CNN Tries To Rebrand Anderson Cooper As Podcaster In Sad Grab For Relevance

CNN attempted to rebrand longtime host Anderson Cooper as a podcaster Thursday as the network’s primetime ratings have plummeted.CNN changed the layout of “Anderson Cooper 360” to make it appear like a podcast. The reorganization came as CNN’s primetime ratings significantly dropped in the past year.

CNN’s primetime viewership fell by 42 percent in the third quarter of 2025, and the network has also lost one-third of its primetime viewership since 2016. The number of primetime viewers dropped from roughly 1.3 million in 2016 to 553,000 as of February.

Podcasts gained relevance during the 2024 election cycle, particularly when President Donald Trump appeared on “The Joe Rogan Experience,” “This Past Weekend With Theo Von” and other prominent podcasts that reached younger viewers.

Cooper’s program has remained a top performer for CNN. In the third quarter of 2025, it averaged 616,000 total viewers and 573,000 in July 2025, according to AdWeek.