I’ve been a wrestling fan since I watched the Big Bossman (with Slick) take on “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan at the Royal Rumble in 1990. I was 9 years old and I thought that this “wrestling” stuff was pretty damn entertaining. So I watched. And I grew older. And I grew up. And I went to high school. And I went to college. And I went to graduate school. And I got a full-time job. And I became successful. And here I am.
And the entire time that I was on my road to where I am today, I’ve been a wrestling fan. However, on my way to where I am today, I’ve kept my eyes and ears open. I “get it” when it comes to the general public’s perception of wrestling and wrestling fans. They think wrestling is a low brow form of fake sports and that wrestling fans are dummies who think that what they’re watching is real.
In essence, the outside world arrogantly believes that wrestling fans are ignorant to reality. They think that we live in our own world – a world where professional wrestling is real. They think that we live in, let’s say, 1952.
Makes you wonder which group of people is really ignorant, but that’s not the point of this particular column!
The point of this column is that for the first time EVER in my history as a wrestling fan and, more specifically, as a fan who is firmly entrenched in the online wrestling environment, I’m beginning to see evidence that some wrestling fans are just plain dumb. Again, as a diehard wrestling fan (iMPACT Wrestling, that is), let me show you what made me do a double take while I was browsing around the other night.
Most of you probably read the “news story” about Spike TV changing formats in the coming year and likely losing its UFC programming. There’s a lot to say about that change, but I would expect all of the internet wrestling “news” sites that copied and pasted this “story” from the same source to do a little bit of editing and take out the opinion that was embedded in the “news story.” Further, I would expect them to refine this information and boil it down to what makes it a story worthy of their readers’ time. In fact, do you want the story as it should have been reported this week? Here is what all of the copy and paste websites should have posted:
A widely read wrestling newsletter is reporting that last weekend, Spike TV reiterated that it would be changing formats to appeal to a broader audience over the course of the next year. Spike TV officials have made no comment on whether this will affect iMPACT Wrestling.
End of story.
Instead, many copy and paste website simply added extra opinionated lines that talked about how even though iMPACT Wrestling drew good ratings, this could be the end of the promotion. Completely pathetic in terms of “news reporting.”
But the reason why I wrote this article is because of the reactions that I read from wrestling fans on the “comments” section of these copy and paste websites. Here is a sampling of what these dummies had to say:
“TNA is dead if that scenario plays out. No one else is going to want 3rd rate wrestling that gets a 1.1”
“Nana nana, hey hey hey, goodbye….to TNA.”
“I will not miss tna if Spike decides. It has always been kind of dull, and way too predictable. RIP TNA!!!” [Editor’s Note: If Spike decides what? Finish the sentence!]
“[TNA has] a check book that is hemorrhaging money”
I admit, there were many more “Who cares?” and “TNA isn’t going anywhere,” comments, but those didn’t infuriate me when I read them. The ones above infuriated me – especially that first one. That first one is obviously written by a person who is so far into the anti-TNA hate websites that they don’t even realize they are now regurgitating the hate as expected reality. Let me explain. These hate sites bash iMPACT Wrestling because they get a 1.1 or a 1.2 rating when RAW is bringing in triple that number on a regular basis. These people are blind marks to WWE programming (they don’t realize it, hence why they’re “blind marks”). Meanwhile, what WWE scores on the USA Network doesn’t mean a thing to iMPACT Wrestling and where it would end up if Spike TV ended their contract with the promotion.
All you have to do is look at any of the ratings reports that I post on Friday afternoons and you’ll get a very clear understanding of why iMPACT Wrestling is in a good position. In fact, if you look at this past week’s rating report by itself, you’ll see that iMPACT Wrestling had 1,794,000 viewers and scored a 1.26 rating. Further, if you make it to the third paragraph of the report, you’ll see that the second hour of the show scored a 1.35 rating and that, overall, iMPACT Wrestling had more viewers than prime time and late night programming on ALL of the following channels:
Comedy Central
TLC
FX
A&E Network
Bravo
Tru TV
The Food Network
TBS
The History Channel
Discovery Channel
E!
HGTV
In previous weeks, iMPACT Wrestling has also surpassed viewership for programming on ESPN and ESPN 2, as well. In other words, Spike TV is beating its contemporaries by airing iMPACT Wrestling, period. This information is public, it’s available for these “news” websites to report, and yet they don’t report it and the dummies don’t seek it out before they wonder who would want “3rd rate wrestling that gets a 1.1.”
Frankly, folks – I’m shocked. I’m absolutely shocked. As a wrestling fan, that type of dumb, stupid comment is embarrassing.
Now granted, HGTV and the Food Network aren’t going to put iMPACT Wrestling on their lineup. That doesn’t make any sense. But there might be one or two future suitors for iMPACT Wrestling on that list above – especially considering that Bischoff-Hervey Entertainment is one of the major programming providers for one of these channels (which has also been reported on TNAStars.com – not really anywhere else).
But it’s not these particular channels where iMPACT Wrestling would try to find a new home. No. In fact, I would expect that the promotion would want to find a home on a channel that isn’t even listed above! There are smaller channels actively looking for successful wrestling programming (WGN America, anyone?) that would love to have 1,794,000 predominantly young male viewers watching their channel on a Thursday night. It’s about as basic as you can get in terms of business sense.
And yet there are professional wrestling fans out there who write “TNA is dead if that scenario plays out.” Dead? DEAD? Ha! If this scenario plays out (which is highly unlikely), iMPACT Wrestling could be looking at a brand new beginning! In fact, they might even realize a great benefit from moving away from Spike TV just like they received a great benefit moving away from Fox Sports Net back in 2005!
However, as a fan of iMPACT Wrestling and a fan of Spike TV, I hope (and totally suspect) that the two organizations will manage to stay together. They’re cut from a similar cloth and they’ve both invested a lot of time and money into one another. I expect that this “news story” will die down in the near future, but who knows when the anti-TNA hate sites will try to bring it up again?
If we’ve written it once on this website, we’ve written it a thousand times: be careful where you get your news and information from in the seedy world of internet wrestling websites.
– Joe
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great article.. this is a kind of response that should be given to all Impact Wrestling haters out there.. i mean, what’s really wrong with having another competitive wrestling promotion other than WWE?? when i see all these hate remarks by the haters of Impact Wrestling on the net.. i was really wondering if these idiotic fans are in fact in the payroll of Vince McMahon.. and the funniest part is either Vince or WWE don’t even acknowledge these smarks who think they know all about pro wrestling . another thing would be that MOST OF these WWE lovers won’t even pay for the product rather they download it from a free stream so that they can cry and moan about every thing that the impact Wrestling does.. i have been a fan of WWE for many years ever since 1990 to be exact and i was 6 years old back then.. and i equally enjoyed WCW and now i really enjoy Impact Wrestling..we all should be wrestling fans and should know to enjoy the product without all that moaning and complaining like little girls.. and all the IMPACT haters out there get a life do a regular job and enjoy the product after coming home from work and enjoy it for two hours and let the companies to manage themselves on their own.. after all Vince McMahon doesn’t pay you for your hate comments nor he acknowledges your existence.. get a life .. do a regular job and enjoy wrestling …and as for JOE… WELL DONE man… keep up the good work..
Thanks, SAKULA. You make a bunch of great points. Among those points, I like the realistic and logical approach you take to liking what you like – I’m the same way. I watch iMPACT Wrestling because I don’t particularly care for WWE (fake CM Punk storyline and all). So, I write about iMPACT Wrestling instead of WWE. If the smarks don’t like the product that is coming out of Nashville (or Orlando, really), then they shouldn’t watch and should shut up.
I do think there is a large group of fans who are “WWE Universe fans” and it clouds their judgment on the products. Fans are literally growing up with WWE…and Cena is really a rerun of Prayers/Vitamins Hogan (with a new twist of course).
This is part of the huge head start WWE has….DECADES head start. People should remember that even in the early 80’s, Vince McMahon mortgaged everything he owned to pull off the first Wrestlemania. TNA isn’t even that far along in their existence yet.
The key is whether they are breaking even or not. With the TV deals they have around the world, I can’t imagine they aren’t at least breaking even now. Obviously Panda Energy spent a lot of money to get to this point, but this is a long term fight…not a short term one.
Spike TV has only said they are going to go after more females to BALANCE it, they aren’t going to turn into Lifetime Network or something. Raw doesn’t really “fit” with USA Network….they show very little sports/male centered content. TNA is the highest rated show on Spike. Unless the rating start hovering around .7 I don’t see much to worry about.
If they lost Spike, I suspect the other network to shoot for would be TruTV.
Lastly I would add, there is room for TNA to succeed and make a LOT of money without “beating” WWE. Target doesn’t come close to beating Wal Mart, but they are a STRONG # 2 and are a huge company. They co-exist.
these negative comments are nothing new from the so called “wwe internet smarks”. if they had any brains they would realise that having a successful alternative promotion is good for the wrestling business as a whole.
as for that comment about tna being a 3rd rate wrestling show is completely absurd.
ive been a wrestling fan 25yrs and im not a mark to any company.
ive watched them all over the years awa,wwf/wwe,wcw,ecw and now tna.
i simply watch what i like and what i like right now is tna impact wrestling.
the truth is the smarks dont like whats become of “there product” but instead of growing a set and criticizing there product they take the easy route and hammer the competition.
Best… Article… Ever.
Its about time these haters got put into their places. I’m sick and tired of them all. TNA is not dead yet, but they will continue to decide the fate of TNA year after year. Kind of like the doomsday prophecies.
Thanks for the comment, Radiitz. I was actually shocked when reading those comments the other night. I sat there and thought to myself, “Well, maybe the rest of the world is right – maybe wrestling fans are just idiots.” Then, of course, I realized that the idiots are the ones who blindly pledge their time, money, and interest to one wrestling promotion and bash any other promotions out there.
Another thing would be that the perception of SMARKS who think that they know everything about pro wrestling from the history to how the industry operates. Their blind obsession towards five star matches, workrate, work ethics and all BS has really made me laugh whenever i read their opinions. After all the funniest part is that these internet geeks know nothing about wrestling and they have not even watched wrestling for many years but have downloaded all the old school stuff from a free illegal stream and now act as if that they have been fans of wrestling for many years. and the first thing that they bash is Impact Wrestling as it is the easiest and the coolest thing to do in the IWC. As for my personal experience, one thing really attracted me to pro wrestling was not the workrate or five star matches but the character of the Undertaker and this was some 20 years ago and i strongly believe this applies to all the casual fans out there who have better things to do other than net surfing and bashing IMPACT. Also, it’s obvious why Eric Bischoff doesn’t give a damn about these smarks as their existence is irrelevant and their fake opinions also don’t matter. so I invite all fellow Impact Wrestling fans to defend Impact Wrestling objectively from these haters at all times like we all are doing right now..
A very good article Joe. It’s strange to me, this whole phenomenon of overwhelming hate towards TNA and Impact Wrestling from so many internet fans. Obviously it’s not necessarily representative of the majority of wrestling fans out there, and I guess that’s what odd about it.
It’s the wonder of preference, on the one hand. I see a TNA PPV, and usually I’m like “wow that was great.” But this other guy, he’s like “typical Russo overbooking. That sucked.” And I’m confused. lol Looked like a great show to me! You know?
Ultimately, there’s no going getting beyond the point that if you don’t like a product–don’t promote it! Don’t pay for it! Don’t consume it! Don’t watch it! It’s one thing to report on a show regardless of one’s tastes. That makes sense if it’s your job, and you are doing so unbiasedly. Or if you are being bias, then the important thing is to make it clear to one’s readers that it is an opinion column. But it’s quite another thing to hate a show, and watch it, and complain about it, and watch it again, and complain about it, just for–what, why? For fun? Doesn’t sound like fun!
I don’t watch WWE much at all anymore. Every once in a while I give Raw a chance, but I usually change the channel or turn off the TV. It’s become something I don’t enjoy as much, and I enjoy TNA a lot more. I don’t pretend that I am “right”, that TNA is inherently superior on some kind of absolute level. I’m not going to take my love of TNA and bash people over the head with it, and tell WWE fans that they’re idiots and wrong. For one thing I don’t think that’s true. I just personally like the product that TNA puts out a lot better. So I watch TNA.
It’s a simple matter, isn’t it? But apparently not. I left the wrestling news world for some time, but I’ve come back to reading (great) sites like this, and I have to ask, what have we come to? What have we come to when so many “news” sites are spinning reality to fit their whims?
And then it hits me. This isn’t unique to wrestling. “News”, in quotes, has been quite a problem since long before pro wrestling came on the scene. There will also be news, and there will be “news”, and it’s up to the readers to sort it all out.
Well said, Dylan. And thanks for the compliments.