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CNN Exec Reacts To Ratings Report

Don Irvine  —   December 18, 2009
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CNN is trying to make the best of a bad rating report for 2009.

CNN Worldwide president Jim Walton sent a year-end note to the CNN staff this morning thanking them for all their contributions. CNN, the original and for more than 15 years the only nationally recognized American news channel, has fallen behind in some key ratings measurements this year and has taken a beating in the press for it. But Walton rallied the troops laying out the company’s accomplishments: “Despite the worst economic climate in 75 years, CNN will finish 2009 with double-digit profit growth for the sixth consecutive year,” he writes, adding we “will end 2009 with more employees than we had at the start of the year.” And Walton gave credit where credit was due:

The re-branded HLN, which caught fire and is the year’s fastest-growing brand in cable news; the re-designed CNN.com, now with enhanced video and deeper news and brand offerings; and the re-imagined CNN International, featuring more analysis, connectivity, perspective and an entirely new prime time line-up.
As for CNN/U.S., Walton does not dwell on the challenges in primetime but points to the “memorable new chapters” in programs including CNN Heroes.

“The year ahead will bring challenges,” writes Walton, “some carried over from 2009 and others brand new.”

From: On Behalf Of Walton, Jim
Sent: Thursday, December 17, 2009 11:28 AM
Subject: Note to Staff

December 17, 2009

To: CNN Staff
From: Jim Walton

Because as professionals and as an organization we are wired to look forward rather than back; because time passes quickly and it’s easy to forget all of the moments that make a year; and because it’s just as important to savor accomplishments as it is to collect them, I want to close 2009 with a reminder of what you did that set CNN apart and helped us win.

First, some breaking news: Despite the worst economic climate in 75 years, CNN will finish 2009 with double-digit profit growth for the sixth consecutive year. Our collective commitment to cost management has helped us achieve our most profitable year ever. You did that. And it was hard. But you understood the importance to our future of weathering this storm and you did your part, and more, to see us through it.

We presented consumers with three compelling, new CNN experiences: the re-branded HLN, which caught fire and is the year’s fastest-growing brand in cable news; the re-designed CNN.com, now with enhanced video and deeper news and brand offerings; and the re-imagined CNN International, featuring more analysis, connectivity, perspective and an entirely new prime time line-up. I liken each of these efforts to changing the tires on a moving car. But you did it. Congratulations.

Our work on emerging platforms generated a new kind and level of buzz around the CNN brand. The Facebook partnerships, the iPhone app and an exponentially higher profile in the social media universe connected us to new audiences and had them talking to, with and about us. Great stuff. And again, all you.

This year we put proper emphasis on how we work with each other; invest in each other; learn from and listen to each other; translate it to our culture; and reflect it in our content. Our people initiatives added work to days that were already full and exercised muscles we’ve frankly neglected. But we’re better managers of people, resources and responsibilities today than we were a year ago, two years ago or five years ago. And it’s all your doing.

Fine-tuning our structure to reflect and support what we are now and will become, as opposed to what we used to be, continued across the CNN portfolio. We added staff in areas where we were thin and where we will grow, and will end 2009 with more employees than we had at the start of the year. Your judgment, planning and vision did that, too.

Finally, we continued to deliver the quality journalism that is the promise, signature and soul of CNN around the world. We brought 12 new CNN shows to air in 2009, an extraordinary feat in any year. Our colleagues at CNN/U.S. added memorable new chapters to the in America and CNN Heroes stories, and CNN journalists led from Iran and Iraq to Copenhagen and Mexico. But what’s really important to me is that we did work that was relevant, current, essential and valued; work that made a difference in peoples’ lives; and work that was worthy of the CNN imprimatur. I can’t give you a higher compliment than that. You did it, and you’ve earned it.

The year ahead will bring challenges, some carried over from 2009 and others brand new. I’m confident in our ability to meet what comes our way as long as we continue to think like owners, act like leaders and put good journalism first. I’ll promise you this: Whatever we do in 2010, we’ll do it together.

Enjoy the holidays. Remember the people who make your work life possible and your life meaningful. And be proud of your special contribution to CNN. I am grateful to each of you.

Walton is grasping at straws.  CNN finished dead last among the major cable news networks, even falling behind its sister network HLN (Headline News) in the all important 25-54 age demographic in prime time.  The network counters that they still attract more viewers than the other nets in a 24 hour period but that isn’t what advertisers care about.

CNN once the leader has lost its way and identity over the years and until they overhaul their primetime programming they will remain largely ignored and irrelevant.

Post #2511


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Don Irvine
Don Irvine is Chairman of Accuracy in Media. He is active on Facebook and Twitter. You can follow him @donirvine to read his latest thoughts.




10 Comments for CNN Exec Reacts To Ratings Report

Chris

Another sign that Time Warner’s ship is sinking fast.

Charles

Hopefully Turner will buy it back – and sink it further…

A.B

“Give the people what they want”
That seems to be lost in the ears of many media networks today!
Systematic manipulaion of news, events,politics and business with a deliberate slant in favor of a Liberal outlook is not washing well for the media today.
Lost are the days when a national imperative was paramount to a prosperous America.
Today the media narrative is global.
Who is minding the store at home?
Americans want a responsive media that demands jobs and industries at home for Americans. Not a lot of crap about saving the world from America foreign policy. We want to save America from the world that soaks up all our jobs and industries and then by unfair trade practices buys precious little from America. In turn these nations sell all their crap right back to America and the politicans, from both sides of the aisle, facilate this fleecing of America with the support of Major Corporations on Wall Street.
When will it end? When we have no more to give but our land and resources!
WAKE UP AMERICA !!!

Wesley in Dallas

The LameStream Media have become the State Run Media, truth no longer matters, hell…most of them get their news from the Marxist sites, which is not real news. Places such as the KOS, Huffington, Media Matters, and the other Marxists/Communists sites, and actually print their lies. What makes it worse is they do not even give credit to their sources.

They even refused to mention that the Copenhagen Climate Conference was a complete failure with massive delegates walking out, yet Obama offered U.S. Taxpayer money anyway…as though we have any left. However he committed a $100 Billion dollars to undeveloped nations

Obama had to leave Copenhagen early due to a winter storm, only to arrive in D.C. where they had between one to two feet of snow.

The newest polls (six of them were within a few points of each other) show the TEA Party movement now is up to 41% above Republicans and Conservatives.

Consultant

The major cable news outlets as well as the newspapers are largely making themselves irrelevant by not reporting much of the news that is widespread on the Internet and new media. For one example, the climate gate emails. The media has almost assumed a role as a sort of team player with the current administration sending a unified front message and in doing so has lost all credibility. People aren’t as shallow as the media moguls think they are. Well most aren’t anyway.

Wesley in Dallas

Hi Consultant,

Most Cable news watchers can easily be broken into groups:

Fox News:
Tea Party Group
Conservative
Republican
Moderate Dems

CNN:
Democrat
Liberal
Moderates

MSNBC:
Liberals
Marxists

Current TV New (Al Gore owned):
Liberals
Marxists

Fox was the ONLY news Chanel in which showed the Climate-Gate emails.

Of course, Jeffrey Immelt (former CEO of GE, who also owns NBC, MSNBC, and other cable channels), he still owns a part of GE and is still owner of NBC and MSNBC. The investigation against Immelt was killed quietly by Eric Holder for the electronic sales to Iran during a US/UN embargo.  Thanks to Fox News, we saw British G.E. shipping manifests to Iran for proprietary circuit boards, switches, radio frequency chips, and other banned electronics, after he was offered a job in the White House…not to mention he got G.E., and the two news stations part of our stimulus money.

Can we say “Conflict of Interest”?

http://www.climatedepot.com

The Major

To Wesley,# 6,,  ROGER THAT!!!!

Is there a court or a lawyer somewhere,such as the
World Court,(they’re always looking to screw some
American for some crime,somewhere)with the BALLS to bring Immelt up on charges of selling to a possibe nuclear threat ????  Eric Holder is a big
COWARD & a big LIAR (my opinion) He is also anti-
gun,  but if you searched his car or apt. or his home, I’ll bet you my next pension check that he has got one,,registered or NOT registered,which he’ll say is for home protection, but he’ll say YOU can’t own one. I know I’m off topic,please forgive, but the mention of his name makes me want to, as the kids say”BLOW CHUNKS”,,‘cause HE is protecting ME???? Holder will blame the “vast right wing conspiracy” if Iran builds a bomb & kills millions,never GE or any of BHO’s Commie friends.
Thank GOD for Fox News,,,without them, we would probably be left in the dark,except for Left-wing causes. I pray that nothing ever happens to them.

Wesley in Dallas

Major,

I wish the World Court could take action against Immelt, but I seriously doubt it as long as he is associated with BHO…American or not.

Holder began his career as a corrupt Trial Lawyer, we all know that Leopards cannot change their spots, I still see him as a common criminal who uses the Justice System as a tool to manipulate everything which is right…worse than pond scum. I am sure you have noticed that he refuses to explain his rulings and actions. I cannot stand even looking at him, showing his arrogance and false sense of superiority.

This administration has tried many times to discredit Fox News, which only serves to increase their viewership…which is why they want to bring back the Fairness in Media act.

During Bush’s first term, they tried their own version of Fairness in Media, the opposite of what the Leftists want, it kept being filibustered.

Fox News is actually getting stronger,their viewership is not only up dramatically, but 40% of the audience are now Moderate Democrats, many now setting on the fence and leaning to the right.

Murdoch is also wanting to create a national news to compete with the Big Three News. It would be mandatory on all Local Fox Channels, I think they need to step up the urgency on getting that done. My vote would be for Brit Hume to come out of semi-retirement to start the show, given his success when he was with ABC News, another possibility would be Chris Wallace, but he is not showing much interest in a late broadcast.

Fox also owns Europe’s Sky News, Fox TV, Fox NFL is the #1 Pre/Post game show on any network. And they do not want to mess around with 21st Century FOX movie studios.

I do applaud your post!

Consultant

Wesley, thanks for the link to climate depot. That site is a good aggregate of this type information. I think your breakdown of the media outlets was dead on right as well. Fox is in position to do very well. I think they could compete well with the big three on a national news level. Really, maybe the “big three” is an expired term now. Maybe the designation is more of a historical one. People are quickly losing faith in the traditional big three media. But, it is because they have made themselves irrelevant by becoming more like glorified tabloids than actual news outlets. Actually Fox seems right leaning, but some of this is probably due to the fact that they are the only domestic major outlet that will even cover some types of news right now.

Wesley in Dallas

Thanks guys, you all contribute as much as anyone, we are all in this together.

As for as Fox leaning Right, that is much more true of the Entertainment shows; Beck, Hannity, O’Reilley and such…but the real news shows during the day, America’s News Room, Happening Now, The Live Desk, Special Report, Sheppard Smith…they seem right leaning only due to the fact that they report on the things the Lame Stream Media refuses to cover, otherwise they are almost completely fair.

When a subject comes up, where they have a prominent Democrat/Liberal and a Conservative, the Anchor just asks questions, and disallows either from hogging all the time in a segment, but no commentary from the Anchors themselves.

IF the Health Care Bill gets passed through Conference, the last chance to stop the Bill, the sad thing is, the money will be spent at passage. However, it will be almost four years before Health Care actually goes into effect, this protects Obama, since there is a good chance he will not be President at the time it happens. The Liberals and Media will them put the blame on the Republicans, should they gain seats in both Houses, and a Republican President.

No one can rely on the Media (Other than Fox) to talk about the truth of ObamaCare, or its consequences. The majority of American Democrat voters have no idea what is in store for them…






 
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