100 episodes in, Anderson Cooper’s talk show still finding its way

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Anderson Cooper

Updated: March 21, 2012 8:12AM

NEW YORK — To celebrate the 100th episode of Anderson Cooper’s daytime talk show in an hour that airs Monday, a giant cup of frozen hot chocolate was wheeled onto the set after its star interviewed a svelte Janet Jackson.

Something sweet was undoubtedly welcomed. It’s been a tough stretch for “Anderson,” illustrating how difficult it can be to launch a series from scratch.

In six months, the show (2 p.m., WFLD-Channel 32) has weathered a scandal involving a scheduled guest’s serious injury and experimented with different formats to see what suits Cooper best.

His ratings rank him above Wendy Williams and Steve Wilkos in the talk-show pecking order, but behind rivals Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz, Jerry Springer, Maury Povich, Ellen DeGeneres and Kelly Ripa. If not for a distribution deal that gives its syndicator, Telepictures Productions, better time slots next season, some in the industry question whether “Anderson” would have survived.

“Any show takes time organically to figure out what it is,” Cooper said. “I think we’ve made a lot of progress in doing that, and I’m really pleased in where the show is.”

Subject matter varies widely much the same way as it did on “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” Cooper’s topical segments ranged from extreme child discipline and the Penn State child sex scandal to advice on removing clutter and healthy cooking.

“Finding their voice is the toughest thing for all of these shows,” said Bill Carroll, an expert in the syndication market for Katz Media. “I think they’re still finding it.”

Less than a month into operation, “Anderson” had to deal with the fallout from a skateboarding accident where a boy went into a coma after being asked by show producers to provide footage of himself for an episode on the science of the teenage mind.

The boy survived and is recovering. The story itself did not linger, in part because the boy’s family sought privacy.

AP