Rough month for CNN and Anderson Cooper

So last May we wrote a little piece about the ratings falling for Anderson Cooper's CNN show "AC360." We even suggested that the way things were going, he was "in danger of being passed in the ratings by MSNBC's 10 p.m. repeat of "Countdown with Keith Olbermann."

That led to a series of angry e-mails from CNN's media team that such a thing was not possible. Well, guess what? This month so far, in the key demographic of adults ages 25-54, the rerun of "Countdown" beat "AC360." According to Nielsen, "Countdown" at 10 p.m. averaged 222,000 viewers in that demographic while "AC360" averaged 210,000.

Among all viewers, "AC360" is still beating the "Countdown" rerun but the gap there is closing as well. For the month, "AC360" attracted 689,000 viewers while "Countdown" drew 600,000.

Overall for the month so far, Fox News crushed its competition. In prime time it averaged 2.2 million viewers, compared with 730,000 for MSNBC, 679,000 for CNN and 530,000 for HLN, formerly named Headline News. In adults 25-54, it's really bad news for CNN, which may end up finishing fourth in that crucial demo. CNN has a slim lead over HLN (which is also owned by CNN parent Time Warner).

Of course, all the news channels are off from last October because that was in the midst of a heated presidential election. Still, the drops for CNN are far greater than for its rivals.

-- Joe Flint

Photo: CNN's Anderson Cooper. Credit: Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times.

Comments

[David Pearson]

"Overall for the month so far, Fox News crushed its competition."

Why wasn't that your lead?

[ashfc_2009]

I just don't understand why his ratings are falling. As cable news programs go, I've always found AC360 to be about as non-biased as you can find. Anderson Cooper is an exceptional and dedicated journalist, which is a rare find these days. While I'm also a Keith Olbermann fan, there's no reason for a repeat of his show to be beating out Anderson's.

[Scott]

Although I like Olbermann and his show, and one could argue what he delivers is news, to me - it's more his/their "take" on the news - which is fine - sometimes I want that. But if I want hard news, with minimal spin, none better than Anderson Cooper. Fox? They're off the radar. Go Anderson...

[John Utterback]

We used to watch every night, but there was too much news that we had already heard on othe cable outlets. Now we switch between Cooper and Leno when this happens

[david dubyoski]

If you still want to believe lies about the world you must avoid the news so right wing people whose beliefs have been disproven by reality need a news source that ignores reality. SO hard core republicans who don't want to face the truth go to the only souce that will keep them from having to learn anything new and think so they have to watch fox. Peolpe who are seeking reality watch various news sources and aren't so loyal because they of course question all sources of information and continuously search for better sources. So the thinking intelligent people watch various sources so no one propaganda source has their sheeplike loyaly. Therefore Fox news should have most of the people below the 50% level for IQ and the 50% above the average are split amongst the various other news sources. SO Fox should always be the top rated news

[yourmomscalling]

Because CNN is biased there with the OBAMA TEAM!! did you see any coverage of the tea party at Washington? Why? are they telling it like it is? NO!!
Its not hard to see that there being told what to say !! and that my friends is a FACT !!!!!!!

[Robert]

It's not Anderson that drove us away but Dobbs. Who wants to tune into CNN who has a guy like Dobbs overtly spreading lies and falsehood? Apparently executives at CNN did not take us Dems seriously when we petitioned CNN and said we would boycott CNN over Dobbs. Dobbs belongs on Faux.

[Dan Cahill]

Perhaps the CNN execs don't understand it, but this is exaclty what happens when a network (a) does not listen to its audience, and (b) pretends to be a moderate, indepepndent voice but really promotes a liberal Democratic viewpoint ...

[AC]

All I learned from this is that the 2 million people not watching fox are divided and conquered between three ineffectual cable "news" sources that are just as much a disgrace to journalism as Fox is. Talk about being caught between a mush and a stupid place...

[Tom Mariner]

What a shame -- Ted Turner invented CNN and the wholeall news all the time concept that others have turned to their profit.

And the present "management" is so incompetent that even when they see the relative upstart Fox News driving them out of business, they decide that their political philosophy is more important than those crass profits! The shareholders ought to instantly can the whole top managers of CNN, hold their noses, and do a talent raid on Fox. Instead they are dissing Lou Dobbs, the only on-air talent that is not a card-carrying "left wing loon" (don't argue with an O'Reilly-ism, just repeat it and hope your viewers come back.)

But it is the absolute antithesis of the present view in Washington that the free market is not to be trusted -- whatever they are doing is going to make their shareholders broke, and that will crank up a revolt -- which is what it is supposed to do.

And ... Ted Turner -- it looks like your quest to retake CNN just might work -- and now at bargain basement prices.

[aesr]

I quit CNN because of the bulldog (Lou Dobbs), but occasionally will watch Anderson Cooper. I find myself going to CNN less and less as the bulldog's vitriol becomes more and more yellow journalism. It amazes me that the station continues to air this hateful bigot.

[I_Figured_Out_The_Riff_To_Magnificent]

So Fox News "crushes" the competition and you attack Fox for being a success and its viewers for making it successful. Hmmm...Why is your guy (Olberman, Maddow, Matthews, Schultz, Cooper, Brown, Sanchez...) doing so horribly? How come I never read a post confronting the truth and wondering aloud why your news outlets are getting creamed? It's always "Fox this, O'Reilly that". Forget about FNC. You can't touch them. Focus your attention on your guy and the next time you watch him, think to yourself: "Why is he getting destroyed night after night?" Put your political bias aside and watch the show carefully. You'll understand soon enough.

[jay]

CNN has dug its own grave. They closed bureaus, ignored
their affiliates and replaced credible journalists with
game show hosts and tabloid talking heads.

As someone who was there for 20 years, I saw it happen
with my own eyes. They gutted their ability to do real
news so that they could bring us coverage of "balloon boy,
Michael Jackson, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and Jon & Kate".

You actually see these type stories LEAD what used to be
a serious newscast. Since they "fired" me and hundreds
of other employees to go in this direction, I say to CNN
"see you on the scrap heap of history."

[Laura]

Anderson Cooper is a great professional, educated journalist and more should watch AC360 then Fox BS.

In the age of blogs and opinions, accredited newspaper and journalists are being less valued. This is sad. As a 23 years old, I value newspaper and good journalism. I wish more of my youth would feel the same.

[Marc A.]

Anderson Cooper does NOT give balanced coverage when it comes to gender issues. He only puts feminists as commentators and they give a one-sided story. On the issue of the so-called "pay gap," he had four women all saying the same thing, but none of the experts like June O'Neil or Warren Farrell who studied the issue and showed that men and women with the same training and experience and who work the same job and same number of hours do get paid equally. The pay gap is only a snapshot of average yearly incomes that does not account for things like overtime (90% male), experience, training, hour flexibility, etc. The Department of Labor funded a study that found the pay gap is about choices, not discrimination. The report is online and is called "An Analysis of the Reason for the Disparity in Wages Between Men and Women." In surveys, men prioritized money (because that's what expected of them) while women priorized flexibility, shorter commutes, balance, etc. because they have that option and men don't. Women simply have more options than men to be primary parent, and they take that option. That's why over half of female Stanford and Harvard graduates leave the workforce after 15 years, because they can. Then men get blamed for "earning more" when men make 92% of job deaths and die younger because of the stress of working longer hours and more dangerous jobs.

Never-married, childless women outearn their male counterparts. Read Warren Farrell's "Why Men Earn More."

[Marc A.]

Numerous people tried to post comments refusting Anderson Cooper's myths about the "pay gap" but he, or his people, refused to post any of them, and instead only posted positive comments or ones that were slighlty disagreeing but without citation to solid sources. Anyone who cited contrary data or sources, even without links, did not have their comments posted. http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2009/11/02/video-breaking-into-the-boys-club/comment-page-1/#comment-921333

That is typical of those who are driven by dogma instead of objectivity, and who disregard and ignore any disconfirming evidence that conflicts with their ideology. Anderson Cooper is one of those people. I do not like biased media, and Anderson Cooper is totally biased at least when it comes to gender.

[Rudyard]

I'd rather watch a tortuous infomercial than watch Fox news. In fact, I'd rather smash every TV in the house than watch it. YUCK!! It's the absolute worst. If you believe what you hear on Fox news, I have a bridge I'd like to sell you.

[Rudyard]

To: yourmomscalling

Yes, I did see coverage of the Washington Tea Party on CNN! I also saw that Fox said there wasn't. Thousands of people watched the coverage on CNN & know that was another outright lie from Fox/faux news. You're brainwashed & guess who did the brainwashing? Too bad you can't think for yourself & check the facts instead of swallowing every thing this biased network tells you. Get a brain.