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CNN will soon begin airing HBO’s after-show ‘Real Time with Bill Maher’ as part of CEO Chris Licht’s moves to broaden the network’s appeal.
Maher’s ‘Overtime,’ which features the host and his guests answering viewer questions each week, will air at 11:30 p.m.cnn tonight‘ and will see Maher and guests discussing everything from politics to news of the day.
Licht, 51, sat down with the Los Angeles Times to provide an update on how things have been on the network since he took office in May 2022, saying he’s working quickly to “broaden the appeal of our schedule.” prime audience” without offending the ‘main audience’.
CNN will soon start airing ‘Overtime,’ the show after ‘Real Time with Bill Maher’
The move is the latest from CEO Chris Licht, who is trying to broaden the network’s appeal.
However, the statement may seem contradictory to ‘Real Time’ viewers who in recent years have begun to criticize Maher for not being liberal enough, a fact he has addressed.
“Let’s get this straight,” Maher said in 2022. “It’s not me who’s changed, it’s the left. A large contingent has gone berserk and I’m ready to call them.
The move to add the comedian comes as the network continues to experience ratings issues.
During the week of January 16-22, CNN captured an average of just 444,000 viewers during prime time.
The ratings were the lowest for the network in nine years, according to the envelope.
It was also the first time since May 2014 that CNN failed to reach 450,000 viewers.
For comparison, Fox drew 1.4 million viewers and MSNBC saw 629,000.
Just two weeks ago, DailyMail.com reported that CNN was looking to hire a comedian to host one of its prime time slots.
Names that had been proposed included Maher, Trevor Noah and Jon Stewart.
The comedian, according to informants, would occupy the 9:00 p.m. space left by Chris Cuomo.
Fox has had massive success after they released ‘Gutfeld!’, the late-night comedy show hosted by Greg Gutfeld.
However, Licht said he’s not focused on the competition right now.
“I lean towards what makes us special and what will differentiate us from our competitors,” said the CEO.
The numbers are just one of the many reasons Licht is very focused on bringing viewers back and opening up the network to new viewers.
Maher’s “Overtime,” which features the host and his guests answering viewer questions each week, will air at 11:30 pm ET on “CNN Tonight.”
During the week of January 16-22, CNN captured an average of just 444,000 viewers during prime time.
CNN was reportedly looking to hire Jon Stewart or another comedian for a primetime comedy show, following in Fox News’ footsteps.
Brass on the famous progressive news network has also reportedly fielded names like Arsenio Hall and Trevor Noah as candidates.
However, Licht denied that rumor, stating that comedy shows require too much work.
‘I worked on a comedy show. And it took over 200 people to produce a real comedy show. So no, I wouldn’t be foolish enough to, in one fell swoop, hurt the brand of comedy and news by trying to make a comedy show on CNN,” he said.
You did notice that the network is ‘in talks’ with some people who are culturally relevant from the worlds of entertainment, sports and comedy.
Asked how he plans to balance if the network should choose to bring in a comedian, he replied that he’s okay with a difference of opinion, but not “partisan hacking.”
“There’s nothing wrong with opinion or perspective, especially in prime time, but it has to be authentic,” Licht said. “We are completely uninterested in partisan hacking and ideological talking points.”
The numbers are just one of the many reasons Licht is very focused on bringing viewers back and opening up the network to new viewers.
The move to add Maher is by far controversial, considering the comedian’s recent history with the left.
Despite still calling himself a liberal, the late-night host has become the target of some within the Democratic Party for his “call it what you see” mentality.
Last week, the comedian and podcast host clashed with actor Bryan Cranston over critical race theory, after the ‘Breaking Bad’ star said the subject should be taught in schools.
The issue came up after the couple discussed slavery, in which Maher expressed his belief that historical figures such as former presidents should not be “written off” for having owned slaves.
In 2022, Maher made Headlines for calling attention to the left hyperactive to extremism on their side of the aisle.
“You have to inject yourself into everything,” Maher said. ‘That’s why so many were triggered by COVID policies. They were fed up with the rules.
“But the Democrats are becoming a parody of themselves, making rules to make rules… making sure that everything bad never happens again,” the comedian said. It just makes everything a drag.
Actor Bryan Cranston, pictured, stated that he believes critical race theory in schools is essential to understanding systemic racism in the country.
But Bill Maher, pictured here, argued that CRT is a catch-all term and that teaching children that they are oppressive is introducing ideas that are not age-appropriate.
The teaching of CRT in schools has proven controversial, often leading to protests.
It may be Maher’s ability to cross the aisle in his audience and his ideals that sparked Licht’s interest in bringing “Overtime” to CNN.
‘I think we have to restore trust. It’s that easy. You can talk to a lot of different people about why that has eroded, but rather than look back, I will say that one of our missions is to restore our reputation as the most trusted name in news,” the CNN chief said.
‘We certainly have research showing that [trust] it’s eroded,’ Licht said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.
Licht has also been working overtime to reduce costs for the conflicted network.
In December, CNN laid off hundreds of staff, including on-air talent and contributors such as Brian Stelter, John Harwood, Preet Bharara, Dan Merica, Alison Kosik and Chris Cillizza.
Licht has also been working overtime to reduce costs for the conflicted network.
In December, CNN laid off hundreds of staff, including on-air talent and contributors like Preet Bharara, Dan Merica, Alison Kosik and Chris Cillizza.
At the time, the CEO was reported to have brought in additional security guards to not only be stationed outside the executive conference room where he was located, but also to follow him around the clock.
Apparently, the head of the network hoped to avoid backlash or confrontation from any unruly staff members who fell victim to the cost-cutting moves.