CNN Bets News, Not Big Names, Will Capture Crowds at 9 PM
Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor CNN hopes it’s finally hit upon a way to solve a long-vexing puzzle: What should it be airing at 9 p.m.? The solution requires the network to fit together many pieces. Starting this week, the Warner Bros. Discovery-backed news outlet will fill the hour with a range of different special reports, all under the rubric of “CNN Primetime.” Future 9 p.m. hours could include one-on-one interviews with newsmakers; town halls that put government officials in direct contact with the people affected by policy decisions; and other programs that feature surprising “gets” and scoops. The programming gambit backs away from the tried-and-true practice of relying on a single anchor or opinion host in the time slot, home to Sean Hannity, Alex Wagner and Rachel Maddow, and banks instead on creative ways of analyzing the news cycle.