The Evening News Report: Age Ain't Nothing But A Demo
I want to use this week's EN Report to discuss the "Evening News'" somewhat uneasy balancing act when it comes to attracting viewers. The problem, basically, is this: Older people make up a large chunk of the audience for the nightly newscasts, but they are not the audience that advertisers covet. CBS gets more ad revenue when viewers in "The Demo" – 25 to 54 year olds – tune in. It's in the interest of the show to attract these younger viewers. But the "Evening News" doesn't want to turn off the older viewers who make up the majority of the audience.
Is it possible to keep both age groups happy? Maybe. But it's not easy. Katie Couric was brought in as anchor in part to attract a younger audience, and her arrival seemed to signal that the "Evening News" would make an effort to reach viewers in The Demo. But the stories broadcast last week suggest that the "Evening News" is still very much tied to its older fans. Exhibit A: The Caregivers series, which focused on caring for the elderly.
Sayeth the press release: "Millions of baby boomers in America are now having to care for their aging parents, even as they still raise their own children... CBS News examines the important issues and problems real people are facing, offering viewers real solutions." Now, this is the kind of series that theoretically appeals to both baby boomers and their elderly parents. But stories like "Elder Care Pays Off For Everyone" are not exactly catnip for The Demo.
That isn't to say that there aren't plenty of stories that appeal to a wide audience. But those stories usually come relatively early in the broadcast. The special features, meanwhile, have a sensibility that reflects that of older viewers. A few examples: pieces on helping the blind to read, health care costs, and a 92-year-old dance teacher, all of which ran last week.
Steve Hartman's "Assignment America" series also seems designed to appeal to older viewers, and while last Friday's segment took on the relatively youth-oriented topic of unicycles, the choices for next week include a story about a poker game in an assisted living facility and one on "America's coldest, most isolated senior center."
Is that a bad thing? Depends on who you ask. Certainly, the "Evening News" has to be concerned about the age of its viewers, who won't be around forever. At the same time, one might argue that, in the Internet age, it makes sense to cater to an older audience, since a TV news broadcast at 6:30 isn't going to attract younger viewers no matter what you put on.