Glenn Beck signed off from Fox News with a backstage tour of his studio, a chalkboard listing "Things We've Learned," and an apparent denial that his slipping ratings are slipping.
Along the way he reviewed all the subjects his show has covered over its 30 months on the air, including the rise of fascism, what Beck said were links between unions and communism, and black Founding Fathers.
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At one point he showed a picture of "The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart posing at an awards ceremony with his writers to suggest that they do far less work than Beck's do.
"He's got 15 writers for this segment," he said, referring to Stewart's monologue. "I believe he's had as many as 40 writers. He uses these writers for six minutes of television and a total of 22 minutes a night."
Beck then brought out the writers for his hourlong show — and there were just two of them. Later he singled out members of his crew who had suggested or inspired segments.
He also thanked his audience for being "remarkably large and dedicated."
Beck goes out on top at the 5 p.m. hour, though his ratings have slipped significantly this year — and 14 percent in total viewers in the current quarter.
But he seemed to deny his ratings have gone down during remarks about the contradictory claims made about him.
"I'm the only host who is simultaneously the most dangerous person in America because of my influence, and the least influential person in America because my ratings are supposedly declining — which, I don't know how that one works, either. And that one's not true, either. This program broke every single record in the five p.m. timeslot. Every single record," Beck said.
Beck exited as Fox News announced his show would be replaced by the new summer show "The Five," which will feature a rotating round table of Fox News personalities.
Beck moves on now to GBTV, his own, live-streaming video network. It will feature his new daily two-hour show, beginning Sept. 12, for $4.95 a month. Before that he will take a long-planned trip to Israel.
"This show has become a movement. It's not a TV show," he said. "And that's why it doesn't belong on television anymore. It belongs in your home. It belongs in your neighborhoods."