CNN's Airport Network shutting down after 30 years

After 30 years the CNN airport network is being shut down. CNN’s Jeff Zucker announced the closure in a memo Tuesday. “The steep decline in airport traffic because of COVID-19, coupled with all the new ways that people are consuming content on their personal devices, has lessened the need for the CNN Airport Network,” Zucker wrote.

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The LA Times reports the network was no longer profitable:

The ad-supported CNN Airport Network was no longer a profitable operation for the WarnerMedia unit, according to people briefed on the matter who were not authorized to comment publicly. About two dozen employees based in CNN’s Atlanta headquarters will lose their jobs with the closure.

CNN Airport Network was shown on 1,800 screens in 54 airports across the U.S. and Bermuda. The customized service showed segments from CNN and other Turner channels such as HLN and TNT.

There was some dunking on social media:

It seems the Babylon Bee predicted this months ago:

Jokes aside, CNN reportedly had its best ratings day ever last week during the riot at the Capitol:

CNN averaged 5.2 million viewers last Wednesday, eclipsing its previous high of 5.1 million on Election Day 2016, the Nielsen company said. The network had 4.47 million viewers on Sept. 11, 2001, Nielsen said.

During the storming of the Capitol itself on Wednesday afternoon, CNN averaged nearly 9 million viewers. CNN also led all of the cable news and broadcast networks during prime-time that evening, when Nielsen estimated more than 33 million people tuned in to watch Congress go back into session to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.

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Overall the network seems to be doing pretty well and is probably well positioned for a lot of upbeat leaks about the Biden administration. In any case, I’ll be glad not to have CNN blaring from televisions everywhere the next time I go to an airport, though it may still be a while before that happens.

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David Strom 6:40 PM | April 18, 2024
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