In 3rd Place, MSNBC Feels Heat from Parent G.E.

Ten days ago, morale lurched at MSNBC when General Electric Co. Chief Executive Jeffrey Immelt appeared on rival Fox News and acknowledged that the 24-hour cable news channel, a joint venture between GE and Microsoft Corp., needed help.

"I think the standard right now is Fox, and I want to be as interesting and as edgy as you guys are," Mr. Immelt said on Fox's business show, "Your World With Neil Cavuto."

GE and NBC are starting to exert pressure on the No. 3 cable news channel. MSNBC's ratings have declined 60% during the past 12 months. Buzz is almost nonexistent. Luminaries from NBC News appear on MSNBC less frequently now, and when they do, they aren't happy about being identified as correspondents for the cable network. Some of MSNBC's own staffers are uncomfortable with its new slogan, "America's News Channel," and its red, white and blue logo, which they see as a cynical attempt to cash in on post-Sept. 11 patriotism. A day of reckoning -- and possibly yet another change of direction -- may be at hand for the network.

MSNBC, from a business standpoint, is the envy of its competitors. It provides NBC's vaunted news division with another channel to show off talent and amortize costs. And it is profitable, as a result of the dual revenue stream in cable TV -- subscriber fees and advertising -- plus Microsoft's $30 million in licensing-fee payments. "We had expected that the enormous strengths of Microsoft and NBC combined would make MSNBC a fierce competitor," says Tom Johnson, retired chairman of CNN, a unit of AOL Time Warner Inc.

But MSNBC's ratings continue to be abysmal -- raising the question of whether there's any room for a third all-news cable channel on American television. Its constant efforts to reinvent itself are giving senior brass at NBC and GE headaches. At General Electric, the management mantra has been either be No. 1 or No. 2 in a business, or get out. (The television news business is being roiled at other networks, too, as CNN and ABC News consider partnering. See article.)

The heat is on MSNBC President Erik Sorensen; Neal Shapiro, president of NBC News and Andy Lack, president and chief operating officer of NBC. For Mr. Lack, a former NBC News president who played a key role in the development of MSNBC, improving its ratings is a top priority. Immediately after Sept. 11 last year, cable news experienced a ratings surge. But MSNBC hasn't been able to capitalize on the momentum.

The latest efforts to change MSNBC have been difficult. After adopting its new logo last summer, the network proclaimed itself "fiercely independent" and adopted a talk radio-type format. It wooed liberal daytime-TV personality Phil Donahue out of retirement to host a prime-time show, hoping to answer Fox's conservative sparkplug, Bill O'Reilly. "Donahue" started strong in July but since has lost almost 50% of its audience, and now has fewer than 400,000 viewers. That compares with more than two million viewers on average for Mr. O'Reilly's show and about 700,000 for CNN's Connie Chung.

Another hopeful whose star has faded is Ashleigh Banfield. She was noticed for her coverage of the Sept. 11 attacks and the war in Afghanistan (and for her chic black glasses). MSNBC gave her a prime-time show, positioning her as one of its first homegrown stars. But "Ashleigh Banfield: On Location" was savaged by critics and averaged only 232,000 viewers. The network canceled it early this month.

NBC News recently announced it will ship one of its top producers, Marc Rosenwasser, over to MSNBC to rework prime time. Mr. Shapiro says that is the only executive change planned. He doesn't need pressure from above to remind him to get results, Mr. Shapiro says. "We're a pretty competitive bunch here, we can read the numbers by ourselves," he says.

As for Mr. Immelt's remarks, Mr. Shapiro says, "I think the bottom line in his comments is that he really cares about the channel and wants to see us do better, and we share those views."

One of MSNBC's problems, according to people both inside and outside NBC, is its inability to find a strategy and stick with it. Initially, the channel was conceived as a hybrid of new and old media. The sets looked like the offices of a dot-com company, and the programs had a high-tech edge, emphasizing interaction between the MSNBC Web site and the cable channel. Shows have Web-inspired names, such as "Homepage," "Internight" and "News Chat."

But then the network won critical praise for its wall-to-wall news coverage of the death of Princess Diana in 1997, and the high-tech touches seemed to fade. The channel began leaning more on traditional news coverage, only to run up against the same obstacle that has tripped up CNN: It's hard to keep attracting a hard-news audience when there is little hard news to cover. News Corp.'s Fox, on the other hand, was quick to emphasize programming aimed at a conservative audience, a niche that felt it wasn't getting a fair shake from the other channels.

More recently, MSNBC has been backing away from news. The channel's star anchor Brian Williams's newscast has shifted to sister channel CNBC. (Dow Jones & Co., publisher of The Wall Street Journal, is co-owner with GE's NBC of CNBC television operations in Asia and Europe. Dow Jones also provides news content to, and derives revenue from, CNBC in the U.S.)

Lately, intense coverage of the Washington-area sniper has produced a surge in ratings for MSNBC and its cable rivals. And MSNBC points to some recent schedule shifts as signs that it is getting on track: "Countdown: Iraq," a new 7 p.m. program, has provided a ratings lift going into "Donahue." "Nachman," hosted by former New York Post editor Jerry Nachman, who is now MSNBC's top news editor, has been moved from 7 p.m. to 5 p.m., where his numbers also have improved.

But for all its efforts, MSNBC's biggest problem may be simply that the marketplace isn't big enough for more than two 24-hour news channels. CNN's sister service, Headline News, also is struggling, and NBC's CNBC, which was riding high when the stock market was booming, now is having a difficult time figuring out what investors want to watch in a down market.

"All the research showed that there isn't a market for three or four or five news channels," says Mr. Johnson. "There is a market for two."

Ah, MSNBC... Home of the Kurtis N Kurby show wherein one actor pretends to be a "conservative" in order to throw out ridiculous straw man theories, and then the other actor gets to play the intelligent liberal who deftly knocks down said straw man arguments again and again.

Gee, I'd just HATE for that sort of sophisticated programming to be flushed. < /SARCASM >

I actually don't mind MSNBC that much when they stick to news reporting. Their coverage of Sept 11th and the sniper are just as good (if not better) than FOX.
Where they do fall behind is the reliance on Dateline footage from the past 6 years. And that "Headliners" stuff from a couple years ago. I didn't want to see it then, and I don't want to see it now.
Hopefully CNBC will be spared any cuts. I think its the best news station out there, mainly as they stick to one subject (business) and they do it well. Plus Joe Kernan just cracks me up.

and then the other actor gets to play the intelligent liberal
Heh, your post could be about Hannity and Colmes with the outcome reversed.
The problem I have with most FOX shows is that everyone is yelling at one another. What am I supposed to gain from that? Oh that that idiotic "Stock Picking" show that I manage to catch every weekend. About as insightful as listening to a dog bark. Neil Cavuto is pretty good though. And their daytime reporting of news is decent.

Cavuto is my hero. No matter how bad the day, it is always interesting and informative to listen to his commentary.

The fact that he is seriously debilitated at times yet continues with his sunny nature is an inspiration. I wish him well.

"The problem I have with most FOX shows is that everyone is yelling at one another. What am I supposed to gain from that?"

I can't stand it, either. We must not be their target audience.

I'm with ya on "Cashin' In." For some reason that show pops up on my radar every weekend. It's like a bad hat.

I caught it long enough recently to see that Wayne Rogers is one of the panelists. Trapper John, M.D. is giving stock advice.

Awhile back I saw the younger Chicago correspondent dragging heavily from a cigarette as the camera focused on him. He let out all the smoke and waved it away furiously. It was so ridiculous.

MSNBC needs a consistent theme.

I suggest "All Socialist - All the Time"

The audience will be vanishingly small, but they will be loyal!

Wants to be as cutting edge as FOX, huh?

But it never occurs to anyone at the other networks that maybe, just maybe mind you, it would be a ratings winner if they went even a little bit further to the conservative side than even FOX.

No hard news to report, is a lame excuse when there is plenty of news, but when ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, PBS all report the same slant and the target audience for that slant is less than 25% of the entire population, that's 7 networks fighting over the same news bone. Only FOX puts some meat on the bone and makes it appealing to a growing segment of the viewing audience that has been ignored for decades.

And network execs can't figure this out. Guess that's why they get paid the big bucks.

"ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, PBS all report the same slant and the target audience for that slant is less than 25% of the entire population, that's 7 networks fighting over the same news bone."

Fighting over, or fighting to keep that 25% as liberal as they current are?

If the major networks ever drop their left-wing bias, then America returns back to the days when liberals were less than 5% of our total population.

Since those who control the networks don't want that ideological swing to happen, they'll do anything including risking bankruptcy to hold it off as long as possible...

"One of MSNBC's problems, according to people both inside and outside NBC, is its inability to find a strategy and stick with it. Initially, the channel was conceived as a hybrid of new and old media."

Hmmm, maybe a strategy of not reporting the DNC party line across the board and heavily favoring the leftist point of view in all news stories might help. I'm laughing as I visualize Chris Matthews as the captain from the movie "Titanic".

We'll know if GE/MSNBC is serious or not about ratings recovery by whether or not they court the willowy Miss Coulter for her own show.

Coulter is great for talk shows......as a guest. It would be a mistake to give her a show of her own. I don't think she would wear well with people five days a week and it probably be difficult to line up guests for her show over the long term. I think she would last about as long as Alan Keyes.

Right now, I think Buchanan and Press are the best hosts that MSNBC has. They should be given a later slot, like 7:00 p.m., up against Crossfire. They also might consider giving Bill Maher another shot. Politically Incorrect was a good concept that was executed poorly. They should tell Maher that he can have a show like PI, but it must be better balanced. No more 4 liberals (including Maher here) vs. one conservative, which seemed to happen a lot on PI.

If the major networks ever drop their left-wing bias, then America returns back to the days when liberals were less than 5% of our total population. Since those who control the networks don't want that ideological swing to happen, they'll do anything including risking bankruptcy to hold it off as long as possible...

Southack, usually you are right on but you might have missed here. Think of it like this. The networks are not in the business of providing news. They are in the business of selling time slots for commercials. That is where their money comes from.

The companies paying to have their commericials shown have demographics they target - mainly people who are easily emotionally manipulated, are willing to spend money they don't have, and will do this repeatedly.

Now, you tell me - what does that demographic sound like?

"Southack, usually you are right on but you might have missed here."

Thanks. If I only miss every once in a while, then I'm doing alright for an old country boy.

All that I was doing was trying to show an explanation for the seemingly irrational network behavior of targeting the same small demographic group over and over even as the network loses marketshare and money. Perhaps my explanation just won't cut it, however. Oh well.

I read the whole thing watching to see if anyone there had gotten the Rhema...

...none have.

They just dont get it.

NBC Execs can pretend that GE isnt talking but that is their fantasy. GE doesnt play. They'll dump MSNBC in a hot minute if it isnt producing. That "be #1 or #2" isnt just a mantra...it is a force inside of GE. Anyone who has worked there will attest to this.

Because of GE's parentage I am more concerned with MSNBC becoming competition for FOX then I am of CNN.

It'll be fun to see how this plays out.

Eitherway...until MSNBC gets real & grounded...nobody is gonna waste their time. [That is what they dont get].

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