CNN ratings slump cure? Video blogging and i-Report

It's no secret that CNN has faced a massive ratings slide. According to Nielsen, CNN has seen its numbers fall 25 percent when compared to this time last year, when the election season just wrapped up with now-President Barack Obama's historic win.

Many have speculated on what's wrong with CNN, from Lou Dobbs' biased and occasionally racially charged reporting, to some feeling that CNN backs President Obama, while others observe that CNN attacks President Obama. But whatever the case, there's a problem. My read is that CNN's lost its identity.

It's more than having a liberal or conservative view, its the brand. The CNN brand has been and should be one centered around what it was designed for: the presentation of news 24 hours a day. But in this opinion-driven media environment, viewers want something with an edge. CNN's had the answer all along: i-Report.

The i-Report system is a website that allows you to upload .Mov file or MPEG file videos of your comments, events, or interviews. The i-Report staff selects what videos are "tagged" for use by CNN, or called "On CNN."

The i-Reports are primarily used in CNN's event coverage and are especially useful during the reporting of disasters and political conventions. I was one of CNN's featured i-Reporters last year at the DNC convention and made this now famous video called Clinton Delegate Tells Off Clinton "Supporter staring Florida radio talk show host Mitch Mallett (embedable YouTube version shown):



As I told i-Report staffers Lila King (who's the boss) and Henry Hanks and others, including CNN Executive Producer Andreas Preuss, the future of CNN is in weaving i-Reports into its basic coverage more often and even having one show based on i-Reporter discussing the topics of the day.

As I told i-Report staffers Lila King and Henry Hanks and others, including Executive Producer Andreas Preuss, the future of CNN is in weaving i-Reports into its basic coverage more often and even having one show based on i-Reporter discussing the topics of the day.

Here's a video taste of a day at CNN with the i-Report staff:



Moreover the i-Report website should be redesigned to allow and encourage video-bloggers to make videos in response to each other, thus starting a video conversation thread, as happens at Vloggerheads.com, the best site for pure video-blogging content currently available.

With these changes, people will tune in to see other common people on the issues of the day. Moreover, it can be used as an easy outlet for experts to give their opinions on a story, eliminating the need for a cameraperson and reporter while allowing more people to weight in via video.

It would become an American addiction and cause CNN to regain its ratings lead.