“Out” MSNBC host Rachel Maddow is definitely “in” with viewers as ratings for her nightly show are reported to have doubled in the past month.
“The Rachel Maddow Show” averaged a higher rating among the prized 25- to 54-year-old demographic than her opposition, CNN’s "Larry King Live," for 13 of the 25 nights she has hosted, according to a Sunday story in The New York Times.
The Times reports that, while her overall average audience is slightly lower than King’s total audience draw, Maddow has managed to make MSNBC competitive in the 8 p.m. CT time slot for the first time in a decade. Her show has grown to an average viewership of 1.7 million since she started on Sept. 8 with 800,000 viewers. When publicly “out” TV journalists are scarce and others are looking for a long-term hosting gig Maddow has made her mark quickly to show that she can be evaluated on her merit.
Obviously, the non-issue of her sexual orientation with viewers is helped by the fact that her show – and likely part of her audience – is “left-leaning,” as The Times stated. Still, Maddow’s meteoric rise from a largely faceless personality on Air America radio to being today’s fastest-rising news figure is likely being watched closely by any number of savvy television executives as well as young gays and lesbians searching for publicly open and successful role models.
While ratings of TV news shows covering the presidential race will expectedly drop post-election, it seems likely that Maddow’s star will continue to rise. And surely others will follow her path.
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