For years, CNN has carried a reputation as a very dishonest network that routinely pushes its own agenda over real facts and news.
Americans saw this a lot during the Trump presidency.
CNN regularly took Trump out of context, left important information out of their reports, and otherwise sought to villainize conservatives and the political right at large.
Ultimately, this led to CNN getting a lot of viewers from people who hated Trump. Although, after the former president exited office in January, CNN lost a lot of viewers.
Now, a new CNN president is on board and appears to be working to turn over a new leaf, according to Washington Examiner.
A Complete Overhaul of CNN
On Monday, Chris Licht, the new president of CNN, put out a memo in regards to the direction he plans to take the company.
According to Licht, it’s critical that CNN becomes not only respected, but also trusted. After noting that many Americans no longer trust CNN or the media at large, the company’s new president stated CNN’s team will become truth advocates.
"First and foremost, we should, and we will be advocates for the truth." — new CNN president Chris Licht in a note to staff on his first day. pic.twitter.com/W3d503No78
Also: "I will look at all decisions through the lens of: Is this good for the CNN brand?"
via @sarafischer
— Jay Rosen (@jayrosen_nyu) May 2, 2022
Licht later said that under his leadership, CNN is also going to push back against groupthink, share the facts, and even respect people who have different outlooks on issues.
The latter is something that’s been a very big issue for CNN. If Licht’s leadership really does turn out to be all that he claims it will, that will mark a major change for CNN and its reputation.
More on CNN’s New President
Chris Licht joins CNN as president after the network’s now-former head stepped down because of his own personal affair with someone within the network, along with other scandals plaguing CNN.
Not too long ago, the network’s attempt to launch a paid streaming service known as CNN+ was a complete flop. CNN invested millions into this project, yet they only garnered a few hundred thousand subscribers to show for it.
CNN has replaced Jeff Zucker, with Chris Licht, who will be the new CNN President. If you recognize his name, it’s because Licht is the former producer of Stephen Colbert. Reportedly, Chris wants to take CNN back to “hard news” and away from political talking points.
— Paul Cogan (@PaulCogan) March 13, 2022
Licht’s leadership of CNN could be the ultimate make-or-break for the news company. At this time, between the total lack of public trust and various scandals, CNN is all but at rock bottom.
Today, fewer mainstream media networks are seen as unbiased. Outlets like the New York Times, ABC News, CBS News, and others are openly left-leaning entities.
Even if CNN decides to make a genuine shift towards being unbiased and fair with its reporting, regaining the trust of the American public will take a fair amount of time.
What do you think about the new president of CNN trying to make some real changes to how the network is operated and viewed by the general public? Please be sure to share your thoughts about this in the comments area.
