Howard Beale, the longtime anchor of the Union Broadcasting System's UBS Evening News, learns from his friend and the news division president, Max Schumacher, that he has just two more weeks on the air because of declining ratings. The two get drunk and lament the state of their industry. The following night, Beale announces on live television that he will commit suicide on next Tuesday's broadcast. UBS fires him after this incident, but Schumacher intervenes so that Beale can have a dignified farewell. Beale promises he will apologize for his outburst, but once on the air, he launches back into a rant claiming that life is "bullshit". Beale's outburst causes the newscast's ratings to spike, and much to Schumacher's dismay, the upper echelons of UBS decide to exploit Beale's antics rather than pull him off the air. In one impassioned diatribe, Beale galvanizes the nation, persuading his viewers to shout out of their windows "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!"Diana Christensen heads the network's programming department; seeking just one hit show, she cuts a deal with a band of radical terrorists (a parody of the Symbionese Liberation Army called the "Ecumenical Liberation Army"[citation needed]) for a new docudrama series called The Mao Tse-Tung Hour for the upcoming fall season. When Beale's ratings seem to have topped out, Christensen approaches Schumacher and offers to help him "develop" the news show. He says no to the professional offer, but not to the personal one, and the two begin an affair. When Schumacher decides to end Beale as the "Angry Man" format, Christensen convinces her boss, Frank Hackett, to slot the evening news show under the entertainment division so she can develop it. Hackett agrees, bullying the UBS executives to consent and firing Schumacher. Soon afterward, Beale is hosting a new program called The Howard Beale Show, top-billed as "the mad prophet of the airwaves". Ultimately, the show becomes the most highly rated program on television, and Beale finds new celebrity preaching his angry message in front of a live studio audience that, on cue, chants Beale's signature catchphrase en masse: "We're as mad as hell, and we're not going to take this anymore." At first, Max and Diana's romance withers as the show flourishes, but in the flush of high ratings, the two ultimately find their way back together, and Schumacher leaves his wife of over 25 years for Christensen. But Christensen's fanatical devotion to her job and emotional emptiness ultimately drive Max back to try returning to his wife, even though he doesn't think she'll agree, and he warns his former lover that she will self-destruct at the pace she is running with her career. "You are television incarnate, Diana," he tells her, "indifferent to suffering, insensitive to joy. All of life is reduced to the common rubble of banality."When Beale discovers that Communications Corporation of America (CCA), the conglomerate that owns UBS, will be bought out by an even larger Saudi Arabian conglomerate, he launches an on-screen tirade against the deal, encouraging viewers to send telegrams to the White House telling them, "I want the CCA deal stopped now!" This throws the top network brass into a state of panic because the company's debt load has made merger essential for survival. Hackett takes Beale to meet with CCA chairman Arthur Jensen, who explicates his own "corporate cosmology" to Beale, describing the interrelatedness of the participants in the international economy and the illusory nature of nationality distinctions. Jensen persuades Beale to abandon the populist messages and preach his new "evangel". However, television audiences find his new sermons on the dehumanization of society depressing, and ratings begin to slide, yet Jensen will not allow UBS executives to fire Beale. Seeing its two-for-the-price-of-one valueâsolving the Beale problem plus sparking a boost in season-opener ratingsâChristensen, Hackett, and the other executives decide to hire the Ecumenical Liberation Army to assassinate Beale on the air. The assassination succeeds, putting an end to The Howard Beale Show and kicking off a second season of The Mao Tse-Tung Hour.
Question: What happens to the newscast ratings after Howard announces his suicide on a live broadcast?, Answer: The newscast ratings spike. Question: Which show ends because of the assassination?, Answer: The Howard Beale Show Question: Who head's the network's programming department?, Answer: Diana Christensen Question: Who is Christensen's boss?, Answer: Frank Hackett Question: What happens to Beale's new show?, Answer: The ratings begin to slide. Question: Who is the news division president?, Answer: Max Schumacher, Question: What two characters have an affair?, Answer: Christensen and Schumacher Question: How many weeks does Howard has in UBS of declining ratings?, Answer: Two weeks Question: Schumacher decides to end Beale as what format?, Answer: Angry Man Question: What is the name of the radical terrorist group?, Answer: Ecumenical Liberation Army Question: Schumacher leaves his wife of how many years, for Christensen?, Answer: 25 Question: Is the assassination of Beale successful?, Answer: Yes Question: Who is billed as the "mad prophet of the airwaves"?, Answer: Howard Beale Question: What does he persuade his viewers to shout out of their windows saying?, Answer: "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore" Question: What does Beale announces would be committing on live television on next Tuesday's broadcast?, Answer: Suicide Question: Who does CCA hire to assassinate Beale?, Answer: The Ecumenical Liberation Army Question: Who does Christensen approach, and offer to help develop the news show?, Answer: Schumacher Question: Which conglomerate does the Communications Corporation of America own?, Answer: UBS Question: Is Beale for or against the buyout of the Communications Corporation of America (CCA)?, Answer: Against Question: What profession is Howard Beale is in?, Answer: Anchor Question: Who does Howard Beale get drunk with?, Answer: Howard gets drunk with Max Schumacher. Question: Who wants to buy the CCA?, Answer: A large Saudi Arabian conglomerate Question: What is Baele's signature catchphrase?, Answer: We're as mad as hell, and we're not going to take this anymore Question: Where does Beale encourage viewers to send telegrams?, Answer: the White House Question: What job does Howard Beale have?, Answer: He is a news anchor for Union Broadcasting System. Question: Who do the executives decide to hire to assassinate Beale?, Answer: the Ecumenical Liberation Army Question: Where is Howard working as an anchor?, Answer: Union Broadcasting System's UBS Evening News