It is “undeniable” we are told in the blurb for his new book, that Piers Morgan is one of the “most talked-about, controversial figures in the media today.” This is the claim, anyway, of Shooting Straight, Guns, Gays, God, and George Clooney, Morgan’s book, which hits bookstores on October 15. On Wednesday, nearly a full month before the book launch, Morgan began tweeting repeatedly about Shooting Straight — coincidentally, within just two days of the Navy Yard shooting. When called out on his pathetic opportunism by Breitbart News’ John Nolte on Twitter, Morgan lamely responded, “Can you name a single day when my book WOULDN’T clash with a gun outrage in America?”
“From gun control and gay marriage to religion and pop icons,” the advanced press release says, Morgan “tackles the hot-button topics head on.”
It might seem a bit disingenuous, though, to claim that Morgan is a powerhouse on the American media scene. Since taking over Larry King’s nighttime show on CNN, Morgan has been perpetually at the bottom of cable ratings.
As Dan Andros reported in August, since his first week on the air “Piers Morgan has failed and he’s failed spectacularly” in the ratings game.
“In his first 664 shows, Piers Morgan has placed 3rd or 4th (out of 4) an astonishing 85% of the time. He most commonly comes in a distant third place (60% of the time) behind Hannity and Maddow and is dead last with 25% of his shows. He occasionally places 2nd (11%) and he only lands in first place a mere 4% of the time.”
The book blurb also notes that Morgan offers an “inside look” behind the scenes at CNN during “huge breaking news stories such as the killing of Osama bin Laden, Hurricane Sandy, and the massacre at Newtown.”
The interesting thing is that the 4% of the time that Morgan has ranked first in the cable ratings game is when he happened to be on the air during one of those national tragedies.
As Andros drolly noted, “when Americans suffer, Piers Morgan is having a pretty decent day. When Americans are having a pretty decent day, Piers Morgan ratings suffer.”
Nevertheless, the press release for Morgan’s new book informs us that “once again” we will be shown “why Piers Morgan has taken the world by storm.” And Morgan’s book comes complete with an endorsement from Michael Moore!
Perhaps taking the advice of President Obama to “lead from behind,” Morgan has been taking the world by storm from last place in the ratings.
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