CNN International's Michael Holmes Joins Newsroom International
CNN Press Release - On Monday, February 18, CNN International anchor Michael Holmes will join Suzanne Malveaux as co-anchor of Newsroom International. Malveaux and Holmes will take viewers around the world in 60 minutes covering the day's most important global news, trends and destinations.
In addition to Newsroom International on CNN/US, Holmes will continue to anchor CNN International's daily news program, International Desk.
CNN's Ivan Watson promoted to Senior International Correspondent
CNN Press Release - CNN's Ivan Watson (@IvanCNN) has been promoted to Senior International Correspondent, it was announced today by Parisa Khosravi, Senior Vice President of International Newsgathering for CNN Worldwide.
Watson, who is based at CNN Istanbul, joined the network four years ago and has since covered a number of major news events like the Haiti earthquake in 2010 and the Arab Spring. He's most recently reported from Syria, and has extensively covered the the impact that story has made in Turkey and the surrounding region.
Note from Parisa Khosravi:
I am pleased to announce Ivan Watson's promotion to Senior International Correspondent. Ivan's excellent reporting speaks for itself, and we are proud to acknowledge his contribution to CNN's international coverage in the past few years.
CNN Press Release - Jeff Zucker will join CNN Worldwide as president of the multi-platform global news enterprise, it was announced today by Phil Kent, chairman and CEO of CNN parent company Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. In January 2013, Zucker will assume executive oversight of a portfolio of 23 branded news and information businesses that includes CNN/U.S., CNN International, CNN.com and HLN and reaches more than 2 billion people in some 200 countries around the world. Zucker will report to Kent and will be based at CNN in New York.
Zucker started his 25-year career with NBC as a researcher for NBC Sports' coverage of the 1988 Summer Olympic Games and rose to president and chief executive officer of NBC Universal. He was named executive producer of Today in January 1992; under his eight-year leadership, the program was the most-watched morning news show and the most profitable program on television. Zucker went on to executive-produce NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw and the network's coverage of the Persian Gulf War, the 1993 and 1997 presidential inaugurations and the 2000 elections. He was promoted to president of NBC Entertainment, president of the NBC Entertainment, News & Cable group and president and CEO of the NBC Universal Television Group. Currently, Zucker is executive producer of the syndicated daytime show Katie.
"Jeff's experience as a news executive is unmatched for its breadth and success," said Kent. "He built and sustained the number-one brand in morning news, and under his watch NBC's signature news programming set a standard for quality and professionalism. As a programmer, a brand-builder and a leader, he will bring energy and new thinking to CNN. I couldn't be happier to welcome him or more excited about what he'll accomplish here."
"I am thrilled to join the distinguished team of journalists across the worldwide platforms of CNN," said Zucker. "The global reach and scale of the CNN brand is unparalleled in all of news. Outside of my family and the Miami Dolphins, there is nothing I am as passionate about as journalism. I spent the most rewarding years of my career as a journalist, and it's where I look forward to spending many more. I am grateful to Phil Kent for this opportunity, and I'm excited to return to daily newsgathering and compelling storytelling in a place that values those above all else."
The original 24-hour news network, CNN has the greatest reach of any domestic news network. The CNN brand on television extends to 100 million households in the U.S. and 265 million households abroad, with significant online and mobile reach and a global newsgathering network with 45 locations. CNN signatures include Anderson Cooper 360°, The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer, Piers Morgan Tonight, State of the Union, Amanpour and Quest Means Business, as well as award-winning documentaries, unrivaled breaking news coverage and peerless political reporting.
CNN Worldwide, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, is the most trusted source for news and information. Its reach extends to nine cable and satellite television networks; one private place-based network; two radio networks; wireless devices around the world; CNN Digital Network, the No. 1 network of news Web sites in the United States; CNN Newsource, the world's most extensively syndicated news service; and strategic international partnerships within both television and the digital media.
CNN International will launch a new morning news program for Asia-Pacific viewers from this coming Monday.
CNN Newsroom Live from Hong Kong is described by CNN as an "essential morning briefing ... reporting on the top stories from Asia Pacific and across the world,
from business to sport, weather, technology and entertainment."
The new program, anchored by Andrew Stevens and Patricia Wu, airs weekdays between 6:00am and 8:00am (Hong Kong). A 20 second promotional spot is below.
In related news, Pauline Chiou replaces Andrew Stevens as the Hong Kong-based co-anchor of World Business Today. Stevens was bid a fond farewell from the twice-daily business program last week. Video below courtesy of forum member ginnyfan.
CNN International Launches CNN Travel; Merges CNNGo
CNN International has merged the Asia-Pacific-focused travel website CNNGo.com with a new global digital travel enterprise - CNN Travel. Details from CNN below.
CNN Press Release: CNN International today announced the launch of a new digital channel, CNN Travel, expected to become the most dynamic, engaging and relevant online destination for the world's luxury, business and leisure travelers.
Through a network of more than 800 travel contributors around the world, CNN Travel delivers up-to-the-minute travel news, destination insights, inspirational travel ideas, original observation and thoroughly-researched city and country insider guides with directions to the world's hottest restaurants, bars, hotels and activities.
CNN Travel brings together the best of CNN's existing digital travel portfolio and CNNGo.com, the successful Asia Pacific-focused travel start-up launched in 2009. The Hong Kong-headquartered team which launched CNNGo.com and has managed the popular site ever since, will continue at the helm of the international CNN Travel platform, working with international travel contributors to provide users with the distinct voice, authority and local insights which have made CNNGo.com such a hit.
"CNN Travel takes the best of CNNGo.com, shakes it up and expands its horizons to create an online travel destination unlike anything else out there. We are incredibly proud of the success CNNGo.com has had over the last three years and are thrilled to be taking it global with the creation of CNN Travel," said Andrew Demaria, editor in chief of CNN Travel.
"CNN Travel's blend of reporting, global network, international partnerships, contemporary voice and social media reach will position the site as a compelling travel destination," said Peter Bale, Vice President and General Manager of CNN International Digital. "What Andrew calls ‘CNN in jeans' gives the site a fresh and vibrant tone."
"CNN.com has launched a series of groundbreaking initiatives throughout 2012, including our partnership with Facebook around the U.S. Elections, CNN Trends, and CNN Soundwaves. CNN Travel is an outstanding addition to this roster and we are confident our international users will quickly embrace the site's unique tone and reportage," Bale added.
CNN Travel features standalone destination guides on Latin America, North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, along with dedicated sections on Travel News, Aviation, Hotels, Food and Drink amongst others.
Best-selling author and chef Anthony Bourdain made his first appearance on CNN since the network announced his new CNN show in June. Appearing on Piers Morgan Tonight, Bourdain spruiked his new CNN program and revealed the show will feature episodes from Myanmar and The Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Earlier today, CNN released a promotional spot with Bourdain.
Anthony Bourdain "Parts Unknown" will debut on CNN Domestic and CNN International early next year.
A source passed along a tip that Rima Maktabi may no longer be with CNN. Her twitter bio, which used to boast about her role as "CNN Anchor and Correspondent" is now reduced to nothing. Her bio is missing from the "Anchors" list but remains in the "Reporters M-Z" section which may mean nothing since the bio for Reynolds Wolf is still listed (and he's now freelance at The Weather Channel/NBC Universal) as well as Kathleen Parker, Bill Tucker, William Bennett, Gloria Rodriguez Mulloy, Sasha Rionda, (although those bio links are dead).
CNN Press Release - Sara Sidner is moving to CNN’s Jerusalem bureau as senior international correspondent, the network announced today.
Sidner will join CNN’s contingent of correspondents across the region, as the network underlines its commitment to Israel and the Middle East. In addition to its Jerusalem bureau, CNN has a production hub in Abu Dhabi as well as major operations in Amman, Cairo, Baghdad, Dubai and Beirut, where just last week the network added both a correspondent and producer/shooter.
Parisa Khosravi, Senior Vice President for CNN Worldwide in charge of International Newsgathering, said: “Sara’s drive, commitment, bravery and intelligence shines through in her reporting. Her work in Libya last year was truly inspiring, and I know that she will bring many valuable qualities to our Jerusalem bureau.”
Sidner shared the Achievement of the Year award at the 2011 Sky Women in Film & TV Awards for her reporting during the conflict in Libya. The WFT panel praised the example she had set to colleagues by taking to the streets alongside rebel fighters and reporting under fire in Tripoli.
With more than 15 years of television journalism experience, she has covered many stories of national and international importance, including the Mumbai terrorist attacks, the Pakistan floods, the Chile and Haiti earthquakes and Afghanistan’s elections. Most recently she has been based in New Delhi, where she was responsible for CNN’s coverage of India and South Asia.
Apologies for the sporadic blogging during the course of the past month and a half. Regular observations should commence from now - touch wood. Here's a rough list catching up on some of the bigger stories we've missed during our absence.
'Winning Post' To Run Monthly On CNN International
'Winning Post' is about to become a regular fixture on CNN International with the network upping the horse racing feature to a monthly program. 'Winning Post' originally started airing as a series of regular specials last year. CNN's release below.
CNN Press Release:WINNING POST’ GOES MONTHLY ON CNN INTERNATIONAL
CNN International today announced that ‘Winning Post',
the network's flat racing strand is expanding beyond its existing
coverage of major meetings, to a dedicated monthly programme.
Already
a successful element of CNN's ‘World Sport' programming, ‘Winning Post'
in June embarks on an exciting development as CNN's global audience
will be able to enjoy all the coverage of a major Group 1 meeting in a
special monthly show.
Few sports can match the
elegance and history of horse racing. Where ancient tradition meets
cutting-edge technology, CNN takes viewers inside the track; getting the
stories from the top trainers, jockeys and owners in the business, as
well as a behind-the-scenes look at the fashions and the fortunes that
go hand-in-hand with the most glamorous sport on the planet.
Jamie
Donald, Director, CNN International Productions, said: "Winning Post'
presents an insider's view of racing not seen before on an international
scale; from the refined thoroughbreds to the logistics involved with
training, feeding and transporting these magnificent athletes all over
the world. We are delighted that a flat racing show now joins CNN's
growing sports portfolio, alongside ‘Living Golf', ‘MainSail', ‘Open
Court', ‘The Circuit' and ‘Winning Post'."
Presented by racing insider Francesca Cumani,
the first monthly programme invites CNN viewers to two of the most
glamorous events in racing: the Prix de Diane and Royal Ascot.
The
Prix de Diane is France's most stylist race meeting, held annually at
the picturesque Chantilly Racecourse. Expect the fashions off the field
to be as impressive as the fillies on it. Also known as the ‘French
Oaks', the Prix de Diane is the nation's premier race for 3-year-old
fillies and is counted among France's "Classic" races.
Royal
Ascot is arguably the world's most recognisable race meeting: think
enormous hats and ‘My Fair Lady'. But it also brings together some of
the best racing in the world, all taking place under the watchful eye of
HM Queen Elizabeth II, who will arrive every day by carriage from
Windsor Castle. This year the two best horses in the world, Frankel and Black Caviar, will be among those racing in the five-day meeting.
HLN Revs Up Nightly News With Launch Of Evening Express, Hosted By Ryan Smith, Monday, June 4
CNN Press Release - Nationally Syndicated Radio Host and Best-Selling Financial Expert Clark Howard and CNN Journalist Isha Sesay Join New Show Airing 5-7 p.m. ET
NEW YORK, NY, May 22, 2012—HLN launches a new destination for news and information with Evening Express, hosted by Ryan Smith, beginning Monday, June 4. This new addition to HLN’s schedule will air weeknights, 5-7 p.m. ET, and feature HLN’s popular personal finance expert Clark Howard, and CNN’s Isha Sesay, it was announced by Scot Safon, Executive Vice President and General Manager, HLN. Evening Express will be based at the network’s global headquarters in Atlanta.
“HLN is excited to offer our viewers an evening news program that centers on the news and information they’ll discuss around the dinner table,” said Safon. “The format and tone of Evening Express was inspired by our hit show Morning Express with Robin Meade. Viewers tell us all the time that they love how Robin and the Morning Express team start their day on HLN, and now Ryan, Clark and Isha will be welcoming them home in the evening.”
Evening Express will provide an energetic, inspirational and solutions-oriented look at the day’s news, accompanied by deeper discussions and reporting on stories and issues that resonate in the American household, including parenting, education, health, personal finance and relationships.
Evening Express will also have a deep a social footprint, engaging with viewers and users on all platforms. In tandem with its June 4 launch, the show’s digital extensions will include Facebook (Facebook.com/EveningExpressHLN), Twitter (@EveningExp) and a dedicated blog on HLN’s recently launched web site, HLNtv.com (HLNtv.com/EveningExpress) that will feature distinctive angles on the stories of the day. Evening Express hosts can also be followed at @ryansmithtv, @IshaSesayCNN and @ClarkHoward.
Smith, a familiar HLN on-air presence in 2011 as a result of his reporting during the Casey Anthony and Conrad Murray trials, was a member of the Morning Express team and host of programming during InSession on truTV. A sports and entertainment lawyer with a degree from Columbia Law School, Smith covers a wide variety of news stories and has a personal interest in health and wellness issues.
Howard is one of HLN’s most popular personalities, with a wildly successful nationally syndicated radio program and personal finance website in addition to his regular appearances on HLN weekends and Morning Express with Robin Meade. In 2011, his book, “Clark Howard’s Living Large in Lean Times,” spent 21 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller list, his third to make that list. With the launch of Evening Express, the personal finance guru will now bring his expert advice to viewers later in the day, answering specific consumer questions and providing information that is applicable and actionable to a wide spectrum of the audience.
Sesay is well known to CNN audiences for her work as an anchor for CNN International, hosting the daily news program CNN NewsCenter and weekly program BackStory, and serving as the nightly “360 Bulletin” correspondent on Anderson Cooper 360°. In addition, she files reports for African Voices and Inside Africa, CNN International’s award-winning, weekly program dedicated to providing viewers with an inside look of Africa.On HLN’s Evening Express, she will bring her strong reporting skills and a point of view informed by her experience covering news stories from across the globe.
CNN veteran Angie Massie is the Executive Producer of Evening Express. Katherine Green is Senior Vice President and Managing Editor, HLN. Steve Rosenberg is Director of Dayside Programming, HLN.
About HLN
HLN is the national television network that focuses on the “must-see, must-share” stories of the day. Drawing upon the network’s deep bench of talent, including Robin Meade, Jane Velez-Mitchell, Nancy Grace, and Dr. Drew Pinsky, HLN dissects and demystifies the news stories and newsmakers people are talking about.
HLNtv.com, the network’s new digital platform, is the online destination for users to go deeper into the top stories driving the conversation and generating the national buzz.
HLN is a CNN Worldwide network reaching more than 100 million households in the U.S. CNN Worldwide, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner Company, is the most trusted source for news and information.
Vladimir Duthiers Announced As CNN Nigeria Correspondent
CNN today announced Vladimir Duthiers as its new correspondent in Nigeria. As we previously noted, Duthiers was first spotted from the region earlier this year when previous correspondent Christian Purefoy left the network. CNN's press release below.
CNN Press Release: Vladimir Duthier is to take on the role of CNN international correspondent based in Lagos, Nigeria, the network announced today.
Duthiers will join CNN’s contingent of Africa-based correspondents across the continent, as the network reaffirms its commitment to Nigeria. CNN currently has key bureaux in Lagos, Nairobi and Johannesburg – all headed up by bureau chief Kim Norgaard – as well as three weekly programmes on CNN International focused on the continent: Marketplace Africa, Inside Africa and African Voices.
Parisa Khosravi, Senior Vice President for CNN Worldwide in charge of International Newsgathering, said: “Vladimir’s passion for journalism, impressive business background and his knack as a natural storyteller make him a fantastic choice to cover such a vibrant country and region.”
Duthiers joined CNN in 2009 as part of Christiane Amanpour's original news programme, Amanpour. He most recently served as an associate producer for Anderson Cooper 360°.
When an earthquake shook Haiti in January 2010, Duthiers was among the first journalists to arrive in Port-au-Prince. He spent several weeks on the ground field producing for CNN – including the AC360° team – which went on to win two Emmy awards for its coverage of the quake.
Earlier this year, Duthiers was on the scene as the Occupy Nigeria movement exploded onto the streets of Lagos. His reporting put the focus on the economic struggles of ordinary Nigerians and the tensions surrounding recent attacks by the Islamist terror group, Boko Haram.
Duthiers, who is fluent in French and Haitian Creole, has taken an unusual route to a career in journalism. Prior to joining CNN, he spent nearly 20 years in the financial services industry, travelling extensively around the world for clientele in 21 countries.
Duthiers holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Rhode Island and an M.S. from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism.
Amanpour. And CNN NewsCenter Debut On CNN International
CNN International’s rejigged European prime time schedule kicked off on Monday with the return of Christiane Amanpour fronting her namesake program and the debut of Isha Sesay’s CNN NewsCenter.
Hamid Karzai was Amanpour’s first guest. The Afghan President was also the first guest when Amanpour. first launched in 2009. Amanpour also managed to secure the first interview with new World Bank president Dr. Jim Yong Kim. Other guests appearing on the program this week include U.S. Ambassador to the U.N, Susan Rice and Israel’s Minister of Defense, Ehud Barak.
Amanpour. airs live weekdays at 1900 GMT with several replays throughout the following day. A scoped aircheck of the first program is in the video below.
CNN NewsCenter is a new 30 minute daily program that is described by CNN as “the definitive destination for an intelligent, complete global picture of the day's news.”
Hosted by Isha Sesay from the CNN Domestic newsroom, the program airs live at 1930 GMT weekdays. Early reaction on our forum was mixed, but leaning towards positive on first viewing:
ginnyfan:"Like everything so far, opening is like a white lighter version of WR/W1 style, much better. Also great they broadcast from newsroom."
Axl0706:"Don't like the tacky music but everything else seems to be good! The white/black/red-color combination they are using is very pleasant. If they keep focussing on hard news every day, I think it will be a success."
Newser:"… it's IDesk meeting CNN Newsroom which could be called 'CNN Isha is in the Center' and would be a great fit for an international version of HLN if it existed." excel99: " ... It's better than PMT in the slot, and it's better than Backstory full of filler. It is also only day 1. Things could change over time. But in terms of substance I was disappointed - that slot needs something like the 'original W1'. The news, in full, not with loads of analysis or features, but not just headlines. Short concise reports on all the issues of the day. If CNNi have forgotten, go and watch a 30 minute AJE bulletin ..."
Gman:"Like the show, like the concept but not the gimmicks. Is the whole walking into the newsroom thing at the beginning going to be used every episode or was it just for the premiere?Graphics and music so much better than WR (in my humble opinion...). I've always liked Isha as a host of pure news programs - it's much more her style ..."
A scoped aircheck of the debut edition is in the video below.
CNN International's World Sport unveiled a new look on Friday with revamped graphics and music. The relaunch of the program was announced last month when CNN announced the hiring of new sport anchor Amanda Davies.
Check out a scoped aircheck of the first edition of the new World Sport below.
CNN International's Back|Story aired its final daily show on Thursday. The program is moving to a weekly feature show from next weekend. The move, previously speculated on the forum, was confirmed on the program's Facebook page a few hours before the final airing of its current format.
Starting next week, BackStory becomes a weekly program, airing several times from Saturday to Monday morning. Isha will still host the weekly show, in addition to her new daily program, CNN NewsCenter. That program will air daily at 1930 GMT and feature a different BackStory several times a week. We are sad to see the daily show go away, but we hope making the show into a weekly program will give us a chance to bring you only the very best of our style of reporting on the big stories of the week.
I’ll still be producing the show, and I’m counting on our familiar faces like Arwa Damon, Nic Robertson, Dan Rivers and Sara Sidner to deliver some fantastic reports every week! And I’m counting on our fantastic loyal fans to let me know what they think! I won't be on the Facebook page as often as I am now, but I'll definitely check in when I can.
Thanks for watching, everyone! -Kendra a.k.a. K the P
Host Isha Sesay also made comment on the format change on Thursday's show.
While all the focus has been on Christiane Amanpour's return to CNN International next week, a new weekday news show to be fronted by Isha Sesay is also set to make its debut on Monday.
Although not officially announced by CNN (at the time of this post) details of the new show have appeared in several online schedules including the CNN Asia Pacific website. The new program is scheduled for the timeslot marked for Isha Sesay in a press release for the return of Amanpour. back in February.
From CNNAsiaPacific.com, the description of the new news program reveals:
CNN NewsCenter is the definitive destination for an intelligent, complete global picture of the day's news. Over the course of 30 minutes, we'll take you beyond the headlines and to the heart of every story, with the most compelling video and sound feeding in from around the world. But we'll also shine the spotlight on other stories, some of which are under the radar, but which we believe are just as important.
In the CNN NewsCenter you'll hear from underrepresented voices, and from the people at the center of the story. And we'll only bring in our reporters and analysts when they can provide the very latest new information or can add a frontline perspective that is crucial to understanding the story. Smart, dynamic and passionate, CNN NewsCenter won't just keep you informed, we'll keep you on the edge of your seat.
Back|Story, the program Isha Sesay currently hosts is expected to be rolled back to a weekend show when a rejigged prime time schedule for Europe is introduced next week.
Amanda Davies Joining CNN International's World Sport Team
CNN International today announced the appointment of Amanda Davies to its World Sport team. Davies, a sport presenter with the BBC, will join CNN International next month. The press release from CNN also reveals a relaunch of the World Sport show is due next month.
CNN Press Release: CNN International today announced that Amanda Davies is joining the network’s thriving sport team from the BBC in April.
Known to viewers worldwide as a presenter and reporter for the BBC’s coverage of world sports news and Premier League football, and to UK viewers of BBC One’s flagship weekend news programmes, daily breakfast bulletins and F1 coverage, Davies joins CNN’s London bureau as the network gears up for a year of major sporting events.
At CNN she will work alongside London-based sport anchors Pedro Pinto and Alex Thomas, covering global sport stories from football, tennis, golf and motorsport, through to basketball, cricket, rugby and athletics. Over the past 12 months CNN’s sport team has broken exclusive stories such as FIFA president Sepp Blatter’s controversial comments on racism, and interviewed world-renowned stars from Lewis Hamilton and Samuel Eto’o, to Shaquille O’Neal and Caroline Wozniacki, via Sebastian Vettel, Rory Mcllroy, David Beckham and Novak Djokovic.
Ahead of 2012’s summer of sport, CNN International’s flagship sport programme, World Sport, will also be re-launching in April.
Bill Galvin, Senior Vice President at CNN International, said: “Sport is a big part of our offering at CNN and Amanda’s addition certainly enhances what is already a very strong team. With Euro 2012 and the Olympics just around the corner it’s a very exciting time, particularly for our London bureau. Amanda’s experience covering big events and breaking news is perfect for CNN, and we’re very excited to have her on board in time for the re-launch of our World Sport show.”
Davies added: “2012 is an absolutely huge year for sport and it’s fantastic to be at the heart of that. I feel I’m joining CNN at a very exciting time for its sports coverage, and it’s good to be part of a genuinely international network. As well as giant events like the Olympics there’s a proper commitment to covering the full range of international sport here, and that’s a great prospect.”
World Sport airs daily on CNN International at 0500, 0800, 1700 and 2230 (all times BST) and the network’s extensive sports coverage can also be found online and on mobile. CNN’s sport portfolio also includes feature programmes such as Living Golf, Mainsail, Open Court, The Circuit and Winning Post.
CNN International rolled out the first 30 second promo for Amanpour. on Monday. The show returns to CNNI's schedule from April 16 (April 17 for viewers in Asia).
New Fareed Zakaria Series On American Renewal Debuts Tonight
CNN and Time today launch a series of Fareed Zakaria specials that will examine some of the most pressing issues of the 2012 election. The specials will accompany feature articles by Zakaria in Time magazine.
The first of the specials, 'Global Lessons: The GPS Road Map for Saving Health Car', debuts tonight on CNN Domestic at 8:00pm DST and will air on CNN International this weekend. Details from CNN below.
CNN Press Release: Fareed Zakaria Launches Quarterly Series on American Renewal on CNN and in TIME Magazine
CNN and TIME’s Fareed Zakaria will launch a quarterly series of television specials for CNN/U.S. and CNN International and feature articles for TIME that pursue solutions to the most pressing issues central to the 2012 election: health care, immigration, jobs, and energy, it was announced today. The first special, Global Lessons: The GPS Road Map for Saving Health Care, will debut on Sunday, March 18 at 8:00pm and 11:00pm ET & PT on CNN/U.S., and on CNN International on Saturday, March 24 at 9:00pm ET. The companion article for TIME will be in the edition that hits newsstands on Friday, March 17.
“We Americans need to recognize that there are many areas where we could learn a lot from what other countries are doing. America’s best companies routinely benchmark to global standards. What we’re trying to do in this series is just that – look around the world and ask, ‘what can we learn?’ In the process, we also found areas where we could teach the rest of the world a thing or two.” Zakaria said.
The one-hour in-depth premieres as the nation arrives at the two-year anniversary of the historic passage of The Affordable Care Act in Congress – and days from when the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to review the federal legislation for its constitutionality. He will explore how other nations have addressed the challenges of costs and quality of care, as well as a successful community model within the U.S.
While health care costs in America totaled 17.6 percent of GDP in 2009, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the high cost of health care seems uncorrelated to quality of care. Zakaria reports Americans no longer rank within the top 25 nations for healthy life expectancy or infant mortality.
Put plainly, New Jersey’s Camden Coalition of Healthcare Providers founder and family medicine practitioner, Jeffrey Brenner, MD, says: “We’re spending a whole lot in our country for health care, and we’re not getting our money’s worth.”
For the special, Zakaria also interviews David Goldhill, the president and CEO of the Game Show Network, who penned an editorial for The Atlantic magazine (“How American Health Care Killed My Father,” Sept. 2009); New Yorker magazine’s Atul Gawande, MD; William Hsiao, PhD, an economics professor at Harvard who helped design Taiwan’s health care system; and The Washington Post’s T.R. Reid, author of The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care (2010) for insights from his tour of health systems around the world.
Digital resources with more information on health care models in the U.S. and abroad will be explored in-depth at www.cnn.com/gps. The site will also include excerpts from the program, as well as articles and multimedia content for the upcoming specials on immigration, jobs, and energy.
Dan Logan and Maite Amorebieta produced Global Lessons: The GPS Road Map for Saving Health Care. Tom Goldstone is the executive producer for the special series and of the FAREED ZAKARIA GPS unit.
This first edition of Global Lessons will replay on Saturday, March 24 at 8:00pm and 11:00pm ET and PT on CNN/U.S. Future Global Lessons programs will focus on immigration, jobs, and energy. Companion articles to the specials on these topics authored by Fareed Zakaria will be featured in TIME throughout 2012.
New Special Reveals Challenges Faced By CNN Crew In Homs, Syria
CNN has produced a new special special that documents the challenges and dangers a CNN team faced while on a recent assignment in Homs, Syria. The one hour program debuts on CNN Domestic on Sunday, and airs across this weekend on CNN International. Details from CNN below.
CNN Press Release:72 Hours Under Fire features CNN correspondent Arwa Damon; airs on CNN/US Sunday, March 11 at 8pET & PT
Homs, Syria – considered one of the most dangerous places CNN has ever covered – is at the heart of a one-hour special documenting the challenges and dangers faced by a CNN team while on assignment there. As told by the journalists who risked their lives to get into Homs and the CNN news executives tasked with keeping them safe, 72 Hours Under Fire gives viewers an inside look at the complexities and risks involved in getting the story out of Syria.
72 Hours Under Fire airs Sunday, March 11 at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m., and Saturday, March 17 at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern and Pacific on CNN/US. It premieres on CNN International Friday, March 9 at 3 p.m., and replays Saturday, March 10 at 4 a.m., 3 p.m., and 9 p.m., and Sunday, March 11 at 6 a.m., all times Eastern.
“Homs is as challenging an editorial operation as we have encountered,” says Tony Maddox, executive vice president and managing director of CNN International.
The experienced team CNN sent into Homs included Beirut-based correspondent Arwa Damon, photojournalist Neil Hallsworth and security risk advisor Tim Crockett. 72 Hours Under Fire chronicles their journey into and out of Homs, the dangers they faced while newsgathering and reporting there and why this assignment was different than previous ones. Damon, Hallsworth and Crockett are interviewed by CNN anchor Michael Holmes, who also narrates the documentary.
“We are taking the unusual step of covering our journalists’ experience in Homs because it is another piece of the untold story in Syria,” says Mark Whitaker, executive vice president and managing editor of CNN Worldwide. “The fact that the Syrian government doesn’t want the world to know what is happening in places like Homs, and the enormous effort and courage it has taken for Western journalists to cover the brutal crackdown there, is part of the story. We thought it was important to take our viewers behind the scenes to see and feel that part of this conflict, too.”
Since the unrest began in March of last year, thousands of civilians in Syria have been killed by Syrian forces. The indiscriminate shelling in the opposition stronghold of Homs by the Syrian government made it incredibly difficult for the CNN team to reach their desired destination. Maddox, who admits to feeling “anxious” about this assignment, says the team’s mission depended upon a “fragile series of connections” that took a great deal of research and time to put into place.
“I actually wrote a letter home for the first time, to my family…when this trip was going to materialize,” says Damon. “There was a lot of unknown going in and sometimes you get that gut feeling. I felt in this particular case – on this particular trip – I had to do it.”
Helped by opposition activists to reach the besieged Homs neighborhood of Bab Amr, Damon and crew visit a makeshift clinic that lacked the equipment and expertise to help many of their patients. The clinic, which Damon says is “bombarded all the time and constantly under risk,” is staffed by two doctors and around 20 volunteers, each of whom has undergone just 15 days of training. The crisis in Homs is palpable, and the number of wounded civilians is overwhelming. When asked about her motivation for going on this assignment, Damon speaks of the importance of physically being on the ground in Homs in order to fully understand what residents are experiencing.
“You have to be in it – seeing it, smelling it, listening to it – so that at the end of the day you can do justice to what the people are suffering. And [the activists] know by having us there, it’s going to help tell that story.”
72 Hours Under Fire also reveals the tough choices news executives like Maddox were constantly having to make, including pulling the team out of Syria before Damon wanted to leave.
CNN has extensively covered Syria throughout the year-long uprising. CNN has had four correspondents – some who have made multiple trips – report from inside Syria for all CNN networks and platforms. Many programs across CNN’s networks have focused on Syria, including Anderson Cooper 360°, which has covered Syria in more than 50% of their shows since March 2011. CNN is committed to Syria and will continue to find ways to bring this story to viewers.
