For staffers at ABC News, these have been trying times. The death of longtime anchor Peter Jennings, followed by the serious war-zone injury to co-anchor Bob Woodruff, has sapped some of the
division's strength. And it seems these tribulations have cost ABC News some of its viewers as well. While Woodruff recovers--slowly, albeit steadily, by most accounts--the network is alternating
fill-in co-anchors. Charles Gibson and Diane Sawyer, who hold down the fort at "Good Morning America," are taking turns working alongside Elizabeth Vargas, who announced recently that she is
pregnant. The result? Not especially encouraging. "Season to date, 'WNT' is averaging 8.8 million viewers, down 9 percent from the 9.6 million it drew for the same period during the 2004-05 season,
when long-time anchor Peter Jennings was still on air," reports
Media Life. "Among the core 25-54 demo, the program is down 7 percent from last season, to a 2.5 rating." While there was some
modest improvement last week in the ratings, ABC News clearly has not found its post-Jennings stride, and, with Woodruff wounded, it is not likely to do so for quite some time. Meanwhile, CBS News,
with Bob Schieffer handling anchor duties until a permannent replacement can be found for Dan Rather, has shown surprising strength. "NBC Nightly News," with Brian Williams, is the industry leader.
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