CNN created the concept of 24-hour news coverage and for years had no competition. Now it is fourth tailing Fox News, MSNBC and CNBC. Lou Dobbs has been a major part of the mix for years. His ratings have declined, but no-where near as fast as those for Anderson Cooper, Larry King and Campbell Brown. CNN has fallen to the point that in some prime time weeks its ratings have fallen behind HLN. Lou Dobbs loss will drive those ratings even lower.

Lou Dobbs may be controversial, but he was better than anyone else at CNN at pulling in an audience. While trying to maintain that it reported the news in an unbiased fashion, it earned the nickname of the Clinton News Network through its strong support of liberal policies. CNN espoused the views of its founder – Ted Turner.

It’s clearly time for CNN to wakeup and start a top-to-bottom housecleaning. Today more people are watching FNC than all the other news networks combined. CNN needs to look at what is being done right by FNC and what they are doing wrong. To date, they have been developing cute phrases such as tea ******* and birthers along with unquestioning adoration of liberal icons such as Al Gore. Until they get hosts who will ask tough questions, they will continue to become more and more irrelevant