For the last few years, no network has been more reliably pro-Democrat Party than CNN.
Under former network President Jeff Zucker’s leadership, CNN fashioned itself as the tip of the “resistance” spear to Donald Trump.
But CNN just held a series of high-level meetings that Democrats are going to hate.
The Warner Brothers Discovery merger finally going through this spring put CNN under new management.
CEO David Zaslav tasked new President Chris Licht with pulling CNN back to the center and returning to real journalism instead of anti-Trump performance art.
One of Licht’s top mission statements is to get Republicans to once again appear on CNN.
During the Trump years, all Republicans, except the most dedicated Never-Trumpers like Adam Kinzinger and Larry Hogan, realized that going on CNN was a waste of time because anchors and reporters like Jake Tapper, Brianna Keilar, Jim Acosta, and Dana Bash were nothing more than hard-edged left-wing partisans.
That’s why Licht camped out at the Senate and held meetings all day with Republicans to pitch them on appearing on CNN.
The Washington Free Beacon reports:
The network boss camped out in mid-July in a room on the first floor of the Senate side of the Capitol, S-120, where he asked GOP lawmakers to come talk with him privately. That arrangement avoided alerting the reporters who stalk the halls of the Capitol, sources said, and accommodated Republican lawmakers who preferred not to be seen hobnobbing with him.
Licht’s message, according to one of the lawmakers who sat down with him as well as to several sources briefed on the exchanges: “We want to win back your trust.”
The CNN chief spent between 45 minutes and an hour cajoling GOP lawmakers who no longer appear on the network to come back on the air — and assuring them he’d praise producers for inviting them and communicate his displeasure if he doesn’t believe they are treated fairly.
CNN’s aggressively left-wing PR man, Matt Dornic, claimed Licht was committed to a fair hearing for both parties.
“Chris has made it clear that his top priority is to make CNN a place for fair and respectful dialogue, analysis and debate. He believes our audiences deserve to hear from elected officials on both sides of the aisle and will continue to engage a variety of voices,” Dornic stated.
But the proof will be in the pudding.
So far, Licht has made no personnel changes, and Puck News’ Dylan Byers noted the same team who drove the network’s ratings into the toilet by leaning into Trump Derangement Syndrome under Jeff Zucker is still in place.
Renewed Right will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this ongoing story.