Brian Stelter’s Debut As CNN’s ‘Reliable Sources’ Host Snags Just 400,000 Viewers

Former New York Times media correspondent Brian Stelter also clocked 118,00  viewers in the news demo in his debut as permanent host of CNN’s Reliable Sources on Sunday. Same day, former Reliable Sources host Howart Kurtz logged 960,000 viewers — 239,000 in the news demo — in his new gig as host of FNC’s  all-things-media program, MediaBuzz. That puts Kurtz 104% ahead of Stelter in total viewers, 103% in 25-54 year olds. Stelter’s debut came in 35% lower in overall crowd, and 49% in the demo, compared to Reliable Source’s most recent telecast on November 24 with another guest host. (CNN focused on breaking news coverage of the New York train wreck on Sunday, December 1 in the slot.) Kurtz has grown his MediaBuzz audience by 98% in overall audience — 33% in the demo — since debuting. (Last month, after 11 weeks at FNC, Kurtz broke the 1 million viewer barrier, without breaking news, on his new all-things-media show, MediaBuzz. In his 15 years hosting CNN’s Reliable Sources, Kurtz never sustained 1 million viewers for the full telecast — though it broke 1 million viewers on a couple of Sundays when the format was interrupted for breaking news of the earthquake that had struck Japan, in March of 2011, and again in December 2012, on the day of memorial services for Sandy Hook elementary school shootings victims.)

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