But the callous decision to ignore the moment of silence left even the "Today" show's fiercest rivals in shock.



At "Good Morning America" — which is engaged in a fierce battle for viewers — producers were bewildered.



"It's so typical," sniffed a "GMA" insider. "Obviously they are more concerned about their ratings then anything else, but this just takes it to a whole new low."



Others were equally horrified.



"It's ridiculous," said television industry analyst Marc Berman of TV Media Insights. "Ratings are ratings and of course they [NBC] is going to do whatever they have to do, but there are times when you have to put that aside and bite the bullet," he said.



"What was important at that moment was to honor the heroes and victims of 9/11, what ['Today'] did is just so unbelieveable - a huge misstep and it doesn't bode well for their future."



For the year to date, "Today" has watched its total audience shrink by 5 percent, while the ratings for "GMA" have swelled more than 4 percent.