Tribune's Ratings Premise Falls Apart

In a story today, Tribune reporter Ed Sherman insists the Cubs' local television ratings for the playoffs are down 38 percent from 2003 (38 percent!) because the games are on TBS, and late at night, and not because of a shift in fans to the White Sox. The Tribune was so sure of its self-serving interpretation of the numbers that it put it in the headline: What did they expect? Cable, Late Start Hurt TV ratings. And then Sherman spends most of the story arguing for that angle, rather than reporting. It smelled fishy from the start.

And then the national ratings came out and guess what? Nationally, playoff ratings are up, even though the games are on TBS for the entire nation and late at night for much of it.

What does that mean? More people are watching baseball everywhere, but in Chicago 38 percent fewer are watching the Cubs. (And these are the ratings for Game One, before the Cubs gave a clear indication how badly they were planning to suck). You figure it out. Because you can't count on the Tribune to tell you the truth.

Sherman clearly had access to the national numbers when he wrote his story, because he quoted some of them. He just didn't quote the ones that show national viewership increasing even as Cubs viewership fell. In other words, he left out the stats that prove his self-serving premise is false. TBS and timing hasn't stopped fans anywhere from watching baseball, and yet the Cubs still lost 38 percent of their following since 2003. What happened between 2003 and 2007?