That bet paid off. CNN went on to become a fixture in American homes and a singular force in the nation's news ecosystem. It created new stars of its own, and, with its always-on programming, changed the way Americans consume and think about news, especially political news. It helped pave the way for more cable news networks, like Fox News and MSNBC, which became more explicitly partisan in their coverage and emphasis. CNN was a major power center in American politics; it has been so integral to political news consumption in the United States for so long that it's almost difficult to imagine American politics without it.
We may soon find out what that's like. As Dylan Byers noted on X, just a week after the election, the network saw the lowest ratings in the all-important 25–54 age group—what broadcasters refer to as "the demo"—since June 2000 (not counting last year's July 4th holiday). This was at a moment when political news was breaking and developing at a hectic pace, when an incoming president was putting together a new cabinet, when elections results and their meanings were still sinking in. It was a moment, in other words, when CNN should have been at the top of its game. Instead, it was warming the bench.
Viewers had tuned out. And it wasn't just CNN. After the election, MSNBC also suffered similarly low ratings in the demo. And this all comes on top of years of decline for both networks, as younger consumers cut the cord on cable TV, which is now the ancient, stagnant technology that broadcast was when CNN launched. Like the broadcast networks of the 1980s, CNN and MSNBC still throw off a lot of revenue, and can afford to pay well for top talent. Their anchors and commentators are still well known in the world of media. But it's clear that they are on their way out.
The era of cable news is over. Which is probably why Comcast, which owns MSNBC and its finance-focused sister network CNBC—as well as other cable networks like SyFy, USA, and the Golf Channel—announced this week that it's spinning off most of its linear cable news channels into a separate company. The problem for MSNBC and CNBC isn't that they aren't profitable. As CNN reports, "the channels still contribute strong profits to Comcast's bottom line." The problem is that they no longer look like growth businesses. Although executives are sure to position the move as an opportunity for a reboot, the spin-off is best understood as an acknowledgment that cable news is in decline. MSNBC's 53 percent ratings decline from October, before the election, to November just underlines the long-term trajectory.
reason.com
We may soon find out what that's like. As Dylan Byers noted on X, just a week after the election, the network saw the lowest ratings in the all-important 25–54 age group—what broadcasters refer to as "the demo"—since June 2000 (not counting last year's July 4th holiday). This was at a moment when political news was breaking and developing at a hectic pace, when an incoming president was putting together a new cabinet, when elections results and their meanings were still sinking in. It was a moment, in other words, when CNN should have been at the top of its game. Instead, it was warming the bench.
Viewers had tuned out. And it wasn't just CNN. After the election, MSNBC also suffered similarly low ratings in the demo. And this all comes on top of years of decline for both networks, as younger consumers cut the cord on cable TV, which is now the ancient, stagnant technology that broadcast was when CNN launched. Like the broadcast networks of the 1980s, CNN and MSNBC still throw off a lot of revenue, and can afford to pay well for top talent. Their anchors and commentators are still well known in the world of media. But it's clear that they are on their way out.
The era of cable news is over. Which is probably why Comcast, which owns MSNBC and its finance-focused sister network CNBC—as well as other cable networks like SyFy, USA, and the Golf Channel—announced this week that it's spinning off most of its linear cable news channels into a separate company. The problem for MSNBC and CNBC isn't that they aren't profitable. As CNN reports, "the channels still contribute strong profits to Comcast's bottom line." The problem is that they no longer look like growth businesses. Although executives are sure to position the move as an opportunity for a reboot, the spin-off is best understood as an acknowledgment that cable news is in decline. MSNBC's 53 percent ratings decline from October, before the election, to November just underlines the long-term trajectory.
Cable news is over
When the Cable News Network (CNN) launched on the evening of June 1, 1980, it was a youthful upstart business. There were just a few hundred employees,
reason.com