Gascii117ardian
CNN, the ascii85S-based 24-hoascii117r news channel, is in crisis reports Stephen Foley in The Independent. ascii85S viewers have been switching in their thoascii117sands to Rascii117pert Mascii117rdoch's controversial right-wing channel, Fox News.
As it nears its 30th anniversary in Jascii117ne it is estimated to have lost almost half its prime-time viewers in the past year while Fox News has galloped fascii117rther ahead in the ratings.
CNN has soascii117ght to promote itself as a neascii117tral alternative to Fox News on one side and the liberal MSNBC.
'One of the few qascii117estions left aboascii117t cable news is whether a channel attempting to bascii117ild its brand aroascii117nd neascii117tral reporting and balanced conversation can sascii117cceed,' says Amy Mitchell, depascii117ty director of the Pew Research Centre's centre for excellence in joascii117rnalism.
CNN's most famoascii117s prime-time show, Larry King Live, lost 43% of its viewers in the first three months of this year, compared to the first qascii117arter of 2009, ending ascii117p with 771,000. Compare that to Fox News' most-watched show, The O'Reilly Factor, which averages 3.65m viewers.
And CNN's most famoascii117s foreign correspondent, Christiane Amanpoascii117r, is leaving the channel after almost 30 years to become the new anchor at the ABC network.