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Paul, I have no data but my guess was that Cosell was a big contributor to the success of Monday Night Football, which was by no means assured. It was the first time regular season NFL games were up against the network prime time line up and they needed to make it not just a game but show. I had mixed feelings about Cosell but his interaction with Dandy Don, who was quite up to mocking Cosell's pomposity without rancor, was entertaining. Today with the network audience fractured and the NFL dominant in a way it was not 50+ years ago one might attribute success to "games the fans want to see". At the time MNFB's success was a bit of a surprise. Best, RV

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Thanks, Richard. I agree with you in part. I think Cosell ended up being a big contributor to the success of MNFB. I think the program was always likely to succeed, but maybe that's just hindsight.

My recollection is that Cosell was not an instant hit. His presence grew on people as the dynamic with Meredith began to play out.

It was the genius of Roone Arledge to stick with Cosell notwithstanding the initial wave of disapproval.

That's how I remember it, anyway.

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I don't read the Post exactly -- I literally can't remember the last time I picked up and opened the paper -- but I do read an occasional article that I find in one of my other feeds, either an article that looks particularly ridicule-worthy because of its White People Stink slant, or the much rarer article admitting, in a mumbling sort of way, to some minor error in the first sort. As I've been saying in this space since forever, actual journalism has all but vanished in favor of anti-American and anti-Semitic propaganda.

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Here’s the part I don’t get, I believe (although I may be wrong) that the NYT is just as bad as the WP with its woke bias. However, it seems from what I know that unfortunately the NYT is making a lot of money. Why the difference?

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Interesting point, Norm.

My understanding is that the Times is prospering not so much because of subscriptions, although it is gaining digital subscribers. Rather, the Times is prospering due to something called “the bundle.” This product includes games and cooking stuff, wire-cutter product info and The Athletic., which covers sports and stays mostly away from wokeism.

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