CNN: A Critical Analysis

By Spencer Wayne, Meredith

Savatsky, Brittany Kadin,
Lindsay Kramer and Lauren
Melamed
How CNN Reports the
News
Content-Based Analysis
 Before a Crisis:
Requirements for Successful
Reporting 
• Investigative reporting
• Challenge official sources
• Follow up on the content of previous reports
• Questioning how officials respond to
research and reports

Was CNN Successful? NO

 Pre-September 11 Coverage
- 80 mentions of Osama Bin
Laden between 1998-2001
- A lot of events including
the bombings occurred, yet
coverage was still
insufficient
- Not all the stories focused
on him but simply bring his
name up
- 0 mentions of Al Qaeda on
cable news until September
21 after the attacks itself
On CNN.com 1 mention of
Al Qaeda from 1998 
Hurricane Katrina "Unthinkable?"
• “[People of New Orleans] have dodged a bullet so
many times since Hurricane Betsey in 1965, and once
again, [they were] very lucky. But that worst case
scenario is literally unimaginable and unthinkable” 
• John Zarrella, CNN Correspondent
 Financial Crisis
Looking For Ways Out of the Subprime
Mortgage Crisis
March 30, 2007
• Acknowledgement of Crisis in Headline - is it a
problem? Not really.
o Some economists say the mortgage defaults
in the subprime sector could push the
economy into a recession
o But Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke
told Congress Wednesday that while the
problems in the subprime mortgage sector
have caused "severe financial problems for
many individuals and families," they may not
affect the overall economy
 During A Crisis:
Requirements for Successful
Reporting
• Explain the current situation in as much detail as
possible
o Define key terms
• Provide answers to the audience's main questions 
o What is this about?
o Who is involved?
• Use video footage or images to increase overall
understanding
• Incorporate officials' opinions to strengthen
importance and validity of the story 
Successful? YES
 Iraq Invasion
• Informing the public from the very beginning of the invasion
o Nic Robertson reports live from Baghdad to CNN
correspondent Aaron Brown as the war unfolds
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9aQOFcGiks
&feature=related (6 min)
• Shock and Awe Coverage 

• Analyzing impact of
missiles and their
effectiveness in hitting the
US target of Iraqi power
rather than innocent
citizens
September 11
• Were one of the first news
stations at the scene to
cover the story 
• First to clarify that this was
not an accident and stated it
was a terrorist attack  
• Made links to Al Qaeda on
the day of and confirmed
with FBI at 4pm that day
• Provided continuous
coverage on the attacks and
updates
• Interviewed various eye
witnesses 
• Posted descriptive timeline
day after
 Gulf Coast Oil Spill 
• "Oil Slick Spreads from Sunken Rig" April 22, 2010 
o “1-by 5 mile sheen of crude oil mix spread across the
gulf of mexico’s surface where the Deepwater Horizon
oil rig exploded and sank”
o "Due to fire from attempts at capping the well"
o "No indications this was a terrorist incident"
o "BP operates the license on which the rig was drilling"
•  "Efforts to Stop Leak Under Way After Oil Rig Explosion"
April 25, 2010
o Defining key terms - Blowout Preventer
 "A large valve at the top of a well, activating it will
stop the flow of oil"
 However…
CNN falls short in several aspects of their reporting

• Evoke more emotion rather than analyze facts

• Primetime news programs
• Lack of professionalism
• Too much focus on ratings, losing sense of
responsibilities as a news network
• Too many human interest pieces (overpowering
actual analytical reporting)
 TV: Emotionalism
• Leads to loss of objectivity
o Campbell Brown cries while on air after hearing
about a child dying in the Haiti Earthquake
forcing the show to go to a commercial break.
 TV: Lack of Professionalism
• Commentators become too emotional
• Lose sight of purpose of interviews:
o The Situation Room's Wolf Blitzer argues with
Michael Moore on air (6:35).
o Moore: "CNN refuses to ask 'hard' questions. You
don't do the job. You never ask 'Why are we here?”
o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpKoN40K7mA
"Iraq Never Over For Some"
• Human Interest Story
• Uninformative and overly dramatic
• CNN's Barbara Starr talks to an Army mom who lost her son in the Iraq war
• "This week the us combat mission in Iraq officially ends, but the emotional
cost of the war for thousands of military families, like the Patton's, doesn’t” 
• Counsels other army wives and mothers about being resilient- how?
• "Sisters in arms, the backbone of military families" 
"Chilean Miners Tour Hollywood"
• "It was just last month that they were
underground, 10 weeks, 2,200 ft underground, and
now here they are having a great time in Southern
California and attending our "Heroes Program"
which airs on Thanksgiving night."
(show clip 1:47- 2:15)
 After:
Requirements for Successful
Reporting
• Tell people what they need to know and do now
that the crisis has passed
• Offer a place that addresses common concerns
and questions

Was CNN Successful? Yes

The Aftermath of a Crisis: What
happens now?

• September 11th, 2001

o "Giuliani: New Yorkers Should Return to Normal Life"
October 8, 2001
 "Do not let fear alter your plans"
 "People should return to a normal life"
 Aftermath Continued
• CNN's Gulf Coast Oil Spill Homepage
o Sections devoted to...
 Volunteer sites to donate/help 
 Depths of the disaster (statistics)
 iReports - individual stories from people in
the gulf
 Maps - locating areas that were effected and
tracking the spread
 Daily developments 
 Timeline
 Glossary - breaking down the disaster jargon
Financial Crisis: How did we get Here?
Guide to Beating the Financial Crisis
Ali Velshi answers questions
and explains how to get out
of
 debt (start at 2 mins)
Video Clip

He helps explain the

questions people have and
what they should do next
• small business owner -
should he stick it out or take
a gov. job?
• Student debt, mortgage, etc.
CNN.com Financial Crisis
Summary
What Channels Does CNN
Use to Deliver the News?
 CNN Embedded Reporters
• CNN places correspondents with various regiments of the
U.S. Army Corps and Marines in Iraq to join the deployed
troops, allowing instant communication during times of
crisis and up close reports of Iraqi life
• Interview with Dr. Sanjay Gupta (with the Marines at Camp
Iwo Jima) by CNN's Bill Hemmer
o "The situation seems very fluid, very dynamic right
now. We've heard thuds, loud thuds closer than before
for the first time just recently"
o "We do have our gas masks on and our helmets"
o "It's been a stop-go, a start-go process out there"
• Ten-minute, commercial-free, daily news program for middle and high
school students produced by the journalists and educators at CNN  
• Free of charge
• Daily Transcripts for each show, Daily Discussion questions, the
Media Literacy Question of the Day, in-depth Learning Activities,
downloadable Maps 

• Afghanistan Offensive (4:28- 6:30)

o Defines Offensive
o Clearly explains current situation
o Easy to Understand
o Answers questions
 iReports
• "CNN invites you to open your journals and photo
albums and share your pictures, video, and memories
from 30 significant events of the last three decades
• Significant global events from the past 30 years
o ex: Hong Kong handover, the Chernobyl disaster, fall of the Berlin
Wall, release of Nelson Mandela, September 11 terror attacks, death
of Michael Jackson
• description written by professional + personal account
from average citizen
 CNN.com
• Information is present, but
accessing it through CNN's
website is where the main
problem lies
• Search engine problems
• News Pulse: Tells top stories
of the day, allowing easier
navigation of news reports
• Interconnectedness
o Use of social sharing
buttons on all articles and
incorporation of twitter,
facebook into television
reports
 Where are CNN's Tweets?
• Too many Twitter and Facebook pages, need to
condense
Chilean Miners
 Facebook

• Need to choose a focus

• Either a place to link back to the website, or can be used as
a means of breaking news
 Recommendations
• Before Crises – Need to better prepare citizens
• During & After Crises – Continue fact based reports and
helpful tips for viewers
• Worry less about ratings, they do not necessarily reflect
reporting as negative
• Continue utilization of new and original forms of news
delivery
• Consolidate use of social media