Anderson Cooper's Rating Woes "Most Troubling" To CNN Staffers: Politico

Politico:

It's Cooper's ratings that are the most troubling, say staffers, given the resources and heavy promotion for his show, and persona. For years, Klein has talked up Cooper, once famously dubbing him "the anti-anchor" and, in the aftermath of Katrina, as "a reporter [who's] got that magical something.

But that magic may be wearing off.

Read the whole story: Politico

Comments

[bsc]

CNN's decision to be "middle of the road" is ridiculous. It is not journalism. If something is wrong, say it. Not every story is balanced. I used to watch but totally gave up on that channel. Now all I watch is MSNBC. As an aside, I cannot stand the two anchors they have on weekend mornings, they make me sick. They are so sugary and fake. The only reason I know about them is that the gym TV is tuned to CNN.

[AudiGuy]

There is nothing wrong in be "middle of the road". What is a problem, knowing the facts of a story and not clarifying them when a guess begins to lie. AC does the all the time..... this silly approach of being neutral when you should be promoting the facts.

I guess this is what happens when news becomes entertainment?

[ebanks84]

Amen. That's why I like MSNBC because they question the rhetoric.

[4KixAfter6]

Jack Cafferty is the only person on CNN that I like to watch. You just have to switch over at the last 5 minutes of The Situation Room.

[JaneQCitizen]

Cafferty is a COLUMNIST. You do understand the difference, don't you?

[4KixAfter6]

I believe I do. Try reading the post. I said he was the only person I liked to watch on CNN. Where did I say he was a reporter or columnist?

[max]

f artie

[VictoriaP]

Jack Cafferty should have a segment on MSNBC, maybe as part of Ed's show.

[ebanks84]

OMG, I've said this for so long that I can't believe you're saying the same thing. Are you my clone or what :). Whatever, I like it. It saves me a lot of work!

[NewmanKitten]

Here's the problem (s):
Unless you are a activist-type - right or left - the rest of us DO NOT want to watch what is now called "the news" 24/7. We want a life. We see what's going on in a grab for ratings, the "gotcha" journalism and out and out "yellow journalism".
We're not as stupid as you all think we are. That's why we're not watching. Anderson used to be the go-to guy, but even he's being forced to employ these despicable tactics.

News should not be subjected to the ratings - yet I understand a networks necessity to have a program they can sell to advertisers. But it's the networks rush for ratings that has created the extremist classes that are plaguing us today. In prior history, the fringe groups couldn't get a foot hold, because there was never media outlets pandering to them. Thanks for ruining it for the rest of us.

[BunnyMama]

I think it's inevitable that these shows would have a ratings drop after the election/inauguration. That election was a very hot topic and now that it's over people are less interested in watching the news.

[Rictracee]

CNN has set a republican agenda, to try to play GOTCHA with the new administration. They totally failed at GOTCHA w/ the last administration that put us in this situation . Our country is in trouble and CNN want to drag it down the drain even further. CNN use to be a credible news source.. I no longer watch them I am strictly MSNBC.. I know some of you say they are left leaning.. no they are not.. they just do not play GOTCHA with this administration. They want him to be sucessful, but if he does something wrong they do cover it, but it don't turn in to bash Obama constant mantra. CNN is a joke. I tell everyone I know to stop watching CNN.

[blairtone]

Do they listen to you? You certainly sound like someone who watches MSNBC along with the other 16 viewers

[bedfordny]

Funny the millions of Fox News viewers (and Rush listeners) couldn't muster up the votes for McCain to win. Or keep red states from turning blue. Or keep the republicans in power in the Congress and Senate. Maybe they're too busy watching TV.

[VictoriaP]

Make that 17.

[JaneQCitizen]

CNN is closest to center of all the cable news channels.

MSNBC butt kisses liberals. Fox butt kisses AND wipes for the wacko right.

[NotStarvingArtist]

I like MSNBC as well, but I have to disagree with you about their being "left leaning". I certainly think that they do lean to the left, but I also believe that they present their arguments intelligently and let their viewers make up their own minds.

[JaneQCitizen]

No. They are very left, and I say that as a very left person myself.

Really. I'm very disturbed by this whole conversation on this post. I thought only the right had blinders on and couldn't stomach news that went against their world views ... but these comments are proving me wrong.

[ebanks84]

Oh, so wonderful to hear somebody say that. Thank you!

[blairtone]

The fact is that he's up against real research and hard facts from Fox - his BamBam fawning doesn't help his credibility(?) either

[SiberianRat]

"hard facts from Fox" - What on earth does that mean?

[blairtone]

no doubt something with which you are unfamiliar unless you watch Fox

[cyoohoos]

Faux doesn't have facts. It's a simpleton network for angry people to vent. If the left would stop watching for easy news articles, I'm sure their ratings would drop.

[bedfordny]

Research and hard facts? Try hysteria, rumor and outright lies. Fox has about as much credibility as a news organization as Sarah Palin has a distinguished speaker. In other words: None.

[Dace]

fox reports nothing but its own liesand extreme far right proaganda - they have never reported a fact in their history. I you believe that, you are obviously unable to use your brain above reptilian functions.

[ProfessorDuh]

Here are some "facts" for Fox News for you.
Do you recall that Fox "News" is the organization that presented a graphic showing that the Lincoln-Douglas Debates were between Abraham Lincoln and the black abolitionist Frederick Douglass?
Do you recall that Fox "News""is the organization that changed Congressman Mark Foley's party affiliation from Republican to Democratic after it was inescapably confirmed that Foley was sexually soliciting teenage male pages in Congress?
Do you recall that Fox "News" star Bill O'Reilly falsely claimed that WWII U.S. troops had committed atrocities at Malmedy as an attempt to justify contemporary atrocities by U.S. troops, then had Malmedy changed to "Normandy" in the transcript in a clumsy attempt to cover up his tracks?
Do you recall that Fox "News" pundit Liz Trotta, while discussing the idea of assassinating Osama Bin Laden and Barack Obama, said, "Well ... both, if we could!, " then laughed happily.
Fox News displays this open contempt for facts because it is a fascist propaganda machine, and I mean that literally. Fox does not practice journalism. It SUBVERTS journalism. It is the Fourth Estate's Fifth Column.
As Joseph Goebbels observed, "It would not be impossible to prove with sufficient repetition and a psychological understanding of the people concerned that a square is, in fact, a circle. They are mere words, and words can be molded to clothe ideas in disguise."
THAT is the mission of Fox "News.

[felisa11]

cooper is boring and a repug. He says he keeping them honest, but he just justifying repugs talking points daily.

[SiberianRat]

You think maybe he's a Log Cabin member or something? Hmm...yeesh.

[VictoriaP]

I really cannot stand Anderson Cooper and his ridiculous Keeping Them Honest BS. He himself is not an honest journalist and he is so uninformed (maybe lazy), he simply repeats, propegates, tells, reinforces propagand and lies.

The producers AND the television personalities should be fired.

[Charmed]

CNN is FoxLite and that's why the ratings are going down......people can go to Fox and get the real loonies in real time.

[DuPageDem]

Bingo. Their guise of "objectivity" can't hide their blatant pro-corporate slant. Worse yet for ratings, Anderson and nearly all their anchors are just flat out dull.

[freethinking moderate]

Maybe if Cooper were a REAL reporter (like the short time he was during Katrina) instead of just another pretty face giving us Nancy Grace Stories, he'd get some real ratings. Imagine that REAL reporting can lead to REAL ratings.

[Rictracee]

you got that right Hurricane Katrina was the last time CNN EVER did any REAL reporting.. then they fell off big time when it came to the 2008 election.. F u CNN

[entemplin]

yeah, CNN in general has been losing my interest lately....

[SiberianRat]

Turned them off a few years ago--terrible network.

[ProfessorDuh]

"Fox News Lite" turns out not to be much of a business plan. I guess pandering and selling out to ignorance and viciousness isn't all it's cracked up to be.

[sweetwhine]

Anderson lost me during the presidential primary.

[dillydawg]

Same here.

[blairtone]

fawning over BamBam like the mainstream media didn't do him any favors

[SiberianRat]

Ok, you've posted that more than once..bleh.

[sweetwhine]

They didn't do enough if you ask me so now CNN suffers. Ha!

Hey listen, don't mess with the Obama supporters!! We'll tear you a new one. We don't mess around! LOL!

See ya later hater! Man, I just hate when I have to go down to your level. But you did started it.

[learntofly]

Anderson Cooper is being dragged down by the ENTIRE CNN line-up. CNN's morning show is worthless. Wolf Blitzer has been over-used over the years to the point where people are tired of his face. John King 'The magic wall guy' has a set Republican agenda and is a complete joke. He was promoted to a position in which he is failing. If CNN doesn't hire new hosts and back-ups, ratings will keep falling.

[BiGnBulKY]

so true, Blitzer is well passed his prime and 2 hours of him is unbearable then Coop comes on and its like the contiuation of the Blitzer show.. sooo sooo boring at best

[dillydawg]

It's 3hrs. of him (not on my TV) in the N. East.

[ProfessorDuh]

Blitzer actually works to thwart depth and insight -- particularly on issues where they would be dangerous to neocon interests -- and has the most monotonous voice on television.

[Rictracee]

your so right, I love Jack Cafferty but I no longer get to see him because I can't STAND watching Fox light CNN.