CNN sure likes to keep ’em guessing.
After canceling media-affairs show “Reliable Sources,” which often tilted at the content of Fox News Channel, CNN plans to air a previously-announced documentary mini-series about that network’s owners.
“The Murdochs: Empire of Influence,” a seven-part documentary series previously planned for the now-scuttled streaming site CNN+, will debut on CNN”s flagship cable outlet in the fall. The original series will debut with a two-episode premiere on Sunday, September 25.
The series was produced with The New York Times and Left/Right and is based on the New York Times Magazine article “How Rupert Murdoch’s Empire of Influence Remade the World,” by journalists Jonathan Mahler and Jim Rutenberg. They serve as consulting producers on the series. The program aims to examine the rise of Rupert Murdoch, his global influence and the battle for succession among his children. In an announcement about the series in February, CNN said the series “charts the high-stakes deal making, political maneuvering and dynastic betrayals — and how the ambitions of one family birthed one of the largest media empires in history.”
Corporate parent Warner Bros. Discovery has made clear it wants CNN to tamp down on many of the themes that made the network stand out when it was managed by former chief Jeff Zucker. During his term, anchors were given leeway to express passion and offer opinion about the topics they cover, and Fox News Channel has been a frequent target of anchors including Brian Stelter, Brianna Keilar and Jim Acosta. Stelter departed CNN on Sunday, after the cancellation of “Reliable Sources,” which he anchored.
“The Murdochs; Empire of Influence” is based on a long feature by New York Times reporters Jonathan Mahler and Jim Rutenberg. It will air on Sundays at 10pm on CNN, which is working under new chief Chris Licht to create a revamped block of Sunday programming. Executive producers for the series are Ken Druckerman, Banks Tarver, and Erica Sashin for Left/Right; Sam Dolnick and Kathleen Lingo for The New York Times; and Amy Entelis, Lyle Gamm and Jon Adler for CNN Original Series. Journalists Jonathan Mahler and Jim Rutenberg of The New York Times serve as consulting producers.
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