Chris Hayes Compares Ratings to Sports: ‘Literally, They Call It, The Scoreboard’

By Brian Flood 

MSNBC’s Chris Hayes spoke with International Business Times about a variety of media industry topics. Hayes discusses ratings, his competitors, regrets and MSNBC’s changes.

“Part of my frustration with the way that this industry is covered is that it is covered like sports,” Hayes told IBT. “Literally, they call it, ‘The Scoreboard.”

While TVNewser is guilty of calling the daily ratings The Scoreboard, CNN’s Brian Stelter took the blame via Twitter.

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“But sports has no content other than whether you won or lost! Like, yes, winning matters, it does a lot. I understand the industry we’re in. But there’s also another component. There’s good editorial and bad editorial, there’s good journalism and bad journalism, there’s good TV and bad TV,” Hayes said. “And when you go meet St. Peter, you’ve gotta justify what you’ve done.”

On MSNBC’s ratings:

What I do think is true: It’s been pretty clear since I started this job that, when the story that’s driving people’s attention is politics, we do well as a network. And when it’s not politics, we do less well.

On MSNBC’s evolving identity:  

It has not affected the show in any direct way. There’s certainly not been, like, ‘Don’t do any liberal stuff.’ We are what we are; I am what I am.

He’s still learning:

Do I have regrets about every show? Of course. Do I go home and spend an hour on the way home beating myself up about the question I asked, or the convoluted way I read the prompter? Yes, constantly.

Need More Hayes? We asked him, “What’s Your Show?”

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