On June 1, 1980, when media mogul Ted Turner launched the world’s first 24-hour news channel, CNN, from Atlanta, many in the mainstream television industry dismissed the idea as sheer madness. Some even mockingly called it “Chicken Noodle News.” The underlying question was simple: “Would people really want to watch news 24 hours a day?” More than four decades later, it has become clear that Turner’s so-called madness fundamentally altered the DNA of the global news system. In today’s smartphone-driven, live-update-obsessed, notification-saturated world, we are essentially living inside the time CNN created. From the perspective of communication and journalism studies, CNN is not merely a television channel; it is the name of an era.
In communication theory, the ‘CNN Effect’ is now an established term. Its central idea is that real-time news broadcasting does not merely report events; it often influences them as well. During the 1991 Gulf War, the world witnessed live warfare on television for the very first time. Before that, people received war news through the next morning’s newspapers or the nightly bulletin. CNN shattered that time gap. As a result, war was no longer just a military or diplomatic matter; it became a media event. Policymakers also realised that public opinion was now almost as important as the battlefield itself. What appeared on television screens could shape political decisions. In communication theory, this phenomenon is called ‘real-time diplomacy.’ In other words, news was no longer merely a description of events; news itself had become a form of power.
Media scholar Robert Entman’s framing theory argues that media do not present the entirety of reality; rather, it selects certain parts of reality and present them in such a way that audiences derive a particular meaning. CNN’s war coverage remains one of the most famous examples of this theory in practice. After the 9/11 attacks in 2001, CNN’s coverage of the ‘War on Terror’ faced intense criticism regarding its language, graphics, expert selection, and discussion framework. Critics questioned whether the media was merely reporting the news or actively strengthening a state-driven narrative. Supporters of CNN, however, would argue that in moments of national crisis, no news organisation can remain completely detached from collective emotion. In truth, this is journalism’s eternal dilemma: objectivity versus nationalism.
In today’s world, news first appears on X, then on TikTok, then on YouTube – and only afterward, perhaps on television. A citizen journalist with a smartphone can go live at any moment. Against that reality, giant OB vans, satellite links, and elaborate studio setups increasingly appear almost dinosaur-like. Yet this is where CNN’s adaptability becomes significant. The network understood that ‘television’ is no longer confined to a television screen. As a result, CNN is now restructuring itself not merely as a broadcaster, but as a multi-platform news ecosystem. It is striving to maintain a presence everywhere – on television, websites, apps, YouTube, podcasts, short-form videos, and streaming platforms.
Because the modern audience no longer sits down to watch the news, the news reaches them automatically. Under the dominance of new media, CNN has realised that simply holding onto the television remote control is no longer enough. Today’s audience does not wait for the 9 p.m. bulletin; they consume news while scrolling. That is why CNN is gradually transforming itself from a TV channel into a digital news brand. It has now spread across YouTube Shorts, TikTok videos, podcasts, mobile apps, and streaming platforms. Where a major report once meant a ten-minute television package, it is now repackaged into 30-second mobile videos, Instagram reels, live blogs, podcasts, and interactive graphics. CNN itself is perhaps now the most tangible example of media convergence theory. Even more interestingly, CNN is now using artificial intelligence (AI) and data analytics to understand audience behaviour. How long people watch a story, where they stop a video, which headlines generate more clicks – all of this data is now shaping content design. In other words, news is no longer merely a journalistic product; it is simultaneously an ‘algorithmic product.’
As a consequence, CNN’s newsroom culture has also changed. The old era of anchor-centric television journalism is giving way to multi-platform storytelling. Those who once believed television was the final word in news now have to survive at the speed of TikTok, in the language of YouTube, and according to the logic of algorithms. Ted Turner once said, “We’ll be broadcasting until the world ends.” Strange as the statement may sound, it captures the spirit of CNN itself. The 24-hour news cycle has created a world in which we are never truly offline. An explosion, election, coup, or earthquake occurring anywhere on Earth can appear in our living rooms within seconds.
Yes, there are controversies surrounding CNN. There are accusations of bias. Questions about corporate influence persist. Critics also accuse it of turning war into a spectacle. Yet one truth remains undeniable: CNN transformed global journalism in such a profound way that news could never again return to what it once was. We now live in a world where news does not merely explain reality; at times, it actively shapes reality itself.
Particularly on issues of war, foreign policy, and national security, the channel’s language, visuals, and discussion frameworks often move in tandem with American state policy. As a result, audiences sometimes feel they are not watching news at all, but rather a live trailer for American foreign policy.
This can also be understood through the metaphor of George Orwell’s Animal Farm. In the novel, the animals revolted in the name of equality, only for the pigs themselves to become the new authoritarian rulers. CNN, too, once presented itself as an ‘independent global news network’ against state-controlled information systems. But over time, because of corporate ownership, advertising dependency, and excessive reliance on government sources, it too has often drifted dangerously close to the centers of power.
Consequently, audiences are left with an unsettling question: Is CNN truly the eyes of the world, or merely another window through which the world is viewed through Washington’s eyes?
The writer is an Associate Professor, Department of Communication and Journalism, University of Chittagong. Email: [email protected]
