• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, July 13, 2005

Couched as their "cable news bypass strategy," CBS Digital President Larry Kramer and president of CBS News, Andrew Heyward, announced the relaunch of CBSNews.com yesterday. The newly-configured site, which went live on Monday night, is described as a 24-hour broadband network and features an in-house "Public Eye" blog intended to demystify the organization, as well as a video player called "The EyeBox" on which users can stream over 25,000 new and archived videos on-demand.

"We believe that if the cable news networks knew when they started their businesses what they know now, they might not have placed the same investment on cable," said Kramer, who cited at-work, daytime consumers' penchant to get news online as a major chink in cable networks' armor.

The move comes at a time when most major TV broadcast networks are experiencing a steady decline in ratings amid stiff competition from cable and Internet alternatives, and, as a result, are souping up their digital offerings to capture part of an online ad market that is expected to grow by nearly 30 percent this year to over $10 billion.

Disney's ABC News, for example, has already launched a broadband product, and CNN now provides free on-demand broadband video online.

The restructuring presents CBS' advertisers with several new opportunities. "The EyeBox," which shows up on all the CBS News cites, allows effective video ads to be served across the entire network. And, earlier in the day, the site features a full-page ad known as a "Front Page Watch."

"We need to be there for our advertisers as they are there for us, so we are working very closely with them," said Kramer speaking from Studio 19 at Black Rock. "A lot of the discussions on what ad units we're using are based on discussions we've had with (our advertisers)... They're all looking for more engagement, and to be associated with high-quality content." Both Kramer and Heyward, portrayed the development as a major reallocation of CBS' resources online from a primarily TV- and radio-based news operation, as well as a philosophical shift to a 24-hour mentality.

"We are redefining the mission of CBS News and the people who work here to meet the demands of a 24-hour digital universe," said Heyward.

"Every component of this relaunch -- including... greater participation from the CBS News correspondents and producers who will also be reporting directly for the Web -- will dramatically improve the content, delivery, and navigation of the Web site," Kramer explained.

Rather than just reallocate its resources, Kramer and Heyward said they plan on expanding staffing at CBS News.com as well the total resources of CBS News.

Emblematic of CBS' expansion and redirection is Vaughn Ververs, the newly appointed editor of CBS News' blog "Public Eye," which is meant to open a direct line of communication between the news staff and the public.

Most recently, Ververs served as editor of "The Hotline," a beltway political newsletter.

The "Public Eye," which is expected to debut later this summer, will take viewers inside the news gathering, production, and decision-making process via the use of original video and outtakes, interviews with correspondents and producers, and input from independent experts, according to Kramer.

Asked whether Ververs would have total editorial freedom, Heyward said he would, but added that Ververs and anyone else on CBS' payroll would be expected to mind the news organization's general philosophy.

With "The EyeBox" video player, users can build their own newscast from a "Video Jukebox" of current news broadcasts and archives, or watch what stories CBS Evening News anchor Bob Schieffer has chosen to feature on a daily basis. Also, CBS News' White House correspondents -- John Roberts, Bill Plante, and Mark Knoller - will produce weekly features to address viewer questions, and the "Early Show" anchors Harry Smith, Hannah Storm, Julie Chen, and Rene Syler will also provide online programming.

Additionally, "Listening Post," the site's Web-exclusive look at issues around the world, will be expanded with reporting from Baghdad, Tokyo, Rome, Tel Aviv, and London, among other locations.