After the Election, What of Cable News?

The 2008 presidential campaign season has been a long and heady one for the cable news networks, which have telecast and heavily promoted 23 primary debates and used plot-changing primary nights to generate double-digit ratings increases. But the history of cable news viewership is a roller coaster of steep highs, reflecting major news stories, followed by deep drops. This presidential campaign has provided such a sustained high for Fox News, CNN and MSNBC that cable news followers are asking whether the cable news channels risk a crash when the political drama subsides, or whether they can hold on to any of their expanded audiences after the election. Dr. Larry Sabato, founder and director of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, believes cable news can sustain some of the newfound interest in politics. Indeed, it’s about time that television, which he said has gotten pretty good at covering elections and campaigns, figured out how to cover governance, he said.
http://www.tvweek.com/news/2008/03/after_the_election_what_of_cab.php
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