Want To Get Your Message Across? Simple, Start Your Own 24-Hour Cable News Channel

Philip M. Stone July 7, 2010 Follow on Twitter

What do you do if you’re a nation that doesn’t think the world’s 24-hour English language global news networks are giving you a fair shake? Simple, you start your own English news channel. All you need is money and that’s what governments print so, no problem even in these days of counting pennies.

The latest to join the group is China which has launched its CNC World. At the moment the “World” is just Hong Kong, but within a year the network, run by the state news agency Xinhua, hopes to be seen in Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America, and Africa. And when there is massive state money behind you then anything goes – the network is planning a 44-person newsroom in a Times Square skyscraper as just one example of how it plans to have the on-the-ground resources to cover the world.

Little did Ted Turner realize when he unleashed CNN on those first US cable systems in June, 1980. It was no easy feat, most cable systems had just 12 available channels and news was taken up for the most part by alpha-numeric services from AP and UPI. One would have thought the cable companies would have jumped at getting their own cable news network and getting rid of alpha-numeric music systems, but Ted Turner had a real struggle to get cable operators to see the light – probably they saw the light but they didn’t want to pay for it.

This writer remembers attending a meeting of Indiana cable operators in 1980, CNN’s first year. Turner was the first speaker in the morning and he must have had some breakfast because he came out with both barrels blasting. If the quotes below are not 100% exact they’re pretty close.

“What is it with you people? Someone comes along and makes the investment to produce a product that sets your industry apart from anything else that is on television and you don’t support me?…. “News, 24 hours a day, with live people, satellite coverage from around the world and you’re satisfied to accept instead writing on a screen! What kind of business people are you? Have you no vision?”

Well, the cable world finally got the message and 30 years on it’s a whole new cable industry. At ftm’s home city of Geneva, Switzerland, the cable company carries Sky News, BBC News 24, BBC World, CNN, Russia Today (RT), Al Jazeera English, France 24 English, Euronews, NHK World, Deutsche Welle, CNBC Europe, and Bloomberg. No doubt as the second home of the United Nations we can expect to see CNC World within the year. That's already enough cable news channels to fill those early 12-channel systems -- how the media world changes!

BBC World, Russia Today, France 24 and Deutsche Welle all have government backing  and the basic reason behind spending the millions of whatever currency you care to choose was to get the home country’s view across to the world because you don’t like the way the independent networks do the job.

Take France 24, started in 2006, under former President Jacques Chirac who was not CNN’s greatest fan. If you’re interested in happenings in France it’s the place to go. On Tuesday, for instance, France announced a new coach for its disgraced football (soccer) squad and France 24 covered the news conference live with simultaneous translation. Whenever President Sarkozy gives domestic or international news conferences you can count on France 24 having live coverage with the simultaneous translation; if there are foreign dignitaries visiting France it will have the most complete English language coverage; if you want to know what is happening in France then no one can match its resources, and if you want the French view on international events via the various analysts the no better place to be. And that’s exactly what the French want – to get their point of view out to the world.

If you want the best coverage of the UK then no one has resources like the BBC. BBC World can call upon the coverage of its 24-hour UK news service and on major events such as the general elections it can simulcast UK coverage. And with BBC correspondents around the world the coverage has that British objectivity.

You want to know what is happening in the Middle East and southern Asia then it’s Al Jazeera. It seemingly has more people on the ground in more places and its coverage from other parts of the world is none too shabby, either. Al Jazeera hired some top-notch BBC correspondents, also some former CNN people, and the overall reporting is far more unbiased than one might think of an Arab-based network.  

Indeed Al-Jazeera has found the key to running a successful English-language news operation that wants to get across a message. It has plenty of people on the ground and although  it’s not too difficult to pick up the Middle East biases from some reporters in general they keep it pretty straight which is essential because if they didn’t they know they will lose their intended audience. And the Israelis seem to have respect, too, for Al Jazeera with government and military spokespeople often being interviewed live from Israel. They obviously wouldn’t show up if they thought it an anti-Israel propaganda machine.

And that will be the trick for CNC’s success. Insult the viewer’s intelligence with obvious bias and there won’t be many viewers. Do the live news conferences, cover the stories from China that others just don’t have the resources to get, cover world affairs with a Chinese perspective, but if the bias really shows through then all of that money will just be thrown away.