CABLE BATTLE: CNN HEAD CALLS FOXNEWS COVERAGE 'MEANINGLESS NONSENSE'

Drudge Report ^ | 8/23/05 | Matt Drudge

[wagglebee]

CNN President Jonathan Klein implies ratings news leader FOXNEWS is mired in coverage of "meaningless nonsense," claiming: "Fourteen Americans dead, and they have Natalee Holloway on," Klein says. "And they're supposedly America's news channel."

"It's easy and it's brainless," Klein charges in a telephone interview set for publication at the NEW YORK TIMES, explaining why cable news outlets had gravitated to the Aruba story. "They're looking for an ongoing drama" along the lines of the NBC crime show "Law & Order," he said, adding, "Except 'Law & Order' doesn't do the same plot every night."

"There are an awful lot of things you can cover if you don't have people tied up with this meaningless nonsense," Klein says.

In early July, Klein pulled CNN's correspondent out of Aruba and dropped the subject from most CNN shows in the absence of new developments.

"If Jon performed as well as he talks, he wouldn't have to explain his network's dismal ratings," says Irena Briganti, a spokeswoman for FOXNEWS. "We have trounced him on every breaking news story from the London bombings and last week's events in Gaza."

Impacting...

[BunnySlippers]

You're right, it isn't news. It's a BUSINESS. They go for ratings.

You and I can handle our own education.

[nutmeg]

If FNC is still doing Natalee stories by Thanksgiving with no new developments in the case, they deserve to go bankrupt.

I agree. Thank goodness for Brit Hume, Neil Cavuto, Cal Thomas, Fox News Watch and the Beltway Boys. That's about all I watch on FNC these days, thanks to its new 'Tabloid TV' format... :-(

[dmw]

CNN=Communist News Network

[wagglebee]

Until they have legitimate new information about Holloway, they need to just drop it. They should focus on Able Danger, because the rest of the media has barely even acknowledged it exists.

[xrp]

The CNN exec is correct with regards to Fox News' obsession with Natalee Holloway or *insert whatever other current missing person here*.

Fox News completely sucks now.

Thank goodness DOG the Bounty Hunter (A&E) is on during the Hannity and Colmes (H&C currently talking about the new missing model) timeslot.

Fox News no longer carries news that is relevant to the American citizenry, it merely carries sensationalism.

[Fido969]

"If Jon performed as well as he talks, he wouldn't have to explain his network's dismal ratings," says Irena Briganti, a spokeswoman for FOXNEWS.

"Damn you, Fox News!"

[ozzymandus]

I'm sick of Natalie, but CNN spent the whole frackin' day talking about Pat Roberts comment that Hugo what's-his-name should be knocked off. They've been desperately juggling and re-naming their shows in a desperate attempt to attract viewers, and it ain't working. There's a giant sucking sound at CNN, and the whole network is just about to go WHOOSH down the toilet.

[PISANO]

I agree that those programs on FOX that cover LOCAL stories ad nauseum are pathetic.

I turn OFF FNC after Brit Hume. No matter how successful they may be I won't be one of those who watches any program after Brit until the format changes.

[timestax]

[Txsleuth]

I don't know if you have had the "pleasure" of watching the "new" Wolf Blitzer 3 hour extravaganza, The Situation Room...

Whoa, is it cheesyyyyyyyyyy!!! The set is cheesy, Wolf is cheesy, his guests are cheesy....I get embarrassed for him, the five minutes or so that I have watched, on a couple different occasions...

[Palladin]

You watched Wolf Blitzer for three hours? And you didn't throw up even once?

[xrp]

Haha, great post. What I can't figure out is that how Hannity & Mannequin and Greta both average 2,000,000 viewers or so consistantly. My gut feeling is that most people watch O'Reilly, and fall asleep with their TVs on about 5 minutes into Hannity & Mannequin, then wake up sometime after Greta to discover themselves watching O'Reilly again and finally shut the TV off.

[BunnySlippers]

OK ... maybe so. :)

But I'm,always amazed at so-called conservatives on this site who gripe about a successful business model: Fox News. If they cut out Natalee Holloway coverage (or Scott Peterson et al) they cut off their super high ratings.

Be glad. Invest. :)

[jveritas]

eight more days to go :)

[BunnySlippers]

Hmmm ... but they CAN'T make a profit withiout the idiotic programming. Are you surprised?

This is what people want. And Fox is delivering.

[Texas_Conservative2]

I get tired of Aruba too tell ya the truth...

I also get tired of "FOX NEWS ALERTS" over every trival thing in the world every 5 minutes.

Other than that... They are the best TV has to offer at the moment.

[xrp]

Well, it's kinda like the Republican Party, I guess. Fox News built itself, it's core, off of offering conservatives an unbiased news format. Now, it has forsaken them. Likewise, the Republican Party built itself, it's core, off of conservatives. Now, it has forsaken them. Such a shame that so many conservatives fail to recognize this and take their business elsewhere.