Campbell Brown is out at CNN.
After several reports surfaced that the host of the 8:00 p.m. hour wanted out of her contract -- and a timeslot she was struggling in -- released a remarkably candid statement admitting her defeat.
"I knew on the day that I accepted my job at CNN that a ratings victory at 8pm was going to be a formidable challenge," Brown wrote. "As I have been told over and over, this is the toughest timeslot in cable news."
Brown continued: "The simple fact is that not enough people want to watch my program, and I owe it to myself and to CNN to get out of the way so that CNN can try something else."
She isn't kidding. Year-to-date, her program is down 38 percent in total viewers and 40 percent in the 25-to-54-year-old demo, according to Nielsen. The May 14 broadcast hit a record low for Brown in both categories -- averaging 314,000 total viewers and just 66,000 in the 24-54 demo.
As for her replacement, "CNN will have to figure out what that is," Brown said. "The 8pm hour in cable news world is currently driven by the indomitable Bill O'Reilly, Nancy Grace and Keith Olbermann."
It was Brown, who developed an editorial segment on her show called "Cutting Through The Bull," cutting through her own.
Here's Brown's full statement:
"I knew on the day that I accepted my job at CNN that a ratings victory at 8pm was going to be a formidable challenge. As I have been told over and over, this is the toughest timeslot in cable news. That is obviously due to the incredible talents of my 8pm competitors. I have also always marveled whenever a television anchor says that he or she pays no attention to ratings. I'm pretty sure the last time any anchor could honestly ignore ratings was well before I was born. Of course I pay attention to ratings. And simply put, the ratings for my program are not where I would like them to be. It is largely for this reason that I am stepping down as anchor of CNN's 'Campbell Brown.'
To be clear: this is my decision, and one that I have been thinking about for some time. As for why, I could have said, that I am stepping down to spend more time with my children (which I truly want to do). Or that I am leaving to pursue other opportunities (which I also truly want to do). But I have never had much tolerance for others' spin, so I can't imagine trying to stomach my own. The simple fact is that not enough people want to watch my program, and I owe it to myself and to CNN to get out of the way so that CNN can try something else.
CNN will have to figure out what that is.
