CNN: The Continuing Soap Opera

[Geoffrey 958]

Boris Sanchez and Brianna Keilar anchored the afternoon CNN News Central from Atlanta today. They sat the whole time, which is fairly common, but it wasn't obvious they weren't in DC until they took the occasional wide shot. The desk looks much more impressive than what they use in DC.

 

 

Though maybe it should have been obvious as they replaced the DC photography in the background with Atlanta (a skyline I'm not so familiar with).

[ATLNewsExpert 508]

6 minutes ago, Geoffrey said:

Boris Sanchez and Brianna Keilar anchored the afternoon CNN News Central from Atlanta today. They sat the whole time, which is fairly common, but it wasn't obvious they weren't in DC until they took the occasional wide shot. The desk looks much more impressive than what they use in DC.

 

 

Though maybe it should have been obvious as they replaced the DC photography in the background with Atlanta (a skyline I'm not so familiar with).

This actually looks so much better, the lighting, wide shoots, etc! Any reason why they were in Atlanta?

[Geoffrey 958]

4 minutes ago, ATLNewsExpert said:

This actually looks so much better, the lighting, wide shoots, etc! Any reason why they were in Atlanta?

I agree! I only had it on in the background at work so I don't know if they mentioned a reason. I seem to remember something similar happening years ago and it was apparently so the anchors could meet the editorial staff who put the broadcasts together. I guess many shows are produced from Atlanta.

[FiveNews 481]

Surprisingly, a lot of CNN shows are still produced in Atlanta and anchored in DC/NY. I thought Boris and Brianna were NYC based, the previous post mentioned DC. Although, I could be mistaken.

[ATLNewsExpert 508]

49 minutes ago, FiveNews said:

Surprisingly, a lot of CNN shows are still produced in Atlanta and anchored in DC/NY. I thought Boris and Brianna were NYC based, the previous post mentioned DC. Although, I could be mistaken.

Boris and Brianna are based in D.C! Matter of fact, if I remember correctly, most producing went back to Atlanta I believe, by order of Mark Thompson when CNN This Morning (as the main morning show) was cancelled.

[FiveNews 481]

3 minutes ago, ATLNewsExpert said:

Boris and Brianna are based in D.C! Matter of fact, if I remember correctly, most producing went back to Atlanta I believe, by order of Mark Thompson when CNN This Morning (as the main morning show) was cancelled.

Good to know! From a financial standpoint, IMO, it would behoove CNN to get back to Atlanta. It is a large American city, a significant airline hub and GA is a pivotal state for politics and the economy. They can maintain a presence in NY, but Atlanta isn't a bad place to be.

[EastCoast 29]

I think dayside has always been produced from Atlanta, even when the anchors moved to New York 10 or so years ago. Every now and then the dayside anchors pop up in Atlanta, happy to see them use the studio instead of a flash set. Agreed that the lighting in Studio H looks much nicer than when the show is in DC. The yellow flares in the background are a nice touch to blend into the set.

 

On a separate note, for the past couple of weeks Zain Asher has only anchored the first hour of One World, either with Bianna solo-anchoring the second hour or with a separate anchor (Eleni or Christina).

[EastCoast 29]

Excuse the double post. Elex Michaelson posted on Twitter that they’re building a new set for his show at the LA bureau with a target launch in late October:

While I’m here: Polo Sandoval anchored his shift from Atlanta over the weekend, hopefully this is a permanent relocation. Much better than an NY shoebox. 

 

Finally, a cap from Eleni anchoring One World from Abu Dhabi: 

[YourWorldToday 29]

On 9/25/2025 at 6:13 PM, EastCoast said:

I think dayside has always been produced from Atlanta, even when the anchors moved to New York 10 or so years ago. Every now and then the dayside anchors pop up in Atlanta, happy to see them use the studio instead of a flash set. Agreed that the lighting in Studio H looks much nicer than when the show is in DC. The yellow flares in the background are a nice touch to blend into the set.

 

On a separate note, for the past couple of weeks Zain Asher has only anchored the first hour of One World, either with Bianna solo-anchoring the second hour or with a separate anchor (Eleni or Christina).

Yeah, it’s amazing how just a bit of colour really brightens up the backdrop. I find News Central DC always looks really dull and grey. 
 

I’ve never quite understood the point of One World. It was fine when it was an hour-long show focused on Africa, but now it’s focused on US politics (like every other show) it just seems a bit pointless. And doing a two-anchor show from a flash set is certainly a choice! I would love to know why CNNI is seemingly not allowed to use any of the big studios in NY. Quest Means Business in particular is always much better when he’s in London and he can use the big studio there. 

[EastCoast 29]

Erica Hill has anchored some impressive shifts these past couple of weeks. She covered CNN This Morning from DC all week (including today) and now she's anchoring The Lead from New York! Similar story last week, she anchored CTM and The Lead Monday, The Lead Tuesday, then overnight coverage from 3-6am Wednesday! For such a solid anchor, it's a shame she hasn't had a permanent show since "On The Story".

 

 

[EastCoast 29]

Just received an email from HBO Max that CNN Max will be discontinued on November 17th. Had a hunch this would happen since CNN Max is just CNNi and CNNi will be available on CNN’s new standalone streamer, scheduled to launch this fall. I guess that means CNN’s new all access app will launch on or before November 17th. 

[Georgie56 3661]

CNN Max is shutting down next month.

[YourWorldToday 29]

On 10/2/2025 at 10:40 PM, EastCoast said:

Erica Hill has anchored some impressive shifts these past couple of weeks. She covered CNN This Morning from DC all week (including today) and now she's anchoring The Lead from New York! Similar story last week, she anchored CTM and The Lead Monday, The Lead Tuesday, then overnight coverage from 3-6am Wednesday! For such a solid anchor, it's a shame she hasn't had a permanent show since "On The Story".

 

 

With all the fill-in shifts she does, I suspect she probably has as much airtime as some of the permanent anchors! 

 

On another note, I think John Vause might have quietly left. He hasn't been on air since the end of August, and there's probably no place for him in the schedule with this new L.A. show starting at the end of this month. Another old CNNI face gone...

[mouseboy33 137]

Wild that CNN used to be the go to channel for global breaking news. Those days are over. Currently all the major global news channels BBC, AJE, SKY they are alll covering the Ceasefire and CNN is continuing to stick with the ICE stories and round tables yackfests. Even the streamers CBS, ABC, NBC are all in rolling coverage. Who is making the decisions over there at CNN. Thats just wild. And you cant turn to CNN International any more because they effectively dismantled that channel. How sad.

[Geoffrey 958]

18 minutes ago, mouseboy33 said:

Wild that CNN used to be the go to channel for global breaking news. Those days are over. Currently all the major global news channels BBC, AJE, SKY they are alll covering the Ceasefire and CNN is continuing to stick with the ICE stories and round tables yackfests. Even the streamers CBS, ABC, NBC are all in rolling coverage. Who is making the decisions over there at CNN. Thats just wild. And you cant turn to CNN International any more because they effectively dismantled that channel. How sad.

 

CNN had team coverage at the top of the hour. Yes, it's a big story, but there's little additional information at the moment other than a social media post from a famously not very credible source. The country (and the world) is on fire right now. CNN can cover multiple stories at once.

Edited October 8, 2025 by Geoffrey

[EastCoast 29]

CNN sets October 28th as the launch date for their All Access streaming product: https://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2025/10/16/cnn-to-launch-new-all-access-subscription-tier-october-28/

 

I’m not certain if this is a 1:1 of the domestic and international feeds or if there will be nuances to the schedule à la CNN Max. The press release mentions “a selection of CNN’s live US and International programming” and that “the full schedule and content offering will be available at launch”. Maybe I’m just reading it wrong.

 

[EastCoast 29]

Looks like we have a title for Elex's show, "The Story Is: With Elex Michaelson", which takes a page from his former Fox LA show "The Issue Is".

 

Clip from CNN's EPG for Monday 10/27. Times are Pacific. 

 

 

[Junk Junk 8]

That’s a clunky title…

[ginnyfan 4]

So in Europe, this will air on Saturday mornings and will not air on Monday mornings which is just bizarre for an early morning slot. But International audiences don't matter to CNNI for some time now.

[YourWorldToday 29]

9 hours ago, ginnyfan said:

So in Europe, this will air on Saturday mornings and will not air on Monday mornings which is just bizarre for an early morning slot. But International audiences don't matter to CNNI for some time now.

Yeah it’s very awkward, isn't it. Much like when they briefly brought back Your World Today and had that running Monday-Thursday nights from London… which was Tuesday-Friday mornings in Asia! (I think Mondays were CNN Newsroom from Atlanta). But logic doesn’t exactly seem to be the CNN schedulers’ strong point. 

 

It’s a shame they don’t have a European breakfast show in that slot, like they used to (CNN Today from London). But there are barely any anchors left in London… such a shame. They really have butchered CNNI. 

[mouseboy33 137]

Im sure its mentioned somewhere here. Alex Thomas formerly of CNN International sport , is now at Sky News Australia presenting the news. Sky News Australia is similar to Fox News in the US. Seems like there is a concerted effort to slowly shut down CNN International. There is basically no one there.

[EastCoast 29]

On 10/21/2025 at 12:56 PM, ginnyfan said:

So in Europe, this will air on Saturday mornings and will not air on Monday mornings which is just bizarre for an early morning slot. But International audiences don't matter to CNNI for some time now.

Welcome over ginnyfan! Looking forward to seeing your high quality caps in the future.

 

CNNI haven't had consistent morning blocks for a while. John Vause anchored Tuesday-Friday morning when they launced Newsroom LA 10 years ago and continued until his unannounced disappearance from his show. Rosemary Church is Monday-Thursday. Your World Today was a Tuesday-Friday Asian Breakfast show and First Move was a Tuesday-Saturday Asian Breakfast show. 

 

Elex's show would make much more sense Sunday-Thursday nights. This would make it a consistent M-F breakfast show in Europe and a consistent midday show in Asia. Then again, I'd like Connect The World to go back to Sunday-Thursday, but that's not going to happen. 

 

CNN released the press release for The Story Is today. Nothing we didn't already know. What's interesting is the EPG appears to have World Sport pushed back an hour (1:45am and 3:45am ET) which makes a lot more sense. We'll see if this correct or a bug due to the European clocks changing this weekend. 

 

https://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2025/10/24/cnn-announces-premiere-date-for-the-story-is-with-elex-michaelson/

 

[YourWorldToday 29]

4 hours ago, EastCoast said:

Elex's show would make much more sense Sunday-Thursday nights. This would make it a consistent M-F breakfast show in Europe and a consistent midday show in Asia. Then again, I'd like Connect The World to go back to Sunday-Thursday, but that's not going to happen. 

 

CNN released the press release for The Story Is today. Nothing we didn't already know. What's interesting is the EPG appears to have World Sport pushed back an hour (1:45am and 3:45am ET) which makes a lot more sense. We'll see if this correct or a bug due to the European clocks changing this weekend. 

 

https://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2025/10/24/cnn-announces-premiere-date-for-the-story-is-with-elex-michaelson/

 

It would probably make more sense for Elex's show to air only on CNN Domestic, and CNNI could keep doing its own thing. But I guess budgets won't allow for that. I'd love love LOVE the old CNN Today to come back from London, and have that instead of Newsroom or The Story Is (ah, the days of Max and Monita! @ginnyfan). But I don't think CNN London has the capacity to do such a thing anymore. 

 

Sundays are actually no longer a working day in the UAE, which I think is why Connect the World went Monday-Friday. (Really it should probably be Monday-Thursday as their working week officially ends at midday on Fridays. But that would probably mess the schedule up too much )

 

I suspect with the winding down of CNN Max, we'll probably start to see more and more domestic shows on CNNI. Probably by 2030 it'll be more or less a straight simulcast of domestic. Which sucks, but I guess these are the times we live in. News channels are becoming ever less relevant. Sad for us news junkies...

[Geoffrey 958]

The Story Is' theme can be heard and studio seen here:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DQMWr1hEZN-/ 

 

The small caps in the logo look weird to me. Feels a bit amateur.

 

 

 

[ginnyfan 4]

Thanks for the welcome, guys. It's great to see familiar names again and have a place to talk news channels and CNNI, even in these difficult times for the industry.

 

I like that music for the new LA show.