CNN's falling ratings

Why has the first 24-hour news network dropped to last place in the prime-time ratings?

CNN hit a new low in the ratings this month as its prime-time shows finished fourth -- and last -- among the cable news networks. CNN executives said the important thing was that the network still beat its sister network HNL (formerly Headline News) and MSNBC over the whole day -- trailing only Fox News. Why is CNN, which invented the 24-hour cable news channel two decades ago, suddenly struggling?

Viewers want opinionated screaming, not news: CNN is being punished, said Adam K. Raymond in New York magazine, "for airing 'news' while Fox, MSNBC, and HLN put on lunatics screaming at the camera." Larry King Live was the only CNN show that didn't finish "dead last" during the 7 to 10 p.m. slot -- and King only managed a third place finish ahead of HLN's Joy Behar. Clearly, the old formula is no longer working for "the originator of 24-hour news."

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