As Jake Tapper's Biden Book Promotion Faces Criticism, CNN's Ratings Drop For His Show and Others
Jake Tapper's new book, 'Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again,' co-authored with Axios reporter Alex Thompson, has sparked a conversation about the ex-president's cognitive decline while in the White House.
But the book's release, along with Tapper and Thompson's extensive media tour to promote it in the last month, has not helped the CNN star's ratings — or the shows that follow his.
In fact, viewership for 'The Lead with Jake Tapper' suffered a noticeable year-over-year drop-off in May, posting its worst month since August 2015, according to Nielsen. And the three shows that follow his — 'Erin Burnett Upfront,' 'Anderson Cooper 360' and 'The Source With Kaitlan Collins' — all took significant hits as well, with each seeing its viewership drop 18% or more compared to a year ago.
The ratings drop-off coincided with Tapper and Thompson's tour to promote 'Original Sin.' The book debuted in the top spot on The New York Times bestseller list, selling about 54,000 copies in its first week, and it currently ranks as the sixth-best seller on Amazon. Tapper's hosts on other CNN shows also heavily promoted the book.
It was a tough month for CNN overall. After seeing its ratings rebound following a viewer exodus after the 2024 election, the channel lost that momentum in May, posting its second-lowest weekday primetime and total-day viewership ever; only December 2024 was worse.
Here is a look at the ratings:
'The Lead With Jake Tapper,' per Nielsen data, dropped 25% from 701,000 viewers in May 2024 to 525,000 viewers last month. Cooper and Burnett's shows each lost more than 100,000 viewers compared to a year ago, dropping 18% year-over-year; and Collins' show took a 24% hit compared to a year ago, going from 611,000 viewers to 462,000.
Tapper referred TheWrap to CNN's PR team when reached for comment. 'The award-winning program 'The Lead with Jake Tapper' reaches broad global audiences across CNN, CNN International and Max's streaming platform,' a CNN spokesperson told TheWrap. 'No single metric can capture the true reach and impact of a program driving the national conversation.'
CNN shows like Tapper's are available on Max for streaming, which is not counted by Nielsen, although the channel did not share how much that may have boosted May ratings.
MSNBC did not benefit from any disenchanted CNN viewers moving over to their channel, with its ratings dropping 24% month-over-month between April and May.
Tapper and Thompson have made headlines while promoting the book — perhaps most notably when Tapper told Piers Morgan last week that the cover-up of Biden's cognitive decline was 'maybe even worse than Watergate.'
During an interview on his own channel, Tapper said there was was 'not enough' coverage of Biden's health issues, including from himself. And while appearing on Megyn Kelly's show last month, Tapper said he called Lara Trump to apologize to her, after he ripped her in 2020 for claiming Biden was showing signs of cognitive decline. 'She saw something that I did not see at the time,' Tapper said. '100 percent. And I own that.'
The media blitz hasn't appeared to help CNN's viewership, though, and has opened up the network, and Tapper, to criticism from both sides of the political aisle.
Tapper and Thompson's mea culpas about the press' failings, and their own, haven't mollified conservatives, who have used the reporting in the book as evidence that the media downplayed Biden's health in an effort to prop up his candidacy, which Tapper has denied. 'Original Sin' has also faced attacks from the left, accusing Tapper of focusing on Biden when there are more pressing issues regarding the current administration.
Weighing in on 'The Left Hook' podcast, writer Wajahat Ali described the book by saying, 'While the Trump Administration is galloping towards fascism and arguing to end birthright citizenship, corporate media remain complicit cowards by focusing on Joe Biden's age.'The post As Jake Tapper's Biden Book Promotion Faces Criticism, CNN's Ratings Drop For His Show and Others appeared first on TheWrap.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
41 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump says Harvard has acted ‘appropriately' and deal could soon be announced
President Donald Trump said Friday that Harvard has 'acted extremely appropriately' during negotiations that could soon result in a deal, signaling a possible major shift in his administration's efforts to target the university. 'Many people have been asking what is going on with Harvard University and their largescale improprieties that we have been addressing, looking for a solution. We have been working closely with Harvard, and it is very possible that a Deal will be announced over the next week or so,' Trump said in a late afternoon post to social media. 'They have acted extremely appropriately during these negotiations, and appear to be committed to doing what is right. If a Settlement is made on the basis that is currently being discussed, it will be 'mindbogglingly' HISTORIC, and very good for our Country,' he added. Talks between a very small circle of Harvard leadership and the White House are ongoing, and a source familiar with those discussions cautioned that a final agreement has not been reached. The source characterized the status of talks as more likely than unlikely to produce an agreement following what they described as good-faith negotiations. An agreement, the source indicated, could potentially resolve outstanding legal battles between the administration and the university. It remains unclear what or who prompted Trump's Friday afternoon social media post, but the news was met with surprise among sources in the Harvard and higher education communities who have been closely observing developments. The White House, the Department of Education and Harvard did not immediately respond to CNN's requests for comment. CNN has reported that the White House has remained open to negotiation with Harvard, with which it is embroiled in multiple lawsuits. A federal judge on Friday indefinitely blocked the Trump administration from revoking Harvard's ability to host international students and scholars while legal challenges continue. Harvard also sued the Trump administration in April over its decision to freeze federal funding and asked for an expedited final decision in the case. Oral arguments are scheduled for July 21. The Trump administration has launched multiple investigations into the school. Efforts to target Harvard began even before Trump returned to office, with his allies arguing they were cracking down on antisemitism on campus amid the Israel-Hamas war. Education Secretary Linda McMahon said last week that the administration believes Harvard has taken steps to combat antisemitism on campus and that some progress has been made. 'We are, I think, making progress in some of the discussion, where even though they have taken a hard line, they have, for instance, replaced their head of Middle East Studies,' McMahon said during a moderated conversation with Bloomberg in Washington, DC. Asked whether Harvard should expect additional actions from the administration, she said, 'At this particular time, we're continuing with the things we've already talked about.' This story has been updated with additional reporting.
CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
See where Trump's approval rating stands after massive immigration protests
CNN's Chief Data Analyst Harry Enten breaks down a new poll showing how Americans feel about President Donald Trump's handling of ICE raids and the Los Angeles immigration protests.
CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
Why Fareed Zakaria thinks Trump has ‘FOMO' foreign policy
Why Fareed Zakaria thinks Trump has 'FOMO' foreign policy CNN's Fareed Zakaria analyzes what may be motivating President Trump's foreign policy: a fear of missing out. 00:44 - Source: CNN Automated CNN Shorts 11 videos Why Fareed Zakaria thinks Trump has 'FOMO' foreign policy CNN's Fareed Zakaria analyzes what may be motivating President Trump's foreign policy: a fear of missing out. 00:44 - Source: CNN Collins on one of the 'most striking' lines from Trump CNN's Kaitlan Collins points out one of the most notable moments in President Donald Trump's address to Congress. 01:09 - Source: CNN Border patrol agents arrest US citizen standing up for detained maintenance worker A US citizen has been arrested after a physical altercation with immigration agents after they detained a maintenance worker at a shopping center in Pico Rivera, California. 01:33 - Source: CNN Sen. Smith reveals what she told Sen. Lee over post Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) revealed to Kaitlan Collins what she told Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) over his incendiary social media post. 02:28 - Source: CNN Why Trump rebuked his own intel chief CNN's Kristen Holmes reports on how Tulsi Gabbard's standing inside the Trump administration has diminished in recent weeks. President Donald Trump has come to see the director of national intelligence as "off message" when it comes to the conflict in the Middle East, according to one senior White House advisor. 02:04 - Source: CNN Inside the room of the Geneva-Iran talks Talks between European and Iranian officials in Geneva, Switzerland were "very tense" at first, but then became much more positive. CNN's Matthew Chance takes us inside the room where these talks took place. 02:04 - Source: CNN Trump says his intel chief Tulsi Gabbard is 'wrong' about Iran President Donald Trump took direct aim at his director of national intelligence, saying that Tulsi Gabbard 'is wrong' about Iran's efforts toward obtaining a nuclear weapon, as CNN has reported that Gabbard's standing inside the Trump administration has diminished. 00:21 - Source: CNN Why aren't tariffs causing inflation? For the past year, many economists warned that tariffs would increase prices, but inflation is lower today than when President Trump took office. CNN's Matt Egan breaks down why this might be the case and how economists expect that to change in the coming months. 01:09 - Source: CNN What is a heat dome? The hottest temperatures of the year so far will soon reach the eastern half of the United States as a brutal heat dome starts to build over the weekend. Dangerous, record-breaking heat will impact millions next week. CNN's Tyler Mauldin explains. 00:52 - Source: CNN Could there be radioactive fallout in Iran? Laura Holgate, Former US Ambassador to the United Nations International Organizations in Vienna weighs in on the likelihood of nuclear fallout if the US strikes the Fordow nuclear enrichment plant in Iran. 02:34 - Source: CNN Trump vowed to make Juneteenth a holiday. This year he ignored it President Donald Trump took to Truth Social on Juneteenth this year to criticize the number of 'non-working holidays.' CNN's Abby Phillip talks about the notable change from when the president vowed to make it a holiday. 01:07 - Source: CNN
