TV news aims to maintain audience

The two-year historic presidential race was very, very good for the news business, particularly the all-news cablers. Viewership spiked, stars were made and news operations were given frequent opportunities to shine with substantive material. The test for TV newsies is to hang on to those ratings. The what-next question is especially interesting for the two outlets that have staked out partisan turf. How will the top-rated Fox News Channel fare in an Obama world? Who will MSNBC's Keith Olbermann rail against if there's a liberal in the White House? The redrawn electoral map would indicate that Fox News' hardcore red-state demo is shrinking into highly concentrated areas of the Midwest and deep South. It says a lot that President-elect Obama is the first Democratic presidential candidate to draw more than 50% of the popular vote since Lyndon B. Johnson.