Chris Wallace was once the anchor of the cable news network’s top-rated cable news channel, but he quit to start the short-lived streaming company CNN+. Wallace now says that he has been “a victim” to the situation, but insists that he is “in good health.”
Warner Bros. announced last week that CNN+ would be shutting down on April 30, just three weeks after its launch. Discovery announced that CNN+ would cease to exist on April 30.
Jacqueline Adams, a former CBS News reporter, asked Wallace during a Common Ground Committee livestreamed event entitled “Media, Politics, and Polarization.”
Wallace stated, “It’s an intriguing thing and I have been a victim in the last week,” before praising the company’s line about the launch’s timing and the merger with Warner Bros. Not the low subscription numbers, but Discovery didom CNN+. CNN+ was launched in 2009, but despite the $300 million investment, only 10,000 people were using it daily. This is far below what we expected.
Wallace stated that the idea was to gain a foothold in streaming media because that’s where news from the main networks will be going. “Now, you have some equally intelligent people who have come in with a diametrically opposing views. These are the new bosses of CNN+ because [the Warner Bros. merger]. Discovery merger] has led to them concluding that a niche product such as a news streaming service is not a good idea.
Wallace stated, “I don’t know which side is correct or wrong. But the Discovery people are in control and they made the decision.”
CNN, which has been losing viewers for some time, may never have gotten far asking their users to pay more for content. Chris Wallace, did you ever think of that?
Even though Wallace was reported to have had day-long tantrums about the CNN+ launch, he maintained that he is all smiles and sunshine and seemed to be open to the possibility of leaving CNN for better pastures. I’m going to be fine. “I’m fine, no matter if it’s CNN or somewhere else.
