Alright so today I got curious about why this TV show “Morning Joe” suddenly had wild rating swings. Grabbed my laptop around 7 AM with cold coffee – typical Tuesday – and dug in.
The Head-Scratching Start
First thing I did was pull up the public ratings data. Numbers looked wonky, like someone kept poking the chart up and down every few weeks. Made zero sense for a long-running show. Opened three browser tabs: one for the ratings site, one blank Google Doc for notes, and my sad spreadsheet trying to spot patterns. Nothing clicked.
Realized I needed actual TV industry folks, not just numbers. Decided cold-calling experts was the play.
The Awkward Ask-Around
Started hitting up contacts:
- Messaged Sarah, my cousin’s friend who does PR for some cable shows. She just texted back “lol idk politics?” and sent a cat meme.
- Emailed Dave, this guy I met at a media conference two years ago. Radio silence for 48 hours.
- Finally DMed Carla – smart podcast host who talks TV business. Jackpot. She actually called me back.
Carla laid it out plain: “Stop staring at spreadsheets, dummy. This ain’t math class.” Told me three big things changed behind the scenes:
- Guest Shuffle: Top producers left, taking their Rolodex of A-list guests with ‘em. Show booked random talking heads now.
- Time Slot Wars: Network kept moving it earlier, then later, then splitting episodes. Nobody knew when to watch.
- Angry Algorithm: Streaming service tweaked their “recommended” buttons. Old viewers got booted off autoplay.
Felt like an idiot for not seeing it sooner. Ratings don’t just wobble – somebody always kicks the ladder.
Why This Stuck With Me
Finished the post feeling kinda pissed. Not about the show, but about how I spent three days chasing numbers like a robot. Real life ain’t clean data sets. Messy human crap matters more – who quit, who got greedy, which exec pushed the wrong button. Next time ratings tank? I’m calling Carla before opening Excel. Cold coffee tastes better that way.
