Steve asks Dixie how long it took her to understand the paygrade and to determine how much talents are worth, and how much and they are not worth. She said that they ran into problems with that early on, which accounted for quite a bit of their debt: “You cannot pay as much as you were bringing in. Period. Exclamation point.” Dixie said that talent is hard for her, and she hates having to let people go: “I care about people, and this is the truth.” Dixie calls the Nielsen ratings one of the most antiquated forms of technology still in existence and feels that within a very short time there will be more accurate ways to tell how many people are watching television programs. She explains the concept of “+3” and “+7,” which refer to the additional numbers when viewers watch TV on DVR.
Dixie says that she’s never been to any other wrestling promotion’s backstage area, but wants “her backstage” to feature fun and happy people, surrounded by members of their family with their kids “throwing the football.” Steve asks what the current taping schedule is, and Dixie says that it just depends; sometimes it’s once a month, sometimes it’s every six weeks. Steve starts to compare TNA to WCW in terms of backstage politics and late booking and Dixie says that it’s nothing like WCW. “We are writing the shows further in advance than we ever have before. My problem as a marketing person is how closely the creative is kept to the vest. How the hell are you marketing something and supposed to grow a new audience base when everyone is reacting at the last second?”
Dixie says that TNA concocts their storylines via “creative summits,” wherein a number of viable parties are able to combine ideas for 6 to 8 weeks of television at a time. Dixie says the one thing she doesn’t understand is people who “go to dirt sheets and leak private information.” Dixie says that she has considered bringing in a lie detector test to find the mole, and wouldn’t hesitate in kicking her own husband out of her house if it was him.
Dixie says that being taped makes them different, and says that if they were live, they wouldn’t be able to include a number of things on their show that audiences have become accustomed to. Steve asks about the decision to go live against Monday Night Raw. Dixie says that despite failing, it proved to former WWE creative members that the television industry has changed, and that it will take more than moving to Monday to compete with the WWE. Steve says that TNA seems to have a really strong fanbase in the United Kingdom, and references British Boot Camp. Dixie says that she doesn’t think having English wrestlers on her program had anything to do with their success in the UK, owing it more to the UK crowds appreciation of the TNA in-ring product.
Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
