Goodness gracious, who ever could have imagined that more people might want to listen to Rush Limbaugh once they discovered this odious sperm-giblet said awful objectionable things on the radio all the time? Usually, people’s reactions when they are told they must not look at or listen to some particularly salacious thing is to never think of it again. MORE »

We had a hard time watching the whole thing, and this is our job. Did 63.2 million people — 66 million if you count elitist PBS viewers — really watch that dull sleepytime debate last night? That’s what the ratings company claims. Even more people (70 million!) watched the Palin-Biden debate, because hey, that Tina Fey is quite the comedienne! Sadly for the networks, the desperate voters who watched last night’s Obama-McCain show don’t have any money to buy any consumer items, so there were no commercials to pay for the teevee rays which are beamed from space at great expense to every room in America. [Live Feed]

• AND NOW WE ARE ALL DUMBER: The early Nielsen ratings are in for last night’s debate, and they’re a full freaking 42% higher than the ratings from last Friday’s presidential debate, making it the most watched debate since Bush/Clinton/Perot in 1992. Jesus, we are a bizarre country. [The Live Feed]

Katie Couric, having delivered the losingest ratings ever for two proud years at CBS Evening News, may leave after President McCain’s inauguration early next year. This would be far ahead of her scheduled departure date in 2011, but not a moment too soon for many aggrieved Bob Schieffer fans. [WSJ]