Friday, November 05, 2004

Opportunity

cable ratings from drudge:

FOXNEWS O'REILLY 4.5 [SHARE]
FOXNEWS HANNITY/COLMES 4.0
FOXNEWS SHEP SMITH 2.7
FOXNEWS GRETA 2.4
CNN LARRY KING 1.5
CNN ZAHN 1.2
CNN AARON BROWN 1.2
CNN COOPER 0.9
MSNBC HARDBALL 0.8
MSNBC OLBERMANN 0.6
MSNBC SCARBOROUGH 0.7


CNN's management believes they need to move farther right to steal Fox's viewers. MSNBC's management thinks they need to stay right to gain viewers who think CNN is too liberal. Of course, the only thing even coming close to resembling a liberal is Olbermann, who is hardly a partisan.

Both have an opportunity. Will either recognize it? Doubtful... in part, because neither company, Time Warner and General Electic, makes decisions purely on what is profitable for their cable news network subdivisions...