You know that and I know that, but it’s still fun to look at the numbers.
CNN was down double digits across the board in July. Compared to July 2011, the network is -20% in Total Viewers and -23% in A25-54 in Total Day. In primetime, CNN is down -23% in Total Viewers and -26% in the demographic.
The ratings for July 2012:
- Primetime (Mon-Sun): 488,000 Total Viewers / 149,000 A25-54
- Total Day (Mon-Sun): 355,000 Total Viewers / 109,000 A25-54
Wow, 355,000 total viewers for the day. That’s around the population of Bakersfield, California. Imagine if Bakersfield was designated the only place in the US where you could watch CNN, and if you were inside the 50-foot containment wall surrounding the city, you had to watch CNN. Then they’d drop Kurt Russell in there and make him escape.
One of CNN’s head honchos just quit last Friday, saying the organization needs “new leadership.” That might help. At this point, pretty much anything would. They could also stop doing crap like this:
Gratuitously insulting people for daring to disagree with you politically, and then claiming it was “unintentional,” might not be the best way to attract new viewers.
I’m amused by people who say CNN is in trouble because it’s too middle-of-the-road, too nonpartisan. The people who say that are invariably lefties. And I hope CNN listens to them, because I enjoy watching them fail.