CNN journalists offer brutal assessment of why their network is failing

CNN’s stubbornly left-wing journalists think they know why their viewers are abandoning ship in record numbers – they are no longer going hard enough against Donald Trump.

That’s the suggestion from reporters who spoke anonymously to The Washington Post this week, as the network recovered from some of its lowest ratings ever.

Insiders claim the decision to hold a town hall with the president-elect in May 2023 upset staff and viewers, as did the decision not to fact-check Trump during his debate earlier this year.

“There is a general perception at CNN that we fell short of the target,” a CNN journalist, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said of the network’s election coverage.

CNN has maintained that it remains a leader among networks and on its digital platform and that its TV viewership is declining across the board.

“I think a lot of it can be explained by the viewers deciding that they just don’t like what we’re doing,” the journalist added. “The viewers are pretty smart.”

Among the coveted demographic of 24 to 54 viewers – known as “demo viewers” ​​– CNN’s daily audience fell one percent from last year, from 94,000 days to 92,000 this year. Mediaite reported based on data from Nielsen Media Research.

The media outlet only accounted for 11 percent of cable news viewers during prime time last month after the election.

CNN’s reporting of Donald Trump during the election reportedly turned off viewers, especially after the decision not to fact-check him during a town hall earlier this year

Since Trump’s presidential victory, CNN’s primetime viewership has dropped 52 percent, according to Mediaite.

The network has also gone through several leadership changes in recent years.

Former CEO Chris Licht recently made the move, replaced after a short and disastrous tenure by former New York Times co-chief Mark Thompson.

Licht was given a mandate to reshape the network to appeal to more people on both sides of the American political spectrum, although many feel this has backfired.

Several left-wing voices have been displaced, including veteran Chris Wallace, who reportedly left due to dismal ratings.

Meanwhile, there was speculation that political journalist John Harwood was fired after calling Trump a “dishonest demagogue.”

Today, Republican strategist Scott Jennings, an ally of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is a fixture, causing a stir among some progressive staffers.

John Harwood, CNN’s veteran White House correspondent, left the network when CEO Chris Licht turned away from opinion-based programming, but many speculated whether Harwood’s anti-Trump rant had any influence on the decision.

While former CNN CEO Jeff Zucker enjoyed engaging with Trump, it is believed Thompson will take a more mediated approach.

The president-elect sued CNN earlier in 2022 and stripped White House correspondent Jim Acosta of his press pass.

Both actions were overturned by the courts, but there are fears that the newly elected president will make good on his threats to go after his political enemies upon his return to office.

Meanwhile, Chris Cilizza, a former political journalist for the network, said CNN is struggling to carve out a profitable niche in the crowded media landscape.

The network has now launched a $3.99 subscription service for online content, although this has come much later than many of its competitors.

“I think the only sustainable model for any large distributed content company is to have a subscription,” Cilliza said.

‘What I find difficult is: what is CNN known for? CNN is known for breaking news. People turn it on when something big happens. And I think that’s a very good brand from a journalistic point of view, but I just don’t know how you can make money with it.’

Television also remains where the media makes its money, so ratings are essential to securing jobs.

Among the coveted 24 to 54 viewer demographic – also known as “demo viewers” ​​– CNN’s daily audience fell one percent from last year

“Ratings determine everything,” said a former senior producer. “It controls the money, it controls the influence, and it’s a huge moral problem. You can worry about the future all you want, but right now television is where the money is and where the reputation is.”

In a press release last week, CNN pointed out that it remains the fourth most-watched daytime cable network, with an average of 493,000 total viewers.

It also increased primetime audiences by more than 20 percent compared to 2023.