Following a series of increasingly hostile public exchanges between Fox News and Glenn Beck’s camp, Beck’s “transition” off of Fox was announced on April 6. Fox recently confirmed that Beck’s final show will take place on June 30.

Glenn Beck’s Fox News exit is the result of a decline in revenue, ratings and relevance.

Revenue

More than 300 advertisers excluded their ads from Glenn Beck’s Fox News program since late July 2009 when he called President Obama a “racist” who has a “deep-seated hatred for white people.” In February 2010, the UK broadcast of Glenn Beck’s show began running without any commercials due to advertiser losses abroad.

Subsequent to news of Beck’s departure, The New York Times reported that Fox News saw “the refusal of hundreds Fox advertisers” to place ads on Beck as an issue. This issue was recently highlighted when a Fox News spokeswoman, commenting on Fox’s decision to preempt Beck’s show for a sex scandal special, reportedly quipped that “at least we will be able to sell the special.”

A financial analysis of Glenn Beck’s advertiser losses illustrates two points:

• The number of paid advertisements running on Glenn Beck’s show dramatically declined since advertisers began boycotting his show.
• According to industry data, key advertisements running on Beck’s show cost an estimated one-third to one-sixth of what they cost on other comparable Fox News programs.

The number of paid advertisements on Glenn Beck’s Fox News show dramatically declined once advertisers began boycotting it in August 2009. Sustained pressure on advertisers ensured that Beck’s show never recovered. Consequently, Glenn Beck’s show consistently fell short of other comparable Fox News shows as well as shows of direct competitors:

Source: Industry data obtained from CMAG and analyzed by Media Matters.

Further, based on estimated costs from industry experts CMAG, a Media Matters analysis revealed that the same ad from the same advertiser cost substantially less on Glenn Beck than it does on other comparable Fox News shows:

Source: Industry data obtained from CMAG and analyzed by Media Matters.

Ratings

Glenn Beck’s ratings decline was sharp, significant and sustained.

In the first quarter of 2011, Beck’s total audience dropped by 27% and his target demo audience was down 34% compared to the same period in 2010.
Glenn Beck’s total audience peaked in 2010, sharply fell and continued to wane:

Source: Data compiled from TVByTheNumbers & mediabistro.com and analyzed by Media Matters.

Similarly, Beck’s viewership among the target demo of adults between the ages of 25-54 peaked in 2010 and then faded:

Source: Data compiled from TVByTheNumbers & mediabistro.com and analyzed by Media Matters.

Relevance

In addition to declining ratings and decreases in the ability to generate revenue for Fox News, Glenn Beck also lost relevance:

Since the beginning of 2011, eight radio stations dropped Glenn Beck’s radio show.

• Buckley radio dropped Beck from five of its stations – WOR in New York City and four in Connecticut. Philadelphia’s WPHT, Madison’s WTDY and Milwaukee’s WISN replaced Beck. Further, Kansas City’s KMBZ moved Glenn Beck from his coveted morning slot to a significantly less desirable late-evening slot.

In 2011, conservative leaders began publicly criticizing and marginalizing Glenn Beck:

• Mike Huckabee chided Glenn Beck for having “a massive global conspiracy for pretty much everything” and wrote that “Beck needs to stick to conspiracies that can’t be so easily de-bunked by facts.”
• Bill Kristol, Fox News contributor and editor of The Weekly Standard, wrote that Beck is “marginalizing himself” with his “hysteria” over Egypt.
• In the conservative Commentary magazine, Peter Wehner warned that Beck “has become the most disturbing personality on cable television.”
• Other conservative voices publicly criticized Glenn Beck, including Joe Scarborough and Jennifer Rubin.

Just a year prior, the backlash from Beck’s fans would have been too fierce for other conservative voices to publicly challenge him. Yet, due in part to Beck’s declining relevance, these conservatives were able to step up and publicly challenge him.

Notes on graphs

Number Paid Ads Per Month:

• Calculations are based on the primary airing of the broadcast and do not include repeats.
• Situation Room airs 3 hours a day. This data only accounts for the 5-6PM hour, which competes directly with Glenn Beck’s Fox News show.
• Data for MSNBC’s Hardball from February 2010 was unavailable.

Ad Rates (Goldline, Beck vs. Baier, Beck vs. Hannity & O’Reilly):

• Calculations are based on estimated ad costs during the period of January 1 through March 7, 2011.
• In order to ensure the fairest and most direct comparisons as well as relevant results, only data from the show’s primary broadcast was included in the calculations.

Glenn Beck’s Median Monthly Fox News Audience:

• Calculations are based on ratings for Glenn Beck’s Fox News show between January 19, 2009 and June 22, 2011.
• Data for the following individual days was not included in the tally due to unreliability or unavailability: 1/28/11 and 3/11/11. This absence is not statistically signifcant.

Glenn Beck’s Median Monthly Audience, Adults 25-54:

• Calculations are based on ratings for Glenn Beck’s Fox News show between January 19, 2009 and June 22, 2011.
• Data for the following individual days was not included in the tally due to unreliability or unavailability: 1/28/09, 2/4/09, 2/24/09, 3/5/09, 1/28/11, and 3/11/11. This absence is not statistically significant.

More than 300 advertisers excluded their ads from Glenn Beck’s Fox News program since late July 2009.  The New York Times reported that Fox News saw “the refusal of hundreds Fox advertisers” to place ads on Beck as an issue that influenced the cancellation of Beck’s show.

Be sure to check out these amazing charts that illustrate the cost of advertisers boycotting Glenn Beck’s show.

Great work all! Onward we go…

The StopBeck effort gets a shout out on slide #6:

You can check out the rest of the slideshow here.

Onward!

Jay Steinfeld, Blinds.com’s CEO, ignored scores of requests from StopBeck participants. But, he did take the time to respond to a few of Beck’s defenders.

In one tweet, Blinds.com’s Steinfeld expressed gratitude for a tweet that characterized StopBeck effort participants as a “motley crew of homo activists:”

In another, Steinfeld refers to “SB army” (presumably StopBeck army) in response to another tweet, which characterized Angelo of @StopBeck, who is gay, as working for “Nazi Soros who helped round up gays & Jews.”

I’ve been doing this for quite a while. I’ve contacted tons of advertisers. I’ve never experienced anything even remotely close to the flagrantly insulting response displayed by Blinds.com’s CEO.

Given that nearly 400 companies are currently boycotting Glenn Beck, I guess we should expect that the few that are still willing to financially support Beck would also be supportive of the kind of reckless vitriol the StopBeck effort is challenging. I just didn’t expect them to be so brazenly supportive of it.

Onward we go…

From Glenn Beck’s March 14 radio show:

BECK: We can’t see the connections here. Now look, I’m not saying God is, you know, causing earthquakes. Well — I’m not saying that he — I’m not not saying that either.

God — what God does is God’s business, I have no idea. But I’ll tell you this: whether you call it Gaia or whether you call it Jesus — there’s a message being sent. And that is, ‘Hey, you know that stuff we’re doing? Not really working out real well. Maybe we should stop doing some of it.’ I’m just sayin’. And — yesterday I got home and I was thinking about all the messages that I could bring in, all the things that I could tell ya, and oh I’ve got stuff on Hezbollah. Oh, I have stuff on radical Islam in America that’ll make your eyes fall out. Or I could just tell you the answer, and the answer is: Buckle up. Buckle up, ’cause it’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Make sure you keep your arms and legs inside the car at all times. Because, things are gonna get bumpy and, just a few reminders there at the beginning as this rollercoaster takes off, always a good safety tip: Keep your arms and legs in. Don’t do anything stupid, what do you say we follow the big top ten. You can call them Moses’ ten commandments, or ten rules of thumb. What do you say we start doing those things? Because the things we are doing really suck and they’re not getting better.

You check out the rest of Ben’s post here.

Steve and Angelo discussed the origins of the StopBeck effort, Glenn Beck’s lost advertisers, Angelo’s role in Media Matters‘ DropFox campaign, Fox News’ political machinations, the recent New York Times report that Fox News is contemplating parting ways with Glenn Beck and more…

Listen to the interview:

If the embedded audio isn’t working for you, you can find a direct link to the audio here.

Thanks to Steve for having Angelo on.

Onward we go…

Beyond his ratings slide, Glenn Beck also has other woes…

More than 300 advertisers are currently boycotting Glenn Beck’s Fox News show – and the list continues to grow to this day.  Additionally, the UK broadcast of his show has run for over a year without any commercials due to Glenn Beck’s ad losses there. This fact was mentioned by a British MP during a parliamentary debate.

After being dropped by affiliates, Glenn Beck’s radio show is currently off the air in 3 cities – New York City, Philadelphia and Madison.  New York’s WOR reportedly dropped Beck due to low ratings. Further, 5 New York City radio stations have already committed to keeping Glenn Beck off there.  Madison’s WTDY explained that they dropped Beck in part because “[t]he lack of actual content becomes more apparent daily.”

Establishment conservatives are also joining Glenn Beck’s chorus of critics. In Commentary magazine, Pete Wehner issued a strong warning about Glenn Beck, calling him “the most disturbing personality on cable television.” Bill Kristol recently criticized Glenn Beck for his “hysteria” –  sentiment that National Review Online‘s Rich Lowry endorsed. Conservative Washington Post blogger Jennifer Rubin called Beck a “ranting extremist,” adding that Beck is “often simply wrong on the facts.”

Glenn Beck recently apologized for saying that Reform Judaism was akin to “radicalized Islam.” His apology came only after condemnations from Jewish organizations and pressure from a major radio company.

Onward we go…

From the March 1, 2011 edition of Fox News’ Glenn Beck, looked in Madison, Wisconsin for more caliphate clues. Sure enough, he found them in one of the signs that is making the rounds at the demonstrations:

But, as Little Green Footballs recently pointed out, Glenn Beck should keep looking.  Specifically, he should check out the Glenn Beck inspired 9/12 Tea Party march, which used a similar logo:

Oh, and don’t forget Howard Stern…

Detroit Free Press summarizes the Glenn Beck’s remarks as follows:

Showing pictures of Hiroshima destroyed by an atomic bomb and decay in Detroit, Beck pointed out that Hiroshima today is a thriving metropolis and much of Detroit is in ruin.

“One city embraced the free market system and the entrepreneurial spirit,” Beck said. “The other embraced progressive policies and corrupt government and unions and companies that weren’t allowed to fail. And they should have failed because they stunk on ice.”

Needless to say, members of the Detroit community are not pleased.

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing issued a statement:

“Like many national media members, Glenn Beck has probably never been to Detroit, understood Detroit, and doesn’t care about Detroit. We welcome him to see and experience Detroit for himself so that he can deliver facts, rather than repeat fiction.”

Dan Lijana, a spokesman for Bing, added: the city isn’t offering a tour or to pay for his expenses, but rather inviting Beck to “learn something about Detroit, before speaking without facts or knowledge.”

Detroit Free Press has reactions from some Detroit council members:

“Detroit has become synonymous with black,” Councilwoman JoAnn Watson said, suggesting the comments are racially motivated. “Everyone is after Detroit.”

Councilman Ken Cockrel put it more frankly: “Glenn Beck is an idiot.”

New York, NY, February 23, 2011 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today criticized remarks made by Glenn Beck on his radio program, in which he compared Reform Judaism to radicalized Islam, as “highly offensive and outrageous.”

During his February 22 radio show, Beck described Reform rabbis as “generally political in nature. It’s almost like Islam, radicalized Islam in a way … radicalized Islam is less about religion than it is about politics … When you look at the Reform Judaism, it is more about politics.”

Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director, issued the following statement:

Glenn Beck’s comparison of Reform Judaism to radical Islam demonstrates his bigoted ignorance. Despite his feeble attempt to suggest that he was not equating Reform Judaism with Islamic extremist terrorism, the simple fact that he would mention them in the same breath is highly offensive and outrageous.

The truth is that every religious body has political points of view, whether one agrees with them or not. To compare Reform Judaism, which supports democratic institutions, to Islamic extremism, which supports anti-democratic movements and the repression of basic rights – including, for example, the denial of women’s rights – is beyond the pale.

Glenn Beck has no business discounting the faith of any people, and he should think twice before commenting on something he doesn’t know much about. He owes the Reform movement an apology.

On a related note, see:

Glenn Beck smears 35 Percent of American Jews

5 NYC Radio Stations Commit To Keeping Glenn Beck Off The Air

Jewish Chronicle Op-Ed Highlights Glenn Beck’s Antisemitism