The cable news channel HLN, which had some of its highest ratings during the trial of Casey Anthony two years ago, has become fixated on another: the trial of Jodi Arias, a woman accused of killing her ex-boyfriend, Travis Alexander, in Arizona in 2008.
The length of the trial — it is about to enter its 12th week — has had a kind of snowball effect, helping the channel entice new viewers. “This trial has lasted much longer than we ever anticipated, and it’s been richer and deeper than we would have ever imagined,” said Scot Safon, the executive in charge of HLN, which is a sister channel to CNN and is owned by Time Warner.
By some measures, the channel’s ratings are almost back to where they were when Ms. Anthony stood accused of killing her daughter, Caylee. It seems that the HLN segment in January that asked, “Is Jodi Arias the Next Casey Anthony?” has been answered, at least from the channel’s point of view.
On Wednesday, when HLN added a temporary 10 p.m. talk show about the trial, it outperformed CNN, MSNBC and Fox News in the 25- to 54-year-old age group, which it rarely does. It also came close to beating Fox for the full day in that group, thanks to daytime trial coverage. The ratings were almost as strong on Thursday. (Friday’s ratings will be released later this week.)
HLN started to talk about the case on television and on its Web site more than a year ago. Many news organizations have tracked the case, but the lurid sexual and criminal details disclosed in court have caused some others to temper their coverage. But HLN’s coverage has been exhaustive — and has stood out for that reason.
The 10 p.m. talk show, called “HLN After Dark: The Jodi Arias Trial,” conducts a mock trial of its own, gathering 12 people in Atlanta for what it calls a “live studio jury” to review some aspect of the case. The jurors hold up “guilty” or “not guilty” placards toward the end of the hour.
“We were just responding to the behaviors we were seeing on social media, out in the world, in people’s homes: as a trial unfolds, the people who watch start to become jurors, deliberating with each other all over the place,” Mr. Safon said.
If the Casey Anthony trial is any indication, the high viewership will recede after this trial concludes. But until then, HLN can showcase its brand-name hosts like Nancy Grace and Dr. Drew Pinsky as well as its newer hosts like Vinnie Politan and Ryan Smith.
Article source: http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/17/hlns-jodi-arias-coverage-helps-bolster-ratings/?partner=rss&emc=rss
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