{"id":88953,"date":"2019-11-11T13:26:37","date_gmt":"2019-11-11T19:26:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=88953"},"modified":"2019-11-11T13:26:37","modified_gmt":"2019-11-11T19:26:37","slug":"press-conference-highlights-cody-rhodes-aew-ratings-womens-division-mid-card-title-internal-and-external-feedback-on-early-dynamite-shows-womens-division-aew-dark","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2019\/11\/11\/press-conference-highlights-cody-rhodes-aew-ratings-womens-division-mid-card-title-internal-and-external-feedback-on-early-dynamite-shows-womens-division-aew-dark\/","title":{"rendered":"PRESS CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS &#8211; CODY RHODES: AEW ratings, Women&#8217;s Division, Mid-Card Title, Internal and External Feedback on Early Dynamite Shows, Women&#8217;s Division, AEW Dark"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-2570419846\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><p>PRESS CONFERENCE HIGHlLIGHTS: Cody Rhodes discusses increased workload, importance of AEW Title match with Chris Jericho, outdated ways of evaluating ratings and improvements coming to AEW women\u2019s division<\/p>\n<p><em>Prior to AEW\u2019s Full Gear, EVP Cody Rhodes held a press conference for assembled wrestling media.\u00a0Below are the highlights of that conference&#8230;<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>-Rhodes said that this session was good luck, as the press conference prior to Dynamite led to the debut that was so well-received by fans, media, and Warner partners alike.<\/p>\n<p>-Jason Powell of ProWrestling.net opened the questions with how Cody has seen development and crispness of wrestlers going from just All In\/All Out to now having weekly TV to build for pay-per-views. Cody responded that Dynamite has been helpful for development, as well as AEW Dark to allow lesser-known talents to shine and learn.<\/p>\n<p>-Cody\u2019s promo from this week was brought up and how he prepared for it. Cody responded that he prepared for the job and the moment, and receiving praise from people like The Rock, as well as coming back to accolades through the \u201cDusty\u201d position was awesome, but he was more appreciative of how it resonated with fans.<\/p>\n<p>-Cody agreed that the AEW men\u2019s world title match was the biggest match in his career on Saturday, but said one of his mentors, Hollywood acting teacher Howard Fine would say \u201cthe truth carries weight,\u201d which in this case referred to the pressure Cody has put on himself to have a good match, as well as the AEW roster\u2019s desire to knock the pay-per-view out of the park. Cody also said his focus was to ensure what was said during the lead up to the creation of AEW \u201cwere not campaign promises\u201d and that they will seek to be people of their word in that regard.<\/p>\n<p>-Cody was asked about the chances for a mid-card title, and while Cody didn\u2019t want to have it labeled as such (he cited his time toiling as a mid-carder in WWE) there would be a prize of some sort to bestow upon an up-and-coming talent in the near future. Cody closed this answer with his desire to see Riho\u2019s AEW Women\u2019s Championship and the AEW Tag Team Championships perceived on the same level as Chris Jericho\u2019s AEW men\u2019s championship.<\/p>\n<p>-Cody then was asked a question on rankings and how they would be implemented. Cody said that sometime in the next day or so the top five for all three titles will be published, and the plan is to have them published every Friday after that. Cody said that if they didn\u2019t get published, \u201cyou can call me out and internet the heck out of me.\u201d<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-3098910727\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>-Cody then talked about feedback received and applied since their debut on Dynamite. Rhodes said there was a difference between constructive criticism vs. narrative criticism and noted that he sends weekly emails to the team to let them know what he saw and where he thought they could do better. One such example was the audio mix of the entrance music. Cody mentioned that the focus should be on the raucous crowd, but he will try to make sure that the themes are mixed in better as that\u2019s what fans want.<\/p>\n<p>-Cody mentioned that the AEW Women\u2019s Division will start to get more spotlight in the weeks to come. Cody specifically talked about VTR, in-ring, and vignettes and said there\u2019s an issue with visas \u201cin the current political environment\u201d and that puts a dent in their very intentionally-international Women\u2019s Division. Cody also talked about how he\u2019s looking forward to Emi Sakura vs. Riho because of the teacher-student dynamic. Cody then talked about how Kenny Omega wants to try to build something that\u2019s merit-based and different than shows you may watch elsewhere. Cody also cited the southern crowd in Charlotte rooting for Riho in her first appearance there as an example of that idea.<\/p>\n<p>-Chris Mueller from Bleacher Report asked Cody what the biggest lesson learned was in Cody\u2019s time as an Executive Vice President. Cody said the \u201cdiplomacy of wrestling\u201d was important when things go wrong or different. In particular, Cody cited that being able to &#8211; even in stressful moments &#8211; treat each other and staff with respect were paramount to him. Cody also talked about watching coaches such as Dean Malenko work with tag teams in a seminar last week showed him the value of coaches &#8211; as well as Arn Anderson\u2019s (unaffiliated officially with AEW) mentoring and helping during AEW Dark. Cody also said he\u2019s the \u201cproduct of 30 people\u201d in terms of everything from his entrance to his media work and everything in between. Cody\u2019s biggest hurdle was \u201cmaintaining the buzz&#8230; but we cannot become a reactionary brand.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>-Jeremy Thomas from 411mania asked about ratings, and while initial ratings exceeded expectations, what were the thoughts of the current trend and how could AEW grow their audience. Cody responded that the biggest thing is to get people to talk throughout the week, give them characters they knew such as Moxley, along with people they could grow to learn and enjoy. Rhodes continued and said that a lot of wrestling critics and media will look at ratings like it\u2019s 1997 or 1998, but with the analytics that Chris Harrington and his staff has provided, things have moved past that. Rhodes then proudly said that \u201csix weeks in a row we\u2019ve gone head to head with WWE and six weeks they\u2019ve been on the losing end.\u201d Cody said that speaks to the revolution, as this week stars like A.J. Styles appeared on NXT. To move onward and upward, Rhodes said it had to be from characters, not ads or marketing. \u201cGo out there and get over&#8230; we\u2019ve got the best talent and the best damn attitude.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>-Cody said regarding the three judge panel at the AEW Men\u2019s Championship match he would have no say, as that would be a conflict of interest, but per Tony Khan there would be three championship-caliber coaches. Cody bristled at the notion someone on Twitter said this was similar to TNA\u2019s prior attempt at judges, and said that \u201cwe\u2019re not making the make-up person a judge.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>-To the question of Turner\u2019s involvement with Dynamite and their view of the AEW presentation, Cody said that it\u2019s been \u201csmooth sailing\u201d as far as production thoughts and gave examples of sky cam, turnbuckle-and-fan cams as innovations provided by Turner to add to the experience, and to continue to add a cinematic experience to pro wrestling.<\/p>\n<p>-Cody answered a question regarding Dusty and how Dusty would view the roster of up-and-comers on AEW\u2019s roster &#8211; notably Darby Allin and Private Party &#8211; given Dusty\u2019s love for the NXT &#8220;kids.&#8221; Cody gave the example of Dusty\u2019s first time with ECW and how \u201cThe American Dream\u201d went from being nervous to enjoying the fans and the environment &#8211; and particularly Dusty\u2019s excitement on the different way fans viewed that product compared to Dusty\u2019s heyday.<\/p>\n<p>-I provided the final question of the session. After reminding Rhodes of the conversation we\u2019d shared during the last press conference on representation in AEW and Rhodes\u2019s follow-up of contacting wrestlers, I asked him how he saw Being The Elite, AEW Dark, and the Road to series vis a vis AEW Dynamite, as with the congested schedule that is a lot of content to digest to stay \u201ccurrent.\u201d Cody responded that he saw AEW Dynamite as the main product and everything else as \u201cshoulder content.\u201d Cody likened the additional shows to the Star Wars Expanded Universe, and how you can read a book about a character like Admiral Thrawn and get sucked in, or you can just watch the movies and enjoy &#8211; both both sets of fans enjoy based on the level they want.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-54743828\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-2565599481\"><div id=\"pwtor-4126277706\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>PRESS CONFERENCE HIGHlLIGHTS: Cody Rhodes discusses increased workload, importance of AEW Title match with Chris Jericho, outdated ways of evaluating ratings and improvements coming to AEW women\u2019s division Prior to AEW\u2019s Full Gear, EVP Cody <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2019\/11\/11\/press-conference-highlights-cody-rhodes-aew-ratings-womens-division-mid-card-title-internal-and-external-feedback-on-early-dynamite-shows-womens-division-aew-dark\/\" title=\"PRESS CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS &#8211; CODY RHODES: AEW ratings, Women&#8217;s Division, Mid-Card Title, Internal and External Feedback on Early Dynamite Shows, Women&#8217;s Division, AEW Dark\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":73809,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6163,2,4247],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-88953","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aew-news","category-prowrestlingnews","category-interview-highlights"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2019\/01\/CodyYoungBucks_3x2_600.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88953","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88953"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88953\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":88954,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88953\/revisions\/88954"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73809"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88953"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88953"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88953"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}