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Home Front: Politix
Drudge : Rather Ratings in Tank
2004-09-16
XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX THU SEPT 16, 2004 11:42:09 ET XXXXX

CBS EXECS CONCERN OVER VIEWERSHIP PLUNGE; RATHER RATINGS FADE IN MAJOR MARKETS

CBS executives on both coasts have become concerned in recent days that Dan Rather's EVENING NEWS broadcast has plunged in the ratings since the anchor presented questionable documents about Bush's National Guard service.

NIELSEN numbers released this week show Rather fading and trailing his rivals in every Top 10 city, other than San Francisco, with audience margins in some cities running more than 6 to 1 against CBS!

Executives fear many voters inclined to vote for Bush are now switching off Rather.

"The audience appears to becoming polarized," a top CBS source said from LOS ANGELES on Thursday. "Rightly or wrongly, we're being perceived as 'anti-Bush,' which I do not think is fair to Dan, who is a fine journalist... of course we do not like to see the ratings coming back the way they are this week."

In Philadelphia, the nation's #4 market, Rather pulled a 2.6 rating/5 share on Tuesday night against ABC's 13.3 rating/23 share and NBC's 4.0/7.

In Chicago, Rather hit a 2.3/5 to ABC's 9.2/20.

CBS trailed ABC by more than 2 to 1 in Los Angeles.

And in the nation's top market, New York, Rather finished not only behind NBC NIGHTLY NEWS and ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT -- but also pulled less audience than reruns of the SIMPSONS, WILL & GRACE and KING OF QUEENS.

Rather finished dead last in New York during the 6:30 pm timeslot among all broadcast channels tracked by NIELSEN on Tuesday.

Developing...
Posted by:BigEd

#20  (CBS)Executives fear many voters inclined to vote for Bush are now switching off Rather

Shows how out of touch CBS is. Only Democrats without cable watched CBS. Voters inclined to vote for Bush watch Fox.
Posted by: RWV   2004-09-16 10:44:53 PM  

#19  BigEd, LOL!

ouch!
Posted by: cingold   2004-09-16 4:32:55 PM  

#18  

Bush in Air Force Training



Dan Rather in Marine Boot Camp Sick Bay

Posted by: BigEd   2004-09-16 4:20:24 PM  

#17  Next on Sixty Minutes II: Dan Rather announces "I am not a crook."
Posted by: Dave D.   2004-09-16 4:19:57 PM  

#16  What they should have done:

The Sixty Minutes II story on the Killian memos recently provided to CBS News failed to meet the reporting standards that have made CBS the world's leader in news reporting over the last fifty years. The producer, reporter and others involved with the development of the story have been reprimanded. CBS News continues to pursue with vigor the facts of the story and will report on those facts when our reportage and research meets our established standards.
Posted by: Chuck Simmins   2004-09-16 4:00:45 PM  

#15  Dan Rather, who is going with the flow in his watertight canoe while lecturing us ill informed and ignorant peasants on the shore, has a problem. He is about to head over a big assed waterfall with big assed rocks at the bottom. We're grounded and he is not.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2004-09-16 3:55:56 PM  

#14  Jim K: #4 "which I do not think is fair to Dan, who is a fine journalist..." Wow, this is a news flash to me.

"Yeah, and we have the documents to prove he's a fine journalist hot off the press!"
Posted by: BA   2004-09-16 3:46:52 PM  

#13  Rathergate.com purports to share your message with Viacom's top 50 shareholders.

Be polite but firm. :)
Posted by: eLarson   2004-09-16 3:17:17 PM  

#12  I'm with Mrs. D. here. I've watched 60 Mins twice recently for the first time in years just to see the old news weasel squirm.

As someone old enough to have actually used typewriters, both manual and electric and to remember back when CBS was a brand name in news, I can't believe that
a) they fell for this lame forgery in the first place and
b) they haven't bailed out on the story yet.

One thing modern spinmeisters teach is that you have to get out ahead of the story. Yes, we were fooled, internal investigations underway, we'll do better next time, blah, blah, blah. The only reason I can see for hanging on to their position is that the consequences of revealing sources and motives would far, far outweigh the temporary egg-on-the-face of a retraction.
Posted by: SteveS   2004-09-16 2:24:07 PM  

#11  Executives fear many voters inclined to vote for Bush are now switching off Rather.

While my only CBS fare is Letterman, I now make doubly sure to avoid ol' Danny Rather(Not). I'm almost inclined to delete the local CBS station from my TV's active channel list...
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama   2004-09-16 2:16:36 PM  

#10  (CBS)Executives fear many voters inclined to vote for Bush are now switching off Rather.
AH yes, voters in those right wing political bastions -- Chicago, New York and Los Angeles-- are switching to anyone but Rather.
Posted by: GK   2004-09-16 1:30:11 PM  

#9  Gotta know when to holdem, Dan
and know when to fold them...

Viacom board of directors members will put a stop to this madness when the ratings numbers gets put through accounting.

A "creative" network exec would find a way of getting Dan into tonights first episode of Survivor and have him be the first voted off the island in a classic plot twist... The ratings would be through the roof I tell ya!
Posted by: Capsu78   2004-09-16 1:23:39 PM  

#8  Not to worry, Dan will keep forging on.
Posted by: Bill Nelson   2004-09-16 1:19:33 PM  

#7  True, true.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis   2004-09-16 12:43:51 PM  

#6  Mrs D. : You tuned into Danny Delerious for ENTERTAINMENT VALUE, not the news, right?

Different Demographic...
Posted by: BigEd   2004-09-16 12:42:43 PM  

#5  Shows what a contrarian I am. I tuned Dan in this week for the first time in 25 years.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis   2004-09-16 12:29:07 PM  

#4  "which I do not think is fair to Dan, who is a fine journalist..."

Wow, this is a news flash to me.
Posted by: Jim K   2004-09-16 12:26:39 PM  

#3  Cannot underestimate the powerful draw of old Simpsons reruns. A daily ritual at my house.
Posted by: nada   2004-09-16 12:18:21 PM  

#2  

And in the nation’s top market, New York, Rather finished not only behind NBC NIGHTLY NEWS and ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT -- but also pulled less audience than reruns of the SIMPSONS...

Posted by: BigEd   2004-09-16 12:15:17 PM  

#1  One has to add that he is only holding his own in (ha ha ha ha ha) San Francisco (Gag gag gag)
Posted by: BigEd   2004-09-16 12:11:42 PM  

00:00