Tony Maddox, Executive Vice President and Managing Director of CNN International, talks to Sarah Marshall from journalism.co.uk about 2011's big news events and how his network handled them.

"I think it's been the most demanding year we can remember", Maddox said. "I think it's been the succession of big stories, of differing types, in different locations and the sequence with which they all unfolded.

"We've had a few end of year meetings at CNN and none of us could recall a more intense, more demanding or busier news period than this one in terms of the range of stories, geographical locations and logistical challenges we have been faced with."

Looking back on the year Maddox said: "If I'm proud of one thing this year it's the way in which we have gone from one story to the next. We've gone from the uprisings in the Middle East, without missing a beat, to the disaster in Japan. That's the mark of a great news organisation."

Without naming other broadcasters he praised them, acknowledging that CNN is not the only news outlet to rise to the challenges of 2011.

And with so many major news stories CNN has found "very, very significant growth" in daily, weekly and monthly reach both online and in terms of viewer numbers.

You can read the full article with Tony Maddox online here.