CableNewser: CNN, FOX, MSNBC, and why they matter

FOX & The Flip Flop: Reader Feedback
"Why aren't the other networks reporting the story?," I asked. I had a couple of answers in my head, and the e-mails that poured in reaffirmed my guess. A sample:

> "It has to make you wonder," Spud says. "Think about all the briefings that reporters get on a daily basis. And Jim Angle just happened to remember this one that Clarke gave several years ago? It doesn't pass the smell test."
> John: "Perhaps the others are hoping if they don't do like FOX, they'll be seen as sticking to a bargain and protecting a source. Perhaps they're hoping that because of this, there's a lot of people in D.C. who are suddenly going to stop speaking to FOX on background but that will speak to those who didn't break 'the rules.'"
> Daily Pundit has a more political prediction
> It's the topic of a long Lucianne thread 6:08:54 PM

Larry King Can't Keep Isikoff, Weiskopf Straight
Last night on CNN, Larry King confused his guest Michael Isikoff with recently-wounded Time correspondent Michael Weiskopf. Here's the transcript: (Thanks Lucianne!)

KING: Before we get to our discussion, a quick discussion for Michael Isikoff. How are you doing physically?
MICHAEL ISIKOFF, "NEWSWEEK": I'm doing fine.
(LAUGHTER)
KING: Well, you lost what...
ISIKOFF: Why do you ask?
KING: Because you were injured.
ISIKOFF: No, no, no. I'm sorry. You're thinking of my -- of Michael Weiskopf "Time" magazine.
KING: Oh. OK.
(CROSSTALK)
KING: ... mixed up...
ISIKOFF: We've been confused for years.
KING: ... but you're well.
ISIKOFF: But I'm fine, yes. 3:17:29 PM

R&TCA;: MSNBC's "famous chocolate fountain"
Dominic defends the MSNBC post-party (Wonkette said it "sucked") in the newsletter today: "MSNBC was the only one with the famous chocolate fountain...Who really needs a dance floor & vodka bar anyway? It's actually funny watching stiff Washingtonians dance in their formal wear. We're not really into that kind of thing. Nonetheless, Washington's media/political establishment were doing their best to get their groove on." 3:16:13 PM

The R&TCA; After-Parties: Wonkette Recaps
Wonkette sums up the R&TCA; dinner after-parties:
MSNBC's party: "Sucked."
CNN's party: "Red-velvet disco-themed with lots of sweets and even hors d'oeuvres." CNN shot glasses. (If one pops up on eBay, I'll be the first to bid.)
FOX's party: "Fantastic production values. Studio 54-themed, everything white disco-themed." Five bars. 3:15:01 PM

R&TCA; Dinner: Newsies Descended on D.C.
Greta didn't go to the dinner last night, but has photos of her colleagues who did. "As all my colleagues dressed for the party at the D.C. bureau after doing their work yesterday, I began to feel like the presidential cabinet member during the State of the Union who is told not to attend in case of a national catastrophe," she says on GretaWire. Linda Vester showed photos from last night's dinner at the end of Dayside, and MSNBC replayed Bush's controversial WMD jokes... 3:13:59 PM

EXCLUSIVE: Mitchell, Plante, Moran Were At 2002 Clarke Briefing
A source at FOX News tells CableNewser that NBC's Andrea Mitchell, CBS's Bill Plante, ABC's Terry Moran, and an (unnamed) CNN correspondent were also in attendance at the 2002 Dick Clarke briefing that Jim Angle reported on yesterday afternoon. "The White House lifted the ban for all the media that were in that Aug 2002 briefing, not just Fox News," the source says. So I'm left wondering: Why aren't the other networks reporting the story?
> Update: DCRTV Dave notes that Rush Limbaugh repeated this info around 1pm
> Update: (3:20pm) The correspondents have ignored my e-mails so far... 12:31:10 PM

FOX & The Flip Flop: Froomkin Calls WH Decision "Extraordinary"
The Post's Dan Froomkin calls the White House decision to identity Clarke as the briefing's source "extraordinary." "Okay, students of the White House, what did we learn yesterday?," he writes. "1) Senior administration officials can make remarks on a not-for-attribution basis to the press -- but the White House can later decide to make the attribution public if it can help discredit said senior administration official-turned-whistle-blower." 12:20:06 PM

What CNNers Were Whispering At Their Party Last Night
An excerpt from ABC's Note: "Seen at the RTCA dinner: ...That CNN party...and the whispers of many CNNers...wondering whether, if their company spent a quarter of that money on, say, keeping excellent correspondents, Mike Boettcher would still be breaking stories. 12:07:55 PM

Onion Spoof Fools MSNBC: Deborah Norville Reports Fake Study
MSNBC reported a federal study commissioned by ... The Onion. That's what the Tallahassee Democrat reports today. "MSNBC got gigged last week when Deborah Norville reported a federal study that supposedly said 58 percent of all exercise done in the United States occurs in those TV infomercials for body-sculpting workout machines. But the story was a spoof from The Onion, a satirical newspaper and online publication. The network said it inadvertently dropped the attribution in picking up the story, but c'mon - most of the exercise done in America is on TV? Shouldn't somebody in the control room have said, "Hey, wait just a minute..." Yes, somebody should have.
(Update: 'CNwatcher' writes in to note that FOX News Watch reported on this last weekend...) 11:11:20 AM

Keith Olbermann: "I'm a Jeopardy geek"
This "Power Players" week of Jeopardy is going to be a lot of fun. "The contestants are already trash-talking their rivals and planning their strategies," the NY Post reports, quoting Keith Olbermann: "It's all about buzzer control." He calls himself a Jeopardy geek." Adam Buckman writes that "CNN's Cooper says he's already 'panic-stricken' since his show, 'Anderson Cooper 360,' goes up against 'Jeopardy!' at 7 p.m. weeknights - making it nearly impossible for Cooper to practice playing." Anderson, you're a pop culture whiz -- don't you have Tivo? 11:11:18 AM

Quote of the day
The Foreign Policy Association interviews former NYT UN bureau chief Barbara Crossette, and asks: When you go to Europe and watch CNN, for example, you get the international edition, and the quality seems much higher…So why don't we get that here?" She says: "I asked Ted Turner himself, and I've asked people at CNN here as well. Turner said that you can see some of it here and there. I've been told, and Turner didn't say this, but I've been told that it is just a lack of commercial interest in this country. CNN reporters have told me that whenever the subject is raised, the CNN business side simply says that they can't sell that here to American cable, people just aren't interested." 11:03:11 AM

R&TCA; Dinner Wrap-up
The Post goes star-gazing at last night's Radio & Television Correspondents' Association dinner. Unfortunately, the story seems a bit preoccupied with Donald Trump and Dick Clarke. But go ahead, read it anyway... 11:03:02 AM

FOX & The Flip Flop: Jim Angle Defends Report
David Folkenflik asks Jim Angle for comment about the Clarke flip flop report: "Yesterday, Angle got permission from the Bush administration to broadcast the remarks and to use Clarke's name. 'We asked them to lift the rules, and for obvious reasons, they did,' Angle said." Jim adds that "I can't think of any reason why we wouldn't have used this when his criticism in his book received so much other attention." 11:02:37 AM

FOX & The Flip Flop: WH "violated its long-standing rules"
Dana Milbank gives the FOX bombshell heavy play on the front page of the Washington Post Thursday morning. He says the transcript was "released by the White House yesterday through Fox News," then notes Kerrey's objections. "Shortly before the hearing, the White House violated its long-standing rules by authorizing Fox News to air remarks favorable to Bush that Clarke had made anonymously at an administration briefing in 2002." What is Dana suggesting? That's the only story I've heard that points out the WH's "long-standing rules..." 12:12:26 AM

CNN E.P. Out: Rumor: "He likes blonde and blue eyed..."
This post at TVSpy is just one person's opinion, but it makes you wonder...: "Good thing CNN chose to do something about Miller's constant hitting on pretty young things. Complaints were rampant at GMA that he did the same but HR at ABC means nothing...Miller even hit on one of [Shelly] Ross's many ex-assistants and this became a part of her decision to leave. He likes blonde and blue eyed and preferably smack out of college. Family man of three girls he ain't!" True? False? It's out there... 11:07:40 PM

FOX, MSNBC Air Bush's Funny Side
FOX and MSNBC dipped into President Bush's funny speech at the Radio & Television Correspondents Dinner tonight. It came at the end of Debbie (Dan) Tonight and H&C.; MSNBC.com was wise enough to air his speech online, too. CNN was too busy letting Dick Clarke explain himself to Larry King... 11:04:38 PM

Media Notes: Let's Play Jeopardy!
> Bill Press has finished his anti-Bush book
> "I lapsed into rude," Dennis Miller admits
> Banfield, Brown, Carlson, Cooper, and Olbermann will play Jeopardy 10:18:04 PM

FOX & The Flip Flop: Transcript of Bob Kerrey's Remarks
Here are Bob Kerrey's remarks about FOX today, in their entirety:

"Let me also say this document that FOX News earlier -- this transcript that they have -- this is a background briefing, and all of us that have provided background briefings for the press before should beware. Uh, FOX should say occasionally fair and balanced after putting something like this out, because they violated a serious trust. [Loud applause.] All of us, all of us that come into this kind of an environment and provide background briefings for the press, I think we'll always have this as a reminder that sometimes it isn't gonna happen -- that it's background. Sometimes, if it suits their interest, they're gonna go back, pull the tape, convert it into transcript, and set it out in the public arena and try to embarrass us or discredit us. So I, uh uh, I object to what they've done, and I think it's an unfortunate thing they did." 9:46:00 PM

FOX & The Flip Flop: Newsroom "Broke out into gasps [and] chuckles"
An employee at FOX writes in with reaction from the channel's headquarters: "When Bob Kerrey made remarks about Fox News, the newsroom at FNC's New York HQ broke out into gasps, chuckles and a few ooooohhhhs," the source says... 7:37:03 PM

FOX & The Flip Flop: Angle Was Justified, Blogger Says
The Corner dissects the FOX flap. "In Kerrey's angry diatribe against Fox News he made it sound as if Fox was betraying an agreement with Richard Clarke. If that's the case, then Fox has made a mistake...However that doesn't seem to be the case," Jonah Goldberg writes. A veteran journalist replies to him, saying that "Clarke's background comments were on background at the request of the administration, not Clarke personally. The White House has every right to waive the claim, FOX has every right to ask them to waive the claim, and FOX has every moral and ethical justification to run with the story once the claim is waived. Case closed." 7:30:36 PM

FOX & The Flip Flop: Jim Angle Clarifies WH Permission
MK has a note from Brit's 'Special Report' tonight: "Just heard Angle with Brit defending the use of the backgrounder. He said the original conversation was background only at the insistence of the NSC, not Clarke. And it was the NSC who lifted the restrictions today, so they got permission from the same agency that had denied permission originally. Of course that doesn't address the question of whether it's a good thing for the government to do that, but it does seem to me that Kerrey is off base dissing FNC--is he saying that it's wrong for the press to want to put information out to the public and they shouldn't even ask to do so?" 6:46:32 PM

FOX & The Flip Flop: Off The Record, Then On
"Clark Contradictions Leave Many Questions," FOXNews.com says. Snippet: "Clarke gave the briefing on background, a normal procedure where reporters agree to identify him as a senior administration official. On Wednesday, the White House approved attributing the comments to Clarke by name." It leads one TVSpyer asking a lot of questions: "Did Fox violate a confidence by reporting the remarks, or are the remarks "owned" by the White House? Will government sources be as willing to speak off the record if they know that later, someone else can put their comments ON the record?"... 5:28:05 PM

FOX & The Flip Flop: Scott McClellan's Comments
Scott McClellan addressed the Clarke Flip Flop controversy during his afternoon press briefing:

Q: So why did you decide to out him, as the background briefer?
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't think that's a correct -- I disagree with the premise of your question, because it was Fox News who yesterday came to us and said they had a tape of this conversation with Mr. Clarke.
Q: Wait, wait, wait, wait -- but it was on background. I've got tapes with plenty of people speaking on background. Can I go and tell the world who they are?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, and I think that we always listen to your request when you come to us and ask if something can be put on the record. And there are times when we are able to fulfill those requests. You are very well aware of some of those times. In fact, after Fox News was able to air this, we reached out to other members of the media, including yourself, I believe, to let you know that you could go back and use this information on the record. 5:26:28 PM

FOX & The Flip Flop: "Occasionally fair and balanced," Kerrey Says
During the 9/11 hearings today, Senator Bob Kerrey objected to FOX's decision to air statements made on background. Some people in the audience applauded the senators' comments. "[We] came in for some criticism from Bob Kerrey, who chastised us for coming out with these comments," David Asman said around 5:15pm. The network's decision to release the transcript of a background briefing is the topic of a hot debate on TVSpy... 5:02:49 PM

9/11 Hearings: "The main event"
FOX's Alert banner has been up for hours today: The 9/11 hearings are in day two, and the nearly wall-to-wall coverage is continuing. Cable's hype about the Clarke testimony convinced me to sit in front of the tube this afternoon. Miles O'Brien called it "the main event;" Linda Vester promised that "sparks will fly." FOX interrupted at 2pm for a Wendell Goler hit from pebble beach. He reported on "Clarke's flip flop," and played the audio tip again. 2:07:34 PM

Reese Schonfeld's Last Advice For CNN
Reese Schonfeld is giving up. "This is the last bit I intend to write about CNN," the former CNN exec writes on his blog. "I find it both painful and futile." He offers two final pieces of advice: "CNN should immediately turn Headline News into twenty-minute wheel," and "CNN must revert to news flow." Thank you for your insightful comments, Reese; they will be missed... 1:49:19 PM

Last Week's News Viewer Index
Cynopsis has the news viewer index for March 15 to 21. In total day, "Fox News had 51% of the viewing, CNN 26%, MSNBC 13%; and Headline News 10%." In primetime, "Fox News had 55%, CNN 29%, MSNBC 10% and Headline News 6%." 1:48:48 PM

Clarke Contradicts Himself? "Only on FOX"
"Only on FOX," the graphic said. "Tape shows Richard Clarke earlier praised Bush [administration]." Jim Angle reported from D.C. on an audio tape of Clarke speaking to reporters in August of 2002. David Asman called it a "real bombshell."
The transcript is on FOXNews.com, and that's where it gets interesting. This audio tape was "cleared by the White House on Wednesday for distribution," the site says. At the time, it was a background briefing, so Clarke was just a "senior administration official." But now when it benefits the White House, it's okay to name names.
Also: MK writes in to note that lots of other journalists were at the session, yet "none of them chooses to remember Clarke's statements except Jim Angle of FOX." 12:22:04 PM

Rick Kaplan: "News ought to be the ultimate reality show, but it's not"
MSNBC prez Rick Kaplan spoke at Duke University last night. He said that when news is treated as entertainment, important issues are overlooked. "News ought to be the ultimate reality show, but it's not," he said a group of 50 people. "When news tries to do something it's not... they get themselves into trouble." Quoting the school paper: "He cited as an example his decision to ban MSNBC from airing car chases in progress." Keep this quote in mind when watching MSNBC in the next few years: "The idea of delivering the news is a time-honored profession--important for the country--and we're not going to let it slip away." 12:17:36 PM

Laci Peterson Case "has gotten more press than O.J."
Is the judge in the Laci Peterson case predicting the future? "This case has gotten more press than O.J. Simpson or Charles Manson," he said in court yesterday. Already? You ain't seen nothin yet, pal. Yesterday, he denied a media request to release juror information, saying that they "would be in the newspapers or on the Internet or on Greta Van Susteren by tonight." The NY Post sums it up... 12:12:54 PM

MSNBC.com Finds New Partner For Sponsored Links
Paid search listings provider Kanoodle.com will be supplying news site MSNBC.com with content-targeted sponsored links, the companies are expected to announce Wednesday," Clickz reports. Here is the press release. (Hat tip: LostRemote) 12:11:27 PM

R&TCA; Dinner: Greenspan at CNBC Table, Trump with FOX
Leiby's WP column today has a couple interesting tidbits about tonight's Radio & Television Correspondents' Association: Alan Greenspan will be seated with Alan Murray and John McEnroe at the CNBC table ("Maybe Greenspan will teach McEnroe what CNBC is all about," Murray remarks); and Donald Trump will be the "hot guest" at the FOX News table. 12:11:02 PM

CNN E.P. Out: Suspended for "Inexperience and inappropriate comments"
The NY Post's Page Six picks up on the Jim Miller resignation. The CNN E.P. was suspended yesterday: "...Sources said his inexperience and inappropriate comments to colleagues were enough for him to be put on probation," Richard Johnson writes. Here's more... 11:53:35 AM

Quote of the day: What is "fair and balanced?"
Greta explains "fair and balanced" in a fascinating blog post today. "Fair and balanced is not a mathematical formula. It is also not whether you agree with the guest, or whether you agree with the line of questioning. It is whether the news gets presented in such a way that a fair minded person can get all the facts and draw the appropriate conclusion based on the facts." She says she gets lots of e-mails about the subject, and that "for a given guest, or a given topic, I will get e-mails criticizing me simultaneously for being too conservative and too liberal." "How can that be?," she asks... 9:51:27 PM

CJR's Critique of Cavuto's Questioning
Neil Cavuto interviewed Wesley Clark yesterday, and referenced the peculiar release date of Dick Clarke's book five times. "Cavuto has every right to ask tough questions about Clarke's motivations; he'd be remiss as an interviewer if he failed to do so. But it might be more useful if he asked those questions of Clarke, not Clark. And if he also, along the way, paused to inform his viewers as to the precise nature of Clarke's critique of the administration's anti-terrorism efforts...Then he could claim to be engaged in journalism." Ouch... 9:50:45 PM

"It's All Relative:" MSNBC Spreads Abercrombie Shirt Scandal
MSNBC picked up the Drudge/Wonkette item about A&F;'s "It's All Relative" t-shirt. It was the topic of a segment this afternoon, and popped up again on Deborah Norville Tonight (Abrams substituting). WV Gov. Bob Wise appeared, and called it "almost character assassination." He urged Abercrombie to "simply admit you're wrong." "Maybe we can work together to design a funny t-shirt that will have a positive image of [my state]," he said optimistically. Ha ha. The shirt is on backorder -- is that due to sales, or WV's pressure?...
9:44:13 PM

"Thunderously loud" explosion at Sheraton; FOX crew "shaken up"
A rocket-propelled grenade hit the Sheraton Hotel in Baghdad around 8:10pm ET. At 8:34pm, Steve Centanni reported live on FOX from their camera position at the targeted hotel. "[This] is where our FOX News crew is living and working," he said. The rocket hit the sixth floor -- two floors above the FOX team. "Nobody was injured, damage appears to be minor," he said, but "all of us are a little bit shaken up." He noted that this is the fourth time the Sheraton has been hit. On CNN, Walter Rodgers called the explosions "thunderously loud." (CNN has headquarters is across the street.) 8:39:30 PM

Explosions in Baghdad; Hotel Occupied by FOX Hit
CNN is reporting that several loud explosions have been heard in Baghdad. At 8:26pm, Paula Zahn said that two missiles may have hit the Sheraton Hotel. According to reports last winter, FOX News occupies the fourth floor of the Sheraton... 8:28:14 PM

CNN E.P. Out: Leaving Behind Disappointing Ratings
Did CNN's pathetic primetime ratings contribute to Jim Miller's exit? Anderson and Paula hardly ever get close to a 1.0. Anderson's attempts to woo young viewers have not succeeded. His FOX competitor Shep earned a 1.7 last night (4x 360's usual ratings), and Paula's challenger Bill O'Reilly scored a huge 2.7... 8:01:53 PM

CNN E.P. Out: Princell's Memo to Staff
FTVLive now has the memo Princell put out today. "Until a replacement has been named, current show staff will continue to work on both Anderson Cooper 360 and Paula Zahn Now with close guidance from myself and Sue Bunda," he writes. Get the rest at FTV. 7:49:26 PM

Resignation: '360,' 'Zahn Now' Executive Producer Is Gone
Jim Miller, the senior executive producer of Anderson Cooper 360 and Paula Zahn Now, has resigned, "effective immediately." FTVLive reports that he informed his New York staff today. A poster on TVSpy suggested that he "got the ax," but the details aren't clear yet. Miller was brought in last year to renovate CNN's 7 to 9pm schedule. He's 46, a Harvard Business School grad, and a television vet who most recently served as a consultant to GMA. His shows premiered only six (and a half) months ago... 7:47:50 PM

9/11 Hearings: The Reason CNN Covered It Constantly
A statement from CNN, following a request from CableNewser: "The testimony we saw today from current and former senior US officials regarding September 11th and events leading up to it was, in many ways, unprecedented and of great concern to many Americans. While we certainly covered other news as it developed these hearings were, without a doubt, the top story of the day." (Emphasis added.) 5:34:56 PM

9/11 Hearings: "A lot of coulda, woulda, shoulda"
"A lot of coulda, woulda, shoulda today," Lester Holt said // Wolf Blitzer called the developments "dramatic" // CNN and MSNBC both noted that Condi Rice still won't agree to testify in public // "The dividing line seems to be, the Clinton administration...did not believe Iraq was at the bottom of things, and the Bush administration did," John Gibson said on FOX... 5:33:10 PM

9/11 Hearings: Careful With Your Big-Screen TVs
MK writes in with a warning: "Back during the Clinton impeachment, I got a shadow of the Fox News logo burned into my big-screen TV. But I did write FNC and suggest that they do something about this problem. They did: you'll notice the Fox logo constantly turns, and the live bug changes every second or two, so all the pixels are 'rested' regularly. Comparing today I see that CNN and A-Mess-NBC still have [stationary] station logos and live bugs...You'd think they'd be savvy enough to know better!" Uh-oh, should I turn off those two sets for a few minutes?... 5:32:34 PM

9/11 Hearings: Not Wall-to-Wall On FOX
The cries of bias erupted on the message boards this morning when FOX "hardly broadcast Albright's testimony," but let Colin Powell speak without interruption. "How's that playing it straight?," 'Spud' asks in an e-mail. But without a doubt, FOX will win the ratings today, since they didn't go wall-to-wall with the hearings. "...When the ratings and revenue numbers come in, FOX will have their cake and eat it too due to stupid business decisions of its competitors," Cableguy says at TVHeads... 5:01:42 PM

9/11 Hearings: A History Lesson
A post on TVSpy, under the title "Something you'd never see today:" "In 1966, Fred Friendly abruptly resigned as President of CBS News when the network chose to air I Love Lucy reruns instead of the Senate Hearings on Vietnam. What executive would act on his principles today?" 5:00:21 PM

9/11 Hearings: "Shame on FOX," Dauber Says
"Shame on FOX," Cori Dauber writes. "...At least as of now, MS and CNN are airing the 9/11 hearings live. I think the "hype" in this case, for once, lives up to the the event...Unless there's one hell of a breaking story it's hard to know what's more important than this." She wrote that at 2:35pm... 5:00:11 PM

9/11 Hearings: MSNBC's Production Values
RC notes that CNBC World has been dipping in and out of the hearings today, too. "If I want hearings i can tune into C-SPAN," he says. Or CNN or MSNBC. The latter seems to be taking the hearings most seriously: they have bio-boxes for many of the participants. and are putting those on-air frequently. They are also offering 'Right Now' headlines several times an hour by squeezing back the screen. "This is something they should bring to prime," one viewer writes in. 5:00:01 PM

9/11 Hearings: We Need Context
An anonymous e-mailer takes aim at my comments. "You complain if the cablers don't give a topic extensive coverage... you gripe if they do," they say. No, I'd just prefer that they offer more than bland prepared comments. Give us the raw meat, then add some spices to make it worth eating (bad metaphor, but it gets the point across). It's great that the cablers are covering this, but we desperately need someone to make sense of the hours of talking. 4:59:12 PM

Former CNNer Martin Savidge Joins NBC News
Former CNN correspondent Martin Savidge is now a reporter for NBC News. He will be based in Atlanta, and begins reporting for all of NBC's outlets "immediately." Neal Shapiro called him a "great asset to our reporting corps" in a press release today. "I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work for a world class news organization like NBC News, and excited to be part of such a strong, dynamic and enterprising team of reporters and producers," Savidge says... 2:57:47 PM

Media Notes: Ignoring NASA; Judy Woodruff Is Bored
A break in the hearings gave the cablers a chance to report some more important news. Before long, FOX was pulling out the Laci Peterson graphics, and MSNBC was updating viewers on the weather // CNN had a nice scoop at 1:52pm. Miles O'Brien got NASA scientist Jim Garvin on the phone to reveal that "there may have been a salty sea on Mars." All the cablers ignored the 2pm news conference // Poor Judy Woodruff. She couldn't go 'Inside Politics' on Wednesday or Thursday last week because of breaking news, and now: "CNN's continuing coverage of today's 9/11 hearings on Capitol Hill is expected to preempt our program today," her newsletter says... 2:21:28 PM

Tugging at the Heartstrings: Burning WTC As Wallpaper
CNN.com and FOXNews.com play the hearings straight: Their front-page photo is of Powell testifying on the hill. But what does MSNBC.com choose as wallpaper? The Manhattan skyline, around 10am on September 11, 2001. More (inappropriate?) tugging at the heartstrings... (Update: By 1:30pm, a new graphic is up.) 12:47:11 PM

Is CNN's Costello Jumping Ship?
Responding to the TVSpy rumor posted last night (scroll down): "There's no interest in Carol Costello at Fox News Channel," an FNC insider tells CableNewser. "Maybe a local Fox affiliate, but not FNC." An MSNBC rep wouldn't comment (more on that later), but wouldn't that be a step down from CNN?... 11:53:48 AM

C-SPAN 4, 5, and 6: Cablers Obsesss Over 9/11 Commission
11:10am: I turn to FOX. Colin Powell. CNN. Colin Powell. MSNBC. Colin Powell. At least MS's graphics are bearable -- are the chyron creators in Atlanta blind? Is it really necessary for all three of the cablers to fake C-SPAN this morning?
11:17am: If they were really clever, they would Tivo this -- air a few minutes, bring in some experts, analyze it, then press play again. Or come on at noon and offer me an instant highlight reel. Have a dozen interns at a desk fact-checking every statement. But no, I'm just sitting here letting Colin take over my TVs.
11:28am: Is Spongebob on?
11:31am: MSNBC saw it as an excuse to replay video of the twin towers on fire...
11:39am: FOX has brought on pundits to rehash what Colin just said. Goody! 11:36:06 AM

Hamas Killing: Execs Try to Defend Lack of Coverage
In the Daily News, Richard Huff recaps (lack of) coverage of the Hamas killing Sunday night. "It was a story that would have warranted hours of coverage at, say, noon on a Tuesday," he points out. Quoting CNNI GM Chris Cramer: "The thinking is, we've delivered to the audience that which they need to know. It's a major story, but we didn't need to wipe the slate clean." And FOX EP Bill Shine: "We were on guard for any huge development in the overnights. There weren't any huge developments." Huff gets one bit wrong, though -- FOX's first alert was around 10:37, not 10:47. (They did a second alert at 10:47, repeating the same information.) 11:22:40 AM

Sam Shane is Sam Schoen
MSNBC anchor Sam Shane's last name is actually Schoen. That's the "bombshell" in this Star-Tribune piece. He has teamed up with artist Dan Marso to produce "Rocky the Mudhen," a children's book with a baseball theme. (Sam used to play for the University of Minnesota baseball team.) 11:21:02 AM

"Dennis Miller is still in search of his magic formula"
David Bianculli checks in with Dennis Miller's show: "There's an audience now, and the chimp usually is confined to cavorting silently in the control room, rather than interrupting Miller's flow, and jokes, by sitting at his side. Miller still has a long way to go when it comes to interviewing guests." He remarks that "in the very small world of comedy public-affairs talk shows, Dennis Miller is still in search of his magic formula." 11:20:43 AM

FAIR Dissects the FOX/CNN Ratings Rivalry
"Reporting on the ratings rivalry between the Fox News Channel (FNC) and CNN is often misleading--and almost always over-hyped," FAIR says in their April edition. "Journalists who publish Nielsen numbers ought to explain that the data are not simply measures of popularity, and they are not produced as a service to journalists or the public." And it goes on to read like a CNN-isn't-dead-yet rant... 11:20:22 AM

"The Smart Brother" Is Post-Worthy
Post-ie Richard Leiby tries really hard to make something out of nothing, to no avail: So Bush made a joke that Chris Matthews' brother Jim is the "smart brother." Last week. Bush was kidding. And Chris thought it was funny. Am I missing the point here? Was that really worth 305 words on page 3?... 11:19:36 AM

Dan Bartlett Goes Crazy: Cable Blanketed With Bush Spinsters
(Does that headline seem partisan enough?)
I bet you're sitting there wondering: Just how many times did I see a White House rep interviewed on cable news today? You probably lost count. After all, most days you're lucky to get more than a sound bite from Scott. But today wasn't most days. The answer to your question is fifteen. "...By 11 a.m. the White House had booked more than 15 interviews on cable news channels," Dana and Mike note in the Post Tuesday editions. And that doesn't include Condi's morning show blitz, bits of which were reaired all day... 11:44:52 PM

Some Conflicts of Interest Are Bad!
Lou Dobbs questioned the Dick Clarke conflict of interest on his CNN show tonight. "'60 Minutes' did not disclose that the parent company, Viacom, has a financial interest in the book's success," Lou said. "The book is published by Free Press, a subsidiary of Simon & Schuster, which is in turn owned by Viacom." (Is Drudge happy now?) Of course, this morning on CNN Live Today, Daryn Kagan interviewed an actor in HBO's new series Deadwood, without ever pointing out that CNN and HBO are both part of the big happy Time Warner family... 11:26:22 PM

Thirteen Hours of Live Shots -- Yawn...
Over on FOX, Mike Tobin's broad shoulders have been live from a rooftop in Gaza City almost every hour since 9am. Does he get a break anytime soon? A nap perhaps? Isn't being chained to a live camera for 13 hours a bit harsh? This is what they mean by "feeding the beast..." (Update: Chuck writes in: "13 hours? Wow, that's ALMOST as much as Chris Matthews anchors on any given election night!") 11:06:06 PM

CNN/VNR: Insider Calls Finger-Pointing "Absolutely Laughable"
An anonymous message responds to CJR's VNR story: "First, a disclaimer: I am a former major market news director who is now in corporate communications. Yes, for some of my clients, I do produce VNRs. But it is absolutely laughable to hear these current news managers place the "blame" (if there is any) on the Bush administration or CNN for providing this material. When I was running newsrooms (which hasn't been that long ago, incidentially) the responsibility for determining the viability of a piece rested squarely on the news staff--no one else! Perhaps if these news managers would spend a little more time educating their staffs about how to make editorial decisions and less time looking for someone else to blame---the profession would be better off. And, by the way, VNRs and the like will always have their place. Even my clients expect the newsrooms to exercise at least a little discretion over what/how much of any of this material to use." 10:56:10 PM

Rumors, Rumors, Rumors
Some anonymous poster (agent?) is stirring up trouble at TVSpy. He/she floats rumors that Carol Costello is being courted by MSNBC and FOX; Daryn Kagan is being wooed by E!; Rudi Bakhtiar is talking to ESPN; and Wolf Blitzer "might make a move to another network after his contract expires." Any flies-on-the-wall want to refute these rumors? That's what the form at the top of the page is for... 10:55:26 PM

Exploiting Current Events, and Free Advertising
DCRTV Dave has another reason to complain about FOX: "I just heard Fox Nooz's John Gibson ask if Dick Clarke...is 'exploiting' current events to sell his new book. Oh, and FOX doesn't exploit current events to get ratings? Duh!" My beef tends to lie with the way all the cable news channels offer free airtime to anyone hawking a book. Lately, Jayson Blair and Hans Blix have been the best (worst) examples... 10:55:01 PM

General Manager Switch at MSNBC.com
MSNBC.com GM Scott Moore is moving to MSN. The news site's VP for sales and business development, Charles Tillinghast, has been named acting GM. "MSNBC.com expects a final decision on the general manager position within three months," the site says... 10:54:07 PM

Why Isn't Anyone Watching CNBC?
Pamela Thomas Graham is focusing on "improving CNBC's primetime" -- but she's apparently not trying hard enough. On Friday night, Bullseye found only 81,000 viewers, and Capital Report attracted only 102,000. "Looks like [she] has a LOT of work to do," a cable insider writes to CableNewser. A 10pm 'Apprentice' rerun found 254,000 viewers. "Wonder if Donald Trump knows that his prize possession is tanking this bad on CNBC," the source says... 5:21:45 PM

FOX's Rumsfeld Was More Popular Than CNN's Rumsfeld
Viewers preferred FOX's Rumsfeld interview to CNN's Rumsfeld interview. On Friday night, Larry King's 9pm sit-down averaged 790,000 viewers (considerably lower than a typical night for King), while Bret Baier's 10pm day-in-the-life averaged 1,407,000 -- a nice spike compared to last month's On the Record average. 4:38:20 PM

Hardball Concocts Some Political Ads
Hardball sounds like a must-see tonight: "David Shuster, Howard Mortman and producer Christina Jamison take you inside the world of political ad making by actually producing several ads themselves and bringing you the process from soup to nuts, idea brainstorming to finished product. And I'm not just plugging this because I make a cameo in Shuster's package," Dominic says in his great newsletter write-up. The Hardball ads will air toward the end of the show... 4:36:08 PM

CNN/VNR: News Directors Just Passing the Buck?
'MG' writes in to say that CNN isn't at fault for the VNR craziness. "These people can't tell the difference between stories coming from CNN and those from the Bush administration? They need help, seriously," MG says. "I think they just got caught being lazy dumbasses and are trying to pass the buck." Hmmm. Why didn't CNN respond to CJR's multiple requests for comment?... 3:39:09 PM

Fake News Reports: Blame CNN?
Several news directors contacted by the CJR Campaign Desk blame CNN for the illegit VNR's that created controversy earlier this month. CNN "distributes pre-packaged stories to local stations around the country through its CNN Newsource service, acting as a sort of wire service for TV." Sometimes the VNR's are not properly labeled, some directors say. CJR suggests "a clear conflict of interest for CNN." It's a must-read piece... 2:04:13 PM

If I Want To Know The Weather, I'll Look Out The Window
These weather reports have gone too far. Why is MSNBC offering a "Weather Update" at 1:03pm? Isn't there slightly more important news to share at the top of the hour? CNN is live in Islamabad, FOX is live in Gaza City... 1:04:12 PM

CNBC CEO's Tough Task
USA Today profiles "low-key, no-nonsense" CNBC CEO Pamela Thomas-Graham. It touches on her roles as mystery writer, mom, and business channel fixer. "Thomas-Graham's job is to make CNBC must-see TV," Adam Shell writes. "...Most of her energy now revolves around improving CNBC's prime-time schedule." Good luck... 11:28:40 AM

Who Is Hamid Mir?
...And why does he keep popping up on my TVs? He has been nearly omnipresent on FOX since last week, when the Zawahiri news broke. Now MSNBC has him live via videophone from Islamabad, talking about suitcase nuclear bombs allegedly obtained by terrorists. According to Google, he is a Pakistani newspaper editor and bin Laden biographer. That's good, but it's no substitute for actual correspondents on the ground... 11:09:29 AM

Changes At CNN DC: "Live Reporting Desk" Created
CNN DC bureau chief David Bohrman is beginning to make changes on First Street. He "plans to rearrange the correspondents in the bureau to free them from 'feeding the beast of live shots,'" Harry Jaffe writes in the Washingtonian. "He'll set up a 'live reporting' desk in DC manned by two correspondents responsible for covering the day's news." This will give correspondents more time to work and break stories. "I want to read 'CNN reported' in the newspaper all the time," he says. 9:53:46 AM

FOX On Satellite Radio Worldwide
FOX News will be accessible via digital satellite radio in Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa under an agreement with Worldspace. IndianTelevision.com has details. I wonder how international viewers/listeners react to all the "we's" and "them's?" 9:47:18 AM

Support CableNewser: Make A Donation
Well, I've 'sold out,' 'given in,' 'gone begging.' I have posted a donations page. Any contribution would be greatly appreciated. (One creative idea: Donate a penny for every post since January -- that's $11.28.) Donations are accepted via Paypal or Amazon.
Where else will you find 400 posts a month about cable news? What other media site updates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Who else goes crazy "super-blogging" events?

Click here to support CableNewser.

(Update: This post had only been up for a few minutes, and the first contribution already came in! Thank you very much! Want to match that $11.28?) 1:07:53 AM

Hamas Killing: CNN Back To An International Simulcast
It was music to my ears at 1am ET. "This is CNN breaking news," the announcer said. "Live from London, good morning to you," the CNN International anchors said. The U.S. channel started simulcasting the International feed again at the top of the hour. (So why in the world did they cut away for half an hour at 12:30am?) CNN's Chris Burns was live on the phone as he headed to Gaza. The live shots showed a smoky skyline as "angry mourners burn tires," the graphic said. FOX placed "Alert" graphics on top of a taped Geraldo special; MSNBC apparently didn't bother updating the news... 1:03:49 AM

Hamas Killing: CNNI Simulcast Replaced By Martha's Daughter
Kudos to CNN -- sort of: At midnight ET, the channel started simulcasting CNN International's live coverage of the Hamas killing. The anchor read statements of reaction from across the middle east, and offered coverage and context of the developments. CNN cut out of it at 12:30am, to air a rehashed interview with Martha Stewart's daughter. I turned it off immediately -- and switched over to FOX, where Jennifer Griffin offered a live update for about 60 seconds. I would pay at least $10 a month for an online feed of CNN International... 12:33:11 AM

Hamas Killing: "Anti-Israel" CNN Compared to FOX
Israel National News has a post on the "CNN and FOX perspectives" on the Hamas killing. "CNN in its usual anti-Israel fashion describes Yassin as the Hamas leader, adding “Israel reports” he posed a threat and was behind suicide bombing attacks. Fox News on the other hand is reporting that Yassin was the terror organization’s leader and stood behind many attacks, quoting his statements vowing to continue striking out against Israeli targets." Events in the middle east always trigger allegations of bias from both sides... 12:32:09 AM

Lefties Say FOX Is Biased; Righties Say CNN Is Biased
In Monday's Washington Post, Howie Kurtz describes "striking numbers" in a survey of cable news viewers. "By varying pluralities, Democrats give positive grades to CNN (53 percent), network newscasts (49 percent), MSNBC (35 percent) and Jim Lehrer's PBS newscast (31 percent). But by a margin of 47 percent to 31 percent, they say Fox News is biased. Republicans, however, say Fox is fair by a margin of 50 percent to 32 percent. A plurality see as biased the network newscasts (67 percent), CNN (55 percent), MSNBC (41 percent) and Lehrer (27 percent to 24 percent)." 12:01:15 AM

Hamas Killing: MSNBC Fails; CNN First On-The-Scene
At 10:51pm, Contessa Brewer finally broke the Flash News on MSNBC. She did a terrible job reading the AP copy, and the channel went back to programming after 90 seconds. At the same moment, FOX got Jennifer Griffin on the phone from Jerusalem. She called it an "escalation" and a "potentially huge development." The raw video on FOX was pretty bloody. CNN producer Talal Aburahmm was on the phone at 10:55pm. He offered the first reports from the scene, but I could barely understand what he was saying. CNN turned to their taped shows at 11:02pm, and MSNBC started re-airing the Tech Summit at the top of the hour, while FOX kept talking... (Update: Uma wrapped it up at 11:09pm.) 11:04:42 PM

Hamas Killing: FOX First; CNN Confirms Twelve Minutes Later
FOX was the first with the Hamas killing tonight. It was an Alert around 10:37pm. "Witnesses: Hamas leader killed by Israelis," the graphics said. Witnesses? They should have said Reuters. I never heard Uma source the wire service, though -- why does FOX avoid offering detailed source information during their reports? Almost ten minutes later, CNN responded with video from the scene and a breaking news chyron: "Hamas founder's car hit in Israeli airstrike." CNN didn't confirm his death until 10:49pm: "CNN has confirmed that [he]...has been killed in an Israeli airstrike," Carol Lin said, calling it "very big news." 10:43:11 PM

Tech Summit: Great Glimpse of the Future
Some segments were better than others, but overall MSNBC's Tech Summit was an entertaining, informative show. Cool music -- they managed to include Duran Duran along with Outkast and Ludacris. Holt had a lot of fun with the toys on-stage. The audience was barely involved, though. Viewers barely even saw them. My favorite moment was a conversation with Joe Trippi. A great quote: "I think we're at the black and white television stage of the Internet." 10:28:57 PM

Tech Summit: Let's See Ling and Louderback More Often
Jim Louderback's segments were top-notch: MSNBC should hold onto him. And I wish Lisa Ling would pop up more often on the weekdays. She had a couple interesting comments. Talking about HDTV sets: "I like those 70 and 80 inches -- thinking about it gets me excited." And then, after the commercial break: "When it comes to TVs, lets face it -- size does matter." Lester couldn't hide a smile... 10:28:46 PM

It's Tech Summit Time
MSNBC's "Tech Summit 2004" begins at 8pm at Pace U. in NY. I attended one of MSNBC's "Silicon Summit" events way back when. I'm curious to see how this new iteration compares. The letter to invited guests calls it a "unique look at some of the most cutting-edge technology developed. Some of the products we will show haven't even reached the market yet." Here's the web site... 7:21:41 PM

CNN's MacKinnon Blogging About North Korea
Recognize the name Rebecca MacKinnon? She's been a CNN correspondent for over a decade, focusing on North Korea. She's on leave at the moment, serving as a media fellow at Harvard, and she has a blog. It's called the 'North Korea zone:' The site "comes from my frustration as an American journalist who has attempted to cover North Korea for years, with very limited success," she says. "...American mainstream media reporting on North Korea is very limited. It tends to focus largely on the agendas, leaks, and spin coming out of Washington. In my opinion, this lack of texture, complexity, and personal insight in our reporting about North Korea has real policy consequences. Which is why I want to do something about it." Very interesting... (Hat tip: BuzzMachine) 4:41:40 PM

"False Start:" MSNBC Refutes Zawahiri Report
The FOX alert originated from the Times of London newspaper, but I can't find it on their web site. At 11:42am, NBC News investigative producer Bob Windrem came on MSNBC to refute the reports. (MSNBC hadn't mentioned it on-air.) "A senior U.S. official familiar with the counterterrorism operation in Pakistan says there is no truth in that," he reported. "...When [the report was] first brought forward to him, he laughed in response. This has been one of a number of false starts." The sourcing was excellent -- look at the detail... 11:42:07 AM

FOX 'Alert's, Then Seems to Retract It
FOX offered a big News Alert at 11am: "Report: Ayman Al Zawahiri May Be Dead." The report said that DNA tests are underway, the FOX chyron said. The channel repeated this Alert several times, bringing in Mansoor Ijaz and other analysts to talk about it. They went live to Kabul to ask the reporter there about it. Then at the bottom of the hour, a new alert: "U.S. Intel Officials Tell FOX News The Zawahiri Story Is Not True." CNN and MSNBC never mentioned it. Please source your stories! 11:37:34 AM

Deborah Norville Beats Larry King! (In NYC)
Michael Starr reports that Deborah Norville beat Larry King among New York City viewers on Thursday night -- 71,000 households tuned in to MSNBC, compared to 48,000 for CNN. (Larry had Tammy Faye Messner on; Debbie offered segments on the National Guard and Cancun.) 10:24:44 AM

Soledad Helps Future Minority Women Journalists
Soledad O'Brien is trying to help the next generation of minority women journalists," the AP reports. Sole was honored by Ebony Magazine, and told the wire that she "aggressively helps journalists who are coming up the ranks so they will be prepared when the right opportunity comes along." A quote from her: "It's time for us to do our part and make sure that we're helping the next generation of young female journalists come up and fill positions." 11:10:27 PM

News Judgment 101: Global Protests
Let's do a bit of news judgement compare/contrast. CNN.com and MSNBC.com both determine that the global anti-war protests today are the lead story, presenting a photo and big headline. (CNN.com: "Rallies around the world protest Iraq war; MSNBC.com: "Global Protests: Peace rallies mark anniversary of Iraq war.") FOXNews.com decides to put the story at the bottom of their "latest headlines" section (way 'below-the-fold.') "Protests on Iraq War Anniversary," the header says. If there was a huge global pro-war rally, do you think the judgment would change? (Update: 11pm: FOX moved the story to the top of its "latest headlines" list.) 5:39:40 PM

Geraldo's Special Report: "1000 Miles of Bad Road"
Geraldo's 'At Large' sounds promising. It's "1000 Miles of Bad Road: "Take a trip along with Geraldo on his three-week-long drive through Iraq. It's a glimpse from deep inside the country, at the state of affairs post-Saddam Hussein...What he finds may surprise you... though attacks against our coalition troops are highly reported, the state of affairs on the ground isn't as bad as you may have been led to believe." Tonight at 10... 5:38:40 PM

MSNBC's Broken Logo
MSNBC's logo hasn't been cooperating this morning. Their logo was just a black shadow for a while. "It was [like that] since I turned them on around 10:03," one viewer IMs. When I turned it on at 10:45, the logo was playing hard-to-get; it was on and off until 11. 11:37:53 AM

Kaplan's MSNBC: For Better or Worse?
What is MSNBC like with Kaplan in charge? "No big changes yet," a TVspyer says. "I have noticed that the look of MSNBC is changing for the better!," one poster replies. "It has been watchable these days." But another person is more cynical: "Kaplan will last two years, make lots of changes, fire many people and leave with a big pay check while the ratings will stay in the gutter. He is still living off his success of decades ago. This biz just recycles the same people." 11:33:50 AM

Quote of the day
Eric Burns: "Jayson Blair was a big 'get' for Katie Couric, who did the first of the three or four thousand broadcast interviews with him. In fact, Larry King was so impressed with Katie’s 'get' that he invited her on his CNN show to talk about how she got the 'get'— demonstrating that if the 'get' you get gets enough publicity, you get to be a 'get' yourself. 11:01:35 AM

War and Peace: Memories of David Bloom
On MSNBC, Alex Witt recalled having to report the news that David Bloom had died. "Mark Effron came out [during the commercial] and brought Kleenex to me out on the set," she said. A public affairs building at the Fort Lee Army base in Petersburg, Virginia was dedicated in Bloom's honor today. "He was 39 at the time and, for a few remarkable days early last spring, perhaps the most famous newsman in America," Verne Gay remembers... 9:59:57 PM

War and Peace: "It was clear...we were going to war"
On Deborah Norville Tonight, Brian Williams described watching military cities grow up out of the desert, while journalists were still asking: "Should the U.S. go to war?"
Brian: "I have to say, I felt a little silly... we were going to war!"
Debbie: "But you couldnt go on TV and say that."
Brian: "Of course not. But it was clear to me."
And: B.W. on embedding: "I think it was better for the military than the military has yet realized." 9:59:18 PM

War and Peace: Media Notes...
Wolf Blitzer anchored a special two-hour edition of 'News From CNN' today, focusing on 'A Year In Iraq' // NBC's Brian Williams hosted a roundtable discussion with four military experts (McCaffrey, Meigs, Allard, Jacobs) on MSNBC // People in the News will offer a profile of Ayman al-Zawahiri Saturday at 11am... 6:49:46 PM

! War and Peace: Rumsfeld: Media Doesn't Reflect Iraq Reality
Larry King interviews Donald Rumsfeld tonight. Here's a snippet from the advance transcript:
KING: ...The Bush administration has said, Mr. Secretary, that the reality on the ground in Iraq is more positive than is being portrayed in the media. Do you agree with that?
RUMSFELD: Well, I do. It's a fact.
He points out that "over and over again," members of Congress have "come back and reported that what they found there was notably different from the impression they had."
KING: But a bombing or a suicide attack or any kind of killing of an American or anyone is bigger news.
RUMSFELD: Indeed, it's big news. And, of course, good news tends not to be news. 5:52:08 PM

War and Peace: Former Secs of State: Booked!
Former Secretary of States will be omnipresent on the airwaves tonight. On Lou Dobbs Tonight, former deputy Richard Armitage will stop by. Madeline Albright will be on Wolf Blitzer Reports and Hardball tonight. Lawrence Eagleburger will sit down with Hannity and Alan on H&C...; 5:51:15 PM

FOX Trounces CNN, MSNBC During Breaking News Coverage
FOX beat CNN and MSNBC combined during breaking news coverage of the Pakistan developments yesterday. Between 1 and 5pm, FNC averaged 1,130,000 viewers -- compared to CNN's 571,000 and MSNBC's 283,000. And even though Aaron Brown was live in Islamabad, the ratings don't seem to care: He averaged 833,000 viewers, while Greta had 1,567,000. 5:45:02 PM

War and Peace: For Embeds' Families, An Emotional Toll
Former embed Rick Leventhal talked to Linda Vester this afternoon about his experiences in the deserts of Iraq. "First and foremost, I can't believe it's been a year," he said. He said the most frightening embed experience was when his unit drove into an ambush. "We were in a firefight for a solid hour...it was pretty frightening," he said, understating. He had broadcast a live report during the battle, and later found out that his family was watching it all. "My sister was listening on XM radio," Rick recalls. "She said she had to turn it off...she started crying." 2:47:39 PM

War and Peace: Must-See Countdown Tonight
I think Countdown will be the must-see show tonight. Check out the preview: "Baghdad Bob, Dixie Chicks, and the rapping marine. Keith shows you what some of the ’Oddball’ newsmakers of the Iraqi war are up to... one year later." The newsletter promises "From 'Shock & Awe' to "Say Ah!" -- a special video review," and "Best of Baghdad Bob, another COUNTDOWN VIDEO SPECTACULAR by Countdown's video master/artist Brendan Omelia." 2:41:42 PM

Heidi Collins' Hyperspeed
From the Campaign Desk: "The news cycle these days is so fast and furious that reporters sometimes zoom off into hyperspeed. That undoubtedly explains why CNN's Heidi Collins last night was taking viewers into some sort of bizarro time warp." Here's the curious post. 1:44:26 PM

Memo to Bill O'Reilly: Don't Try To Scare Us With Diet Pepsi
Is Bill O'Reilly inviting me to make fun of him? Look at the tease for his show tonight. "Friday: Nailing Al Qaeda," the headline says. "Are we close to cracking their terrorist network?" A valid, if impossible-to-answer, question. But then there's the second line: "Plus, the dangers of diet soda: What you don’t know could kill you!" No, Bill, terrorism could kill me. It doesn't seem appropriate to put Al Qaeda and diet soda in the same paragraph. I drink cans of Diet Pepsi daily, and I'm still here... 1:33:01 PM

War and Peace: Rumsfeld on FOX and CNN Tonight
In a press release yesterday, FOX News promised an "exclusive interview with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld," to be aired Friday night 'On the Record.' "[Bret] Baier spends the day with Sec. Rumsfeld in Washington, D.C. and, in addition to the sit-down interview, viewers are provided with a rare glimpse into a day in the life of Sec. Rumsfeld in Washington, D.C., as he attends meetings at the Pentagon and the White House." Also, CNN will air a Larry King interview with Rumsfeld tonight at 9pm... 11:55:54 AM

War and Peace: How the Media Has Changed
The Star-Ledger talks about five changes in the media's coverage of Iraq. They are: A more critical tone; not as many bells and whistles; more rules and formalities; more coverage of wounded troops; and greater caution by journalists. I like Aaron Brown's quote: "During that first phase of the war, to some extent we were doing play-by-play. It was, 'Is the plan working? Are the supply lines working? What happened to Jessica Lynch?' There are no maps anymore. There are no guidelines anymore." 8:48:45 AM

War and Peace: Send In Memories of War Coverage
I'm looking for your memories of the news coverage that first night, and the days thereafter, to post all weekend. Submit them via the form at the top of the page, or use the e-mail/IM links up above.
-----
I'll start with mine. It had been a long long day, so I turned off the TV and laid down in bed around 9:30pm. Fifteen minutes later, I was interrupted. "It's starting," the person in the doorway said. At that same instant, my cell phone and home phone started ringing -- friends calling to alert me to the Baghdad bombs. I didn't fall back to sleep for 5 hours... 12:29:45 AM

War and Peace: "A year ago today, the clock ticked down to zero"
Quoting Bill Goodykoontz in the Arizona Republic: "A year ago today, the clock ticked down to zero. And with that, the war in Iraq was on. President Bush's ultimatum to Saddam Hussein expired - MSNBC superimposed a ticking clock on the screen - and a wary nation switched on its television sets and waited, which is now the way of such things." 12:28:35 AM

"High-value target:" Networks Move Resources Into Region
From Friday's LA Times: "Predicting where news will happen is a tricky art," Elizabeth Jensen writes, describing the media's recent maneuvers to place correspondents in strategic locations as the U.S. stepped up its pursuit of bin Laden and company. "I have no more intelligence than anyone else in the world, but instinctively as journalists, you think something is going on (in the Afghanistan region) and we ought to be in place to cover it," Chris Cramer tells Jensen. NBC and CNN have teams in Kabul and Islamabad... 12:26:43 AM

"High-value target:" CNN Negotiating For Afghan/Pak Embeds?
Here's that quote from CNN analyst Ken Robinson that I found very interesting Thursday afternoon: "We have been working for the last few days to negotiate embeds on those locations on the front lines. So we know that for a long time this offensive operation has been discussed." Embeds? Kudos to CNN for recognizing the importance of this story, and for being prepared to dedicate personnel to it. 12:26:28 AM

"High-value target:" Banfield Back On Camera
Does this photo of Ashleigh Banfield scare you? Ashleigh Banfield was on MSNBC several times during the day, and her reporting is referenced in MSNBC.com's story about the situation... 12:25:03 AM

Dennis Miller: $15 To Sit Through The Show
Missed this Rush and Molloy item, until The National Debate linked to it: "Dennis Miller may be having trouble rustling up people who want to sit through his rants. CNBC is offering $15 to anyone who wants to be part of his audience..." Is it worth it? (I wonder if this guy has any credibility?) 11:17:27 PM

Dennis Miller: Eric Alterman's Diss
Dennis Miller and Eric Alterman aren't best friends. So it made for an interesting segment earlier this week. It makes for a great blog post on MSNBC.com. "...What can CNBC be thinking with this guy?," Alterman writes. "His ratings are not just in the toilet they have traveled all the way to the septic tank." Eric says that "everyone on staff was extremely apologetic afterward and the word 'unprofessional' was used over and over." Heh... 11:17:21 PM

"High-value target:" More Media Notes
Inside Politics was pre-empted again today. Wolf Blitzer took over coverage at 4pm // "Al Qaeda: Cornered," FOX's new graphics say // Newsnight was a must-see tonight. Aaron Brown stood on a roof in Islamabad. (I wonder how long he will stay in the region, now that this news has broken?) Aaron looked a lot better on location than in the studio... 11:16:05 PM

CNN On Cell Beginning April 1
Variety updates the CNN-by-phone story reported here last month. "CNN will launch its first live TV feed to cell phone subscribers on April 1," the paper writes, and has a few paragraphs of details... 10:19:05 PM

"High-value target:" Update on Cable Net Staffing
A FOX News representative tells CableNewser that the network has two people in Kabul currently, and a crew of three on the way to the area right now. No reply from MSNBC or CNN yet... 5:50:57 PM

"High-value target:" Reliable Sources?
Sources, sources, sources -- I wish the cable news networks would take a page from the Washington Post's new guidelines for anonymous sources, which requires reporters to describe the source in as much detail as possible. Someone needs to say something on the record. If I had a dollar for every time I heard or read the word "source" this afternoon, without any elaboration... 3:32:48 PM

"High-value target:" MSNBC Still Finds Time For Spring Break
Henry IMs to point out that earlier in the afternoon, FOX featured a Bush impersonator and MSNBC talked to Donald Trump at the Apprentice auditions. CNN seems to be offering the most in-depth coverage. Poor MSNBC -- their "in-depth spring break" reports were delayed again today, at least for an hour -- but they went live to Fort Lauderdale around 2:45pm... 3:31:12 PM

"High-value target:" Banfield and Blitzer Appear
Some interesting notes from sitting in front of the TVs:
> On MSNBC, Ashleigh Banfield appeared to talk about her travels in the region
> Wolf Blitzer popped up from New York in front of a huge Breaking News graphic.
> Shep got Pakistani spokesman Shawkat Sultan on the phone for a pretty long phoner.
> CNN Islamabad bureau chief Ash-har Quraishi reported live via videophone at 3:10pm. 3:17:47 PM

"High-value target:" Do The Cable Nets Have Crews In Pakistan?
Let's think about staffing in Pakistan and Afghanistan for a moment. How many correspondents, producers, and support personnel do each of the cable news networks have in the region at this moment? This message is being sent to P.R. reps for each channel -- let's find out if they are living up to their promise of covering the war on terror. 3:08:49 PM

"High-value target:" Exaggeration, Hyperbole, or Lie?
"We have a reporter on the ground [there]," Rick Folbaum said at around 2:45pm. Now, we can call that an exaggeration, hyperbole, or a lie, but it certainly wasn't the truth -- bookers got AFP correspondent Rana Jawad on the phone. That's not a FOX reporter, not by a long shot. And he was certainly no match for Aaron Brown, who was talking on CNN at the same time. 3:07:38 PM

"High-value target:" Media Notes
"Right now it is virtually impossible for any of us to get to the area," Aaron Brown reported from Islamabad. "...I don't exaggerate when i say that this [is a place that] exists in almost the 14th century" // CNN "security analyst" Ken Robinson said at 3:05pm that "we have been negotiating to get embeds on the front lines" // CNBC watched the crude oil charts and discussed the "high-value target's" impact on the markets // "Is anyone taking a count of how many "Fox News Alerts" they can have in one hour?," a FReeper asked. Shep Smith promised "extensive Team FOX coverage" at 3pm... 3:05:05 PM

"High-value target:" Contradictory sources, sketchy info
In the first few minutes, it is apparent that little information is available. 1:18pm, Linda Vester on FOX: "[Let me interrupt you], I've just been handed this piece of information...[Pakistan] believes the number two man in al Qeada, Ayman al-Zawahri, is the man who's surrounded." "This is a much definitive report now we're getting from Associated Press," CNBC reported at 1:19pm. MSNBC reported it the same minute. At 1:31pm, FOX tried to bring a Pakistani journalist on, but the phone link dropped. He was going to report that the "Surrounded Target is not UBL or Al-Zawahri," the graphic said. "It's a very fluid situation," Vester told viewers. At 1:33pm, CNN finally reported the Zawahri name. It would help if the anchors sourced their reports more specifically... 1:35:42 PM

"High-value target:" Aaron Brown Breaks Story
Aaron Brown broke the story at about 12:50pm. He had just finished an interview with Musharraf. "There has been a fierce fight going on...in the mountainous region berween Afghanistan and Pakistan," he reported from Islamabad. CNN slapped an "exclusive" bug on the story. Monsoor Ijaz came on FOX at 1:08pm to report the story, according to his connections to Pakistani intelligence. Hmmm... "I don't want any of us to get too far ahead yet," Aaron said. Too late... 1:34:53 PM

"High-value target:" MSNBC.com Very Slow to Respond
MSNBC.com took its time putting up a breaking news banner for the "high value target" story. CNN.com sent out a news alert at about 1:10pm. FOXNews.com used an AP story that credited CNN significantly for the first few minutes; by 1:20pm, they changed "CNN" to "an American news channel." MSNBC.com was slow in posting anything -- they finally added a one-sentence breaking news headline at 1:21pm. As of 1:34pm, they still hadn't added the AP copy... 1:34:17 PM

Sanders: "It's inevitable that they [will] change or tweak" embedding
The Department of Defense is analyzing the embedding process, Kerry Sanders says in a Newsday article. Quoting: "[Sanders] says he recently got a call from 'someone doing a study for the Department of Defense who said they were doing an analysis of how to improve [embedding]. It's good they're doing the follow-up, but it's inevitable that they change or tweak it, and from my perspective, it doesn't need it.'" 9:14:29 AM

Quote of the day
Rantingprofs: "A hotel in Baghdad is blown up and all three news nets go wall to wall: in other words, all other stories get blown off the stage, all other guests get bumped, commercials breaks are ignored, they stay with their people in Iraq as developments trickle in, leaving them only to question whatever experts they can get on the phone or drag into the studio. I describe this in detail because this is what the explosions in Madrid merited, so when I kept sputtering that Madrid was just being slotted into the rotation while all the usual crap kept being covered, it was because I felt it was a story that rose to the level of this story. So now you have a baseline for what I wanted to see last week. 9:13:32 AM

First-Person: A FOX News Interview
Robert Cox describes his appearance on FOX's 'Big Story' at The National Debate: "The booker for the show met me at the security desk and whisked my wife and I into the studio where I was asked to wait in the 'green room.' Strangely enough, the room was actually painted green." A very interesting behind-the-scenes story... 8:17:24 AM

MSNBC Is On Spring Break Today
Good news! MSNBC's Spring Break scare-tactics will air today, since that pesky little bombing delayed it yesterday. On the Abrams Report tonight: "A judge says 'Girls gone wild' is not pornography. So what is it when producers sell videos of teenage girls baring it all on Spring break?" And on Countdown: "Fort Lauderdale was once America's Spring Break capital -- so what caused the city to turn away from big party profits, and transform itself into a family destination?" And Joe is live from Florida! What a great contribution to journalism... 7:34:40 AM

Last Week's News Viewer Index
I forgot to post the Cynopsis news viewer index yesterday. For the week of March 8 to 14, in total day, "Fox News had 50% of the viewing, CNN 26%, MSNBC 14%; and Headline News 10%." In primetime, "Fox News had 53%, CNN 28%, MSNBC 12% and Headline News 7%." 7:14:48 AM

Get Ready For More Of The "Real Deborah Norville"
The New York Observer profiles Deborah Norville this week. Joe Hagan points out that her new show "hasn’t shown much bite yet, averaging only 254,000 viewers a night." Rick Kaplan asked Debbie to "start unleashing more of the real Deborah Norville" a couple weeks ago. Hagan adds a comment that "MSNBC insiders have been growling," but doesn't explain what they've been growling about. Here's a great quote from her: "I would say that traditional network journalism jumped the shark when O.J. Simpson was accused of murder." She notes that her 30 Rock bathroom key from 1987 still works... 9:47:12 PM

"It's About Me" School of Broadcasting
"Welcome to the IAM (as in "It's About Me") school of broadcasting, where self-promotion risks giving way to narcissism," Brian Lowry writes in Variety. He names Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity as two members of the club. "Listeners don't seem to mind, but the breaking point must lie somewhere. For while tolerance of all the pitching and shilling is clearly high, how much personal griping and on-air therapy will those who tune in...to witness the pummeling of some hapless spokesperson, willingly endure? 5:51:19 PM

MSNBC's "Special All-Day Coverage" of Spring Break...
The Baghdad bombing disrupted coverage of an important story on MSNBC: Spring Break. Quoting the tease in their newsletter: "Do you know what your kids are doing on Spring Break? We do. From Cancun to Florida-The madness, the media, the money...The towns inviting your kids to come party, and the towns trying to keep them out. Spring Break 2004: The Tides of March." They promised "special all-day coverage." "It's sad it takes a big story like a hotel being blown up in Baghdad to drive MSNBC away from that," one viewer says. "If I want Spring Break coverage, I'll watch MTV." Gag me... 5:51:15 PM

Baghdad Bombing: Media Notes, Round Two
On CNN, the 3:30 'Inside Politics' was pre-empted for continuing coverage. Just after 3:30pm, Arraf had an exclusive interview with Colonel Baker // CNNI simulcasted CNN's coverage for a time today, CNNFan says // On MSNBC, Chris Jansing and Randy Meier took over coverage at 3pm // "No commericals from the cable news networks in 2 hours 45 minutes at least," an MSN poster said around 3pm. "This is what cable news networks are about. Continuous coverage." FOX started commercials during 'Studio B'... 3:40:43 PM

Baghdad Bombing: Military Asks CNN Not To Show Dead Bodies
A military official walked over to Jane Arraf's live position at 3:11pm ET, and audibly asked the crew not to show what was happening. "We've just heard...Colonel Baker request that we not show the bodies being brought out," she said. "...Obviously there is no one left alive there." A moment later, workers tried to lift a stretcher over the rubble. She reported live for at least 16 minutes, until 3:18pm... 3:11:56 PM

Baghdad Bombing: Incredible Live Moment on CNN
3:03pm: Jane Arraf live at the scene of the bombing, broadcasting profound live images and narration from half a world away. The rescuers started shouting and maneuvering, thinking they had found a woman and her children. "People here have gathered around something," she told Miles O'Brien. "They are invoking the name of god, indicating they may have found somebody in there." A fire chief on the scene told her that they have found a person in the rubble. "Is there any possiblilty that person is alive?," she asked gently. "No no, they have died," he told her. A painful moment, to say the least. This is the sort of coverage is what CNN should air on "Live From" every day, and this is what could distinguish the channel from its competition... 3:09:05 PM

Baghdad Bombing: Wall-to-Wall Coverage; The Lead
"Looks like an afternoon of Howard Stern indecency, Martha Stewart sentencing, Kobe semen stain, Scott Peterson boating, Columbus, OH sniper updates will be thrown on the backburner," a TVSpyer remarks. CNN's Inside Politics newsletter shapes the lead story for the rest of the day: "On the day a major blast shakes central Baghdad, John Kerry and Vice President Dick Cheney both deliver what are being billed as 'major speeches' today on the military and U.S. foreign policy." Are they are quietly thanking the news gods for the timing?... 2:23:40 PM

Baghdad Bombing: Media Notes
CNN's Jane Arraf called it a "scene from hell." I thought Walter Rodger's reports in the first half-hour were top-notch -- an example of why veteran reporters are so important // An analyst on FOX called hotels "bomb magnets" // "MSNBC seems a little slow with the story," an MSN poster says. They initially pulled Chip Reid in via phone // Al Jazeera's offices in Baghdad were damaged... 2:16:24 PM

Baghdad Bombing: Smiling Kerry and Bombing Horror
Here's the juxtaposition on MSNBC.com: "Baghdad Explosion," the left hand headline said. "Blast strikes city center, casualties reported." A bright red screengrab of the destruction was in the background. On the right side: "Kerry rips Bush on war," next to a smiling headshot. I think the analysis is obvious. 12:38:36 PM

Baghdad Bombing: Live or Taped?
FOX and CNN aired images from Al Jazeera at 12:33pm. FOX's graphic said "LIVE;" CNN's said "EARLIER." "These pictures are live," FOX's anchor said. "This cameraman is getting very very close to a raging inferno." Who was right? (One minute later -- an eternity in cable news -- the bug on FOX changed to "new video.") 12:34:32 PM

Baghdad Bombing: "Someone should have interrupted" Kerry
The cable nets had multiple camera angles of the fire. Walter Rodgers called it a "horrenous blast." "It shook the building here and we knew something bad was happening," he told Wolf. A FOX analyst criticized Kerry: "When you've got a terrorism attack, it's time to shut up...someone should have interrupted him [as he was giving his speech]." The FOX anchor called it "an illustration of one of the problems that still exist in Iraq." 12:31:58 PM

Juxtaposition: Baghdad Bombing, Kerry Speech
FOX News Alert: "Large explosion rocks downtown Baghdad." Todd Connor headed to the camera position immediately. CNN came back from a commercial with the 'Just In' chimes at 12:14pm. Now here's the juxtaposition: John Kerry's "major foreign policy speech" started at 12:15pm. On CNN, the "breaking news" banner and Iraq live shot overwhelmed Kerry's voice. FOX didn't show Kerry speaking until 12:20, but did talk to a Republican congressman about what Kerry was saying -- and the shaky camera images of nightime Baghdad filled the screen. "John Kerry remarks on the war on terror," FOX's graphics said, as black smoke rose into the air. I suppose you can never really control the news cycle... 12:19:31 PM

Is Wolf Suggesting NBC Endangered National Security?
Wolf Blitzer called Lisa Myer's NBC News report on Osama bin Laden "the talk of Washington D.C." He asked David Ensor about the "damage" it could cause "to U.S. national security." Whoa, hold on there, Wolf. David quickly pointed out that "nobody's getting terribly excited about this," since leaks happen all the time. 12:08:11 PM

Lester Holt Is A Technology Dork
And that makes him even cooler. That's the conclusion from this MSNBC.com interview promoting Tech Summit 2004. He calls himself a "lover of toys" that "make my life easier and more organized." I predict this will be the norm in five years: "If I were an inventor, I’d develop a video-camera cell phone," Holt says. "Imagine a reporter being able to cover a break story live, beaming pictures from the scene with just his cell phone!" 1:36:18 AM

FOX's Five Second Delay
FOX aired a car chase / standoff situation during the 3pm hour today. It was broadcast on a 5-second delay. Quoting LostRemote: "Not new, I guess, but Shepard Smith wouldn't stop talking about it."
1:29:47 AM

Monday Ratings: Great Night for FOX
Drudge offers some Monday night cable news ratings. O'Reilly netted a 2.7 (wow), H&C; had 2.2, while Greta and Shep tied with 1.6. On CNN, Larry King had a 1.4, while Paula and Aaron had 0.8's. On MSNBC, Hardball had 0.5, Scarborough had 0.4, Olbermann had 0.3, and Norville had 0.2. (Wasn't Debbie supposed to be a savior?) Dennis Miller continues to scrape the bottom with a 0.2. 7:34:04 PM

CNN Plans International Election Coverage
A CNN press release outlines the channel's plans for coverage of elections around the world this year. Of course, it's a safe bet that most of these reports will only appear on the International feed... 2:53:13 PM

Bigtime Blogger on 'Big Story' Today
The National Debate's Robert Cox will be appearing on FOX's 'Big Story' at 5pm today to discuss the NYT lawsuit (and now retraction.) He appeared on Laura Ingraham's radio show today, too. 2:51:58 PM

"I'm anxiously awaiting The Sharpton Factor!"
Al Sharpton "now says he is close to signing a contract to host a radio or cable television talk show," the Boston Globe says today. Howard Kurtz chimes in: "I'm anxiously awaiting The Sharpton Factor!" 2:47:04 PM

Local Telemundo Net Sets Up Shop In Former CNBC Studios
"NBC O&O; WNJU-47-Telemundo will move into the soon-to-be-former home of CNBC in Ft. Lee, N.J. next month," Newsblues reports. CNBC moved to new digs in nearby Englewood Cliffs recently. 9:09:05 AM

Embedding: Chip Reid Says Congress Doesn't Compare
Chip Reid, remembering embedding, on MSNBC.com: "It was only a year ago, but it feels like another lifetime. I cover Congress now. I wear a coat and tie. I go home every night and sleep in a bed. It's safe and secure. And sometimes — it's a bit too predictable. In fact, I'm afraid that whatever I cover as a reporter in the future will never match the adrenaline-induced, heart-in-my-throat sense of anticipation that I felt while embedded with the U.S. Marines on their march from Kuwait to Baghdad. And I suspect it will be very rare that I feel so close to the center of a story of this magnitude." 8:07:55 AM

Embedding: NBC Director describes the "ultimate reality show"
MSNBC.com's 'Objective: Peace' report includes an essay from David Verdi, NBC's exec. director of news. "Gone were the taped, day-old reports from some distant battlefield. [David] Bloom was riding atop an armored vehicle and broadcasting the start of the U.S. military’s charge to Baghdad — live. He was up close and very personal. He seemed to be hosting the ultimate reality show — "The Embeds,” where the stakes were literally life and death." 8:07:35 AM

'TV Worship:' Grrrr
FOX reporter/producer Mike Straka complains about 'TV Worship' in his FOXNews.com column. He does man-on-street interviews for FOX Magazine sometimes. "I can't tell you how many people rush up to our camera just to talk — about anything. I could be reporting about any subject or any person and people will come up and have an opinion, even if they've never heard of said person or place — just to be on television. But here's the real kicker ... a lot of these people don't even ask when the piece will air. So they run up, get their face-time in, but don't even know where or when to watch for themselves. So what's the big deal in the first place?" 8:06:05 AM

Quote of the day
From Howie Kurtz during his online chat, explaining why "news" has more "entertainment:" "Well, the audience does bear some responsibility here. One reason that much of the media have moved in a softer, sometimes junkier direction, why there's so much on Laci and Kobe and Michael Jackson and his sister's wardrobe malfunction, is that news executives are convinced this is what brings in viewers and readers. To some extent consumers vote with their quarters and their remote controls, and therefore bear some responsibility for what the media are dishing out." 12:28:40 AM

The "Gentler, More Gracious" Bill O'Reilly
Jack Shafer says that since he penned a column dissing Bill O'Reilly for his tendency to shout "shut up!" at his guests, the FOX host has toned it down. Bill has "arrested his Tourette's-like tick, declining to tell any person, country, or inanimate object to put a plug in it," the Slate writer writes. "He's become a gentler, more gracious talk show host—when not smirking, interrupting, or sarcastically dismissing his guests." 12:28:08 AM

"I finally have my Dennis back"
Keith forwards some thoughts about Dennis Miller: "I was a big fan of Dennis Miller Live and still a big fan of him now. I am thinking that CNBC has gone and done something the other cable stations have been talking about trying to do: They have made a newer, somewhat more serious version of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart...The studio audience has made a difference and made it better. So kudos to CNBC and DM for the show. I finally have my Dennis back, now for an hour every weeknight." Awww... 12:27:26 AM

Is Neil Cavuto A Hypocrite?
DCRTV Dave writes in to declare "Cavuto the idiot, part 75:" "There was another one of those "buy American" pitches on Neil Cavuto's Fox News Channel business show on Monday. We're supposed to use Irish Spring soap because it's made in the good old USA, but not Jurgens soap, because it's owned by a company across the ocean. Yadda yadda yadda. Well, what about Fox News Channel, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, which is tied to interests in the foreign nation of Australia? Perhaps we should, instead, watch CNN, which is owned by good old USA-based Time Warner. Do your patriotic duty. Turn off Fox News..." Okay, I've got an anti-FOX post, an anti-CNN post -- anybody want to write in to complain about good ol' MSNBC? 6:49:57 PM

Do 60 Protesters Deserve A Top Story Slot?
An anonymous e-mailer wonders why CNN.com's #2 story was about a small gathering of protesters outside the White House. "As of 5pm, CNN's top story (besides its left-hand main story) is "more than 60" protestors. Why is this news?," they ask. By 6:45pm, the story was pulled off the front page and added to a Iraq-wrapup. How many protesters make a protest worth covering? 6:49:25 PM

Quote of the Day, Response
Mark writes in to respond to the Quote of the Day. "Oh? What about NBC, CBS, ABC, PBS, and NPR? They advance Kerry's issues and allegations even on days when he's not campaigning! How did the Bush-Is-AWOL story catch fire? How did the concern of a few politically-connected victims' families become A-block news for days on end? (Here's the answer.) 6:48:54 PM

Blitzer: "I was wrong" about embed skepticism
Wolf Blitzer, reminiscing about war embedding during his noon hour show: "I was skeptical going in. As a former Pentagon reporter, [I was] skeptical that the military would actually let us have the access that we wanted. I always hear that things got bad, they would cut it off right away. I was also skeptical that the equipment, [if] the new generation of mini cams and satellite phones would work in a desert kind of environment. And the third concern, Bernard Shaw had raised it before the war, is that journalists might get overly close to the sources that they're covering and might not provide the kind of responsible, critical coverage that the American public and the military deserves. But I think I was wrong on all those points." 3:44:04 PM

CNN's "Year In Iraq" -- Premature?
CNN's "A Year In Iraq" graphics are very nice -- I wish CNN always looked that good. But what exactly is the point of these hourly reports near the top of the hour? I can understand doing some segments on Thursday and Friday -- in fact, I would offer special programming from sunrise to sunset -- but why are these reports deserving of the A block today? 3:42:44 PM

More Free Publicity For Jayson Blair
Jayson Blair sat down with FOX & Friends at 8:30am this morning, and is joining John Gibson during the 5pm hour. It led some FReepers to ask why he's getting all the free publicity. "Why should we care what that lying little slime has to say? I couldn't believe when I heard FNC was having him on to tout his book," one poster said. "The media should have more integrity, especially after what Blair did and probably continues to do," another commented. But one person pointed out that it's "too easy to pass on" -- "the media is pursuing a pandering style designed to maximize viewership"... 3:41:43 PM

FOX Same-Sex Music Sounds Like "Parody of Local News," Shep Says
Jane laughed at her 'Skinnerville' music on Studio B today. Shep commented that it was one of the best FOX themes, and said that some of the other themes sound like a parody of local news. "Can you pull up that same-sex wedding thing," he asked. "It sounds like a parody of local eyewitness news." After the control room played it, Shep mocked: "Now here comes [an anchor] to tell you about disaster." Jane remarked that the music doesn't really "feel" like the issue. "Usually homeland security feels like homeland security, war on terror [feels like] war on terror," she said. I'm not a fan of it, either... 3:39:12 PM

CNBC's "Big Idea" Goes Bust
Another CNBC primetime shift: Donny's "Big Idea" has been replaced by "Cover to Cover" on Wednesday nights, and another rerun of the "Apprentice" has replaced "The News." Here's the press release. 3:32:19 PM

Quote of the day
BuzzFlash interviews Eric Alterman: "The right-wing has this enormous echo chamber, and it helps because it can force the media, particularly through cable news shows, to focus on what the right-wing thinks is important. The left doesn't have anything like that. It's starting to build this. It's finally getting its act together in the sense of creating the various mechanisms necessary to play the game the White House plays." 3:30:08 PM

Studying the Media: Looking Into The Crystal Ball
So what does the future hold? Some predictions: "[FOX] will not abandon its marketing claim to fairness." // "CNN may try to stake out the position that it is the choice of upscale news viewers who are uncomfortable with the angry, disenfranchised talk radio tone of Fox News, particularly in the evening. While the numbers may not be reflected in the ratings, CNN will stress its audience of business travelers in hotels and airports and even those in government capitals and newsrooms, where opinion shaping supposedly occurs." // "MSNBC could try to position itself as the choice for younger viewers." 12:34:08 AM

Studying the Media: "The age of innovation" in cable news "is no more"
The report says that cable's audiences are "not as large or as constant as its boosters depict." Quoting a snippet: "The growth of its core audience reached a peak around the time of the September 11 attacks and has stalled since. Inside cable newsrooms, Fox still seems to be trying to build staff (perhaps because, unlike CNN and MSNBC, it is still gaining audience) but, overall, the age of innovation and investment in new kinds of programs or people that characterized cable news is no more." 12:33:56 AM

Studying the Media: The Difference Between CNN and ABC
In USA Today's Monday editions, Peter Johnson uses former CNNer, current ABCer Jonathan Karl as an example of why cable's live-is-good model is actually bad. P.J. writes that it constrained news reporting. Quoting Karl: "I can't tell you how many times I'd be on the air and my cell phone would ring, but I couldn't answer it. I knew it was a source, but I couldn't say, 'Hey, wait a minute, I've got a call.'" Working for WNT is different. "When you're reporting for one show at 6:30 p.m., you have enough time to report in depth," J.K. says. "There is much more emphasis here on produced pieces, putting information in context." That's good, Karl, but it's too bad viewers start changing the channel... 12:32:49 AM

Studying the Media: "Jumbled, chaotic, partial" reports
An important theme in the report surrounds the 'instant' quality of news: "In many parts of the news media, we are increasingly getting the raw elements of news as the end product. This is particularly true in the newer, 24-hour media. In cable and online, there is a tendency toward a jumbled, chaotic, partial quality in some reports, without much synthesis or even the ordering of the information." My questions: Is this really better for the consumer? Do viewers want this? Should we really see the sausage being made? 12:32:41 AM

Studying the Media: Other Notable Study Snippets
> "...Managers in the control room...function as the real agents of influence in cable"
> "Why is CNN so much more robust financially when it is trailing Fox News in ratings?"
> "Cable may have even surpassed network as a source for news and information"
> "The landscape for cable could change perhaps if the London-based BBC moves forward with plans it has reportedly considered to move seriously into the American market with its 24-hour cable channel, BBC World"
12:31:29 AM

Studying the Media: Is FOX The New News "Barometer?"
PEJ, writing about September 11, the Columbia disaster, and the war in Iraq: "Three events in recent years suggest the "barometer" role may have passed from CNN to Fox News. In other words, Fox News may have become the channel that viewers associate with breaking news, although this does not lead to a lasting loyalty." 12:31:23 AM

Studying the Media: Cable Loves Govt. and Crime; Ignores Edu. and Health
The study offers a break-down of topics on cable news. "On the weekdays we studied, none of the three cable networks produced any programs devoted to in-depth coverage of any other specialized areas, social issues or other domestic or international themes." If people had watched one of the cable channels for 16 hours, they would see two minutes about education, one minute about the environment, one minute about healthcare... 12:30:37 AM

Studying the Media: Cable's Four Dayparts
The report says that there are "four distinct personalities" to the cable news day: morning news, daytime, early evening and prime time. "Except in the morning, they bear striking resemblances on all three channels." A choice quote: "As the cable channels move into prime time, after 8 p.m., the term "cable news" is arguably something of a misnomer altogether. Few of the programs are newscasts in the traditional sense of the term. They might more accurately be described as talk radio on television - interview programs, often with people who are also radio talk show hosts during the day." 12:30:36 AM

Studying the Media: Impact of CNN's '01 Cost-per-minute Analysis
Scary: "When AOL purchased Time Warner in 2001, one early move of the new company's executives...was to institute a cost per minute analysis of the network. How much did it cost Fox News to produce a minute of its news versus CNN to produce a minute of its programming? The result of the AOL analysis was this: CNN was spending too much. It needed to rid itself of people and bureaus - as it turned out including many of its more senior journalists...In quick succession, some of CNN's most familiar on-camera faces were gone, as well as many behind-the-scenes staff..." 12:30:03 AM

Studying the Media: "Constant repetition" and a "narrow news agenda"
"Fox, CNN and MSNBC all pick five or so stories each morning, then recycle the same information throughout the day," USA Today says. "Only 5% of stories on cable have new information, the study found, while two-thirds of stories repeat the same facts over and over." "The cable channels would have you believe that these stories they turn to again are developing stories they are following and updating through the course of the day. It turns out that is not the case," the PEJ study states. "Hour after hour, across all parts of the day, cable television news features constant repetition, a narrow news agenda, an obsession with headlines, scanty sourcing and little autonomy for correspondents in the field," the report says. (Ouch.) 12:29:58 AM

Studying the Media: O.J. Resulted In Repetitiveness, Senso Says
In the Chicago Tribune, John Cook says that the "trend toward repeating a few stories incessantly dates to the famed 1994 O.J. Simpson car chase." He quotes former CNN DC chief Frank Sesno: "It was, if not the origin, than one of the historical markers. Market research showed that cable news was more effective if you go to the big story and you stay with it. That, unfortunately, can have a tendency to be repetitive and incremental, rather than substantive." 12:29:43 AM

Studying the Media: For Cable, "Live Mode" is Now the Norm
PEJ calls it "the abandonment of the written edited story." Quoting the report: "Of the 240 hours of programming studied, only 11 percent of that time and 8 percent of the stories consisted of written and edited packages...Instead, 62 percent of the time on cable is conducted in "live" mode." Interviews account for 41%; standups are 21%; 'anchor reads' are 15%; live events are 8%; and 'banter' is 3%. (Wow.) The report notes that this "de-emphasizes the role of the reporter" and offers "something close to a first draft" of the news. "What was once the raw ingredient of journalism is now the product," the study concludes... 12:29:11 AM

Studying the Media: A Sample of Headlines
The State-of-the-Media stories all seem to like this juicy quote: "Journalism is going through this great period of transition and dislocation." (It's from Tom Rosenstiel, the director of the project.) Here's a sample of newspaper headlines:
New York Times: "Study Finds a Waning Appetite for News"
Atlanta Journal Constitution: "More flocking to web for news"
Newsday: "Report: Audiences moving toward less traditional media outlets"
USA Today: "This just in: The future of news" 12:27:56 AM

Studying the Media: Journalism's "Epochal Transformation"
David Bauder's lead on the AP wire is important: "Journalism in 2004 is in the midst of an epochal transformation that is complicated by cost-cutting and a public mistrust of the media, a study released Sunday concluded." And: "It painted a picture of a business going through fragmentation and convergence at the same time." 12:27:22 AM

Studying the Media: 500 Page Report Examines Media 2004
Many many kudos to the Project for Excellence in Journalism (PEJ). In a study funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Columbia University-affiliated group offers a "comprehensive look each year at the state of American journalism." The first report -- 500 pages long -- is officially released Monday. It is called The State of the News Media 2004, and today's posts will focus exclusively on it. Consider it a summary of the summary... 12:25:48 AM

Are Americans Not Informed About Iraq?
People protested for peace at Dover Air Force Base this weekend. They are heading to Washington, so Cori Dauber suggests they stop by NBC: "Doesn't their "Iraq Watch" strategy of merely stating, "X Americans died today" do just as much injustice to the cause of keeping Americans informed about what's going on in Iraq?...Surely they must realize that if they want the American people to know what's really happening, then their real beef can't lie only with the government." 11:15:34 PM

How O'Reilly Creates a "No-Win Zone"
The college paper op-ed examines "O'Reilly's no-win zone:" "O'Reilly's program is called the "The O'Reilly Factor" for a good reason: There are several underlying factors associated with "The Factor" that help swing the advantage to O'Reilly every time. By themselves, these factors don't appear to move the pendulum very much; but working together and in collaboration with O'Reilly's respectable debating skills, these factors result in "advantage O'Reilly" every time." Here's how... 2:19:01 PM

It's The Weekend, So Where's MSNBC?...
An anonymous e-mailer notes: "I was watching CNN Saturday afternoon during the middle of their coverage on the demonstrations in Spain...CNN was live, so was FNC (not as good as CNN's coverage), but MSNBC was airing 'Headliners & Legends -- Howard Stern.'" The MSN group thinks that MSNBC is terrible again today, with little coverage of the Israel bombing... 2:18:08 PM

Busy tonight (including a radio interview); back later. 4:04:35 PM

In An "Interview," You're Supposed To Ask "Questions"
Dan Rather was on Larry King last night. I meant to tune in, but forgot. Apparently I didn't miss much: "The particularly unusual aspect of this 'interview' is that Larry doesn't ask any questions...Larry's introducing and closing segments -- and in between Dan is essentially doing a monologue from Baghdad," an MSN poster says. The transcript is a bore... 8:19:41 AM

Politicans are "very good at staying on message," Woodruff Understates
Judy Woodruff has watched as politicans have become more robotic over the years. "Has it gotten harder to interview them? In some ways it has," she tells Ed Bark in the Dallas Morning News. "They've gotten very good at staying on message. In order to pry them out of it, you either have to come up with highly unusual, strange questions or you've got to be so pushy and obnoxious that you manage somehow to elicit something." 12:54:43 AM

Eric Burns Doesn't Like Al Sharpton
Eric Burns has some not-so-nice words about Al Sharpton, after reports that the "presidential candidate" has signed with a talent agency. "Oops. My bad. My mistake, my error, my failure of judgment. I thought John Kerry was the winner in the Democratic presidential primaries. I now realize it was Al Sharpton," he opines. Here's the column. Wouldn't it be interesting if FOX did sign Al, despite an earlier denial?... 12:46:54 AM

Media Spin: Bad Bush and Good Kerry, Report Says
Keep in mind MediaChannel is a liberal organization, but this is interesting: "Mainstream news organizations may "filter" the news, as President George W. Bush claimed late last year, but not to omit good stories from their Iraq coverage, but to broadcast more negative news about the president himself, according to a report released today by MediaChannel.org and Media Tenor. The report reveals a strong negative cast to ABC, CBS and NBC news coverage of the president thus far in 2004. Meanwhile, Senator John Kerry, Bush's certain opponent for November, has received more positive coverage by the same three networks." Brit Hume picked up on it during 'Special Report' tonight... 7:04:45 PM

Do You Like Greta's Weather Bug?
Do you like Greta's weather graphics that come on toward the end of the hour? She wants to know. She blogs: "By the way, do you like the weather bug? If so, will you do me a favor and write me about it? I am curious..." I like it a lot. 7:03:55 PM

Chris Matthews Played Softball
Chris Matthews interviewed Jayson Blair this week. Editor & Publisher thinks the show should have been renamed 'Softball:' "Matthews, sounding like Darrell Hammond doing Chris Matthews -- in other words, a parody of a parody of a parody, while interviewing a liar, no less -- praised Blair as a "brilliant" thinker and 'great writer' and 'creative force.'" Transcript... (Hat tip: Romenesko) 6:52:15 PM

'Inside Politics' Plans To Go On The Road
Judy Woodruff's 'Inside Politics' team recently had a meeting to discuss how to cover the next seven months of election news, USA Today reports. "We asked ourselves, 'How do we keep this interesting?'," Woodruff says. The paper reports that the show's answer "answer includes taking the show on the road to those contested states, for discussions of what voters are thinking." Quoting Judy: "I see all the signs of an engaged electorate this year so I think we'll hold people's attention." 6:51:42 PM

Madrid Came 911 Days After 9/11, MSNBC Notes
The Countdown newsletter has trouble making jokes about the Madrid bombings. But they do note that "yesterday's attack, on 3/11, occurred 911 days after the 9/11 attack on New York and Washington." Walid Phares mentioned this on MSNBC earlier today. 4:59:33 PM

Media Notes: Sadism/Saddam; Jayson Blair Can't Sell Books
NewsMax says they caught an MSNBC spelling mistake: "Sadism Hussein" // This DU poster asked his fellow liberals if "anyone else hates FOX News." Gee, bud, what do you think the response will be? // Eric Burns, commenting on the Jayson Blair P.R. blitz: "I have never heard before -- ever -- of someone getting this much publicity and [so little] to show for it, in terms of sales." 10:24:32 AM

Quote of the day
Rantingprofs is pushing the cable nets to remember their responsibility to viewers, and I love it: "Remember when on CNN "the news was the star?" When the cliche line from academics (including me) about the network was that it served as a "visual wire service?" Frustrated with the happy talk banter on MSNBC (do they not realize that adults do not speak to one another that way?) I turn to CNN, sure that I will hear everything I need to know to update me on the attacks in Spain. But they have other business to conduct this morning, and who can blame them? They've snatched a hugely high power "get," a big time interview. An administration intelligence official? A Spanish official? Extra reports from the scene? The woman who did Martha Stewart's hair and makeup before every single day of the trial." 10:23:02 AM

! CNN Viewers Support Gay Marriage; FOX Viewers Oppose It
Registered voters who favor gay marriage tend to watch CNN. And those who oppose it tend to watch FOX. It's no longer just an assumption -- it's a fact, according to Cornell professor Dietram Scheufele. One of his classes surveyed 800 voters last semester, and found that 31.2% of voters who "considered CNN their cable television news source of choice...favored gay marriage." Only 15.7% of Fox News viewers favored gay marriage. About 25.5 percent of those voters who preferred other cable news channels, such as CNBC and MSNBC, favored gay marriage." Here's the press release.
"You are what you watch," the prof said. "Television news is cultivating our belief system, and our perceptions of the issue are not coming from newspapers, but rather from cable television news." My question is simple: Why does FOX insist on running such scary music when their "Same-Sex Marriage" graphics pop up? It sounds like something they could have used this time last year for the war.. 2:57:47 AM

Madrid Bombing: Let's Scare The Viewers
"How easy is it for a terrorist to blow up your morning commute?" That was the question Greta Van Susteren asked tonight. Why do TV folks think they have to sink to such lows? Bill Gertz came 'On the Record' to scare folks. On CNN, Jeanne Meserve did a piece on "U.S. Train Safety," but it wasn't so hyped up. "It was a nasty day in Spain," Newsnight's newsletter said bluntly. MSNBC's primetime newsletter "promoted" segments on the blasts only once: "Is today's devastating railway attack the work of Al-Qaeda?," it asked. Is the bombing still newsworthy if it wasn't?... 2:56:51 AM

Madrid Bombing: Viewers Annoyed By Lack of Coverage
"What is going on here? 200 are dead, 1,000 are injured in a terrorist massacre in Spain, and MSNBC, Fox News (and to a lesser extent CNN) are clueless," an MSN poster says. "I see this overwhelming threat out there, and a news media that seems overwhelmingly dedicated to navel gazing," Cori Dauber writes. 2:55:09 AM

Paula Zahn: "We have this illusion that you [watch] four TV sets"
Paula Zahn was the guest of Jon Stewart tonight, and her comments were quite interesting. "Whats the idea of getting it first?," Jon asked. "Bragging rights," Paula admitted -- "because we have this illusion that you all are at home watching four television sets." The follow-up: "If you are first, do you get, for instance, an extra piece of pie?," he joked. "In the green room, occasionally they'll change the filter in the coffee pot," she revealed. "...In the end, it doesn't mean a whole lot, because you all can decide what you want to watch with your remote." She blamed the get-it-first atmosphere on "nameless suits," and said it's just part of the culture... 2:51:41 AM

Jon Stewart and the "MSNBC Pot Parties"
Bishop Desmond Tutu was set to appear on Jon Stewart's hot-ticket 'Daily Show,' "until the punks at MSNBC heard about the Bishop's planned engagement," FTVLive says. "It seems that Tutu was set to be on Hardball with Chris Matthews on March 18th, two day[s] after he was on the Daily Show. The Hardball gang told the good Bishop that if he appeared on the Daily Show he could forget about showing up for MSNBC. So Tutu canceled his gig on the Daily Show and will be on Hardball on the 18th." Tonight, Stewart said that he didn't need "sloppy seconds." He joked that Tutu Stewart is "not a joint to be passed around at one of your MSNBC pot parties." 11:05:12 PM

Kerry's Mutter: MSNBC Goes Nuts
CJR's Campaign Desk decided to track how many times John Kerry's mutter was replayed on cable news. Between 2pm Wednesday and 4:30pm Thursday, CNN and FOX showed the remark (audio + video, not just as wallpaper) 16 times each. MSNBC, on the other hand, ran it 29 times, "almost as often as CNN and Fox News put together...at one point this morning MSNBC aired the clip at 9:00 a.m., 9:10 a.m., and 9:20 a.m." I think the analysis is obvious... 10:54:55 PM

Tom Mintier: Next CNN Veteran To Go?
Newsblues is well worth the subscription today: They also report a rumor that CNN's Tom Mintier has been fired. Again, not confirmed yet. Go subscribe. 9:39:55 PM

Keith Olbermann's E.P. Fired For 'Inappropriate Remarks?'
Newsblues reports "with some certainty" that "Keith Olbermann's executive producer at MSNBC, Mark Kaiser, a veteran of the 'Man Show,' was recently fired, after just three days on the job, for making what were termed "inappropriate remarks" to female staffers. It hasn't been confirmed by the reps in Secaucus, but then again, I doubt they will comment... 9:39:30 PM

Is the Isabel Incident Really Brian's Claim to Fame?
NBC's B.W. P.R. blitz is paying off -- this Sacramento Bee profile is nice, though one paragraph left me scratching my head. "By year's end, the success of the half-hour newscast - and, to some degree, of an entire news division - will fall largely on the shoulders of a 44-year-old man with a smooth voice and Brooks Brothers wardrobe. The same man who, despite multiple Emmy Awards and more than 2,000 newscasts already anchored on NBC, MSNBC and CNBC, is best known for nearly having been blown away while covering Hurricane Isabel." This is really what made him a star?! 9:31:21 PM

Another Question for Larry King
Last night, I posed a question to Larry King -- I wondered how he felt about the low ratings for his Jayson Blair interview Tuesday night. Now for a follow-up question. Last night, Bill O'Reilly interviewed Blair -- and more than doubled Larry's ratings, averaging a 2.2. That's 2,468,000 viewers. How do you feel now, Larry?... 4:49:27 PM

Special Report Tonight on CNN en Espanol
CNN en Espanol is broadcasting a special report on "Terror and Death in Madrid" tonight at 9:00 p.m. "The half-hour program will recap the tragic events of the day, with updates and commentary, including a look at how the attacks are affecting the political situation in the days leading up to the parliamentary election on Sunday, March 14. "Terror y Muerte en Madrid" will be presented by CNN en Español Senior Anchor Patricia Janiot, with on-the-ground reports from Spain and reaction from key leaders around the world." I'd rather watch that than Larry King, personally -- why don't they broadcast a translated feed on CNN.com or something?... 4:48:18 PM

"Let the Hardball magic take control"
The Hardball newsletter continues to be a must-read over at MSNBC.com. "Set the dial for MSNBC and let the Hardball magic take control," Dominic wrote today. He noted that "Chris is taping tonight from 30 Rock tonight so you'll notice the softer "Deborah Norville" set he's broadcasting from...Don't be alarmed...You'll like it." We'll like it. 4:45:10 PM

Bill O'Reilly vs. Frank Rich
A dramatic lead in this story: "The culture war sweeping across America sometimes can appear to boil down to a sparring match between two men. In one corner is Bill O'Reilly, representing the Fox News Channel and the new brand of conservative populism sweeping the nation. In the other is Frank Rich, wearing the colors of the New York Times and liberal urban culture." Read... 2:21:05 PM

Night In Hospital After Tuchman's Eyes Burn
A legal analyst was talking to CNN's Gary Tuchman: "While I was doing the interview, I noticed that Gary's eyes looked kind of strange, but I didn't want to say anything," attorney Craig Silverman said. "They were swollen but I thought nothing of it." It turns out that the two "were burned by the TV set lights because the filter was broken," the Rocky Mountain News reports. "Tuchman spent the night in the hospital." CNN paid for their eyedrops. (Hat tip: Newsblues)
1:58:11 PM

Madrid Bombing: CNN Owns The Story
Ed in London writes in with a note about the Madrid bombing, and it's deserving of a long post:
"Here in London CNN has been going since very early this morning with news of the Madrid bombings. Al Goodman, their Madrid bureau chief is the only Western TV journalist based full-time in the Spanish capital. CNN is the only Western TV network with a full-time Madrid bureau. Additionally, they've been pooling reporting and video resources with their sister network CNN Plus, the Spain-based CNN network...They've had reporters on air since early on, great video and their journalists are obviously better sourced than any other TV network in the US or UK trying to cover the story. To fill the void in between breaking news, they've brought in Spanish experts in London and coverage of reaction from across Europe.
Meanwhile, Murdoch-owned Sky News is running B-roll and is scrambling to find journalists and using Spanish newspaper and radio reporters with broken English. They're messing up wording, can't pronounce the Spanish cities very well and their anchors look clueless. CNN's anchors pronounce the locations correctly, understand the issues better and are tempering their comments...Today more than ever, no matter how many people may or may not be watching, CNN is the World News Leader." 12:10:20 PM

Quote of the day
Rantingprofs: "Do you want the news from Spain? Well we certainly aren't getting it. Where are the terrorism experts, the ETA experts, the Basque experts, the experts on contemporary Spain? Why isn't this the only damn story on right now? I am as reminded all over again of what started me on the path that led me to this blog: people are hurt and dying, our allies to boot, and the "news" people are babbling about a wide variety of nonsense (including at one point the upcoming release of the Best Dressed List.) I am sickened and almost as outraged by their performance as I am by what has happened. How can it not be completely self-evident that this story should be dominating the airwaves right now." 12:08:27 PM

Media Notes: CAIR vs. Coulter; MSNBC's Fake Weathercasters
Nearly missed this WP letter to the editor Wed. responding to Howard Kurtz's media-safety-in-Iraq story // The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is asking "major media outlets to end their association with" Ann Coulter, because she recently suggested that Muslims "smell bad" // The MSNBC MSN group folks are annoyed that MSNBC newsreaders are playing weathercaster on daytime shows... 12:11:14 AM

A Question For Larry King
Larry, were you happy with your Jayson Blair! interview last night? Were you surprised when the ratings came in today? That 0.9 is a lot lower than your typical 1.2. It must be sad knowing less than a million people wanted to listen to your guest pimp his book... 4:23:58 PM

Anderson Cooper Isn't Hip With Young Viewers
So CNN is angling Anderson Cooper 360 toward young viewers, as today's Observer piece said. Too bad it isn't working. CableNewser hears that A.C.'s ratings among young viewers are embarrasingly low. Among 18 to 34 year olds, he averaged 14,000 viewers last night. Among 18 to 49, he managed 42,000 viewers. With the key 25 to 54 set, only 83,000 were watching. (He earned a 0.3 total -- that's 340,000 viewers.) At least he's pulling in lots of 55+ viewers! 4:23:44 PM

"Good News" On FOX: Military Deaths Decreasing
Bret Baier had an interesting report from the Pentagon during "Your World" today. It was a "good news" story (even the graphics said so): Military deaths in Iraq are down significantly. "We often hear about the total being 553 killed since the war began -- a lot of media organizations keep that tally -- but take a look at the last six months." He showed a graphic: 82 in November, 40 in December, 47 in January, and 20 in February. "The stats are dramatic in the last two months," Bret said. Wonder if anyone else will report that story?... 4:20:19 PM

Marty Savidge To NBC in Atlanta
Martin Savidge is joining NBC News as an Atlanta-based correspondent (not Chicago as reported earlier today.) The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has a Jim Walton going-away quote: "Marty has proven time and time again that intellect, ability and courage make for a great reporter. As someone who has grown with CNN over the years we are grateful for all that he has contributed and wish him the best." 4:19:59 PM

"How to Save Your Life" Series Seems Superfluous
A "special series" on FOX this week is starting to bother me. "How to Save Your Life," the 2pm-ish segment is called. All week, viewers are learning about dirty bomb attacks, suicide bombers, airline hijackings, etc. But the promos and teases are excessive. "They could be right under your nose and right about to go off. Could you spot a suicide bomber?," one preview said -- nevermind the fact that it's never happened in America. Here's the text from another promo: "Your plane is hijacked by terrorists. You're caught in a dirty bomb attack. You're face to face with a suicide bomber. Think it couldn't happen? Our experts say think again." You can watch video clips from the series here. Does anyone else feel queasy about it?... 3:16:06 PM

Live TV's Cameras, Cue Cards, Clocks
Greta explains why she has to cut off guests in mid-sentence on her blog today. I hate to cut guests off. It is horrible...Here is my practical problem: I have to end certain segments, for different reasons on different nights, at a certain point. In the studio a stage manager holds up cue cards behind the camera which read, for example, "90," "One Minute," "30," "15" (and there should be one that reads, "you are cooked" because you did not get out on time!). If the segment is the "hard" break -- meaning I have no flexibility -- the stage manager holds up the time card AND a card that says in big block letters: HARD. It means there are no choices, get out, or have the "computer" cut you off cold." A great behind-the-scenes look at live TV... 3:06:31 PM

More Praise for Dennis Miller Show Tweaks
Jeff writes in with his thoughts on the revamped D.M. show last night: "Miller's show was a vast improvement last night. I like how they gave more time for the news stories at the beginning (ala "Weekend Update"). I'm glad the monkey is gone. The audience, though I don't know why, makes the show far more enjoyable." 3:05:50 PM

Campaign Desk Notices a Lefthanded FOX
But you've never seen this sentence before: "We've detected a Fox News liberal bias," CJR's Campaign Desk declared this afternoon. True? You decide... 3:05:10 PM

Dissecting Anderson Cooper
Choire Sicha observes Anderson Cooper in a fascinating NY Observer story. He describes two versions of A.C.: "...He’s a scrappy youngster who paid his dues with a borrowed camera on his shoulder. He slept on hotel roofs and worked the Third World crisis tour until someone would put him on TV. He’s a hard-core news man with the blood on his Betacam to prove it...Then there’s the Page Six version of Anderson Cooper: flashy Manhattanite in sharp tailored suits." My favorite quote: "At a time when cable news is a cesspool of partisan shit-stirring, rehashed war feed and cheery, white-toothed weatherman smiles, Mr. Cooper distinctly stands out." So what does that make me?... (Hat tip: Romenesko) 10:31:34 AM

Last Week's News Viewer Index
Cynopsis has the news viewer index for March 1 to 7. In total, day, "Fox News had 47% of the viewing, CNN 29%, MSNBC 13%; and Headline News 11%." In primetime, "Fox News had 48%, CNN 32%, MSNBC 12% and Headline News 8%." 10:30:14 AM

Marty Savidge Heading To NBC?
Quoting Newsblues: "Veteran CNN anchor-reporter Martin Savidge has left the cable news network and is expected to be named the Chicago-based correspondent for NBC News, a position formerly held by Jim Avila, who resigned in late January." (Update: He's staying in Atlanta, not heading to Chicago.) 10:28:18 AM

[Insert Joke Here]
WP's Reliable Source previews tonight's Funniest Celebrity in Washington contest. Last year, FOX's James Rosen won the acclaimed title. This year, former CNNer Leon Harris is among the competitors. Norah O'Donnell is the mistress of ceremonies. Chris Wallace was one of the judges. More info here... 12:38:18 AM

Williams, Cooper on International Best-Dressed List
Vanity Fair is releasing the International Best-Dressed List today. Among the top ten men on the list: NBC's Brian Williams and CNN's Anderson Cooper. In this shot, Anderson is wearing a suit and shirt by Prada, with a belt and shoes by Paul Smith. For Brian, it's all about the ties... 12:33:07 AM

Reese: "It truly pains me to write this because CNN has taken a hit"
"It truly pains me to write this," Reese Schonfeld writes on his web site today. He analyzes the cable news SWEEPSBOOK, and says that "CNN has taken a hit." He offers several excerpts from the analysis. Quoting the summary: "In a heavy news month, Fox News Channel continued its leadership. Runner-up CNN has continued to slip down from both last month and last year. MSNBC, which announced the appointment of a new President, in February, has shown steady improvement." 11:41:51 PM

Is Dennis Miller's Show Improving?
Dennis Miller's retooled program premiered tonight. It included a studio audience. Henry IMs with impressions: "The audience definitely adds energy...Miller's panel tonight, with audience in the background, was up there with the best of Politically Incorrect...and as a bonus the moderator allows panelists to talk more than 5 seconds at a time." He notes that two celebrities appeared (Michael Chiklis and Ed Begley Jr.) and wonders "if they won't keep trying to bring in more celebs." Stay tuned... 11:02:17 PM

MSNBC's Graphical Tweaks
MSNBC is tweaking its graphics. (Could they get any worse?!) "First the graphics are too big, and now they are too small," one person at MSNBC MSN complains. But other posters seem to like it. The new "Live" bug was well-received this weekend, too. (Update: Thanks to TVHeads, here are two examples of the new bug.) What the folks in Secaucus don't seem to understand is that their autumn revisions were horrendous, painful, hideous -- pick your preferred adjective. They need to wipe the slate clean, start from scratch, and blow the socks off FOX. Will they? No... 10:55:21 PM

A Quick Jaunt Down Memory Lane
Aaron Brown introed a Jeff Greenfield package analyzing the "political firestorm" surrounding the "Gay Marriage Debate." Normal enough -- except for the graphic behind Aaron's shoulder. "Greenfield At Large," it said. Does that bring back any memories for anybody? (And while we're at it, how about "The Spin Room," "Equal Time," "Watch It!," and all the other titles confined to the cable-political-show-graveyard...) 10:53:04 PM

Media Notes: FOX Reairs "CNN is Bad" Clip; MSNBC.com Slacks
FOX had a nice "get" around noon: Former Montgomery County police chief Charles Moose was "another FOX exclusive," the graphic said // An interesting IM tip from Joe: "On Hannity & Colmes just a few seconds ago (9:20pm) during the tease into a segment on John Kerry, the video used from a Kerry rally contained a very noticable sign in the crowd that said "CNN is Bad" // The Abbas death was a big story this afternoon. By 4:10pm, CNN had offered a live report from the Pentagon. The news was on CNN.com and FOXNews.com, but MSNBC.com had nothing... 9:29:09 PM

"Topic A" Still At Bottom of Ratings Barrel
CableNewser hears that Tina's "Topic A" drew only 69,000 households/75,000 viewers Sunday night -- that's a 0.1 rating. Only 41,000 of those were in the 25-54 age bracket, a source says. And she hopes for 400,000? Good luck... 5:05:48 PM

New Blood at CNN: Four Correspondents Hired
CNN announced the hiring of four new correspondents in a press release today. "Ted Rowlands, formerly of KTVU-TV in San Francisco...will join the San Francisco bureau. Sibila Vargas, formerly of KTLA in Los Angeles, will join CNN's Los Angeles bureau. Vargas will serve as an entertainment correspondent. Christopher Lawrence, formerly a correspondent with CBS Newspath, and Jonathan Freed, formerly an anchor and editor with the Global Television Network in Montreal, will join the network's Chicago bureau as correspondents." Who wants to bet the correspondents are younger than the ones who recently left the channel? 4:53:43 PM

"Jayson Blair!," Larry King Exclaims
Does anyone else have a problem with Larry King's newsletter today? The subject line was two words: "Jayson Blair!" The exclamation point just didn't feel right for some reason. Here's the e-mail text: "Jayson Blair - the first live prime-time interview with the man whose lies disgraced the New York Times! How did he do it? Why did he do it? Jayson Blair for the hour!" Don't we already know the answers to those questions? Do we really need all those !'s? 4:43:33 PM

A Question for Tina Brown
Tina Brown says that cable TV is a lot like the magazine world, because small ratings equal the ability to"do more exciting and interesting things:" Things like Court TV, which have three, 400,000 or whatever viewers, they are small numbers, you know? So actually, it does mean that you can be more adventurous. Actually, I think that cable channels are quite willing to take some risks, and throw people on the air, and you know what, it works, it doesn't work, well, OK, let's move on. And that's really what magazines—the fun of it actually, is that it's now, it doesn't feel very high-risk. Like for me, with my show, it's like I don't feel it's a high risk. I mean, if it works, great, if it doesn't work, well, we'll try something else. There's isn't a sense of some big thing on your back, you know?" But isn't "throw it out there and see what sticks" exactly what MSNBC has done for five years?... 4:27:02 PM

Tina Brown Explains The Purpose of Her Talk Show
Mediabistro offers an interview with Tina Brown. On the subject of her new CNBC talk show: "What I do try to do, which not many shows are trying to do, is I'm trying to mix up the worlds like we did at Vanity Fair and The New Yorker. Most talk shows have a prescribed beat...Our show tries to have more of a cultural mix, so that I can have, the top panel can be about politics, but the middle panel could be a Harvey Weinstein, or this week we have Tim Robbins. You know, we can actually mix the politics and the show business. And then we'll have a roundtable, which will just really draw from my Rolodex, of people who I think are entertaining, and they could be from politics." She says that CNBC is committed to the show. Very long but very interesting conversation... 4:26:37 PM

Quote of the day
Ken Auletta is interviewed about 'Backstory' in this week's US News & World Report. "We moved away from the partisan press because of the growth of cities and mass marketing--newspapers had to reach large audiences. As we move to the digital age and have a thousand channels, there's an argument for finding niche audiences, to go back to the days where you have no common denominator source." 9:19:08 AM

P.R.: Expanded Today Show Web Site
Here's the press release announcing the expanded 'Today' web site. "With more exclusive and interactive features and columns written by the Today show hosts, this site is like having access to Today all day long," MSNBC.com EIC Dean Wright said. Former people.com editor Matt Diebel was hired to oversee the site. The problem is, MSNBC's template isn't fluid enough to allow for a really good site. 9:08:13 AM

A Theory For Why Dennis Miller Fell Flat
The question of who's funnier -- the left or the right -- is the topic of a USA Today story. Garry Trudeau thinks that "comedians on the left who crack jokes about the right have it easier right now than their counterparts on the other side of the aisle," the paper says. "That's why Dennis Miller has had trouble getting a little traction," Trudeau says. "What's he going to do? Go after the Democrats? They're not in power. They're so not screwing up the world the way the Republicans are." (The paper says Miller's show is on MSNBC -- whoops!) Campbell Brown calls it "a competition that neither side is winning"... 11:24:49 PM

NBC's "Objective: Peace" Begins Today
Once again, NBC News trumpets "comprehensive coverage" "combining the powerful resources of NBC News on broadcast, cable and the internet," and once again it doesn't go far enough. This time, it's "Objective: Peace," a two-week examination of Iraq one year after the bombs started to fall. The embeds return to Iraq (they should have already been there) to look at "how Iraq has changed in so many ways." The press release says MSNBC's special coverage started today. With all their resources, NBC could do so so much more... 11:24:09 PM

Martha Verdict: FOX Ratings Higher Than CNN, CNBC, MSNBC Combined
When the Martha verdict came down Friday afternoon, FOX's ratings were higher than CNBC, CNN, and MSNBC combined. From 3 to 4pm, Studio B attracted 1,617,000 viewers; by comparison, CNBC had 565,000, CNN had 767,000 and MSNBC had 265,000. CNBC fell all afternoon, to a low of 140,000 viewers by 6pm. CableNewser hears that FNC drew 681,000 viewers 25-54, compared to 237k for CNN , 207k for CNBC, and 64k for MSNBC. The #s were similar for 18-49. Will this give Ailes and Murdoch even more reason to start up a business news channel?... 6:35:23 PM

FOX Spokesperson Denies Sharpton Show Talks
Exclusive: A FOX News spokeswoman denies a report that Al Sharpton is talking to Roger Ailes about a TV talk show. "Al Sharpton is not in talks with Fox News Channel," the rep said. "As usual, Tucker Carlson is misinformed and got it wrong." // The FReepers are having a field day with it... 11:59:01 AM

I've added an SN link up above. I'm always on AOL IM as CableNewser. 10:43:26 AM

Peering Inside MSNBC.com
Mediapost examines the state of MSNBC.com. "As of February, MSNBC.com's ad revenue is up 50 percent year-over-year, and the site is "extremely close" to being cash-flow positive," the site reports. Tomorrow, a revived Today Show web site will be unveiled. "The goal: to offer a continuous, throughout-the-day presence for NBC's cash cow and ratings leader." "My philosophy has been to really make this the best news site by working more effectively with our partners," MSNBC.com's EIC says... 10:35:30 AM

Al Sharpton In Talks With Roger Ailes?
Newsmax picks up on a comment Tucker Carlson made on the Chris Matthews Show this weekend. "Al Sharpton is getting out of the race. He's going to ask the Kerry campaign to pay off his debt and he's going to do what he should have been doing from the beginning - and that is, host a talk show. He's already been in talks with [Fox News chief] Roger Ailes and he may go there," Carlson said. Would it be a weekend thing?... 12:47:21 AM

Media Rediscovers Iraq This Month
Peter Johnson writes about renewed media attention on Iraq in USA Today, today. "CNN's Aaron Brown anchors from Iraq and Afghanistan this week and has planned to interview Centcom commander Gen. John Abizaid. "I'm looking forward to seeing what has changed in the past year," he says." Also: "...Starting next week, NBC, MSNBC and CNBC will team with Newsweek and The Washington Post, with reports from Iraq from the NBC correspondents who covered the war: Kerry Sanders, Tom Aspell and Richard Engle." (Peter, it's spelled Engel.) 12:47:05 AM

Does the MS in MSNBC Stand for Martha Stewart?
The channel was live all day Saturday, from early morning to primetime, with coverage of the guilty verdict. The whole primetime team was dragged in, too. "Is MSNBC going to become a news channel for real?," a TVSpyer asks. Here's a comment from MSNBC MSN: Believe me, if Erik Sorenson was still in charge instead of Rick Kaplan, it would have been Headliners & Legends with some news updates at 1/2 past the hour." 12:46:51 AM

Quote of the day
Here's a clever story from the AP: President Bush skipped the Gridiron Club dinner this weekend; he headed to Crawford to meet with Vicente Fox instead. So at the dinner, WSJ columnist Al Hunt "spun that into a pun about conservatives' fondness for Fox News Channel: 'That pretty much sums up the White House philosophy: Why waste time with newspaper reporters when you can spend quality time with Fox?'" 12:46:14 AM

Lou Dobbs Vs. James Glassman
Howard Kurtz advances the Lou Dobbs/James Glassman battle a few notches in his column this morning. "Now Glassman is taking aim at Dobbs's $199-a-year newsletter, saying it is praising companies such as Boeing and General Electric that are on Dobbs's own CNN list of more than 200 firms he accuses of exporting jobs. 'I find it hypocritical for him not just to be recommending these companies but to be praising them to the skies,' Glassman says, calling Dobbs 'disingenuous.'" It's really not all that exciting... 12:46:00 AM

Light blogging today; much more tomorrow. 4:32:29 PM

Ups and Downs in FOX Coverage of Baltimore Boat Capsizing
FOX News covered the Baltimore water taxi capsizing during most of the 5pm hour, but the tendency to speculate resulted in some embarrassing slip-ups. FOX's best move was pulling up WJZ's copper live shot immediately. The very raw video was compelling as the chopper flew toward the scene. Capt. Mike Perry obviously had no idea his shot was live nationwide. Paige Hopkins and Gregg Jarrett talked over the pictures. "A lot of people were wearing heavy jackets on this day, boots perhaps," Jarrett said. Uh, Gregg: I'm 15 minutes from the harbor, and it's 70 degrees outside. I'm wearing shorts. Greg Kelly was live in the DC bureau: "This same storm hit DC around 1pm on my way to work," Greg with one g said. Now c'mon. You know that was a completely different storm. You really think it took the storm 180 minutes to travel up the BW Parkway? Rita and Geraldo came on set to share their memories of the harbor; Rivera called it a "catastrophe"... 5:57:49 PM

Martha Verdict: "It was personal downfall as public theater"
Such perfect prose in the Post: "Martha Stewart, Act 2: The conviction. It rolls off the tongue like a surreal episode of "Law & Order," which is what it felt like Friday at Foley Square in Lower Manhattan where a throng of media and ordinary people mobbed the steps of U.S. District Court and transformed that stately, columned backdrop into an America-style public spectacle yet again. It was personal downfall as public theater, complete with tents for the media, towering satellite dishes, and stage lights for the key players to march forth and deliver monologues." 11:48:55 AM

Martha Verdict: Screen Grabs of the Scarves
For those of you (like me) who weren't tuned in at 3pm yesterday, Free Republic has screen captures of the scarves and signs seen on cable when the verdict came. "I didn't see ANY of that specticle repeated on the evening news, but I found THAT part of it just as amazing as the story itself!," one post said. 11:41:26 AM

Martha Verdict: Media in Martha's Backyard
WestportNOW, "Westport's 24/7 News & Information Source" (great idea, great site) is reporting on the media's presence in Martha's hometown. "Photographers and camera crews gathered outside Stewart's Turkey Hill Road South home on chances that she would return there this evening. They found a private security guard in a red SUV sitting in her driveway," this article says. They also report on CNN's "live broadcast from the aisle of Oscar's Deli on Main Street" this morning. I wish I had this site in my town... 11:40:08 AM

Martha Verdict: "Lowest of low-tech methods" Used to Report Decision
Here's how the New York Times describes the media's Martha verdict reaction: "With cellphones, pagers, BlackBerry's and all other electronic devices banned from the courtroom where a jury was deciding Martha Stewart's fate yesterday, television news organizations were reduced to the lowest of low-tech methods to report a verdict: cardboard and wool...When the jury's verdict came down yesterday just after 3 p.m. the color-coded semaphore crowd came streaming out of the courtroom holding up signs like limo drivers looking for arrivals at the airport, or waving scarves like rabid football fans." 1:16:41 AM

Martha Verdict: Was the News Still 'Breaking' After the Sun Set?
The MSNBC MSN folks applaud their favorite channel for scrapping the "Flash News" banner for "Breaking News" during Martha coverage. "Now hopefully they will use the Breaking News banner for only the first 3 hours of coverage next time," someone says, and points out that when Dan Abrams signed off four hours after the news broke, it was still "breaking"... 1:15:39 AM

Martha Verdict: "Small bit of confusion" Resulted in Misinformation
The AP has more on how CNBC and MSNBC missed the initial verdict news. "In the chaotic rush to report the Martha Stewart verdict live on television Friday, at least two networks initially called it wrong and had to quickly correct themselves," David Bauder writes. CNBC rep David Friend said it was chaotic. Mike Huckman "had a hard time seeing the verdict as it was coming out of the courthouse." MSNBC spokesman Jeremy Gaines: "I don't know why it was wrong. It was very loud and it was quite chaotic. There was a small bit of confusion and we corrected it immediately." 1:15:12 AM

Martha Verdict: Haven't News Orgs Learned Their Lesson?
A comment at TVSpy: "It's amazing that after all these years, the 2000 elections screw ups and the 2000 election court decision screw ups that the news [organizations] still think about being first with the news rather than waiting that extra 10 seconds to organize and get it right." 1:10:33 AM

Martha Verdict: Scarfs and Placards Declare "Guilty"
Digital Spy explains how the Martha verdict news came down: "In a media frenzy, reporters some networks dashed out of the courthouse waving red-coloured scarves and placards indicating a guilty verdict. However, a single green placard - a colour presumably identifying a not guility verdict - was held up, and was apparently enough to lead cable networks CNBC and MSNBC to get the initial reports wrong...CNN had quite an elaborate system going. According to the AP, four separate staff producers were assigned to listen to the verdicts for each count against Stewart. These four then ran outside and telephoned another producer, who in turn related the information into reporter Mary Snow's earpiece." 12:47:42 AM

Rough Report on CNBC
A report from Gawker on CNBC's Martha Stewart verdict coverage: "Amazing. Li'l Hard Hittin' Mike Huckman is out in front of the courtroom (sans fedora) with these two charts listing all the charges. On one side is a column of boxes saying "not guilty" and on the other is a column of boxes saying 'guilty.' So on live TV, he's checking off the boxes, getting it wrong, crossing them out, until like -- all of the boxes are totally full. No one has any fucking clue if she's guilty or not. And the AP and wires are reporting his mistakes, verbatim. They keep cutting back to him, he drops his pen and looks like he just wants to drop dead." 6:22:36 PM

Why is there nothing to link to today? Yawn... 6:19:05 PM

Lou Dobbs' Ranting: "It's about the money"
Quoting the Wall Street Journal today: "Lou Dobbs isn't an economist; he's a television performer." "I have to believe that Lou Dobbs is ranting nightly about "cheap overseas labor" as a pure ratings play," columnist Daniel Henninger says. "It's about the money." (Hat tip: Romenesko) 1:19:06 PM

"MSNBC should steal Jon Stewart somehow"
At LostRemote, Cory Bergman offers some rants: "MSNBC's "Countdown" is the best newscast on TV, but it's too long. Compress it into a half-hour and we'll have time to watch it." And: "MSNBC should steal Jon Stewart somehow. Or someone like him. Imagine "Countdown" followed by "The Daily Show." MSNBC's primetime fixed." 8:50:49 AM

Laugh
Craig Kilborn on the Late Late Show: "Republicans have launched round-the-clock commercials promoting George Bush. Don't we already have this — it's called Fox News." (Via the AP) 8:48:53 AM

Imbred: MSNBC.com Investigates Outcry Surrounding NBC News Report
MSNBC.com's Brock Meeks writes the lead: "Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge is being asked to investigate allegations that the safety of thousands of air marshals and the public at large was compromised last month during the airing of an exclusive two-part series by NBC News that examined the federal air marshal program." NBC was allowed "unprecedented access to videotape little-known facets of the air marshal program." Interesting piece examining the actions of the site's own parent network... 11:23:03 PM

Are These Countdown Clocks Getting Out Of Hand?
An MSNBC MSN group poster notes that Hardball offered a new countdown clock tonight. "242 days until the election," it said. That's only seven months away... 7:54:44 PM

FOX Persuades Advertisers To Pay Up
The Hollywood Reporter reports that FOX "trotted out Brit Hume and Chris Wallace...to talk politics -- and plug Fox -- over lunch to ad buyers at New York's swank 21 restaurant" yesterday. It's part of an effort to sell the network as a valuable spot for advertisers. "It's a subjective sell. Fox's research includes a 'brand resonance' measure that ranks the network No. 1 among the three major news services in four emotional components: loyalty, attachment, community and engagement. Other research tries to convince advertisers that Fox is 'appointment TV,' as opposed to CNN, which gets more 'channel surfers.'" 7:54:26 PM

Why FOX Doesn't Win Awards
Greta explains why FOX didn't win any of the National Headliner Awards listed on this site yesterday: "You might think from reading those articles that we were determined not to be the best and hence no awards. I could not help but be amused by the suggestion. There is a very good reason FNC did not get any of these awards and won't in the near future. We don't apply for the awards and if you don't apply, you won't get any. Many awards in the media business require the news organizations to submit tapes to compete for the awards. When I first got to FNC I was told that we don't apply for awards." Fair enough. I wonder what MSNBC's excuse is, though, since NBC does apply... 7:45:55 PM

Wed. Ratings: Dennis Miller Hits Bottom
Drudge scoops some Wednesday night cable news ratings, and reveals that Dennis Miller has hit bottom. It's a 0.1 for the CNBC talker, who aired an "encore" last night. MSNBC's Olbermann barely did better, with a measly 0.2. And up from there: 0.3 for Norville and Scarborough, 0.4 for Hardball, 0.5 for Paula Zahn, 0.8 for Aaron Brown, 1.0 for Brit Hume, 1.1 for Greta, 1.3 for Shep and Larry, 1.6 for H&C;, and 2.1 for O'Reilly. 7:45:24 PM

Tina Brown on Ratings: "We can only go up"
A Mediabistro writer asked Tina Brown what she thought of her dismal ratings. "Your new weekly talk show on CNBC had an audience of 20,000 it's first night and 60,000 on its second. In television, those numbers mean no one watched it. Like, NO ONE." Her response: "CNBC hasn't had programming besides infomercials on Sunday nights before. We've gone up against Sex and the City and the Oscars. We can only go up." More on this blog. (Hat tip: Gawker) 7:41:59 PM

Inside the Brains of Hardball
It's all about the "editorial strings," the Hardball producer reveals in his e-mail today. "A couple of editorial strings we're gathering this morning concern the outrage by some over the new Bush ads," he writes. "...The other editorial thread we're pursuing are the culture wars: gay marriage, "The Passion of the Christ", religion and the Catholic church scandal." And you see the final product on TV... 1:47:29 PM

Mass E-mails "Annoyed The Hell" Out of Aaron Brown
Uh-oh. Media for Democracy sent 10,000 e-mails asking media execs to cover e-voting problems. When CNN did, the director e-mailed Aaron Brown to say thanks and "ask that he engage Media For Democracy members in a constructive dialogue on CNN standards for election coverage." Then Aaron replied: "No I will not. Further because this cut and paste campaign has annoyed the hell out of me for a week I won't even pay attention to what you guys want or say or think or do. There is no skill and no passion in cutting and pasting. It's just what lemmings do. I can't begin to tell you how offended I am by it all." Well, he was honest at least. 293 replies to a msg board thread about this so far... 10:40:05 AM

MSNBC is Embarrassing: Taped Norville Show Obsolete By Airtime
MSNBC failed again last night. Deborah Norville Tonight was all on tape. And around 9pm, as news of the Disney shakeup broke, Debbie was running a segment on the topic. Too bad it was completely out of date. They had a "Flash News" banner running with the details, but it was no match for the obsolete talking heads. "Once again MSNBC misses covering a story live since they are on video tape," an annoyed viewer writes. Rick, this is your opportunity. Please seize it... 10:34:38 AM

Lester Holt: 'Today?' 'Nightly News?'
A posting at TVSpy: "Lester Holt is filling in for Matt Lauer this morning. Gosh, it was nice to hear someone conduct an interview without jumping all over the guests answers for a change." With the reported problems at 'Today' lately, the poster suggests letting Katie Couric take over Jane Pauley's new daytime show, and making Pauley/Holt the new 'Today' tandem. (He suggests Natalie Morales for news anchor.) But one response suggests that Holt could shoot higher, and that he would be a better choice for the Nightly News chair than Brian Williams... 10:31:10 AM

Are the Broadcast Networks on Borrowed Time?
A note from Ed in London: "It is true that Bob Dole does a great job on CNN...stupid CBS should have realized his potential when he was on '60 Minutes.' Imagine if they had signed Dole & Clinton to be election night analysts...Instead, CBS, much like the other broadcast networks, isn't willing to take risks, doesn't see the writing on the wall and has squandered another opportunity. Cable is taking risks, cable is reaching out to unique, witty and insightful people to provide context. The broadcast networks better get their act together, or Election Night 2004 could be one of their last. Maybe Brokaw gets it and maybe that's why he's leaving?" 8:38:33 AM

CNN's "Slim Ratings Victory"
CNN's hometown paper trumpets the Super Tuesday ratings win. "CNN won a slim ratings victory on Super Tuesday against rival Fox News...Tuesday, CNN claimed an average of 1.17 million viewers during prime time. Fox attracted 1.14 million. Fox has won the other primary nights, though CNN has narrowed the usual ratings gap on those evenings." 8:08:04 AM

Union Techs Responsible for "CNN is Bad News" Poster
WP's Reliable Source explains the "CNN is Bad News" poster we mentioned Tuesday night. "It was a message from broadcast engineers and technicians who accuse the network of union-busting. 'We were very happy,' Jeff Miller, spokesman for the Communications Workers of America, told us yesterday...Clearly the techs knew how to position themselves to get into camera range. Said Miller: 'The money shot was the one where we got the sign right in front of John Kerry when he was standing there with his wife, with his arms upraised.'" 1:23:14 AM

Moody Explains FOX's Quick GA-for-Kerry Projection
The AJC story also examines FOX's early call of GA-for-Kerry: "Networks evaluate exit data in concert with actual vote samples. When [exec John] Moody checked off Georgia for Kerry just before 7 p.m., Fulton and DeKalb county samples had not arrived. But Moody, and Fox statistical analysts, were confident that the poll's margin of error had been overcome...'Our stomachs tightened a bit — but it always does,' Moody said Wednesday morning. 'Did I think about calling it back? No.'" 1:21:21 AM

Inside FOX's Control Room, Second-by-Second
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution takes readers inside FOX's control room on Super Tuesday: "The focus of the darkened control room is the dozens of monitors fixed on the front wall, where images from myriad sources flit past, like a scene from 'The Truman Show'...Time ticks on: 19:59:57 . . . 19:59:58. . . . 19:59:59. When the clock hits 8 p.m., coverage is at full speed. Hume goes on air, calling three more states for Kerry — Maryland, Massachusetts and Connecticut." Interesting piece... 1:20:31 AM

CNN Tops FOX For 'Super Tuesday,' Sort Of
Super Tuesday ratings: "CNN outdelivers FOXNews in total viewers during prime," Matt Drudge breathlessly reports tonight. At 8pm, FOX registered a 1.4, CNN had a 0.8, and MSNBC had 0.5. By 9pm, CNN had a 1.3, FOX was down to 1.0, and MSNBC held steady at 0.5. At 10pm, CNN dipped to 1.0, FOX was at 0.9, and MSNBC fell to 0.3. (The trends were typical -- CNN was up during Larry King, and FOX was highest during O'Reilly's time slot, even though Brit replaced Bill last night.) A TVSpyer was sarcastic: "Yes, CNN has topped Fox News for the first time in approx. 850 days. What does this mean?? The end of Fox as a rating leader?" 10:07:03 PM

Cleaning Crews Pull Plug on Greta's Live Shot -- (During a Commercial)
Greta takes blog readers behind the scenes of her two-hour show yesterday: "Midway through our second hour, and luckily it was during a commercial break, all our power went out. The crew (and my husband who I brought along to watch the show) scrambled to find out what happened. I was told that the building crew cleaning up and closing the building pulled out our power cords. I know it is not funny, but I laughed. Just exactly what were we going to do if we could not solve the problem at the end of the commercial break? It is live TV so I figure the viewers would not find it fatal. My husband was then "assigned" to watch the power cords." She has photos up, too; her media badge was a lot nicer than my media badge from the day before!... 7:41:33 PM

Viewer to FOX: "Please Stop" Constant News Alerts
Several TVSpy posts decry FOX's News Alerts. "It seems that EVERY single story on Fox News Channel during the day hours is a FOX NEWS ALERT. It's becoming dry. Please stop it," one person writes. "Today they had 3 or 4 news alerts on Martha Stewart's case going to the jury in less than 15 minutes," another post adds. "Maybe that's their real secret to their ratings success," someone says, I hope jokingly... 7:37:44 PM

CNBC's Lack of Competition is an "Opportunity," Ailes Says
From the mouth of Roger Ailes: "CNBC has no competition, so whenever you have a situation where you have no competition, and a third of it (programming) is infomercials ... you have an opportunity to do business." It's a quote from Reuters this afternoon. The wire service translated that into "Ailes said...CNBC was fair game for competitors as it looks at the potential for new channels under the Fox name." But commenting on the possibility of future FOX channels, he said that "the speculation is out ahead of the reality." More... 7:01:30 PM

CNN Wins Seven 'Headliners'
CNN won 7 National Headliner Awards yesterday. (MSNBC and FOX didn't win any.)
> In the Best Newscast category, they placed 3rd for Paula Zahn and Jim Miller's "Fall of Saddam."
> In the Coverage of a Major News Event category, they placed 1st for "Capture of Saddam Hussein," 2nd for Newsnight's coverage of the Blackout, and 3rd for Miles O'Brien during the Columbia disaster. In the Continuing Coverage of a Major News Event, they placed 3rd for "Crisis in Liberia."
> In the Coverage of War and War Related Stories category, they placed 1st for "CNN Presents: Fit to Kill."
> In the Investigative Reporting category, they placed 3rd for "CNN Presents: Easy Prey: Inside the Child Sex Trade."
> In the Feature, Sports, or Human Interest Story category, they placed 2nd for "CNN Presents: Whatever it Takes, Persuing the Perfect 0."
CNBC placed 1st and 2nd in the Business and Consumer Reporting category. 1st went to Sue Herera and co. for "CNBC in India," and 2nd went to David Fabor and friends for "The Big Lie." (The latter is re-airing tonight.) Here's the full list. 6:31:41 PM

CNN Wins Four Gracie Allen Awards
The Foundation of American Women in Radio and Television awarded CNN four Gracie Allen Awards last week. (CNN sent along a press release today.)
> Outstanding Talk Show: Larry King Live's Katherine Hepburn tribute
> Best News Feature: Newsnight's "From the Eyes of Babes"
> Outstanding Public Affairs Program: On the Story
> National News Story - Series: Candy Crowley, "War Stories"
Winners will be honored at an event on June 22 in N.Y., the release said... 6:30:27 PM

CNBC Says It Was 1st With Edwards Drop-out
In a press release today, CNBC says that it was the first to report the Edwards drop-out news last night. 5:07:14 PM

"Is CNN doing everything it can to attract new viewers?:" No
A great story on Forbes.com analyzes CNN. It asks: "Is CNN doing everything it can to attract new viewers"? Columnist Sam Whitmore says the answer is no, and compares CNN.com to the FOX Fan Central web site. He offers advice for Jim Walton: "Don't sit on your 'cume.' Jazz up your Web site. Build out the best viewer appreciation department in the business and give it a decent budget. And do it now--while you're still in the cable TV news driver's seat." 5:06:15 PM

CNN en Espanol Radio News
In case you care: "CNN en Español RADIO has signed a representation agreement with Spanish-language news talk radio network and syndicator, Radiovisa Corporation. Radiovisa becomes the advertising sales and distribution representative for CNN en Español RADIO programming within the United States. CNN en Español RADIO will continue producing radio-specific newscasts and other content, as well as retaining all editorial control. Radiovisa will also spearhead U.S. sales and affiliate marketing representation." 4:47:56 PM

The NYT Likes Bob Dole's Punditry
Bob Dole's CNN commentary is described as "laconic, droll and unflinchingly pragmatic," the New York Times says in an article I forgot to link to yesterday. "He handicaps the Democratic presidential contest, dispenses a heavy dose of reality to the candidates and even ministers to the losers, all on live television," the writer writes. Very good article... 4:33:10 PM

MSNBC's "Nifty high-tech map" of Electoral Votes
Mark Jurkowitz was impressed by MSNBC's electoral map. "Tim Russert began talking about the 16 hotly contested battleground states between Bush and Kerry. The cable outlet then trotted out a nifty high-tech map that played out electoral vote scenarios in a campaign between the two men. As he fiddled around with vote totals by -- for example -- moving Florida into the Kerry column and thus delivering the Massachusetts senator a mythical 2004 White House win, MSNBC contributor Ronald Reagan Jr. exclaimed that 'this map rocks.'" 10:37:15 AM

Analyzing February's Cable News Ratings
The Hollywood Reporter sums up February's cable news stats in this story. "Politics, Donald Trump and Dennis Miller helped NBC's two cable news networks improve their share of the primetime news audience last month, but it's far from certain they can maintain the momentum," they write, and break down the stats into readable chunks... 10:30:29 AM

Five Minutes is a Matter of Pride
Interesting comments from David Folkenflik (very nice guy) in the B-Sun: "...First CNN and then MSNBC announced shortly after 8 p.m. -- and well before the polls had closed in California -- that Edwards had decided to pull out of the presidential race. But it took Fox News valuable minutes before it shared that important piece of news with viewers -- clearly the single most important development of the evening, as it removed Kerry's sole credible challenger. The average viewer who stayed with Fox News would have found out soon enough. As a matter of pride, however, that delay must have rankled Fox's political reporters. If it didn't, it should have." 10:28:48 AM

More How-to-Fix-MSNBC Suggestions
A couple more letters at Romenesko talk about how MSNBC could turn around. They offer their recollections of MSNBC's early days, and discuss possible changes. "I suppose if I had the answer to what ails MSNBC, I'd be earning Rick Kaplan-like money," one points out. Some interesting comments over there... 10:26:27 AM

Cable News #'s Down Across the Board Compared to '03
Cynopsis points out that cable news networks lost a whole lot of viewers compared to this time last year (as war drums got louder and louder.) Quoting: "The five cable networks to lose the most ground Feb 03 to Feb 04 in primetime among A18-49 are Headline News -47%, Fox News -38%, CNN -35%, MSNBC -34%...The five cable networks to lose the most ground Feb 03 to Feb 04 for Total Day among A18-49 are CNN -45%, Headline News -39%, MSNBC -37%, Fox News -36%." 10:00:13 AM

Last Week's News Viewer Index
Cynopsis has the news viewer index for Feb. 23 to 29. In total day, "Fox News had 48% of the viewing, CNN 28%, MSNBC 13%; and Headline News 11%." In primetime, "Fox News had 52%, CNN 30%, MSNBC 11% and Headline News 7%." 10:00:06 AM

'Super:' Just Eight More Months
Wolf Blitzer wrapped it up around 10pm: "Tonight the general election campaign is, for all intents and purposes, underway." That'll conclude the live-blogging... 11:46:20 PM

'Super:' Kurtz: "The obituaries began immediately"
"The pundits couldn't wait to hustle John Edwards off the stage," Howard Kurtz writes tonight. He notes that "shortly before [Edwards] emerged, MSNBC's Kelly O'Donnell said 'we're told he will make no news in his speech.'" And: "Why would the Edwards folks leak this news before their guy had one last chance to address America? To undercut his message before he grabbed the microphone? Who knows? I guess they couldn't keep their lips zipped for another 15 minutes. The obituaries began immediately"... 10:20:36 PM

'Super:' A Skull and Bones Election, Greenfield Notes
Oooh, here's a good one for the conspiracy theorists out there. The CNN team noted that Bush and Kerry are both Yale graduates. Then Jeff Greenfield chimed in with a kicker: That this will be the first presidential election where both candidates are members of Skull and Bones, "the ultrasecret society at Yale." His comment got a hearty laugh, and Wolf Blitzer blew it off... 10:19:24 PM

'Super:' Media Notes: CNN Projects Georgia; The Poli-Press Curse?
CNN finally projected a John Kerry win in Georgia at 10:04pm -- 183 minutes after FOX // "Let me go out on a limb here: Senator Kerry will be the Democratic nominee," Bill Kristol joked on FOX at 10pm // "We're what, eight months from the election?," Bob Dole observed. "One day...can make a big difference" // "There's always a candidate who the press falls in love with, and that candidate is sure to lose," Fred Barnes said on FOX. He said Edwards was the victim this time // Kerry campaign strategist Tad Devine called it a "long fight" to this point. And now it really begins... 10:07:57 PM

'Super:' Analyzing the Countdown Clock
Rantingprofs seems to like MSNBC's countdown clock: "Election nights give them the chance to dust off the trusty count down clock again...count down to when the polls will close in...(Fill in the name of the state in question here.) This is really only relevant if they're holding back exit polls they're ready to go with as soon as polls close, but it's a charming quirk nonetheless. Well, either that or you'll find it inexcusable clutter on your screen, but it's one or the other." 9:59:53 PM

'Super:' Tonight's Drinking Game
Every time you hear a pundit repeat the Democrats-are-unified message, take a nice long sip. "I've never seen a democratic party so united to win" behind the scenes, Susan Estrich said on FOX. On CNBC, Gary Hart said that the Democrats are "not a fractured party the way it's been in the past." Tim Russert called Democrats "very very united and very very angry." "We are a 50-50 nation," he said... 9:46:56 PM

'Super:' Media Notes: "The tale now appears to be almost fully told"
Carl Cameron said that Kerry has "nothing in his way except George W. Bush" // CNN's lower-thirds no longer include Kucinich or Sharpton // The cablers showed video of Kerry watching Edwards' speech on CNN // "The tale now appears to be almost fully told," Brit Hume said... 8:23:14 PM

'Super:' CNN.com First Among .Com's With End-of-Edwards
FOX reported the end-to-Edwards on their lower-third at 8:12pm. At the same minute, FOXNews.com didn't mention it. MSNBC.com had the AP wire story up. CNN.com had added details to their "Breaking News" banner: "Edwards will withdraw from the presidential race on Wednesday, sources tell CNN." (Update: By 8:16pm, the FOX web site posted the news.) 8:14:37 PM

'Super:' FLASH: Edwards To Step Aside
The news broke at 8:06pm ET on the AP. CNN had it on-screen as the candidate opened his mouth in Atlanta: "Edwards decides to quit presidential race." CNBC had it on the lower-third by 8:08pm. I received the CNN breaking news alert at 8:11pm. FOX seemed to hold off on reporting it during the speech... 8:12:31 PM

'Super:' "The nomination fight is over," Russert declares
CNN, FOX, and MSNBC called MD, MA, and CT for Kerry at exactly 8pm. "Clearly, a big night for John Kerry," John Seigenthaler said 8pm. Tim Russert corrected him, calling it a "huge night." Tim said that Edwards would have to win 75% of the remaining delegates in order to win the nomination. "It's not going to happen," Russert said bluntly. "The margin of victory is stunning." And here's the money quote: "This nomination fight is over. John Kerry will be the nominee of the democratic party." 8:05:12 PM

'Super:' The Vice Presidential Race Begins
On CNBC, Tom Brokaw said that tomorrow morning "the guessing game will begin -- who is [Kerry] going to pick for his #2 on the ticket?" "You can start," Alan Murray joked. "You can go first if you'd like." Brokaw said he was playing the game at lunch today. The results for 7 of tonight's 10 states aren't even in yet, and Edwards is already being written off... 7:50:38 PM

'Super:' Cable News Coverage Plans
> FOX will be live until 1am. Brit gets an hour at 8, then hands it off to pundits. H&C; will be live at 9pm and midnight. Greta will anchor from CA for two hours beginning at 10pm. (Update: Greta is anchoring from DC tonight, not CA as FOX P.R. said.)
> CNN will be live until 2am. Larry King will be live at 9pm and midnight; Aaron Brown will host Newsnight from 1 to 2am.
> MSNBC will be live until 2am. Chris Matthews is anchoring for seven straight hours.
> CNBC will be live until midnight. John Seigenthaler will anchor at 8pm, then take an hour-long break for a Dennis Miller rerun. Coverage will continue until midnight. 7:46:14 PM

'Super:' Media Notes: "Angry as hell;" FOX Still Alone on GA Projection
"It seems to me...that the American democratic party has begun to resemble the British labor party: angry as hell," Chris Matthews said. "Anger and the economy...it sounds like a very ideological election coming" // "We are expecting a big party here...the bar is open and people are beginning to stream in," the NBC reporter at Kerry's HQ said // "FOX first to call the state of GA for Kerry," Shep pointed out. Is it a conspiracy?: "I think CNN just wants to keep viewers and is trying to make up the news, even more than Fox right now," a DU post says... 7:39:23 PM

'Super:' "The moment of decision for John Edwards is at hand"
The drum beat is almost deafening. "Is this [Edwards'] last night as a legitimate candidate?," Shep Smith asked on FOX around 7:25pm. 5 minutes later, the cablers called the "critical battleground" of Ohio for John Kerry. Gloria Borger called it a "very important win" for Kerry, and Wolf Blitzer called it a "serious blow" for Edwards. "John Edwards has to be looking at this and saying 'I didn't sell,'" Judy Woodruff said. Brit Hume said ominously that "the moment of decision for John Edwards is at hand." Edwards may speak in the next half hour, Kelly Wallace reported... 7:37:32 PM

'Super:' Media Notes: "The general election starts tonight"
CNN ran its clockdown clock during Lou Dobbs Tonight // Keith Olbermann said that the biggest issue for many voters today is "the economy, smart guy" // // Two protesters held signs that said "CNN is bad news" behind Candy Crowley during her live report in Washington at 7:03pm // Howard Fineman is losing his voice. "The general election starts tonight," he stated // This FReeper sounds disappointed: "Fox just dropped the coverage ...to go to Shep rehashing today's Laci.... Kobe..." 7:25:52 PM

'Super:' FOX Projects Kerry in GA; Other Nets Hold Off
FOX called Georgia for John Kerry at 7pm, while CNN, MSNBC, and CNBC held off. "At this point, CNN is not in a position to call who will win," Wolf Blitzer said. "You could say this is a must-win state for John Edwards," Judy Woodruff told him. "He must win Georgia to keep going." Chris Matthews called Georgia a state Edwards "desperately needs to win," and said it was too early to project. CNBC's graphic simply said "Kerry ahead in Georgia primary." 7:11:43 PM

'Super:' It Begins
Wolf Blitzer called it a "vitally important night in American politics," and so it began. "Ten states up for grades, and John Kerry's looking to tighten his grip on the Democratic nomination," MSNBC's announcer declared. The three cablers each called Vermont for Howard Dean at the top of the hour. Wolf called it the "first surprise of the night"... 7:09:47 PM

'Super:' A Viewers Guide to Primary Coverage
The cablers will be live until the wee hours, but they may write off the young John early tonight. The Note overhears one journalist following Edwards say "the fat lady is now singing." If Edwards doesn't impress tonight -- one CNN promo called it a "Super Tuesday surprise" -- how loud will the drop-out drum-beat become? "...We'll get a good idea early on as to whether Edwards' focus on these two states, along with a few others, will reap him the surge he's looking for," First Read says. Indeed, polls close in most of the states by 8pm. The cablers will have plenty of time to dissect the results and analyze the hell out of this race before the final poll closes in California at 11pm ET. Watch for how early (or late) Edwards and Kerry take to their respective stages tonight... 4:02:22 PM

Exclusive: Raw Nielsen Data For Feb 2004 Cablers
Want to see the raw cable news rating data that reveals what programs will live and what programs will be tweaked to death? Then eat your heart out:
Top 25 Cable News Shows, February 2004 | Comparison Chart: Feb 04 Versus Feb 03
2:17:28 PM

MSNBC Only Has One Show in the Cable News Top 25
The headline says it all. Hardball with Chris Matthews was MSNBC's only show in the cable news top 25 last month, this exclusive chart reveals. The show recorded a 0.5 rating and placed near the bottom of the list. CNN's primetime schedule (Larry King being an exception) is less popular than Fox & Friends, Dayside, Your World, or Studio B, according to the chart... 2:13:16 PM

FOX Pounding CNN in Ratings; Describes 'Commanding' Advantage
FOX News has increased its ratings lead, a press release today declared. Quoting it: In 2004, FOX "continued to pound CNN as its viewership advantage over its closest competitor increased to 70% in Prime Time and 78% in Total Day, both up 14% from its 2003 advantages, according to Nielsen Media Research." They say that CNN dropped 34% in February primetime compared to the year before. FOX had 10 of the top 11 shows on cable news last month. Here's the full press release. 1:47:43 PM

Two Questions
For Miles O'Brien: When you said this afternoon that "CNN is the only place to watch" the primary results tonight, you were just being bombastic, right? Geez, promoting your channel is one thing, but lying is another. // For Howard Kurtz: Today, you decided it was time for a link over to the WSJ's piece on Lou Dobbs. Good idea -- but why did it take you five days to get around to it? The article was published Thursday... 1:01:05 PM

Political press opposed to Bush positions -- except FOX?
Columnist John Podhoretz in the NY Post: "On the three major issues of year - the War on Terror, the economy and now gay marriage - the political press in the United States is opposed to President Bush's stances and opinions...there is, in all likelihood, not a single senior official in a major news organization (save perhaps our sister organization here at The Post, the Fox News Channel) who believes there should be a constitutional amendment affirming that marriage is between a man and a woman." (Hat tip: Romenesko) 9:19:57 AM

Quote of the day
CNN head Princell Hair in the San Bernadino Sun: "It's incumbent upon journalists to make the important interesting,'' Hair said. "Important stories may not always be interesting, but they're important. For us, it's all about find ing the right characters to drive the story. In a 24-hour environment, time is not really as pressing an issue as it would be in a half-hour nightly broadcast." Sometimes I worry the cablerss try to make the interesting important... 8:03:12 AM

Are The Buses Worth The Trip?
ABC and CNN's campaign buses are discussed in a Hollywood Reporter piece. "...Their rivals argue that tooling around the country covering the campaign in rolling newsrooms makes them seem more like Merry Pranksters," Andrew Grossman writes. He gets NBC EP Mark Lukasiewicz to comment: "When I look at the buses, I'm hard-pressed to wonder how it makes a story better, how it improves the storytelling. It's a great marketing thing, but I'm not sure I can point to an instance where it made the story better or the reporting better." Of course, Sam Fiest and Mark Halperin don't agree... 8:00:52 AM

"Do viewers care about Haiti?," Aaron Brown asks
Aaron Brown expresses his concern with selecting the chaos in Haiti as the top story. "It is one of those leads and one of those stories I worry about," he writes in the newsletter today. "Do viewers care about Haiti? Have we explained well enough why you "should" care? It's the right lead, and we'll go with it." 9:28:29 PM

Holt, Blitzer to Interview Cheney Tuesday
Lester Holt's interview with the VP will air on his MSNBC show tomorrow afternoon. Excerpts will air all day on the channel, this press release says. Wolf Blitzer has an interview with Cheney, too -- it will air on his 5pm show, CNN.com says. Gee, you don't think it could be related to Super Tuesday, do you? (Update: FOX will air Brit Hume's interview with the Veep at 6pm.) 7:36:45 PM

CNN Hires Local Star For Peterson Coverage
KTVU reporter Ted Rowlands will cover the Scott Peterson trial as a national correspondent for CNN. Newsblues reporting: "Rowlands had several televised conversations with Scott Peterson in the days following Laci Peterson's disappearance at Christmas, 2002, and prosecutors have summoned him to appear in court as a witness." His current station, the Oakland FOX affiliate, is fighting the subpoena. He starts at CNN next week... 7:35:45 PM

MSNBC Should "try something radically new: Quality"
A reader writes into Romenesko with several great ideas: "...Why shouldn't MSNBC and its new head, Rick Kaplan, try something radically new: quality? I don't think going back to a classic format is the right move. Rather, the network would have nothing to lose to try to shake things up and reinvent the way television news is made and presented. ...Let's stop underestimating the news audience and provide a network people can feel good about watching -- and actually want to watch." Read the whole letter; it is excellent. It sounds like something I wouldn't be able to turn off. Is 30 Rock smart enough to let the channel off its leash?... 7:30:23 PM

FOX Is "The Destination" On Primary Nights
Check out the way USN&WR;'s "Washington Whispers" column sums up cable news ratings. On primary nights, "audience ratings show that Fox is killing CNN and MSNBC during the breaking-news period of 7-9 p.m. when early Democratic results are pouring in. "We're the destination," says spokesman Paul Schur. After that, CNN takes over when Larry King goes to work." That's a pretty simplistic view of it, eh?... 3:27:53 PM

Quote of the day
Rantingprofs is on a roll: "Shame on FOX...In the case of the Mississippi family now missing several days, the cops arrest a cousin and promise a 'profound development,' but won't say anything else. That's enough for Fox to put up a criminologist, a forensic specialist and a judge to speculate on what they've found, what the autopsies will show, whether they'll go for the death penalty based on how long the family might have suffered, what kind of a deal a lawyer would plea for versus how the cops might legally lie to the guy to get him to confess...This kind of wild speculation does no one any good whatsoever and is frankly irresponsible. If in fact bodies have been found bring the forensic specialists on then. Until then there is more than enough news to talk about without this kind of macabre speculation. Speculation does not equal scooping." 3:20:17 PM