Although Gayle King’s visit to space was brief and criticized heavily, the mission was a success for CBS Mornings.
Last month, Gayle and her co-stars revealed her planned trip on a rocket with five other women as part of Blue Origin’s New Shepard mission.
Gayle’s crewmates for the April 14 trip included singer Katy Perry, filmmaker Kerianne Flynn, aerospace engineer Aisha Bowe, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen, and author Lauren Sanchez.
The space flight immediately came under scrutiny, with many critics calling out the expense of sending celebrities to space when many individuals struggled to afford groceries or other bills.
Others questioned the purpose of the 11-minute visit to space or criticized Gayle for being referred to as an astronaut or associated with billionaire Jeff Bezos, the founder of Blue Origin and Amazon.
Gayle even fired back at her critics, and the trip immediately boosted CBS Mornings.
CBS Mornings enjoyed a boost above competitors
In what many consider a dying television news business, ratings still matter. CBS Mornings has been attempting to gain more viewers than competitors like NBC’s Today and ABC’s Good Morning America.
However, Gayle’s trip received heavy coverage in the weeks leading to the launch. In addition to CBS Mornings, many outlets reported on the trip. CBS Mornings then provided special coverage of the Blue Origin NS-31 rocket’s launch and space flight.
It resulted in plenty of online commentary and even a viral Gayle King meme. However, it also boosted CBS ahead of its competitors, albeit possibly temporarily.
A NewscastStudio report, citing Nielsen, reported the coverage brought at least 3.9 million viewers to watch CBS Mornings, pushing it ahead of Today and GMA.
NewscastStudio indicated that CBS Mornings typically trails GMA and Today by about one million viewers, so the space trip coverage doubled viewers.
However, the morning program may not be able to keep those viewers, as some tuning in may have been “hate-watching.” Additionally, CBS Mornings typically has increased viewership during its exclusive events, including next-day interviews with the winners of Survivor.
Gayle continues to receive backlash after her trip
Gayle’s trip to space was over a week ago, but the backlash is still intense.
A recent interview she did with actor George Clooney included a discussion about his latest role on stage.
Clooney is starring in the new Broadway show Good Night and Good Luck. To prepare for the role, he dyed his hair darker.
Gayle asked how he and his family felt about the look. While Clooney said he never gets used to it, his wife and children find his changed look amusing.
Many people reacted to the interview subject matter in the comment section, while others continued to blast Gayle for her space trip and post-flight response to critics.
“Gayle… please retire…you lost all credibility when you went on a joy ride to space,” a commenter wrote.
“Ask him if he went to space,” someone posted as they referred to part of Gayle’s response to critics in an interview.
“George was just awestruck being in the presence of an honest to goodness real life astronaut!” another commenter joked.
“Oh Gayle, you need to take an extended vacation… can’t take you seriously anymore,” an individual wrote.
In addition to online critics, Gayle and her crewmates received backlash from several notable celebrities who called out the trip. They included actress Olivia Munn and model Emily Ratajkowski.
Although she wouldn’t mention names, Gayle responded to her critics in a post-flight interview, saying she was “disappointed” in some of the negative commentary she read about her trip.
“Have you been [to space]? And if you still feel that way after you come back, please let’s have a conversation,” she said, adding, “Educate yourself, and tell me if you don’t feel differently.”