I think it's a mistake to assume that all decisions are narrow business decisions, that newspapers and cable news networks do things solely for clicks and viewership/ad revenue. But I do think they like to use those as justifications for doing shitty things - if you keep a Nazi on the air with low ratings you can't hide the fact the Nazi is on the air just because the boss loves Nazis.
Anyway, cable news isn't necessary to watch to keep you informed. What it keeps you informed of, really, is "what's on cable news." That's something that matters, of course, as it isn't without influence, but there are people who are paid to suffer for that knowledge.
