Wednesday, May 04, 2005
A bump for 'Zahn' and boost for CNN
Source: Media Life "Paula Zahn Now" had been a major drag on CNN's primetime lineup since its 2003 launch. But recent tweaks to the show helped it to its best-ever numbers in April, and that in turn is helping CNN catch up to longtime primetime leader Fox News Channel.
In April, the 8 p.m. show had its best-ever month, averaging 760,000 total viewers, up 32 percent from September 2003, its premiere month. Among 25-54s, “Zahn” averaged 252,000 viewers last month, up 42 percent from its debut. Now Zahn is no longer weighing down the night with her low numbers. Add that to increased ratings for 10 p.m.'s "NewsNight" after the pope's death, and CNN got a generous boost in its effort to close the primetime gap with Fox News.
In April, CNN posted gains among 25-54s compared with the same month last year while Fox News saw declines. It was the first time in months that CNN has gained while FNC fell.
In that demo, CNN cut Fox’s lead by almost half, growing 25 percent, from 222,000 in April 2004 to 277,000 last month, while Fox News suffered a 24 percent drop, from 502,000 to 383,000.
Meanwhile, CNN’s total viewers in primetime grew by 6 percent last month compared to April 2004, from 839,000 to 893,000. Fox News grew by 1 percent, to 1.5 million.
Last month’s upsurge in ratings came as Jon Klein, the CNN chief installed last December, revamps the network. Klein wants more in-depth reporting and what he calls better storytelling.
That has included changes to the network’s primetime lineup. Aaron Brown’s “NewsNight” now favors a focus on one big story while Zahn’s show has concentrated on more personal stories.
The adjustments are working so far. Last month Brown’s 10 p.m. “NewsNight” too scored his best ratings since the height of the Iraqi war in April 2003.
# posted by ATN @ 10:17 PM 
