The Beat with Ari Melber
{{Short description|News and politics show on MSNBC}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox television
| image = The Beat with Ari Melber Title Card.jpg
| genre = U.S. news/politics
| presenter = Ari Melber
| country = United States
| runtime = 60 minutes
| network = MSNBC
| first_aired = {{Start date|2017|07|24}}
| last_aired = present
}}
The Beat with Ari Melber is an American news and politics program{{cite news|last=Steinberg|first=Brian|title=MSNBC to Launch 'The Beat With Ari Melber' on Monday|url=https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/msnbc-ari-melber-the-beat-1202502145/|magazine=Variety|date=July 21, 2017|access-date=October 16, 2017|language=en-US}} hosted by Ari Melber, who is the chief legal correspondent for the network MSNBC.
It airs weekdays at 6 PM ET and is one of the "most-watched news programs on cable."{{Cite web |last=Steinberg |first=Brian |date=2023-09-19 |title=MSNBC Isn’t Using Blue-State Chatter to Build a Daytime Nation |url=https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/msnbc-daytime-tv-news-andrea-mitchell-katy-tur-rashida-jones-1235725922/ |access-date=2024-12-01 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |date=2023-03-16 |title=The New Prime Time for TV News: Afternoons (Published 2023) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/16/business/media/tv-prime-time-afternoons.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241012182028/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/16/business/media/tv-prime-time-afternoons.html |archive-date=2024-10-12 |access-date=2024-12-14 |language=en}} In 2023, The A.P. reported “'The Beat' is often the most-watched [show] on MSNBC. The Emmy-winning NBC News legal analyst ... brings a methodical, 'follow the facts' style to the issues he addresses."{{Cite web |date=2023-10-05 |title=All Trump, all the time? Former president's legal problems a boon to MSNBC |url=https://apnews.com/article/msnbc-trump-melber-indictments-0ed849af92d8f39bc40f2c946f62f973 |access-date=2023-10-05 |website=AP News |language=en}}
The New York Times reported The Beat's ratings "outranked everything else on MSNBC" in 2023. The Beat was "the highest-rated non-Fox News show in the [ratings] demo" on cable news, (AdWeek November 2023).{{Cite web |last=Katz |first=A. J. |date=2023-11-30 |title=Here Are Top-Rated Cable News Shows of November 2023 |url=https://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/here-are-top-rated-cable-news-shows-of-november-2023/ |access-date=2024-12-14 |language=en-US}}
The Beat is one of the most viewed shows online, per Daily Beast -- drawing over a billion total streams, a "notable feat for a cable news program" (CNN's Reliable Sources).{{Cite news |last=Grove |first=Lloyd |date=2019-04-26 |title=Even Trump’s Personal Attorney Loves MSNBC’s Ari Melber |language=en |work=The Daily Beast |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/ari-melbers-message-to-trump-fans-be-like-jay-sekulow-and-come-on-my-msnbc-show |access-date=2023-12-12}}
The show's "reach goes well beyond the dwindling number of people who watch cable television," wrote the Los Angeles Times in 2023, reporting on The Beat's YouTube ratings.{{Cite web |last= |date=2023-06-12 |title='The Beat' goes on for MSNBC's legal savant Ari Melber amid Trump indictments |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2023-06-12/ari-melber-msnbc-donald-trump-indictments |access-date=2023-07-09 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}} "The Beat" can average 700,000 YouTube views per day,{{Cite web |last=entertainment |first=With over 20 years of experience in the |last2=Industry |first2=Hospitality |last3=seasoned |first3=Mike is a |last4=Marketing |first4=Versatile Leader in Entertainment |last5=Marketing |first5=Influencer |last6=Booking |first6=Talent |last7=Relations |first7=Artist |last8=Relations |first8=Public |last9=names |first9=events He has worked with some of the biggest |date=2025-02-20 |title=How Ari Melber's legal background and hip-hop influence define 'The Beat' |url=https://www.newsweek.com/entertainment/tv/ari-melber-talks-beat-msnbc-politics-hiphop-2033522 |access-date=2025-04-30 |website=Newsweek |language=en}} Semafor reported on the "enormous numbers," noting "on YouTube, The Beat just crossed 1.5 billion views, and averages over 500,000 views a clip — good engagement by any measure of YouTube success."
Format
The show features news reporting, one-on-one interviews, panels, and special reports{{cite news|last=Warren|first=James|title=What Donald Trump and P.T. Barnum Have in Common|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/11/what-donald-trump-and-pt-barnum-have-in-common|magazine=Vanity Fair|date=November 10, 2017|access-date=April 24, 2018|language=en}} by the anchor. The show includes a "Fallback Friday" segment; two series with extended interviews, "Mavericks," and "The Summit Series," and "Open Mind."
History
The Beat with Ari Melber was announced after Greta Van Susteren's program For the Record with Greta ended.{{cite news|last=Evans|first=Greg|title=MSNBC's 'The Beat With Ari Melber' Gets Premiere Date, Title|url=https://deadline.com/2017/07/msnbc-the-beat-with-ari-melber-gets-premiere-date-1202132841/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170721181353/http://deadline.com/2017/07/msnbc-the-beat-with-ari-melber-gets-premiere-date-1202132841/|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 21, 2017|website=Deadline Hollywood|date=July 21, 2017|access-date=August 25, 2017|language=en-US}} The network tapped Melber as one of its "most valuable utility players" for anchoring the 6 p.m. slot, according to the Associated Press,{{cite news|last=Bauder|first=David|title=Ari Melber tries to improve a troubled time slot at MSNBC|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/ari-melber-tries-to-improve-a-troubled-time-slot-at-msnbc/|newspaper=The Seattle Times|date=July 21, 2017|access-date=April 24, 2018|language=en-US}} an effort to shore up an hour when MSNBC has historically drawn fewer viewers, trailing cable stars Bret Baier and Wolf Blitzer, who host the 6 p.m. shows on Fox News and CNN, respectively. Upon its debut, it was part of MSNBC's evening ratings surge among key demographics on cable television, and went on to draw a larger nightly audience than any hour of CNN.{{cite news|last=de Moraes|first=Lisa|title=MSNBC Clocks Cable's Largest Weekday Primetime Crowd For First Time In Its History|url=https://deadline.com/2017/07/msnbc-wins-cable-primetime-weekday-total-viewers-first-time-network-historycable-weekday-prime-total-viewers-for-first-time-in-history-tv-ratings-1202135014/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170725035219/http://deadline.com/2017/07/msnbc-wins-cable-primetime-weekday-total-viewers-first-time-network-historycable-weekday-prime-total-viewers-for-first-time-in-history-tv-ratings-1202135014/|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 25, 2017|website=Deadline Hollywood|date=July 25, 2017|access-date=August 23, 2017|language=en-US}}{{cite news|last=Berg|first=Madeline|title=Greta Van Susteren Out And Ari Melber In At MSNBC|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2017/06/29/greta-van-susteren-out-and-ari-melber-in-at-msnbc/#5342057718ec|magazine=Forbes|date=June 29, 2017|access-date=August 25, 2017|language=en}}
The Beat with Ari Melber has been noted for its reporting on Facebook's role in elections and journalism.{{cite news|last=Kosoff|first=Maya|title=Mark Zuckerberg's Plan to Save Facebook from Itself|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/12/mark-zuckerbergs-plan-to-save-facebook-from-itself|magazine=Vanity Fair|date=December 28, 2017|access-date=April 24, 2018|language=en}} Mediaite wrote about its coverage of Facebook's role in the 2016 Philippines election, noting "host Ari Melber has carved out an important niche as arguably the leading critic of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in all of television."{{cite web|last=DePaolo|first=Joe|title=Ari Melber Shreds Mark Zuckerberg: Facebook Will 'Work With Anyone' For Money, Even Duterte|url=https://www.mediaite.com/online/ari-melber-shreds-mark-zuckerberg-facebook-will-work-with-anyone-for-money-even-duterte/|website=Mediaite.com|language=en|date=December 27, 2017|access-date=April 24, 2018}}
Notable interviews Melber has conducted include U.S. Senator and later Vice President Kamala Harris, fellow senators Elizabeth Warren, Jeff Merkley, Richard Blumenthal, Dick Durbin, Mark Warner, and Cory Booker; Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who had a newsworthy legal exchange on the show,{{cite news|last=Marcin|first=Tim|title=Joe Arpaio found out he admitted guilt with Trump pardon on live TV|url=http://www.newsweek.com/joe-arpaio-found-out-admitted-guilt-trump-pardon-live-tv-781824|magazine=Newsweek|date=January 15, 2018|access-date=April 24, 2018|language=en}} former White House adviser Stephen Bannon, former Trump aide Sam Nunberg, who later credited the interview for his decision to cooperate with Special Counsel Robert Mueller,{{cite news|last1=Parker|first1=Ashley|last2=Dawsey|first2=Josh|title=Ex-Trump aide Sam Nunberg changes tune, says he will cooperate with Mueller probe|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/ex-trump-aide-sam-nunberg-changes-tune-says-he-will-cooperate-with-mueller-probe/2018/03/06/e3f1d9b2-2160-11e8-94da-ebf9d112159c_story.html|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=March 6, 2018|access-date=March 21, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0190-8286}} also Donald Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen has appeared on the show multiple times and musician Talib Kweli, who joined a discussion with Fat Joe and conservative Bill Kristol that Fortune called "one of the most delightfully diverse panels ever. Really."{{cite news|last=McGirt|first=Ellen|title=raceAhead: Mark Zuckerberg's Apology Is Not Enough|url=http://fortune.com/2017/10/12/mark-zuckerbergs-apology-not-enough/|magazine=Fortune|date=October 12, 2017|access-date=April 24, 2018|language=en}}{{cite news|url=http://hiphopwired.com/556126/talib-kweli-fat-joe-talk-eminems-trump-diss-msnbcs-ari-melber/|title=Talib Kweli & Fat Joe Talk Eminem's Trump Diss With MSNBC's Ari Melber|date=2017-10-12|work=The Latest Hip-Hop News, Music and Media {{!}} Hip-Hop Wired|access-date=2018-01-18|language=en-US}}
The show also features musical and cultural guests, such as 50 Cent, Method Man, Vic Mensa, French Montana, Black Panther actor Winston Duke, Sean Penn, novelist Alice Walker, Andrew Leon Talley, DJs Stretch Armstrong, Bobbito Garcia and Jay Smooth, Desus and The Kid Mero (who both co-host Desus & Mero), and the rapper Havoc, (who noted Melber quoted his lyrics to explain a legal concept{{Cite news|url=https://hiphopdx.com/news/id.46110/title.havoc-applauds-msnbc-anchor-who-quoted-mobb-deep-lyrics-to-insult-donald-trump#|title=Havoc Applauds MSNBC Anchor Who Quoted Mobb Deep Lyrics To Insult Donald Trump|work=HipHopDX|access-date=2018-03-21|language=en-US}} and announced a forthcoming Mobb Deep album in an interview on the show).{{cite news|last=Saponara|first=Michael|title=Havoc Reveals a New Mobb Deep Album Will Arrive in 2018|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8244587/havoc-new-mobb-deep-album-prodigy|magazine=Billboard|date=March 13, 2018|access-date=April 24, 2018}}{{cite news|last=Darville|first=Jordan|title=Havoc says a new Mobb Deep album is coming this year|url=http://www.thefader.com/2018/03/13/havoc-new-mobb-deep-album-2018|magazine=The Fader|date=March 13, 2018|access-date=April 24, 2018|language=en}}
In 2024, as part of changes to its weekend schedule, MSNBC introduced The Beat Weekend—a week-in-review broadcast that airs on Saturday afternoons. Segments from the program are also featured on MSNBC Prime Weekend—a sister program airing on Sundays that draws from MSNBC's weekday programs.{{Cite web |date=2024-03-01 |title=How MSNBC is repackaging weekday content for weekend shows |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2024/03/01/msnbc-weekend-prime-show/?og=1 |access-date=2024-03-03 |website=NewscastStudio |language=en-US}}
Reception
The Detroit Free Press named The Beat with Ari Melber to its "best" TV shows of 2017, noting its reporting "helped untangle the implications of Robert Mueller's Russia investigation, revealing the actual law obscured by the partisan posturing of so many cable news formats."{{cite news|last=Hinds|first=Julie|title=2017 entertainment bests: Top TV choices for coping with current events|url=https://www.freep.com/story/entertainment/2017/12/29/2017-entertainment-bests-top-tv-choices-coping-current-events/977350001/|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|date=December 29, 2017|access-date=April 24, 2018|language=en}}
In 2023, The Beat's ratings "outranked everything else on MSNBC," the New York Times reported.{{Cite news |date=2023-03-16 |title=The New Prime Time for TV News: Afternoons (Published 2023) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/16/business/media/tv-prime-time-afternoons.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241012182028/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/16/business/media/tv-prime-time-afternoons.html |archive-date=2024-10-12 |access-date=2024-12-14 |language=en}}
TVNewser reported that in 2017, The Beat with Ari Melber "defeated CNN in total viewers this year, and delivered the network's largest yearly audience ever" for its 6 p.m. timeslot.{{cite news|last=Katz|first=A.J.|title=Scoreboard: Friday, December 1|url=http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/scoreboard-friday-december-1/350716|website=Adweek.com|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-16}} Forbes reported in 2017, the show delivered "MSNBC's best rating ever for the time slot," noting "MSNBC saw total day growth of 38%" in ratings, while "Melber's 6 p.m. slot saw growth of 56%."{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2018/01/16/mixing-rap-and-politics-msnbcs-ari-melber-produces-a-hit/#5ca576c36b7f|title=Mixing Rap And Politics, MSNBC's Ari Melber Produces A Hit|last=Berg|first=Madeline|date=January 16, 2018|magazine=Forbes|access-date=January 17, 2018|language=en}}
TVNewser noted in February 2018, The Beat and Deadline: White House "posted record viewership in MSNBC history for their timeslots,"{{cite news|last=Katz|first=A.J.|title=Feb. 2018 Ratings: MSNBC Is the No. 2 Network on Cable|url=http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/feb-2018-ratings-msnbc-is-the-no-2-network-on-cable/358284|website=Adweek.com|language=en-US|date=February 27, 2018|access-date=April 24, 2018}} and The Beat continued its ratings growth in 2018,{{Cite web|url=https://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/august-2018-ratings-msnbc-is-posting-year-over-year-total-audience-growth/375241|title=August 2018 Ratings: MSNBC Posts Year-Over-Year Total Audience Growth|website=www.adweek.com|language=en-US|access-date=2018-10-10}} averaging 1.7 million viewers per night in September 2018—more viewers than CNN's 6 p.m. show and more viewers than every other CNN show in prime time.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/why-does-msnbcs-ari-melber-have-so-many-more-viewers-than-cnns-wolf-blitzer.html/|title=Why Does MSNBC's Ari Melber Have So Many More Viewers Than CNN's Wolf Blitzer?|last1=Schaal|first1=Eric|date=2019-01-31|website=The Cheat Sheet|language=en-US|access-date=2019-04-30}}
The program's guest hosts include Jason Johnson, Katie Phang, Ayman Mohyeldin, and Melissa Murray.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc-live-ari-melber}}
- {{youTube|U2aWw-C27Rk|Video (18:49): "Inside Trump's Election Plot"}} (MSNBC News; July 29, 2022)
{{S-start}}
{{succession box
| title = MSNBC Weekday Lineup
| years = 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
| before = Deadline: White House
| after = The ReidOut
}}
{{S-end}}{{MSNBC programming}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beat with Ari Melber}}
Category:2017 American television series debuts
Category:2010s American television news shows
Category:2020s American television news shows
Category:2010s American television talk shows