"A more puzzling question is why the producers persist in the face of declining audience figures. " i.e., why don't "one-shot wonders" recognize themselves as

"A more puzzling question is why the producers persist in the face of declining audience figures. " i.e., why don't "one-shot wonders" recognize themselves as such and... give up? It's a basic principle of the psychology of learned behavior: intermittent reinforcement: Having occasionally been rewarded, s/he persists in trying to be rewarded (cf: win the big one in the lottery).