I think I figured out why Tweety sounds so pleading & desperate

[SoCalDem]

He used to be the Lead-in for Al Sharpton, and now he's following Sharpton..

Bashir-Hardball is a stronger lineup for him than Sharpton-Hardball..

The new timeslot for Hardball is probably better for East Coasters, but only if people have not turned off their set after Bashir-Shultz..

Lots of people don't remember, but Hardball was in danger of being canceled...and then we had the election of 2000, which put his show back on track, since there was not much of a lineup back then.

In his new time slot, he'll be the last yakker of the day (before the more true news shows), and by the time he's up, everyone else has talked the stories of the day to death by the time he's on..

[madokie]

1. Chris the spitter

[kelliekat44]

2. Chris would do so much better if he were a more polite commentator. nt

[bluestate10]

4. I disagree. Chris is the only host other than Ed who calls republican mouthpiece bullshit on the

spot. I am disappointed with Chris Hayes and Steve Kornacki, they let rightwing bullshitters go on too long and often don't challenge their lies.

[bluestate10]

3. I like Matthews. He has a tendency to over-talk guests sometimes, but the man has a good mostly

progressive heart. I plan to watch his show and Sharpton's show. I plan to watch Ed's show too, as I did his Sunday and 8pm shows. I may miss some of Ed's show at times because 5pm is early for me.

[SoCalDem]

5. I record them all and breeze thru them, sans commercials & bullshitters

[KharmaTrain]

6. Tweety's Ego Has Taken A Big Hit...

...he cherished the fact he had those two prime hours every day and held it for so many years. He felt he was the "franchise" of the network while others came and went. IRC, he's the only person whose been with the network since it began. There had been past attempts to cut him down to one show but the powers inside the network protected him. That came to a sudden end last week as the network admitted they need to mix things up to revive sagging ratings and Tweety took the biggest hit here. He just got the memo...he's not the big star he thinks he is...

[Old Codger]

7. They might try

Getting rid of the commercials from the right wing idiotic propaganda attempts to get rid of the IRS and Obama care... minute they come up I find something else to do and turn them off... Actually have been not even turning them on more and more lately, even Rachel...

[KharmaTrain]

9. The Obamacare Commercials?

...I'm trying to understand what you're meaning. The commercials are handled by the network's traffic department, not by the news people/personalities. I'm betting most times they don't even know what's playing in those breaks; taking the time to arrange the upcoming segments.

Or...are you refering to them using right wing political commercials in the show...which they generally then ridicule. I dunno, I'm from the school of know your adversary and their tactics...

Cheers...

[Old Codger]

14. Referencing

The commercials themselves, I don't want to watch them and the only way to do so is to not watch any of it... Also do not at all care for the "all in" show so don't care to watch that at all the rest are pretty much repeats of what has been tiresomely aired all day and sometimes all week..

[Paladin]

8. He's pissed because he lost air time in which to market his books.

Jeez, I got so sick of his constant, daily reminders of that JFK book of his. Take a break from interrupting people, Chris, and go count your money.....

[CTyankee]

10. Here, he won't be the last yakker of the day. Rachel and Lawrence will follow...

But I do see why he doesn't want to lose 5 pm Eastern. I'm generally watching, doing my back stretches and folding laundry at that time and like to have some "company" on the TV. By 5:45 I am starting to cook for dinner at 6:30. I was never able to see Ed since the TV set goes off during dinner.

[Bluenorthwest]

11. MSNBC has seen a huge drop off in viewship, CNN has seen a rise. The average audienece for

MSNBC is about half a million, roughly the same for CNN. Not many people. In that setting there is no such thing as 'better lead in' or 'popular show' and nothing they have is strong enough to help a show coming after it. Sharpton, Bashir, it matters not, both have tiny audiences comprised largely of the same viewers. Also, MSNBC has no 'true news shows' at all, not even one, all of their shows are commentary and opinion. They do not have reporters in the field and none of the hosts are anchors, they are chat show hosts. They are all 'yakkers' Rachel of a more uptown style, but she's a yakker, not an Anchor.
I'm saying, show me what in the numbers makes you think any of this makes sense. Bashir and Sharpton have similar tiny audiences to Chris and his tiny audience.

[tableturner]

12. Matthews has more political knowledge than any other MSNBC host......

He knows more of the ins and outs of politics than anybody else on the network. He knows the nuts and bolts, and he has the best sources. He has a strong and varied history in politics. I like that he cuts off people of all political persuasions when they refuse to directly answer the question, or when they obfuscate. If his show goes, it will be a huge loss!

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

13. CNN's Crossfire might have something to do with it.

Crossfire will be on at 6:30pm edt. MSNBC needs a draw so people won't stay at CNN at 7pm.

With Newt on Crossfire, it will at least be a curiosity for awhile.