Has Bill OReilly recast viewers perception of what constitutes TV news?
Collins: I think you could argue that he has. To many viewers, O’Reilly is an “anchor,” just like Rather or Brokaw, rather than a “host.” So, over time, they probably begin to blur the two roles. There are probably some people out there wondering why Dan doesn’t have a “Most Ridiculous Item of the Day.” IWM: Will cable news channels eventually will kill off the evening newscasts on the broadcast networks? Collins: The evening news may die, but not simply because of cable. The Internet probably plays a big role in the ratings decline, maybe as big as cable does. And there are a lot of factors networks have to consider before killing off the evening news, including regulatory concerns, what the lack of an active news division would mean during an event such as 9/11, and what their owned-and-operated stations would put on in place of the news. IWM: You write: “Cable news is a very different beast than broadcast.” How so? Collins: The audiences are much smaller in cable than in broadcast.
