Journalism

CNN+, the cable news network’s upcoming subscription streaming service, is reportedly targeting a March 2022 launch date and a $5.99 per month price tag. The pricing falls roughly in the center of the range the service was testing with users. In September, CNN was sending mobile user prompts that displayed potential prices ranging from $1.99 to $9.99 per month, likely as part of some product development research for CNN+. The message also mentioned a seven-day free trial.

Executives from ABC News, Fox Owned Stations, Newsday and Avid said at TVNewsCheck’s NewsTECHForum last week that remote production necessities have made an indelible impact on their editorial workflows, from more efficient meetings on Zoom to production agility that will stay with them long after COVID abates.

The city of freeways counts on having TV helicopters in the air when suspects are being pursued. Above, Stu Mundel relishes his work as a helicopter reporter for KTTV in Los Angeles. (Mark Abramson for The Washington Post)

A nearly two-year-old collaboration between Florida International University and Univision puts the station group’s newsrooms a STEP ahead.

CNN fired a producer who was charged last week with trying to induce minors to engage in unlawful sexual activity. The producer, John Griffin, worked at the network for about eight years, including on the morning show New Day.

IP-centric news trucks became essential ad hoc mobile editing booths during COVID, leaders from WCBS, Fox News, Sinclair and Verizon said at TVNewsCheck’s NewsTECHForum, noting 2 GHz and LTE bandwidth, low earth orbit satellites and 5G networks have also become key live shot tools.

FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel made it clear to Republican lawmakers before her successful confirmation vote (68-31) earlier this month to a new, five-year term that she did not support efforts by “some liberal organizations” to remove conservative cable channels from their lineups or for the agency to use its license revocation power on broadcasters. That assertion came in written answers to questions submitted after her confirmation hearing last month.

Stars of the most-watched cable channel continued to downplay the Jan. 6 attack and back Donald J. Trump while criticizing the investigation of the Capitol siege.

TV newsrooms face a constant and ever-escalating fight against the volume of bad information coming across their transoms, but new tools are on the way to provide help.

Executives and on-air talent from Newsy, Hearst, Fox Owned Stations, Tegna and NBCUniversal Local say the proliferation of digital distribution channels has dramatically accelerated the shape of the news product. The upsides, they say, are many.

Did Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch influence Fox News’ coverage of claims about two voting technology companies — knowing that those claims were false?

What will CNN Plus with Chris Wallace look like? Where will Brian Williams and Rachel Maddow end up? What will David Zaslav do to CNN? How long will Jeff Zucker hang around? David Bloom looks at all the top stories.