How Americans vote influences what they stream. This seems obvious and it was confirmed by recent data provided by MRI-Simmons. The firm's latest survey on consumer trends reveals that Democrats are much more hooked on mainstream streaming platforms than Republican voters.
Republicans make up the majority, and just barely, on Paramount+. On the rest of streaming platforms such as Netflix, Prime, Hulu, Disney, Max, Peacock and Apple Tv+, Democrats are consistently between 5 and 11 points ahead. Netflix, Hulu and HBO Max are the platforms with the greatest difference between conservatives and liberals, with, respectively, a 10, 11 and 13 point difference in favor of the Democrats.
Twenty-four percent of Republican respondents confirmed that they are subscribed to Paramount+. Meanwhile, 22% of Democratic also subscribe to the same platform. In an editorial, the Daily Caller speculates as to why the distribution works out in this way. According to Kay Smythe, the success of Paramount+ among the Republican segment lies in the series Yellowstone, starring Kevin Costner and Luke Grimes and created by Taylor Sheridan.
Sheridan is a renowned director and producer in the conservative side of the industry. Yellowstone is not the only series that has won over the audience that shies away from woke and liberal content, which has become the main tone of Netflix, HBO and Disney. He is the director of Sicario and the sequel. He also created 1883, 1923 and Tulsa King.
The results published by MRI-Simmons and Variety prove that Paramount's efforts to reject the woke ideology is paying off among conservatives. The company is the only one among the large companies that refuses to correct much what today’s progressives would call politically incorrect. "By definition, you have some things that were made in a different time and reflect different sensibilities. I don’t believe in censoring art that was made historically, that’s probably a mistake. It’s all on demand – you don’t have to watch anything you don’t want to,” said in Bob Bakish, CEO of Paramount in 2022.
