Two big announcements from CNN on Wednesday. First, the far-left conspiracy theory outlet is cutting approximately 100 jobs. The second announcement is what was not announced, and that’s the launch of a CNN streaming subscription service. Instead, CNNLOL will launch a couple of free streaming channels, or what’s known as “free ad-supported streaming television” (or FAST).
You see, CNN knows no one will pay for their lies.
CNN’s disgraced CEO, Mark Thompson, announced the job cuts and the launch of the FAST channels in a company-wide memo:
Thompson also announced that CNN.com will announce its first subscription product later this year.He said that the subscription offerings will be “want to use” content that will be anchored by lifestyle journalism, as part of a wider effort to build a $1 billion business.
He also announced the launch of additional FAST Channels, with CNN Originals and CNN en Espanol debuting later this year. They will be added to the CNN and CNN International FAST channels.
So CNN’s going to try and save itself the same way the New York Times has, by offering subscriptions to lifestyle stuff… You see, no one is going to subscribe to fake news, so these fake outlets have to offer something entirely different to remain alive.
Here’s what Thompson wrote about the job cuts:
Wherever possible, we’ve closed open positions rather than target currently occupied roles. However, some of our colleagues will learn today that their jobs are being eliminated or are at risk. The number of colleagues potentially impacted is around a hundred out of a workforce of more than 3,500, but I don’t underestimate the impact this news is likely to have on everyone affected and want to thank them for everything they’ve done for this great news company over the years.
The slow-motion death of cable/satellite TV made this inevitable.
Almost no one watches CNN. That means the Hate Outlet cannot survive on advertising. What has kept CNN on the air is what’s known as carriage fees. If CNN is part of your cable/satellite package, you are paying for CNN whether or not you watch.
But now that tens of millions are canceling their cable/satellite packages and moving to streaming, CNNLOL is losing tens if not hundreds of millions annually from those lost carriage fees. And it’s only going to get worse.
Plus, let’s not forget that CNN tried to launch a subscription streaming service, and it died in less than a month.
So now CNN is admitting it will try to survive with a subscription platform based on “lifestyle journalism,” which is just another way of saying, No one will pay for our political journalism, so let’s write about cooking and travel.
That is a huge surrender.
As far as CNN itself, as more and more people cancel their cable/satellite subscriptions, CNN will be subsidized by its parent corporation, Warner Bros. Discovery. And instead of a standalone streaming service that no one would pay for, CNNLOL will be part of the Max package, or some such thing.
As far as those FAST channels, those likely won’t cost much to produce. My guess is that most of that content will already be produced on the main CNN outlet.
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