Ratings, Red State, & Spielberg

I'm back! I have to thank my friends here at ATC and ATA for covering for me over the last two weeks, I've enjoyed my time off, but it's nice to be back.

The first item tonight is a quick look at ratings from Tuesday night's primary coverage.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008West Virginia PrimaryAdults 25-54^ FOX 386,0001 CNN 425,6672 MSNBC 303,5003 Total Audience 2+^ FOX 1,477,0001 CNN 1,378,6672 MSNBC 870,3333

It's not really suprising that the there were not as many viewers tuning into the election results on Tuesday night as we've seen during past primary coverage. The real question wasn't "Who would win?" but "By how much would she win?". In looking at the ratings, each of the three networks defined a different time period as their "Primary/ Election coverage" time slots. (I crunched the numbers for the 7PM - 12AM time period and when compared with the averages above, the numbers are slightly different, but the overall ranking remains the same.)

CNN peaked at 9PM with 662,000 Adult 25 - 54 Viewers and 1,886,000 Total Audience 2+ Viewers. This is more than both MSNBC (showing Election Coverage) and FOX (showing HANNITY & COLMES) during the 9PM hour.

Ratings for the week May 5 - May 9, 2008

	8PM^Adults 25-54 FOX 546,5004 CNN 217,7504 MSNBC 394,500 4
	9PM^Adults 25-54 FOX 403,0004 CNN 305,5004 MSNBC 185,7504
	10PM^Adults 25-54 FOX 321,7504 CNN 329,7504 MSNBC 180,7504

FOX won the Adult Viewers 25 - 54 ratings for the 8PM and 9PM time slots. CNN took 10PM. CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 also had the highest number of viewers Adult 25 - 54 on Wednesday with 372,000. FOX (GRETA) followed behind with 274,000 and then MSNBC (COUNTDOWN) with 219,000.

¹ FOX Election Coverage (coded) from 7p - 8p
² CNN Election Coverage (coded) from 7p - 10p
³ MSNBC Election Coverage (coded) 6p - 12a
⁴ 4 day average. Tuesday primary coverage excluded.
^{^} Courtesy Nielsen Media Research; Demographics where noted; Live + Same Day (LS) Fast Track Nationals.

23/6 has taken a fancy to John King and his magic wall. They posted the following video: Stephen Spielberg presents: John King on their site:



Red State Update was back on American Morning today with Kyra Phillips. Here's a clip:

Today was Rob Marciano's 5 year anniversary with CNN. On American Morning, he was showing off his 5 year plaque.

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Another Tuesday Another Primary

No surprise to anyone, Hillary Clinton won the West Virginia primary. The projected winner was announced early in the evening. The most interesting thing I saw was John King at the Magic Board(maybe it's because I'm intrigued by all kinds of maps). Here is a clip of John talking to Wolf about the impact of rural voters.

CNN has another new addition. Fran Townsend. Here is the press release.

Frances Fragos Townsend, who recently stepped down as President George W. Bush's chief anti-terrorism and homeland security adviser, will join CNN as an on-air contributor providing analysis and insight on national security issues, it was announced by Jon Klein, president of CNN/U.S.

Townsend, who has spent more than two decades in the fields of intelligence and criminal justice, has served during the past three administrations, most recently as assistant to Bush for homeland security and counterterrorism. She chaired the Homeland Security Council from May 2004 until January 2008. Prior to that, she was a deputy assistant to the president and deputy national security adviser for combating terrorism from 2003 to 2004. She has been at the center of America's effort to fight terrorism through her work in the U.S. Coast Guard, the Justice Department under President Bill Clinton and the George W. Bush White House.

"Fran's insider experience will bring an informed point of view to topics and issues that many voters care deeply about," Klein said. "She adds an important dimension to CNN's coverage of one of the central questions in the presidential election — How safe are we?"

"This is a critical time for our country," Townsend said. "Having just come off the front lines in the war on terrorism, I'm excited to be able to speak directly to American and global viewers who need to know how serious the threat is, what is being done about it and how much is left to do."

Townsend currently serves as a consultant to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and as a member of President Bush's Intelligence Advisory Board, the Council on Foreign Relations and the Aspen Institute Homeland Security Program.

Her early career in law includes service as an assistant district attorney in Brooklyn, N.Y., and with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. Before joining the Bush White House, Townsend was the first person to serve as assistant commandant for intelligence for the Coast Guard and spent 13 years at the Justice Department in a variety of senior positions, including chief of staff to the assistant attorney general, director of the Office of International Affairs in the Criminal Division, acting deputy assistant attorney general in the Criminal Division and counsel to the attorney general for intelligence policy.

Townsend graduated cum laude from the American University with a bachelor's degrees in political science and psychology and earned her law degree from the University of San Diego School of Law. She has taught trial advocacy at Harvard Law School and Pace University Law School.

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The Real Story in Election '08...CNN's Magic Wall

So we are now in month 15 or 16 (although it feels much longer) of the 2008 Presidential campaign and at this point what is everyone talking about? No it is not Obama, Clinton or McCain. The real story of the election season is CNN’s John King and his Magic Wall.

A reader of ATC sent an email to me the other day about the New York Times article about John King and his “magic wall” by Jacques Steinberg. Ms. Phebe used it in her post over at ATA on Tuesday night but I thought it would be a great for tonight’s post. To read Jacques' article click here.

Not only is the New York Times talking about the magic board but so is MTV News. Tim Kash of MTV News recently went to CNN and spoke with John King on Pennsylvania primary night. To read Tim’s account click here.

Also in keeping with the election coverage, Beet TV interviewed CNN.com Live anchor Melissa Long Tuesday night on covering the elections live for the CNN website. To see the video interview, click here.



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Oh that Magic Wall

(screencap courtesy of Book Asylum)

So who is the star player on the Best Political Team on television: Wolf Blitzer, Anderson Cooper, Candy Crowley or John King? I enjoy all of the above but for me, the star is CNN's new toy, the Magic Wall. (okay, that was a trick question, sorry!)

Much has been written about Perceptive Pixel's Magic Wall so I thought I'd give you a little peak at this new technology and how CNN came to acquire the cool analysis tool. According to BroadcastEngineering.com, David Bohrman, CNN senior VP and Washington, D.C., bureau chief saw a demo of the wall at a trade show back in 2006.

Initially, Bohrman intended to wait until November to integrate the Magic Wall into CNN’s election night coverage. However, it was too good to wait, he said. The Perceptive Pixel technology shipped to CNN in New York last week, and programmers from the company customized the system’s software for last night’s coverage over the three days leading up to the Iowa caucus. “They’ve taken our elements and palettes and incorporated them into their graphic system to match our look,” Bohrman said.

“It has enormous capabilities,” he said. “We will be using it a lot over the next year.”

And boy have they been getting their money's worth. The Magic Wall has been used during CNN's extensive caucus and primary coverage. I think it adds an interesting element to their political analysis. I really like how John King or Jeff Toobin can break down votes county by county in any given state.

Paul Farhi also writes about the Magic Wall in today's Washington Post. The creator of the wall, Jeff Han admits that news wasn't his first market for this technology. But to any viewer, it's an obvious fit.

So what does CNN do with the technology after the election season is a distant memory? Stay tuned, I'm sure the creative minds at CNN will come up with wonderful ways to enhance our viewing pleasure!


Super Tuesday Coverage Plans

With CNN's newest political analysis tool in mind, here is today's press release regarding coverage plans for Super Tuesday. Click on the title for full text.

CNN’s Political Team Canvasses Nation for Super Tuesday

Unprecedented 40-Hour Marathon of Coverage Features Live ‘America Votes 2008’ Panel, Hi-Tech Election Results

The 40-hour marathon of coverage begins at 6 a.m. with a politics-focused American Morning. Kiran Chetry anchors from a location in Harlem, while John Roberts anchors from Tennessee.

At noon, CNN and Time magazine combine the expertise of their top political correspondents in front of a live studio audience for “CNN-Time America Votes 2008.” Anchored by Campbell Brown, the program will feature CNN’s Emmy Award-winning political lineup as well as top members of Time’s political team as they examine the presidential candidates and the issues facing 2008 voters as they head to the polls. Three panels, focusing on Democratic, Republican and independent candidates and issues, will be moderated by Wolf Blitzer, Anderson Cooper and Lou Dobbs.

CNN’s special prime-time programming will begin at 7 p.m. —following wall-to-wall politics on The Situation Room—and run late into the night. Blitzer, along with Cooper, Dobbs and John King, will guide the coverage from the CNN Election Center in New York. Throughout the coverage, CNN anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien and senior political analyst Bill Schneider will review exit poll data. CNN International will simulcast the coverage.

The coverage will lead into a special edition of Larry King Live at midnight hosted by Larry King and featuring analysis and insight into the election results. Live political programming will resume on Wednesday, Feb. 6 with American Morning 6 a.m. As the dust settles, CNN’s correspondents, analysts and top-flight guests will talk about what the results mean for the presidential contenders. The continuous coverage will continue throughout the day and conclude with Anderson Cooper 360°.

...CNN’s Emmy Award-winning political team will be covering all aspects of the campaign trail throughout the weekend and on Super Tuesday from Arizona to Illinois and from California to New York and Massachusetts. Dana Bash and Mary Snow will be covering the Republican candidates, and Candy Crowley and Suzanne Malveaux will be reporting on the Democrats. Also providing reports will be CNN correspondents Jim Acosta, Tom Foreman, Joe Johns, Chris Lawrence, Dan Lothian and Jessica Yellin; Gloria Borger; senior political analyst; Jack Cafferty, commentator; David Gergen, senior political analyst; Bill Schneider, senior political analyst; and Jeff Toobin, legal analyst; and CNN’s nationally known contributors Bill Bennett, Carl Bernstein, Donna Brazile, Amy Holmes and Roland Martin.

I hope you enjoy today's extended coverage. And if you live in a Super Tuesday state, please remember to get out and vote! This is one of the most important elections seasons of our time. But like the New York Lottery motto says, "You gotta be in it to win it!"

Have a great Super Tuesday! I'll see you next week. ~Sheryn

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