CNN's ratings woes not limited to Campbell Brown and Larry King

While CNN is spending much of its time focusing on jump starting its 8 and 9 p.m. hours, it might want to start paying a little more attention to the 7 and 10 p.m. hours as well. That's what a quick look at the July ratings reveals.

At 7, John King's show is off 42% in viewers and 36% in adults 25-54 from what Lou Dobbs was averaging last July, according to Nielsen. Last year, Dobbs averaged 723,000 viewers, and while that was far behind Shepherd Smith's show at Fox News, he was beating everyone else. Now, though, CNN has dropped to fourth in that hour.

Anderson Cooper also doesn't have a lot to smile about. His 10 p.m. show had a disappointing July, averaging only 575,000 viewers. Not only is that down 56% from July 2009, it is the second-least-watched month ever for Cooper who spent much of his time on the road covering the British Petroleum oil spill and the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake.

CNN is working hard to revamp the 8 p.m. hour. Campbell Brown recently left her show, citing its disappointing ratings as one of the causes for her exit. CNN is going to launch a political chat show featuring former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and columnist Kathleen Parker this year. That show was seen as a shift toward the more debate and issues approach to cable news of its rivals.

Larry King also gave notice that he will be leaving the 9 p.m. hour he has anchored for over two decades this fall. However, there apparently isn't a lot of sentimentality regarding news of King's exit because his July audience was off 55%. Of course, last July King was able to milk the death of Michael Jackson for big ratings.

CNN is certainly struggling in the ratings right now and is off 53% in prime-time viewers compared to last July, but its stronger rivals can't crow too much. Fox News is still on way out on top, but its prime-time average is down 11% in viewers compared to the same month a year ago while MSNBC was off 9%. CNN's sister channel HLN saw 20% of its audience disappear.

-- Joe Flint

[Updated Wednesday at 3:29 p.m.: A previous version of this post misspelled Spitzer's first name as Elliot.]

Comments

[Trébor]

CNN has lost it's focus on storytelling. I love CNN, but they got to go back to the storytelling of America and the rest of the world.

Anderson Cooper AC360 should focus on shorter stories, I tried watching his show 4 times last month, and it was so much about BP, what about the rest of the world, IRAQ, Gays in the Military, Immigration, Obama, the Tea Party all these stories Americans have passion about.

We did enjoy the BP coverage, but at some point we felt a bit too saturated about oil! AC, I believe in your show, go back to the basics.

[Ali Hodroje]

First and foremost thank you very much for the information. It seems like only a few days ago I was watching Campbell Brown and now I am getting a double dose of Rick Sanchez. I had no idea that this was due to Campbell being let off (My aunt passed away only last Monday, so this week has been quite hectic).

I am deeply saddened by Larry King’s departure. His show is legendry and so is he.

[Frederico]

Fox, MSNBC, CNN I think may be peaking. Granted, I'm no Neilsen Corporation statistician, but maybe people have had their fill of all the talking heads, screaming commentators, and combative, mud-slinging personalities on a lot of these cable news shows.

I personally liked the old CNN, when it was just around the clock "straight news" delivered by rotating anchors, i.e no commentators or personalities.

[Dirk]

Nobody cares about CNN's line-up anymore, although they still have an edge with breaking news.

[Rocco]

Rick Sanchez is annoying. Cooper did way too much on BP and Haiti. I can only take so much for so long. But the one thing that makes me hit the remote faster than anything else, is two people trying to shout over each other. If they go that route, I'll be watching even less.

[AT]

I will not watch CNN or HLN if Elliott Spitzer is hosting. Are you kidding me? Couldn't they have found someone else? How about not talking about the same issue every night. Nancy Grace is getting old also, she talks about the same thing everyday and promotes her books. There are so many things happening in the world. Look at your line up starting at 7, nancy grace, larry king, joy behar, they all talk about the same thing, of course no one is watching......

[Lynnie]

Anyone with basic TV programming knowledge knows that single-topic news/talk/information shows risk audience tune-out; if the viewer doesn't like that day's 1 subject he'll change the channel. It's why even Oprah added multiple topics for most days.

CNN's decision to let Anderson Cooper's show veer wildly off-concept -from what was always promoted as TV's only primetime hour of in-depth, comprehensive news to one that's always all-BP or all-Haiti - is clearly driving off viewers. These current ratings you note are just the latest in a track of ratings declines resulting during AC360's previous single-subject periods. And while the spill and Haiti are both critical news stories that merit attention, much of what winds up about them on the AC360 hours are minor, forced and forgettable angles. It's a mystery who's calling the shots on this approach at CNN and why s/he isn't being held accountable for the persistent ratings dips.

I'd been a fairly regular AC360 viewer for a while, since it was a good way to catch up on the day's broad range of news and issues at the end of my evening. The show clearly worked to keep things very topical both in terms of subjects as well as what transpired with them up to 10pm. Now it's just a news version of Groundhog Day: a daily primetime documentary on the same subject. Doesn't work for me.

[barracuda]

It couldn't happen to a finer bunch!

[yikes!]

A few things CNN should note:

1) Their international coverage is top notch, because it is actual news.

2) CNN in the US is, like Fox and MSNBC, primarily an opinion channel, with a bit of news thrown in. So you have personalities like Blitzer, Anderson, King, Brown etc pontificating on the news. They have zero personality and strain credibility by pretending never to reach a conclusion and that all opinion is valid and equal.

CNN needs to decide whether it is going to be a news channel, or an opinon channel. If its going to be news, it needs to up its game and decide it is going for the truth, not for balance. If its going to be an opinion network, it needs interesting people with a point of view.

[Anusia]

CNN - Boring, boring, boring. Old anchors, ugly commentators, tedious 'news', and on and on and on. No debate, no left/right/controversies. Nothing to tickle your fancy. Fox News - debates galore and great looking, smart people who present hard news and entertaining news, quick updates throughout the programs. It's always impressive when you look at someone great looking, with fantastic backgrounds and credentials. So, why do you wonder CNN's ratings are low???????

[Andre Olivirer]

THAT"S WHY YOUR RATINGS ARE SINKING TO NEW LOWS> you don't even know what people want - Put the illegal issue on the ballot in November - 85 + percent are all for deporting the deadbeats. They don't care about the US or its laws. They walk across and think we owe them a living.

Pathetic. - All other countries don't allow illegal entry. They arrest and deport you immediately!

[mlb]

FINALLY!~ People are TURNING OFF THE TELEVSION.

About damn time.

[Vincent]

Yikes! You are right on point.

[S. Lam]

I cannot stand Rick Sanchez. Now is twice a day is worst. He is pro Hispanic period. I hate news having so many commendator. Many just give sound bite. I want real news and no opinion. News repeat after repeat don't work. Report more truth indept news and let us make up our own opinion. I don't need reporter tell us how to think. I used to watch Lou, however even towards the end he cuts off people and too many commendator again. John King shown that guy at the end is not funny at all.

[avi nash]

CNN has got away for long hoodwnking the american public.It was always obvious to the far away viewer that their talk show hosts -barring Lou Dobbs -were into sensationalism and manufactured news and propaganda feeds to the unsuspecting american public mind diversion.
Steve Emerson the expert terrorism joke (the bin laden i knew) comes to mind with his all to predictable theories.
Christiane Amanpour ,she made a documentary on the Havala money exchange business in pakistan ,where in she showed a man (a paid role player) walking the streets of a karachi bazar with bales of dollar bills to sensationalise the havala business.The American viewer can be fooled ,but not the Asian who know the havala business.It is the most secretive and unseen money exchange scheme in asia since time
And for Amanpour to photoshop such clips ,she obviously knew she could sell such B.S to the western viewers.
CNN stooped to scams to maintain rating .Sorry CNN you must die with your falsehood and lies

[smitty]

It's a pretty simple formula. CNN doesn't know how to package their information. I used to flip back and forth between Fox and CNN on the same stories and would always end up watching FOX. CNN has this bar atmosphere in the studio with dark mood and unattractive commentators. CNN also mixes in feel good stories that you really don't care to see. It's not so much they are boring to watch as much as when compared to nice looking women on FOX and their passionate presentations and debate environment along with a well-lit studio that wakes you up, FOX makes CNN look like a total bore. Would you rather drink your soda in a dimly lit bar next to some lonely looking hags, or in an environment that is lit up with beautiful women around having passionate debates. My soda tastes much better in the latter.

[marcus]

It's obvious why CNN's ratings are tanking - Liberals are tanking! Obama, liberalism, and socialism are all a disaster and people are finally waking up to CNN, MSNBC, CBS, etc.

Why non-stop coverage about BP, Haiti, Katrina (and let's not forget Anderson's lost doggies!), and all the other overly saturated focus on these slow moving new stories - BECAUSE THEY CAN'T TALK ABOUT OBAMA. He's a disaster and they'd rather go out of business than talk about what's really going on. No tea party news, no liberal violence or trials, no Illegal Immigration coverage of Liberals yet again going against the American people.

Good Riddance!

[FeFe]

Lou Dobbs, along with his guests and reporter topics, are sorely missed.

[Feliz]

CNN is getting a wake-up call. Disgraceful guideance there and a lot of empty-headed "readers" who lack news-gathering skills. Campbell Brown was a complete waste of time and one wonders how these people get jobs in the first place. Anderson Cooper needs to get back to basics and that should be planning on a lot less of Sanjay Gupta -- is he a doctor or a journalist? Who knows, but he has an ego and he loves the bright lights. The likes of Nancy Grace and Joy Behar are just worn out. Grace is so angry and so filled with bile that she can hardly focus. Has people guilty before being tried and if we have to see one more story about a missing child .... Behar, can we stop the Obama boot licking for a few days? Rick Sanchez, well, count on at least every program him telling you that his parents came from Cuba and how he went on to play college football... who cares. Report on some news for a change.

[Alistair Sinclair]

Gee, I stopped watching CNN 15 years ago. Biased, liberal only BS ... buries stories that are embarrasing to Democrats, boring broadcasters who think and act the same without one tiny bit of humor or self-deprecation. I'm shocked people are blogging as if CNNs problems are NEW, CNN has sucked for SOH many years. By the way, Ted Turner and Al Gore should get a room together ... two of the biggest jack azzes that have EVER lived. MSNBC? Don't even get me started on what a freak show that is ... Olberman, Matthews, Rachel Mad-Cow-Disease ... Oh my God, when did the average IQ of liberals hit the single-digits? You love Larry King? Are you kidding me? The fatuous gasbag with his phony ridiculous interviews, really? Are you kidding me, he was OLD when I was like nine years old 40+ years ago, and I don't mean in a good way! This is like claiming 'The View' is a great show ... you HAVE to be mentally ill to watch 'The View' ... you really do. Every day someone watches 'The Spew' they get more ignorant and MAL-informed than the day before ... eventually you turn into either Beevis or Butthead.

[CNN stinks]

Watching CNN is like reading the trash at firedog lake or the daily Kos.
Nothing but liberal/socialistic propaganda.Nothing is more irking than hearing Sanchez equating opposition to illegal immigration with racism.

[Ken Symes]

What do you think about CNN hiring Eliot Spitzer? I'd love to get your opinion at my Squidoo lens on Eliot Spitzer. So far people seem quite divided...
http://www.squidoo.com/eliot-spitzer
What do you think?

[pat terrell]

I stopped watching cnn a long time ago, however occasionaly I have accidently turned on john king as I channeled surfed. He is boring and it appears that he is obsessed with bashing Obama. I can see why is ratings are low. He needs to go to Fox where with the other Obama bashers.