Dumbest moments in business 2009

There was no starker sign of this surrender than putting former late-night king Jay Leno in primetime at 10 p.m. ET Monday through Friday. Viewers gave up too, slipping 18% year over year, as ad sales took further hits.

Many in the industry said the debacle was the last straw in General Electric's decision to sell Comcast a majority stake in NBC Universal. Alas, the cable operator seemed a lot more interested in the company's cable networks than five nights of Jay.

--C.I.

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