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Debut Of Showtime’s Roger Ailes Miniseries Bombs In Nielsen Ratings

Roger Ailes, chairman and CEO of Fox News and Fox Television Stations, answers questions during a panel discussion at the Television Critics Association summer press tour in Pasadena, California, on July 24, 2006. REUTERS/Fred Prouser/File
William Davis Contributor
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The debut of Showtime’s much-anticipated miniseries about Roger Ailes got off to a poor start, averaging a paltry 299,000 initial viewers according to Nielsen Media Research.

“The Loudest Voice” reportedly paints a negative picture of Ailes and Fox News, and feature a star-studded cast that includes Russell Crowe, Naomi Watts, and Seth MacFarlane. The series was announced nearly three years ago in Oct. of 2016 and received substantial hype and media attention ahead of its debut Sunday night. (RELATED: Fox News Prime Time Ratings Beat MSNBC And CNN Combined)

While Showtime gets much of its viewership from streaming services, “The Loudest Voice” still fell way short of Showtime’s typical Sunday night programming.

Roger Ailes, chairman and CEO of Fox News and Fox Television Stations, attends a panel discussion at the Television Critics Association summer press tour in Pasadena, California July 24, 2006. REUTERS/Fred Prouser

Roger Ailes, chairman and CEO of Fox News and Fox Television Stations, attends a panel discussion at the Television Critics Association summer press tour in Pasadena, California July 24, 2006. REUTERS/Fred Prouser

The recent debut of another Showtime series “City on a Hill” nearly doubled “The Loudest Voice,” averaging 532,000 initial viewers in its premiere two weeks ago. (RELATED: Fox’s Greg Gutfeld Gets Higher Cable TV Ratings Than Bill Maher, Samantha Bee)

The show has received criticism for its portrayal of Fox News, and Ailes, who died in 2017 at the age of 77. Last week, conservative street artists known as The Faction, hijacked a billboard in Los Angeles promoting the show last week, adding the words “the man who beat CBS every night,” under the photo of Ailes.

The group said they weren’t “cheerleaders” for Ailes of Fox News but found it distasteful that Showtime (which is owned by CBS) was airing the series when Ailes was no longer alive to defend himself.

“CBS couldn’t beat Roger Ailes & the ratings he created for Fox News, so they’re taking a dig at him now that he’s dead, in a series starring Russel Crowe. YAWN.” the group said in a tweet. “Are we cheerleaders for Fox/Ailes? Nope, but fake news is fake news. We fixed your billboard for you. You’re welcome.”

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