(source: https://pixabay.com/en/cnn-building-news-aerial-view-1617354/)
On June 1, 1980 CNN was started by Robert Edward “Ted” Turner, although it was nowhere near as large and esteemed as it is today. Back then news were presented at certain times of the day, most popularly in the morning (sometimes by newspaper) and then in the evening reporters gave a summary of the events of the day (Cramer). For a long time this was the way that news was reported and no one strayed from this formula.
Ted Turner wanted to create a network that would broadcast 24 hours a day, which seemed utterly ridiculous to most at the time. For the first few years they were right, the network lost money and was nicknamed the “Chicken Noodle Network” (“CNN Launches”). Despite everyone else’s lack of faith in his network, Turner remained confident and boasted to any who’d listen about how big it would be one day (“Enter CNN”). Luckily, he was right.
Things really picked up for CNN during the Gulf War of 1991, where they were able to present live coverage of the war. Other stations had to play catch up with news that had already been broadcast hours earlier by CNN, and viewers were noticing (Cramer). From there things continued to get better, as CNN was constantly the earliest source for major news. They escalated to the top and stayed there.
Works Cited:
Cramer, Chris. “Why the World Is Watching CNN.” CNN. Cable News Network, 2005. Web. 15 Oct. 2016. <Link>
“CNN Launches.” History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2016. <Link>
“Enter CNN: The Atlanta-Based All-News Channel Begins Modestly But Soon Becomes A Predominant American And Global Information Source. (’80).” Columbia Journalism Review 4 (2001): 88. General OneFile. Web. 15 Oct. 2016. <Link>
Brittani Bowman 