There is a very interesting line in this NYT article on their upcoming advertising campaign:
“When you’re clear about who you are, you actually make money,” said Sharon Otterman, the chief marketing officer for MSNBC, who started work there one year ago.
Hmmm and hmmmm again. What follows this sentence in the story? This does:
MSNBC’s brand was unclear for its first full decade. A creation of NBC News and Microsoft in 1996, the channel bounced from one programming idea to another before Mr. Olbermann, the host of “Countdown,” and Chris Matthews, the host of “Hardball,” seized on antiwar, anti-Republican sentiments in the latter part of the Bush administration.
The channel identified itself as “The Place for Politics” — a catchphrase that it will continue to use alongside “Lean Forward” — and added liberal hosts like Ms. Maddow and Ed Schultz, and a lively morning show, “Morning Joe.”
I think the first sentence should have followed this but more to the point, by taking the pretend mask off MSNBC stops pretending to be all things to all people. People do better being what they are.
And to those who say, “but DaTechGuy” this is a center right country blah blah blah. Remember these things.
- If only 20% of people in the US are liberals then an awful lot of people.
- If you are a business, you can make a good living catering to that 20%
- That liberal 20% of the country, all eat, read, drink , use toilet paper , wash their clothes, buy trash bags (except when Marching on Washington ) etc and advertisers understand this.
So more power to you MSNBC, be yourself, Fox can be themselves and let the best network win and you can both watch CNN cry.
Via Stacy’s new feature Live at 5.
