with his measures.
He has attacked Democratically elected officials repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such attacks, to concede to the truth, whereby this Democracy, incapable of holding him accountable, has experienced the negative effect of his continuous lies; the United States remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of propaganda from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavored to prevent the population of the United States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their legal migrations hither, and raising the specter of another Civil War by proposing mass immigrant Detentions, Internment, and Deportation.
He has obstructed the Department of Justice by packing federal courts with cronies for the disestablishment of Judiciary Powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their bribes.