There's reason to be skeptical, that's for sure. Leslie Moonves is on record as saying, "I don't know if Donald Trump is good for America, but he sure is good for CBS!" (i.e., good for CBS' ratings.)

Interesting take. The media-bias arguments I'm used to reading claim a bait-and-switch. Namely, the media puffs up a "good" Republican candidate in the primary only to turn on him in the general. The people who say the foregoing claim ideological bias, not ratings hunger, for the pattern. These folks are the ones Trump is appealing to when he repeatedly says that the media is "very dishonest." But, the execs are clearly aware of what you wrote. There's an old saw that says a debate always gets higher ratings than a talk. People do like conflict, and like watching it.