CNN plays it straight, hemorrhages viewers

And what about the 305 million americans who watch no cable news at all?

 

I really wish DirecTV carried the BBC news channel or CNN International. As someone else mentioned, "news for adults by adults."

 

Three words of advice for CNN:

More Robin Meade.

 

The more I think about it, the more I think Luggie has set up her CNN equation wrong.

It would be interesting to see what would happen if CNN actually "played it straight." I think the last 10 years have left the mass media almost entirely incapable of finding the middle ground. It's just not a geography with which the vast majority of them are familiar.

Perhaps when graded on a curve with MSNBC at the other extreme, you can perceive CNN playing it down the middle. I see an Anderson Cooper alienating half or more of his potential audience with his "teabagger" snickers and then we want to wonder why less and less people watch. Man, when you get folks turning that crap off, they ain't coming back. To paraphrase Norma Desmond, the news hasn't gotten small, the newscasts have.

 

I didn't know AC did that - no, that's certainly not playing it down the middle. I do think the guy is legitimately talented and has done some good reporting... but CNN seems like the wrong place for him.

I don't know where he belongs.

ETA: I feel almost exactly the same way about Shepard Smith. Very talented. Capable of great reporting. Fox doesn't seem the ideal fit. And I noticed of all their shows, Shep's seem to be the lowest-rated.

Maybe Shep and AC should co-host Meet the Press.

 

Anderson Cooper has a strong sense of self-importance and does not team well with others on the air. He stepped all over his co-anchor during 9/11 coverage, which helped him climb the ladder. May be more respectable for being women's gay-man crush than for his journalism.

And AQB, we agree on something for once. BBC radio news is excellent, too

 

Do you really think Tea Partiers represent half the potential cable television news audience? To say nothing of the general population?

 

HH thinks all non-Dems are tea partiers

 

That was a long time ago, dools. He's grown since then. I'm not saying he's the best anchor on TV... but for me... his anchoring from the field is outstanding. Katrina coverage comes to mind.

 

I'll second that. I was overseas recently and caught CNN International, and I came away impressed. Then I came back to the U.S. and watched the domestic version reading viewers tweets on the air. I've gotten to the point where I get pretty much all my broadcast news from NPR, PBS and the BBC, mostly because I don't feel like I'm being talked down to or shouted at.

 

All of you need to watch more ESPN.

 

Yes it is. I listen it to in XM from time to time. Makes all other radio news programs sound like amateur hour.