Fox News Channel, then, is so far neither the choice of most people who watch cable news, nor the more successful business model. But the perception that Fox is "trouncing" CNN--based largely on the fact that the number Nielsen releases to the public emphasizes heavy viewers--is of great use to Fox, which trumpets these ratings as a vindication of its partisan, "fair & balanced" approach to the news. Reacting to a guest's charge that Fox had a right-wing bias, Brian Kilmeade, co-host of the successful Fox & Friends morning show (2/25/03), boasted: "Then what does that say about the country when they made us No. 1?"But even in the limited sense of average hourly watchers, Fox is only No. 1 among 24-hour cable news channels. Fox, like CNN, now reaches about 4 of every 5 television households, so comparisons with broadcast news shows are increasingly valid. And among all television news sources, Fox's performance is nothing to brag about.