HuffPost’s Rachel Sklar puts into perspective, several days of sad news in local and network TV newsrooms. Writes Sklar, “occasionally, the (ratings) hoopla can get a little crazy considering just how small a slice of America cares about who got what percentage of which demo when… a little healthy competition and upward striving is ideally what brings out a person’s best work.”

< A photo taken in “the early days of the Iraq war” in Baghdad. Brian Williams, Eric Wishnie and Gen. Wayne Downing, and a dog the NBC News team ‘adopted’.

25-54 demographic: (LS)

Total day: FNC: 265 | CNN: 154 | MSNBC: 115 | HLN: 107 | CNBC: 90

Prime: FNC: 407 | CNN: 232 | MSNBC: 213 | HLN: 241 | CNBC: 83

	5p:	6p:	7p:	8p:	9p:	10p:	11p:
FNC	Gibson:	Hume:	Shep:	O’Reilly:	H&C:	Greta:	O’Reilly:
	223	307	488	431	410	381	414
CNN	Blitzer:	Dobbs:	Blitzer:	Zahn:	King:	Cooper:	Cooper:
	107	187	160	187	187	322	211
MSNBC	Hardball:	Tucker:	HB/Brkng.:	Countdo.:	Abrams:	Special:	Investig.:
	143	77	104	273	170	251	272
HLN	Prime:	Prime:	Beck:	Grace:	Beck:	Grace:	Showbiz:
	56	67	96	324	181	220	199

Data by Nielsen Media Research. Live and same day (DVR) data.

NBC’s Brian Williams gets the first U.S. TV one-on-one with new British P.M. Gordon Brown. The interview took place this morning. Excerpts have been airing on MSNBC, with the full report tonight on Nightly News.

Check out Williams’ vlog recorded just after the interview…

The imminent announcement that Dow Jones will be sold to Rupert Murdoch‘s News Corp. has dominated FNC’s daily business show. Neil Cavuto spent the first 24 minutes on the subject (with the occasional market update). The News Corp. board was set to begin a meeting at 4pm ET; Dow’s board has a meeting set for 7pm ET.

Former WSJ managing editor Norman Pearlstine told Cavuto, Murdoch “will invest in ways that may well surprise people.. I wouldn’t be surprised if you saw more color in the paper than there has been in the past and I don’t rule out the possibility of using the (printing) presses for a national edition of New York Post.”

25-54 demographic: (LS)

Total day: FNC: 193 | CNN: 119 | MSNBC: 145 | HLN: 116 | CNBC: 33

Prime: FNC: 197 | CNN: 221 | MSNBC: 175 | HLN: 96 | CNBC: 39

	5p:	6p:	7p:	8p:	9p:	10p:	11p:
FNC	Big Story:	FoxNwsSun.:	Report:	Geraldo:	Hannity:	Half/LineUp:	Geraldo:
	126	198	207	195	194	242/163	211
CNN	Newsroom:	Dobbs:	Newsroom:	Investig.:	YouTube:	(Cont.):	Newsroom:
	135	141	139	175	255	–	189
MSNBC	Investig.:	Special:	Investig:	Reports:	Reports:	MeetPress:	Reports:
	199	222	227	231	160	133	151
HLN	HLN/NewsMe:	Prime:	Beck:	Grace:	Beck:	Grace:	Showbiz:
	69/45	57	79	85	100	105	111

Data by Nielsen Media Research. Live and same day (DVR) data.

25-54 demographic: (LS)

Total day: FNC: 203 | CNN: 140 | MSNBC: 212 | HLN: 101 | CNBC: 51

Prime: FNC: 200 | CNN: 197 | MSNBC: 265 | HLN: 76 | CNBC: 47

	5p:	6p:	7p:	8p:	9p:	10p:	11p:
FNC	Big Story:	Belt/Watch:	Report:	Geraldo:	Islam:	Line Up:	Journ/Belt:
	183	132/109	150	200	247	153	136/116
CNN	Newsroom:	Dobbs:	WeekAtWar:	Investig.:	YouTube:	(Cont.):	Newsroom:
	143	118	123	134	233	–	165
MSNBC	Special:	Special:	Special:	Special:	Special:	Special:	Special:
	175	309	289	257	221	317	345
HLN	HLN/NewsMe:	Prime:	Beck:	Grace:	Beck:	Grace:	Showbiz:
	47/39	82	58	69	67	91	108

Data by Nielsen Media Research. Live and same day (DVR) data.

ABC’s Charlie Gibson is one of twelve inductees – and the only on-air journalist – named by Broadcasting & Cable to its Hall of Fame, Class of 2007. The official ceremony is scheduled for October 22 in New York. Other honorees include Phil Kent, president/CEO Turner Broadcasting System Inc., and reality show producer Mark Burnett.

The full list is here…

Headline News is on track to post its best total day delivery in history. A Headline News spokesperson says the growth is thanks to “double-digit gains from 7p to midnight in signature programs Glenn Beck, Nancy Grace and Showbiz Tonight.”

Click continued to read the press release…

Read more

>Conservative radio host Laura Ingraham revealed on her nationally syndicated radio program that CNN has offered her a one-week guest-host gig for the 8pm ET slot.

>Barbara Walters announced that tomorrow morning she will name the new moderator on The View.

> Found this item on FTVlive. Variety takes “a look back” at Katie Couric‘s “impactful year.”

In today’s Hollywood Reporter, NBCU’s Jeff Zucker confidently reveals how CNBC will handle the arrival of Fox Business Network: “We’re not going to make the same mistake CNN made when Fox News Chanel came along a decade ago. We’ll be strong and aggressive and continue to prove what makes CNBC by far the leading financial news broadcaster in the world.”

Zucker continues, “I think there is a degree of irony that the company that broke the story that Rupert Murdoch wanted to buy Dow Jones was CNBC.”

>Update: a Fox News insider adds: “We find there is a degree of irony that on the day Jeff’s self-serving comments are printed comes the announcement that News Corp. has secured enough votes to acquire The Wall Street Journal.”