CBS Campaigns For Couric
By Marisa Guthrie -- Broadcasting & Cable, 6/11/2007 12:48:00 AM
How low can Katie Couric go?
That was the question two weeks ago when CBS Evening News With Katie Couric suffered its worst audience totals in 20 years (5.5 million viewers). And that was 464,000 viewers fewer than the prior week’s all-time low. Season-to-date, the show is off 6% from a year ago, when anchor Bob Schieffer was improving the newscast’s ratings.
“It just takes time,” says Executive Producer Rick Kaplan.
CBS stands steadfastly behind its star and is working the angles. Kaplan hopes to get all of CBS’ 200-plus affiliates to go “seamless” between local news and Couric’s broadcast. (The owned-and-operated stations are already commercial-free between newscasts.)
“You don’t want to give viewers a chance to leave your network,” says Kaplan.
CBS News also will launch an “aggressive promotional campaign” this summer that includes a prominent online presence, although Kaplan declined to offer details. “You do all the things you can do,” he says. “We’re confident that, between the quality of our program and the strength of CBS, we’ll be able to not only hold our audience, but grow it. We’ve proved that we can have large audiences in the past. It’s a matter of bringing them back and keeping them.”
Couric debuted to an inflated 13.6 million viewers. But early sampling dissipated, and the newscast’s switch from a light, feature-heavy half-hour back to a more traditional, hard-news format has not stopped the rating hemorrhage.
A confluence of events has conspired to wreak havoc with evening-news ratings: early Daylight Saving Time, Iraq-war fatigue, audience fragmentation and online cannibalization.
CBS has endured considerable scrutiny, thanks in no small part to Couric’s celebrity status and $15 million salary.
“Obviously, it’s easy to highlight us simply because we’re in third,” says Kaplan. “So, that’s fine. But other people have even more severe problems, one might say.”
Indeed, NBC Nightly News With Brian Williams has lost a bigger percentage of its audience than Couric has, dropping 7% this season and being supplanted at No. 1 by ABC’s World News With Charles Gibson, which is up 3%. As Gibson has overcome some initial stiffness and grown comfortable in the anchor seat, World News is riding a 10-year high to become the most-watched nightly newscast, averaging 8.76 million viewers and a 2.2/9 among adults 25-54. It’s followed by NBC, with 8.63 million and the same demo rating. Nightly News endured its lowest ratings since the advent of people meters for the week ended May 18.
“If you take away the horse race and just take the three networks added together, the decline has been going on now for 30 years,” says Andrew Tyndall, who analyzes newscasts on the online Tyndall Report. That decline, he adds, “may be faster now than a couple years ago. But it’s not outside of the trend.”
News viewers, concedes Kaplan, “tend to be fairly loyal. But they also surf around, and a good program is going to catch their eye. I love our anchor, and I love our program.”
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I''''m a 38-year-old woman who hasn''''t watched "CBS Evening News" since Bob Schieffer left. He came across as a serious, seasoned journalist who was there for the sole purpose of deliving the news. With Couric, there''''s an overriding feeling of being the target of a marketing campaign. Well, it''''s had the opposite effect on this news watcher. I''''m not interested in playing along. I want the news--period.
Charleen,
Seattle, WA
Charleen - 6/13/2007 12:18:00 PM EDT -
The execs need to pop their pc bubble and get in touch with the true buying powers in America. Funny thing that, for the most part, women buy for their families. Did anyone else notice how many women are I-fans? Also, most men I know, fully understand that women can hold a grudge. So this isn't going to "go-away". Also, I no the "most important" demographic is 18-49. But understand how many grandmothers are fans. Matriarch's have amazing political power within the family. So you should be worried about that demographic also.
I wasn't suprised at the outrage of Imus' firing by men. I was, however, very enlightened to find that I was 1 amongst thousands of women who back Imus. Our buying power is staggering. I know I spend thousands a year to keep my family going. I also control the television. Direct tv has a great feature to block any stations not wanted. So, CBS and MSNBC are not even an option in our house. Sorry Katie and Brian. You happn to be on the wrong stations.
Georgia Rose - 6/13/2007 8:19:00 AM EDT -
When CBS and MSNBC fired Don Imus, without the slightest thought of the fans of the show, people stopped watching the entire network. As for me, I have not watched any program on MSNBC since the day in April Imus was fired. My daughter tells me that he has plenty of money and he will be fine, but it''s really me that I''m concerned about. I am furious that my favorite program was removed from the air in a matter of days and it was uncalled for, an over-reaction on the part of the executives at these networks. I don''t see myself getting over this until Imus is back.
arb - 6/12/2007 6:57:00 PM EDT -
With the awful treatment of Don Imus I will not watch CBS or NBC programming. Particularly, I will not watch Brian Williams. Whereas I had been a regular nightly news viewer for more than 30 years, I wouldn't turn it on now at gun point.
It is fascinating to watch Al Roker, whose sanctimonious behavior in the Imus matter was repulsive, now having his own words and the standards he helped set in the Imus matter being brought back to him.
JoeM - 6/12/2007 6:28:00 AM EDT -
I have not watched any NBC or CBS programming since Don Imus was unjustly fired. I can never look at Brian Williams or Al Roker again in the same way. This is easy as there are more than enough alternative news sources.
If Imus receives an apology from those who shunned him when threatened by Media Matters via Sharpton's hit men, then all will be forgiven.
If he is rehired by either NBC or CBS or both, those networks will be welcome in my home again.
Until then FOX, CNN, and ABC more than suffice.
cr - 6/11/2007 10:21:00 PM EDT
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