Yes, the cable news channels have gotten funnier over the years. Sometimes it happens without even trying and sometimes they just try too hard. But a comedian getting his own cable news show? That’s news.
Fox News tried news-omedy with Half Hour News Hour (canceled) and keeps some overnight viewers laughing with Red Eye; Headline News injects humor in to Not Just Another Cable News Show; and MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith Olbermann is funny, when it’s not drenched in politics.
Yesterday, CNN announced it is adding comedian DL Hughley to the lineup. Network president Jon Klein told Variety, “The basic premise of the show is, what if a guy like him was let loose in the CNN building for a weekend after the lights went off?”
That’s quite a change in tone from 15 months ago when Klein described CNN’s mission at the TCA Press Tour: “We committed ourselves a couple of years ago to really being a news channel, and that means covering the breaking news, and also providing more insight into what’s going on in the world,” Klein said.
Breaking news, insight and a comedic take on the news. Can they do it all? Maybe. The bigger question is, will people watch a comedian on CNN?