Jossip has the Drudge story…
Anderson Cooper has the top selling book? He beat out Tim Russert? Props, Coops! While currently, there is no link to the actual sotry… hence the “developing” aspect … one thing’s for sure.
UPDATE: Meanwhile Jossip wants to hear what your fourth name for Cooper is. Read the backstory here…
FNC was the only cable news network to make the Top 10 primetime cable channels for the month of May. Mediachannel News’ Linda Moss writes about The Top 10 in May…
TBS and Fox News Channel tallied the same primetime rating, a 1.2. Both networks were down 8% from last May.
Earlier I mentioned CNN talking about how The Situation Room was narrowing the gap in the Demo. Here is a slide courtesy of CNN that shows The Situation Room gaining Demo viewers while FNC was losing Demo viewers…
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CNN’s Arwa Damon turns in a Reporter’s Notebook entry on the Haditha massacre allegations…
Now, all these months later, while watching the tapes, I found a walk and talk with one of the company commanders that was relieved of his duty as a result of the Haditha probe.
After being hit by an IED, his men were searching the area and found a massive weapons cache in a mosque. Although it wasn’t his company that we were embedded with, the Marines had taken me to the mosque so we could get footage of the cache.
And so began the e-mails and phone calls between myself and my two other CNN crew members, Jennifer Eccleston and Gabe Ramirez: Do you remember when we were talking with the battalion commander and his intel guy right outside the school and then half an hour later they found an IED in that spot? Do you remember when we were sitting chatting with them at the school? And all the other “do you remember whens.”
There was also — can you believe it? — the allegations of the Haditha probe.
Yesterday, CNN kicked off the first of a series of high profile guest editorials and opinion pieces on CNN.com with Robert Redford. Redford’s piece is on kicking the oil habit…
The recent surge in gas prices has touched a raw nerve for many around the country, reminding us of an economy that is increasingly uncertain for the middle-class, a growing addiction to oil that draws us ever closer to dictators and despots, and a fragile global position with a climate that is increasingly out of balance. I believe America is ready to kick the oil habit and launch a new movement for real solutions and a better future.
Here’s an image showing FNC’s year to year May ratings by hour in both the P2+ and P25-54 categories. The higlighted areas are hours that FNC was down vs. May 05
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Nancy Grace, another show that didn’t get highlighted by CNN, declined in May in both the Total Viewer and Demo categories; dropping nearly 25% in both categories since April.
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Here is chart showing the top 10 cable news programs in the Demo. The only non-FNC program to crack the top 10 was Deal or No Deal…
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Here is a chart showing the Demo gap between MSNBC and CNN in Primetime. MSNBC has cut the gap nearly in half over the past year, though it did widen a bit recently.
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One of the programs CNN wasn’t highlighting in May was Paula Zahn Now. May was PZN’s lowest month since December 04. Here is a graph that illustrates what the show has been doing in the Demo since that time.
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The May numbers are out and CNN is touting Demo gains…
CNN GAINS VIEWERS IN MAY 2006
The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer UP 58%; Anderson Cooper 360 UP 53%; Lou Dobbs Tonight UP 85% in P25-54
Lou Dobbs Tonight continues to garner viewers in all demos, up a staggering 94% in total viewers
HLN Glenn Beck premieres with 58% increase total viewers at 7pm
CNN included a PDF showing The Situation Room narrowing the Demo gap between itself and its competing programs on FNC…
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Cary Darling in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes about Anderson Cooper…
“I think there are moments in the news when you do wish there were greater emotional involvement on the part of the newcaster and, as a viewer, I appreciate that,” says Jeffrey Hyson, a history professor and pop-culture commentator at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, who was in Cooper’s class at Yale but didn’t know him. “The famous confrontation with Landrieu; it’s one of those great moments of realization that this is great TV and he’s saying what we want to say.”
Others remain unconvinced. “The problem I have with someone like Anderson Cooper is he’s paid his dues and worked his way up but not on the local level,” says Andrew Clark, an assistant professor in the communications department at the University of Texas at Arlington who specializes in broadcast and cable issues. “He becomes the news, instead of the story, and he has done nothing to downplay that . . . I would have to think he’s less sensationalist than Geraldo [Rivera] but it’s that sentimental aspect to what he’s doing. The tears on Katrina, I’m not going to say if it’s genuine or not, but it’s going over the top a little bit.”
NBC Universal’s Bob Wright and his wife were on Your World this afternoon to talk about Autism but Cavuto managed to get a couple of questions regarding MSNBC, CNBC, and NBC in as well. Though Wright dodged a bit about a CNBC/MSNBC merger and didn’t directly answer the question with a flat out denial, he did say that he was pleased with the direction MSNBC and CNBC are going, particularly in primetime. And he did flat out deny that NBC was up for sale. This particular line of questioning started with Cavuto wondering if their grandson’s Autism and their subsequent crusade to raise awareness for the disease maybe might have taken Wright’s “eye off the ball at Universal” (which Wright steadfastly denied). Transcript follows…
CAVUTO: Bob, can I ask you this? And I don`t this to be impolitic. But do you think, because of your concern and focus on your grandson, that your — your eye was off the ball at Universal?
BOB WRIGHT: No, I don`t, because the — you know, that is the first thing I think about every morning. Am I doing everything possible to make and keep Universal to be as successful as possible?
CAVUTO: But NBC has fallen in the ratings.
B. WRIGHT: Well, you know, these things happen, Neil.
William Powers in the National Journal sees the story that Richard Engel will head NBC News’ Middle East Bureau as an example of a network doing what it should have been doing. And he uses that as an excuse to launch into satire…(via Romenesko)
2. Fox to Choose Female Anchors for Brains, Not Looks.
NEW YORK CITY — Fox News, America’s first choice in news, will begin hiring female anchors based entirely on intelligence. Beginning this week, the network will be on the lookout for smart, news-savvy women with extensive journalistic experience. “Given the intense competition for cable audiences, we wanted something special to draw viewers, something they can’t get elsewhere,” Fox News Vice President David Pixelbot said. “Since many Fox viewers have better-than-average IQs, it hit us that ’showing a little brain’ could be just as compelling as ’showing a little leg.’ Also, we studied headshots of Edward R. Murrow and concluded that he was not exactly eye candy.” Henceforth, female anchors will be selected through a “looks-blind” process in which candidates will be issued identical brown paper bags to wear over their heads during interviews and test videos.
CNN announced this morning that Michael Ware had joined the netwok as a Baghdad based correspondent…
Michael Ware, the TIME magazine Baghdad bureau chief who gained renown for in-depth coverage of the insurgency in Iraq, will join CNN as a correspondent based in Baghdad, it was announced today by Tony Maddox, senior vice president of international newsgathering operations.
A frequent guest to CNN over the last five years, Ware becomes a full-time international correspondent providing news reports and analysis across all CNN networks. On CNN/U.S., Ware will be a regular contributor to Anderson Cooper 360° as well as appearing on other programs.
“Michael is one of the most accomplished correspondents working in Iraq. His exclusive stories and unique insights into the workings of the insurgency will increase the scope and depth of our reporting,” Maddox said. “He joins a fantastic CNN team of committed journalists in Baghdad, and we are very excited to have him as a full-time member of the CNN family.”
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Over the weekend, word spread via EWTN that FNC’s Greg Burke was going to be named Vatican Spokesperson. This rumor is false. Burke remains a Vatican based correspondent for FNC.
I’m late noticing this. Broadcasting & Cable’s John Eggerton has a profile of CNN’s Zain Verjee. (via WHAC)
“When I spotted her doing some anchoring on CNN International, I pushed hard to get her on my show,” say Situation Room host Wolf Blitzer.
While still remaining a CNNI anchor, Verjee, who is 32, served in a “correspondent-like” capacity on The Situation Room when the show debuted last August.
“She has a huge future in this business,” Blitzer says. “The camera loves her, obviously, and the viewers love her.”
CNN/U.S. President Jon Klein seconds that. “Zain is inquisitive, disarmingly charming, and viewers really connect with her. ”
MSNBC started running promotions celebrating ten years on the air on Sunday. Starting out with the text “10 years ago…the world got connected” followed by an audio clip from FOX 5 NY anchor Jodi Applegate from back when she was MSNBC’s first anchor on the air, the spot is slick but seems to concentrate mostly on primetime. Daytime news coverage clips are few and far between with the exception of a Chris Jansing clip from what appears to be during the Iraq War.
Clips from all the prime time hosts talking about MSNBC are aired in between a rapid fire set of clips and a bunch of small video screens of MSNBC talent. An oddity of the spot is that most of the clips are from the last six years.
It’s going to be odd if MSNBC rebrands its name so soon after running these spots. That’s one reason why I still don’t buy the name change rumor. Another is that everything that has MSNBC on it from set pieces to duratrans to ads to coffee cups would have to be replaced and replaced so quickly that there isn’t any bleedover between one brand and the other. I just don’t see how it can be done. It’s not like TNN becoming Spike TV where the change is purely in the graphics and letterhead. It would be very very expensive to change MSNBC’s name. And given the budget cuts that have taken place getting the millions that would be required is a tall order…
UPDATE: On the other hand if you type in “nbccablenews.com” into your web browser you get this. But that’s probably NBC covering its internet bases because there’s no way they will rebrand MSNBC.com. That much is certain.
At the top of AC 360, CNN’s graphics for the killed and wounded from the CBS Iraq camera team were backwards. Paul Douglas and James Brolan were listed as injured and Kimberly Dozier was listed as killed.
This happened while substitute host Carol Costello was reading the correct status over the air. I had to switch over after that so I don’t know if CNN subsequently caught its error and issued a correction…
TVWeek’s Jon Lafayette writes about a CNN study that showed that broadband video ads boost the effectiveness of online ads…(via TVNewser)
While this study is geared to CNN, Mr. Montes thinks broadband video from other networks would show a similar if not quite as strong pattern. “It’s clear CNN is a trusted brand. I don’t know if you’d have quite the same performance if you took it to other places,” he said.
Mr. D’Alba also said CNN has unique strengths in a digital world. “I certainly can’t speak for any competitor or for anybody else out there, but there aren’t many other organizations out there that own their own content, that have the brand recognition of the content and seamlessly integrates it to reach these very valuable consumers,” he said.
Lloyd Grove tries to float a comparison between Kimberly Guilfoyle’s and Elizabeth Vargas’ pregnancies but gets shot down by FNC…
But will Guilfoyle’s pregnancy - like that of ousted “World News Tonight” anchor Elizabeth Vargas at ABC News - have any impact on her career? A Fox News spokeswoman told me: “Whether or not Kim is pregnant has no bearing on her status here.”
The New Yorker’s Nancy Fanklin has a review of CNBC’s Mad Money with Jim Cramer…
I find Cramer’s egomania hugely entertaining, yet I feel flattened by the hurricane force of his monomania. In any case, if getting rich is your goal, you’re not going to get there by watching Cramer’s show. Remember, he didn’t get rich by sitting around watching TV
Following up on my earlier entry, The Washington Post’s Dana Priest, who was stuck at the hearing after the Rayburn Office Building was locked down, writes about what transpired…
The small space in front of C-SPAN’s live pool camera, standing at the side of the room, became the set for eyewitness reports being beamed around the world.
Panel witness Walter Isaacson, president of the Aspen Institute and former chairman of CNN, handed Hoekstra his cellphone earplug so he could do a stand-up for CNN. Lawyer Jonathan Turley, a frequent media commentator, admitted on MSNBC that he had a hidden cache of muffins.
Blogging resumed after a 9 hour abscence. So the following entries concern information and stories that occurred Friday afternoon but I was not available to blog about.
Friday’s Rayburn building shooting story absorbed over three hours of the cable nets’ attention. CNN started The Situation Room early with John King. MSNBC kept Chris Jansing on the air for three hours straight. I tried to see who was covering the story for FNC but kept missing it as I ducked in and out of the TV room while I was at work.
After the initial shots of police cars and cops with automatic weapons started to wear thin, the networks zeroed in to the fact that there was a live feed from inside the Rayburn Office building of a House Intelligence hearing. The hearing had ended but nobody was allowed to leave. So we were periodically treated to shots of people milling around the room. At one point Professor Jonathan Turley held up a sign that read “send food”.
Someone figured out that these people had cell phones and what transpired next was various news orgs started calling these people for interviews. On MSNBC, Chris Jansing was interviewing Turley and tried to direct him over to the camera. As there was more than one camera, this presented a somewhat comical spectacle in the midst of the tension. Rough transcript by me follows…
Jansing: We see you way in the distance…so uh…come toward me…Come toward me Professor Turley, I can see you, you can’t see me (laughs)…there’s another camera…I don’t know if you can see…to your right.
Turley: Well I’m not too sure which is ah…
Jansing: There you are…we see you now…there you are…
I saw other people with cell phones being interviewed in front of the cameras in the room too including Washington Post reporter Dana Priest.
The Charlie Rose show on Thursday had a panel discussion with guest host Ken Tucker from Entertainment Weekly. During one part of the discussion, panelist Bill Carter of the New York Times and Tucker discussed cable news. Carter called CNN’s talent “bland” and both Carter and Tucker loved the Olbermann/O’Reilly feud…
KEN TUCKER: And do you think that cable has kind of blown it to a certain extent by going the way of advocacy journalism, that the FOX News and CNN have too many personalities with strong opinions rather than presenting objective news?
BILL CARTER: No, I think that is the only thing that will work for them.
KEN TUCKER: You do?
BILL CARTER: I think FOX could not exist if it wasn`t that. It exists because it fits into that advocacy niche. And I think what you notice what is happening in CNN is it`s failing at night because it has bland people.
KEN TUCKER: Anderson Cooper bland? I beg to differ, sir.
BILL CARTER: And MSNBC getting better, because Keith Olbermann is getting better, and he is not a bland person. So I think you need edge in those shows to distinguish them.
KEN TUCKER: I think the Keith Olbermann feud with Bill O`Reilly.
BILL CARTER: Brilliant.
KEN TUCKER: . has been one of the most entertaining news stories of the year. I mean, I could watch those guys go at it every night.
The prime time joint news conference with President Bush and Prime Minister Blair generated nice numbers for FNC. FNC doubled CNN in both the Demo and Total Viewer numbers. Also, MSNBC came in 2nd in the Demo, beating out CNN.
May 25
7:30-8:30PM
P2+
FNC - 1,803,000 viewers
CNN - 721,000 viewers
MSNBC - 478,000 viewers
P25-54
FNC - 342,000
MSNBC - 162,000
CNN - 147,000
CNN announced Friday that Nicole Lapin has joined the Pipeline Anchor team…
Nicole Lapin, most recently an investigative reporter and anchor with KPSP-TV in Palm Springs, Calif., has joined CNN Pipeline as a news anchor, it was announced today by Sandy Malcolm, executive producer of CNN.com video. As part of her new assignment, Lapin will also anchor “Now in the News,” a fast-paced hourly Web- and wireless-exclusive news update and “.com Desk,” briefings on CNN/U.S. featuring highlights of CNN.com coverage.
“Nicole has established herself as a smart, confident broadcast journalist,” Malcolm said. “With a background in political science and conversant in five languages, Nicole brings an amazing array of skills to CNN Pipeline and will be a welcome addition to our anchor team.”
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FNC will air another “Crime Scene” special tonight with Greta Van Susteren.
Fox News Channel will present “Crime Scene: Murder in the Heartland” on Friday, May 26th at 10PM/ET. Hosted by Greta Van Susteren, it will examine new and existing evidence in the Natalee Holloway investigation, one year after her disappearance during a school trip in Aruba. The special will repeat on Saturday (3-4AM) and Tuesday (3-4AM).
The one-hour special will give an inside look at the missed opportunities and false leads that have impacted the investigation from beginning. An interview with Joran van der Sloot, a former suspect in the disappearance, will reveal his version of the last moments he spent with Holloway. The special will also feature interviews with Gerard Spong the attorney for Guido Wever, a recent suspect in the case, and Holloway’s parents, Beth Holloway Twitty and Dave Holloway.
FNC announced that it will be airing a two episode “The Best of Bill O’Reilly” today and Monday at 8pm ET…
FOX News Channel (FNC) will present two specials both entitled, “Best of Bill O’Reilly” on Friday, May 26th and Monday, May 29th. Both specials will air from 8-9PM/ET and will feature clips from the first episode of The O’Reilly Factor on Oct. 7, 1996.
The specials will feature some of the most memorable segments from The O’Reilly Factor since the show’s first episode. On Friday, May 26th, “Best of Bill O’Reilly” will include Bill O’Reilly’s interview with Donald Trump the night before the now hit show “The Apprentice” aired as well as the “Most Ridiculous Item of the Day” segment from the first episode of The O’Reilly Factor.
On Monday, May 29th, “Best of Bill O’Reilly” will include O’Reilly’s heated face-offs with Michael Moore, John Moyers and Michael Kinsley. The special will also feature his shortest interview ever with Mike Tyson and an interview with Simon Cowell before the success of “American Idol.” From the first episode of The O’Reilly Factor, the special will feature O’Reilly’s interview with former U.S. Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders.
FTVLive speculates on the MSNBC future, or lack thereof, of President Rick Kaplan and talks about the oft rumored rebranding in the works…
Lloyd Grove dishes…
Fox News Channel recruit Kimberly Guilfoyle met high-end furniture scion Eric Villency in October after ABC News correspondent Gigi Stone set them up on a blind date.
Guilfoyle finalized her divorce from San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom in February. She and the 30-year-old Villency are getting married tomorrow in Barbados.
But now I hear that the 39-year-old Guilfoyle has even happier news: she’s five months pregnant.
UPDATE: Page Six has it too…
Earlier I had posted what I thought were Wednesday’s numbers and then took them down when it was made aware to me that they weren’t Wednesday’s numbers. After doing some investigation it turned out they were Tuesday’s numbers but for some reason they took a wrong turn on the internet and took nearly a day for them arrive in my email inbox after being sent out Wednesday. So once again, here they are…
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This afternoon’s earlier set of numbers was incorrect. I’m still trying to figure out what went wrong. Here are the correct numbers…
May 24
25-54 Prime Time
FNC - 230,000 viewers
CNN - 88,000 viewers
MSNBC - 110,000 viewers
HLN - 94,000 viewers
CNBC -93,000 viewers
8PM - P2+ (25-54)
O’Reilly Factor - 1,829,000 viewers (266,000)
Paula Zahn Now - 365,000 viewers (58,000)
Countdown with Keith Olbermann - 410,000 viewers (178,000)
Nancy Grace - 355,000 viewers (93,000)
The Apprentice - 191,000 viewers (122,000)
9 PM - P2+ (25-54)
Hannity & Colmes - 1,135,000 viewers (186,000)
Larry King Live - 500,000 viewers (65,000)
Scarborough -288,000 viewers (a scratch with 43,000)
Glenn Beck - 169,000 viewers (77,000)
Mad Money - 172,000 viewers (88,000)
10 PM P2+ (25-54)
On the Record w/Greta Van Susteren- 1,284,000 viewers (237,000)
Anderson Cooper 360 - 654,000 viewers (143,000)
Rita Cosby - 224,000 viewers (108,000)
Nancy Grace - 287,000 viewers (114,000)
Donny Deutsch - 160,000 viewers (70,000)
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