The unexpected departure of Don Lemon and the entrance of Tucker Carlson into the Twitter realm underscore the ongoing challenges that large news outlets like CNN and Fox News are experiencing, including dwindling power, audience, and revenue.
CNN’s substantial audience decline since late 2020 is well-documented. It has been suggested that American viewers have a lower tolerance for journalists who present themselves as moral instructors.
Over time, many high-profile individuals from the network have been let go due to decreasing public tolerance.
Among them was Don Lemon, who managed to retain his position for longer, despite controversial views, partly due to his unique identity as a Black gay man.
However, allegations of inappropriate conduct have emerged within the network, involving Lemon and Chris Cuomo, who both faced accusations of misconduct in the workplace and have since left the network.
Despite these incidents, former CEO Jeff Zucker maintained a strong stance against former President Trump and controlled the narrative in a manner that seemingly favored the Democratic party, allegedly downplaying scandals that could negatively impact the Democrats.
In 2022, Warner Media merged with Discovery, assuming control over Warner Bros, HBO, and CNN.
The newly formed conglomerate replaced Zucker with Chris Licht, with the mission to steer the network away from perceived elitism and partisan bias, and towards reliable, serious journalism.
However, critics such as journalist Megyn Kelly suggested that Licht, despite his best efforts, lacked a genuine understanding of the wider American audience due to his affluent upbringing and education.
Licht’s tenure was short-lived following an internal uproar triggered by a Q&A session he hosted with Donald Trump.
Critics argued that a more decisive leader would have initiated a thorough ideological overhaul of the network, removing those not committed to non-partisan journalism. Consequently, Licht was dismissed, and CNN’s future remains uncertain.
The narrative of challenges in U.S. networks continues with Fox News’ surprising parting of ways with its well-known journalist, Tucker Carlson.
This change reportedly arose after Dominion – the company that owns the voting machines used in U.S. elections – sued Fox for defamation following the network’s broadcasting of allegations of fraudulent election results linked to these machines.
The aftermath of Carlson’s departure was a significant drop in Fox’s viewership, as reported by The Hill, and a crisis within the network as it copes with the loss of millions of viewers and dwindling subscriptions.
The landscape of news consumption has significantly transformed over the years. In 2016, approximately 70% of U.S. households had cable TV.
This figure has plummeted to less than 40% today, indicating a significant challenge for networks like Fox and CNN.
In the meantime, Tucker Carlson has created his own show on Twitter and has drawn a large audience on the platform.
This development spurs speculations about a potential shift towards a new era where serious journalism becomes a part of the diverse content offered on the internet.
Only time will tell whether this shift will manifest.
As it stands now, Fox’s conservative audience does not seem inclined to re-engage with the network.
With information from BSM