Why The Internet Is Obsessing Over These Two Election 'Chartthrobs'

It's a commonly accepted notion that journalists end up doing what they do because they just can't deal with math and numbers. Which is why when the news becomes a numbers game, it becomes a challenge to keep up for just about everyone but MSNBC's Steve Kornacki and CNN's John King. And at a time where feelings rise or get crushed by numbers that come with red and blue election maps, it's not surprising that the Twitterverse has opted to give the men a new nickname. "Please," notes one TV industry insider on Twitter, "if you decide to profess your love for map kings John King, Steve Kornacki, et al., use the preferred nomenclature: Chartthrobs".

Kornacki, King, and the other journalists are heroes to those of us who have been trying to stay on top of the news that began as a gush on November 3rd and continues in a trickle that some can only compare to torture.

The devotion of the chartthrobs has come with a cost, though. MSNBC told The Washington Post on Wednesday that during the first 48 hours of election coverage, Kornakci "has not slept since he was on Morning Joe [Tuesday]." Over at CNN, John King told The Los Angeles Times that he'd only slept about six hours since Election Day.

But the Twitterverse is thankful for the sacrifices that journalists — especially Kornacki and King — are making. One admirer tweeted of Kornacki: "Oh sweet energetic @SteveKornacki it's your time to shine, you perfect sexy king. Take my pain away with your charts and graphs and numbers. I lay my body at the alter of your big board." Another one tweeted: "I've been in awe of those two for days now. When do they sleep? How are their brains still functioning? Do their fingers hurt from tapping the screens yet? How are their feet doing?" A third mused: "I propose that we put King and Kornacki in a boxing ring together and see which one can parse numbers and districts the longest. No food, no sleep, no bathroom breaks." One viewer probably summed it up best for us all when she tweeted: "Who knew middle-aged white guys doing math could be so hot?"