Page 29 - Historical Dictionary of Political Communication in the United States

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CABLE NEWS NETWORK (CNN). Atlanta broadcaster Ted Turner took ad-
vantage of satellite technology when he dedicated "America's News Channel"
in 1980. By delivering his programming directly to cable operators by satellite,
Turner avoided having to build a conventional network of affiliates to rebroad-
cast his news. Turner's gamble was a money loser for the first five years, and
the red ink flowed faster when he launched a second network—CNN Headline
News—in late 1981 to stave off a bid by ABC and Westinghouse to create a
competing news channel. In its first five years, CNN lost more than $70 million,
but the financial picture improved as cable channels grew in popularity and
increased their market penetration. In 1985, CNN made a profit of $18.8 million,
compared to a loss of $15.3 million the year before. That year, CNN reached
33 million households—80 percent of U.S. cable homes and almost 40 percent
of U.S. television homes. Also in 1985, Turner created CNN International and
went worldwide at a time when U.S. networks were cutting back on their in-
ternational coverage. The benefits of this global expansion became apparent in
the 1991 Gulf War, when CNN's wall-to-wall coverage produced its highest
ratings. Creation of a "CNN factor" was even credited with influencing events
by instantaneous coverage. Today, CNN boasts 10 channels, including separate
financial and sports networks, along with a radio news network. With 3,000
news staffers in 21 bureaus on six continents, CNN now has access to a potential
500 million viewers.

SOURCE: Don M. Flournoy and Robert K. Stewart, CNN: Making News in the Global
Market, 1997.
Marc Edge

CANTRIL, ALBERT HADLEY (1940- ) is a pollster who gauges the Amer-
ican public's political attitudes and behavior. He obtained his bachelor's and