Cooper/Brown

I didn't think Aaron Brown was anything close to perfect and I don't mind Anderson Cooper, but I'm not surprised that Cooper's ratings aren't so great. Brown's show, though flawed, offered a slightly different approach to the news than is the norm these days. I think it was actually appointment viewing for some people.

CNN booted Aaron Brown two weeks ago, hoping that a more exciting personality would boost ratings for the 10 p.m. timeslot. That more exciting personality was Anderson Cooper, still basking in kudos for his Hurricane Katrina coverage.

But while Cooper may have wowed audiences reporting from New Orleans, he's off to a poor start anchoring CNN’s revamped primetime news show.

For the week ended Nov. 13, its first week, “Anderson Cooper 360,” as the new 10-to-midnight show is called, averaged 593,000 viewers, according to Nielsen.

That’s down 27 percent from October's 813,000 average for “NewsNight,” on which Cooper and Brown shared hosting responsibilities for the past month. It’s also well below the 842,000 Brown’s show averaged during 2004.