Focus group results: October 19th, 2006.

"CBS Evening News with Katie Couric"

What follows is a summary of the results of our extensive focus-group testing on Katie Couric's first month as host of the "CBS Evening News." As you can see from the raw data (appended), her initial positives were quite solid, but there was some negative feedback on some coverage, a few of her segments (especially the "Katie Kooks With ..." newsmaker-cooking segment), and the overall tone of the show.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:

The overall impression of the show was extremely favorable with viewers in the desirable 60-95 age bracket. Female viewers especially liked the way she "used some makeup on her face," and some of them mentioned that the show "was loud enough finally" to really hear and enjoy. In addition, a whopping 88 percent of this demographic really responded to the larger font size on the on-screen graphics, and the bold use of color. "So much chatter and goings-on in the dayroom," one of them commented, "it's nice to be able to finally see something."

Males in the highly coveted 85-92 age range especially liked her wardrobe. "Just the right mix of sugar and spice," one commented.

Younger viewers--those in the 60-65 age range--were delighted by the cheerful tone of the broadcast, which suggests that the network strategy of lightening the tone to appeal to younger, more dynamic viewers has succeeded.

Females and males in the difficult 90-95 age range reported falling asleep during the first half of the broadcast, which is a net benefit as it is likely that their sets will remain tuned to CBS for the duration of the evening's programming, resulting in an overall lift of CBS primetime household numbers.

Breaking it down segment by segment:

OPENING TITLE SEQUENCE:

This is perhaps the most problematic part of the broadcast, as 73 percent of our sample reported being "alarmed" and "confused" by the urgent new theme music. Several reported dialing 9-1-1 after seeing Couric appear on the screen. On the other hand, Couric's gentle, friendly demeanor reminded other viewers of their best friend from childhood, which resulted in dementia and/or pleasant reverie for the duration of the broadcast. Suggest different music, and perhaps a more specific introduction for our key audience, something along the lines of, "And now here's Katie Couric, who is NOT your mother in 1943," which could perhaps be flashed occasionally on the screen.

KATIE KOOKS WITH:

This segment is a real problem for the show. The idea of having Katie cook something with a newsmaker--in our test broadcast, this was former secretary of state Colin Powell--may appeal to the younger, hipper viewers in the 45-60 age bracket, but our target audience of 60-95 finds it hard to follow. A portion of the sample (32 percent) were confused enough to believe that they had actually eaten the meal prepared on the television, and reported that the food was too spicy and upset their stomachs, which, of course, is unlikely but nonetheless significant. In addition, a whopping 89 percent of our sample mentioned that as the broadcast is seen at 6:30 P.M.--a full two hours after they have eaten dinner--there is little interest in seeing a meal prepared. Another segment of our sample was simply lost, and thought that the "large Negro gentleman and the funny little blonde" were a married couple in a new sitcom. Suggest eliminating "Katie Kooks With ..." as a segment of the show.

INSIDE YOUR COLON:

This segment scored across all demographic groups in the 60-95 range. It was our highest-rated segment. Suggest moving it to the top of the show.

AMERICA FACES TERRORISM:

This segment was problematic. Of course, America does face a terrorism threat, and a discussion of it is appropriate and necessary for any news broadcast. And yet, our viewership, 27 percent of which is non-ambulatory, becomes unduly panicked and agitated by most of the news items in this general category. Viewers in the crucial 70-88 age range reported heart palpitations, anxiety, and irrational anger directed at (for some reason) Guatemalans. Suggest making this segment a "web only" feature of the broadcast.

OVERALL SCORES:

Overall, the broadcast fared very well, and its new host scored especially high in the "reminds me of my daughter when she used to visit" category, as well as the "perky nurse" category. The broadcast has strong youth appeal--its popularity in the 65-78 age range is proof of that--and has managed to maintain its popularity with its traditional 90-98-year-old audience.

Please note that this sample was slightly skewed and had to be adjusted using standard methods due to the deaths of 23 percent of viewers during the initial broadcast.