CNN

Why are oldsters and Hollywood fighting a passé war? At least CNN does more reporting than Fox, even MS Now, but the truth is hardly anyone is watching and the outlet, like its two political competitors, is basically a hotbed of analysis and argument which younger generations refuse to engage with. CNN reaches 711,000 primetime viewers and 432,000 total-day viewers in a nation of 340+ million. In a world where influencers, whose names are unknown by these anti-merger protesters, reach more. If you're banking on the neutering of the Paramount/WarnerDiscovery merger... Let's just say I hope you're not placing a bet on Kalshi. Because if you leave all emotion out, the merger passes muster on an antitrust basis. But this is what happens when people base their behavior on emotions, not facts. We reside in a changed world, and the older generations refuse to accept this. You constantly hear the refrain that young people are getting their news from TikTok... But the bottom line is they are! Just like there were complaints people were getting their news from late night TV in the past. Or TV news instead of newspapers before that. And in truth, as bad as you might believe Fox News to be, the right wing is really run by online sites that you may not have even heard of. That's the truth. As for truth, we can lament its loss, but if you think leaving Bari Weiss outside the walls of CNN means truth will triumph, you probably don't own a smartphone. As for adjusting one's take to appease the Administration, Jeff Bezos did this with the "Washington Post" and the end result was a loss of subscribers and influence, aided by a staggering reduction in reporters. If you don't have eyes around the world, you're just another opinion outlet. The eyes remain on the staffs of the "New York Times" and the "Wall Street Journal," the only two American outlets which still have bastions of reporters, especially the "Times," around the world. And the "Times" is denigrated, but the funny thing is if you even watch cable news, they can't stop quoting the "Times" and the "Journal"...they reference the reporting and then argue over it. Remember when there were limits on the ownership of terrestrial radio stations? Now Teslas don't even come with AM radios. It's a struggling business. That's another thing the establishment with its supposed heart in the right place doesn't understand, nothing is forever. It's not only the horse and buggy that are in the rearview mirror. And in a world where more power is needed, the Administration has crippled alternative energy and Detroit is making SUVs when BMW just laid off workers because it can't compete with the Chinese. At least fight the right war. Make America Great Again? We can argue all day long how great it actually was, but in truth you must adjust for a new world. Look at the originalists on the Supreme Court...look at the twisted rationales these justices used in the Humphrey's case. Even the Supreme Court can't live in the past. As for Bari Weiss... Are you really worried about someone who tanked the already struggling "CBS Evening News" with her handpicked host? If you want to address hearts and minds, win people over, then you need to invest in reporting. As for swaying people...with attitude, jokes or analysis...this is done online today. Do we end up with a Balkanized world, with no agreed upon facts? We most certainly do, but keeping CNN out of the hands of the Ellisons is not going to solve this problem. It's like fighting a war with bows and arrows in the face of guns. Speaking of which, the U.S. doesn't have enough expensive missiles to wage a full scale war in Iran, and Iran is staying alive partly due to cheap technology, i..e drones, which Ukraine is employing to keep Russia at bay. Turns out an innovative thinker is much more powerful than sheer dollars. Drones. AI... This is the world we now live in. Not one from forty years ago with four networks and a slew of cable channels. If you're worried about Paramount owning MTV, you must be the same wanker who is excited that CD sales just went up, they're de minimis in terms of overall consumption. Remember when everybody was bitching about Napster? The record companies who were happy when they used the legal system to shut the MP3 trading site down? Well, whac-a-mole ensued and we ended up with Spotify, et al, which stabilized the market and returned revenues... Sure, it may be harder to get people to listen to an entire album, but maybe that's just not what listeners want to do... Just like people don't want to watch CNN. As for CNN's online presence, the company has been about as successful as the aforementioned MTV, which is not very. They have a pay product and if you can find anyone who is laying down their money, it's probably you, because I don't know a single soul who is coughing up for these stories behind the paywall. People will pay for the "Times" and "Journal" online, but not CNN. Furthermore, Paramount is aligning with WarnerDiscovery because these companies operate in a mature sphere, all the innovation is elsewhere, this is just a matter of keeping the lights on. And if I hear one more Hollywoodite bitching about the number of movies that are made... Numbers tell us this is a product that the public doesn't want, and chances are these same complainers aren't going either, they're watching in screening rooms or via digital screeners. You can't win if you fight the last war. Youngsters know this inherently, oldsters are oblivious. Which is why the Democratic party is in turmoil. And it's not only the Democrats, but the entire government. How can you rule over me, tell me what to do, when you're not digitally-savvy? As for Paramount/WarnerDiscovery... Digital outlets have many more customers and are making more money and are worth more. What next, an outcry over the merger of department stores? It's not only that you can't teach old dogs new tricks, old dogs just don't want their cheese moved, ever. They want to skate along, never enduring a loss, never having to adjust to change. But this is not the world we live in. When was the last time someone sent me news from CNN? I can't remember. But Jon Stewart is all over TikTok, as a result of having entertainment value and a viewpoint. And even the "New York Times" is pivoting to video, and it doesn't plan to succeed by buying a cable outlet, but by spreading the word online. But that does not mean the paper doesn't publish the words of bloviators, bleeding heart liberals, trying to maintain the status quo. If the bleeding heart liberals truly wanted to get their message across, they'd play online, where right wing viewpoints are effective and dominate. You can only solve the problems of the future via leadership. But the so-called educated classes, the Democratic party, are so busy trying to maintain the status quo that they're superseded. One controller with a drone can challenge Putin. And one person with a smartphone and internet access can change the course of history. This is the world we live in. If only the intelligentsia and the supposed educated classes would wake up. -- Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/ -- Listen to the podcast: -iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj -Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp -- http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz -- If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter, http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1 If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25 To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25