2.2 Million People Hate-Watched HBO’s ‘Newsroom’; Where Does That Sit Relative to Other Cable Shows?
Despite critical backlash, despite some suggesting that the show needs commercial breaks, and despite the presence of Olivia Munn, the ratings for Aaron Sorkin’s Newsroom continue to prick up. In fact, according to EW, Sunday night’s episode reached 2.2 million viewers in first run, the highest ratings yet for HBO despite the mounting drub of hate coming from critical circles.
People really love to hate-watch Newsroom, though I will admit — as an adamant defender of the show — that this last episode suffered from a bad case of montage-itis. (Heavy-handed or not, I did love the opening speech. It’s Aaron Sorkin, people. OF COURSE IT’S HEAVY HANDED. I’ll take preachy and pretentious over Anger Management every day of the week. Critics just don’t like being out pretentious’d.)
As always, however, when we discuss ratings for cable shows, I think it’s necessary to put them into perspective. Two million viewers may not sound like a lot, although that doesn’t take into account re-airs over the course of the week, or views on HBO Go, which add a few million viewers. However, it is solid number for a premium cable network that operates on a subscription model. In fact, it’s better than the ratings for HBO’s two previous new shows, Girls and Veep.
For comparison purposes, here’s a selection of shows on basic and premium cable to help you put the Newsroom ratings into perspective. Basically, it’s in the upper part of the bottom tier.
The Walking Dead — 9 million
Sons of Anarchy — 5.45 million
True Blood — 4.5 million
Mad Men — 3.5 million
Game of Thrones — 3.4 million
Anger Management — 3.37 million
American Horror Story — 3.2 million
Justified — 3.1 million
Wilfred — 2.5 million
South Park — 2.6 million
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia — 2.3 million
Newsroom — 2.2 million
Breaking Bad — 1.9 million
Veep — 1.7 million
Archer — 1.5 million
Girls — 1.4 million
Louie — 1.4 million
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You should add the 25 million (is that the right number?) illegal downloads to Game of Thrones’ total. You know, just so it wins.
Actually over 25 million now. Most downloaded show of 2012, and I dont see anything on the calendar that has a chance of topping it.
I “computer-watched” it which means it was on in the background while I futzed around on my laptop. Of course, I’m not sure I was actually watching “Newsroom” because I never looked up. For all I know, a different show that uses a similar dialogue structure (say, “Bunheads”) could have been on.
“continue to prick up”
I see what you did there.
I actually enjoyed Studio 60 until the last few episodes so I’m clearly in the tank for anything Sorkin but Newsroom is getting hard to watch. For me it’s not the writing as much as the acting- Emily Mortimer, Olivia Munn, Sam Waterson and Alison Pill were terrible casting decisions. I like each actor but I think they’re completely wrong for the parts they’re playing.
I think Olivia Munn is pretty good in her role, but she hasn’t gotten much to do, yet.
And I like Sam Waterson, simply b/c it’s fun to watch Jack McCoy get drunk before lunch and say “motherfucker.”
Yeah, I’m liking Waterson in that role, and Munn is solid. Mortimer, maybe. Pill just seems off.
Waterston has been one of the best parts of the show, if you ask me. Munn, what Dux said. Mortimer, I’ve always liked her, and I think she does a fine job with her character here, but Mackenzie does have a wackiness that can be annoying at times — I’m not sure whether that’s Mortimer or just the way the character’s written. Don’t really have any opinion on Pill or her character, except that she’s cute and I hate this love triangle arc.
Alison’s weird pumpkin-head aside Ive totally been enjoying Newsroom and Fonda was good in that last ep.
Also am I the ONLY one that liked Veep? I thought that shit was hilarious.
Veep definitely filled the gap left by Eastbound and Down. It’s a great comedy.
Veep was fantastic. That cast seemed to fall into step with each other so well you’d have thought the show was in it’s 3rd or 4th season.
I like Newsroom and I’m not going to apologize to anyone about it.
Veep is the tits.
Oh, there are definitely a lot of us around here who loved Veep.
Veep is the shit but I was PISSED at the season finale. That ep missed badly.
Veep is the funniest show on TV besides Archer
(assuming that Curb is done)
Anybody else think that “hairdo” line sounds like the “haircut” line from Party Down?
I actually think it’s another Sorkinism. On the West Wing I recall a character calling someone a hairdo. Now I need to investigate to make sure I’m not just ‘membering things wrong.
West Wing, Season 1, Episode 9.
Senator Lilienfield is accusing the White House of having 1-in-5 of their people on drugs. Josh calls him a “hair do”.
How about that, I’m not crazy! Just compulsive.
I would’ve guessed that way more people watched GoT and Mad Men. They seem like a much bigger part of pop culture than the ratings imply.
Was anyone’s DVR also tricked into recording the Walking Dead pilot in BW Sunday?
Indeed. But wasn’t that the first time they showed it on TV?
What I hate are the countless TV shows that re-air their entire previous season right before the new episode and somehow they manage to make your DVR think they’re all new episodes so you end up with 16 episodes of Project RU— er, um, something really cool with guns and splosions, but that you’ve seen before. Yes. That.
Sir, that line of critics being out prententioned is pretty on-the-money.
And I like the show. So far I like the whole thing. And the flashback thing is very reminiscent of the episodes with Leo McGarry appearing before Congress or the one with Josh Lyman telling anecdotes on stage in front of Georgetown U. I missed that a LOT.
This last episode was the best yet and I’ll say it to anyone!!!!
I love Newsroom and I liked Veep and Girls, as well. Considering all of the craptastic shows we had to endure during the regular TV viewing season (Whitney, Are you there, Chelsea, this previous season of The Office), I am thankful to HBO for their ability to give us shows of this caliber.
The Newsroom is actually quite good. I don’t know why anyone would feel they need to apologize for liking it.
Newsroom will be so much better if they drop the drama about the stupid Alison Pill love triangle story. Just stop it. I care about the story of how safe the mainstream media plays it, and stopped asking the hard questions, and the balancing acts of politics in the world of a modern day cable news channel, I don’t really give a crap about the love life of a fictional character who really is a minor cog in the big picture. We didn’t need long boring love stories going on with Donna Moss for us to enjoy her character.
I guess her only role is to make sure that the former E.P. dude is somehow still in the news room so they can contrast her Jaded E.P. boyfriend vs an Altruistic E.P. But even his constant “this is not real news” crap is getting tiresome.
Ha! This review made me giggle, but I am right there with you when you said that you’d rather be preached at than the watch mindless dribble that is usually on TV. Though The Newsroom has been torn up by the critics like a tornado, at least it’s gotten everyone talking, and that’s half the battle! From the most respected news sources, like NPR and The New Yorker, to just a few of my coworkers around the lunch table at Dish, it seems like everyone has an opinion on the show; I commend the series for that, since it’s rare that we get a TV program that actually engages our minds! My knowledge on the rest of the series that beat The Newsroom in premier viewings is limited, but I think they may be worth checking out to see what type of shows our culture is drawn to if not The Newsroom! Fortunately, I have the Hopper DVR that can record or watch up to six things at once during primetime hours, since it seems like I am going to need all of it to catch up! I didn’t realize how many popular shows were out there!
The Newsroom is a big disappointment. Arron Sorkin has lost his ability to write anything that isn’t weighted with slant. I was hoping for a show that would have us questions all sides of the argument, not beat us over the head with pseudo intellectual pretense and a POV that screams democratic party-line rhetoric — in a word: Ugh! Sorkin must think he’s the smartest guy in the room, and we, poor ill informed masses were waiting to be told how to think. Gee, that’s mighty kind of you, Mr. Sorkin. I think I’ll make up my own mind by reading several sources, as I was taught to do so in Critical Thinking 101.