Brown's full statement below:

I knew on the day that I accepted my job at CNN that

a ratings victory at 8pm was going to be a formidable
challenge. As I have been told over and over, this is
the toughest timeslot in cable news. That is obviously
due to the incredible talents of my 8pm competitors. I
have also always marveled whenever a television
anchor says that he or she pays no attention to
ratings. I'm pretty sure the last time any anchor could
honestly ignore ratings was well before I was born.
Of course I pay attention to ratings. And simply put,
the ratings for my program are not where I would like
them to be. It is largely for this reason that I am
stepping down as anchor of CNN's "Campbell
Brown".

To be clear: this is my decision, and one that I have

been thinking about for some time. As for why, I
could have said, that I am stepping down to spend
more time with my children (which I truly want to
do). Or that I am leaving to pursue other
opportunities (which I also truly want to do). But I
have never had much tolerance for others' spin, so I
can't imagine trying to stomach my own. The simple
fact is that not enough people want to watch my
program, and I owe it to myself and to CNN to get
out of the way so that CNN can try something else.

CNN will have to figure out what that is. The 8pm
hour in cable news world is currently driven by the
indomitable Bill O'Reilly, Nancy Grace and Keith
Olbermann. Shedding my own journalistic skin to try
to inhabit the kind of persona that might co-exist in
that line up is simply impossible for me. It is not who
I am or who I want to be; nor is it who CNN asked
me to be at any point. This is the right decision for
me and I hope it will be a great opportunity for CNN.

Since its launch three decades ago CNN has strived

to be an independent, credible and enduring source of
news. While the rest of the cable news world moved
to opinion, CNN allowed me to stay true to my hard-
news roots and supported me with a true commitment
to old-school journalism. There is plenty of debate
now about whether real journalism even has a place
in primetime. I may be taking myself out of that
debate on a nightly basis, but I am truly proud of the
work we have done on this program and I do still
believe that journalism has an essential place in
primetime and at all times. I am also especially proud
of the people who put this show on the air every
night. They are an amazing, dedicated, loyal and
caring team. To them, I will be forever grateful.

My plan right now is to help CNN through any

transition, and then to enjoy, for the very first time,
the nightly ritual of "Good Night Moon" and good
night kisses with my two little boys. I wish my CNN
colleagues all the best. And as long as bedtime
doesn't conflict with primetime, I will be watching
and pulling for them.