CNN+ officially debuts Tuesday morning at 12:01 a.m. ET, and the first person to have access to the platform is … Ted Turner, of course!
CNN+ boss Andrew Morse confirmed the news Monday evening at the CNN+ launch party in New York—and Turner later confirmed it on his Twitter account.
“When Ted Turner founded CNN, he harnessed the latest in cable and satellite technology to fundamentally change the way people watched the news,” said Morse. “We are honored that he is celebrating this new chapter in CNN history with us and is the very first subscriber of CNN+.”
As @CNN embarks on an important new chapter in its history – I’m both proud and honored to be the first subscriber of their expanded content, #CNNPlus. Just when you think CNN covered all the bases, they innovate a new tool for keeping us informed. Well done! pic.twitter.com/yvXONM89n0
— Ted Turner (@TedTurnerIII) March 29, 2022
Speaking of the CNN+ launch party, CNN Worldwide held a soiree for CNN executives, on-air talent and those who cover the news media to mark the launch of the streaming service. The gather was held at Peak, a restaurant, bar and event space located on the 101st floor of 30 Hudson Yards, not terribly far from WarnerMedia headquarters.
The party was extremely well-attended and, thankfully, all attendees had to show their vaccination cards before entering the room.
Who were some of those attendees? First of all, WarnerMedia boss Jason Kilar was present, as were CNN interim co-heads Amy Entelis, Michael Bass and Ken Jautz.
CNN+ programming chief Rebecca Kutler, with whom we spoke last week, was present, as were CNN+ hosts Chris Wallace, Kasie Hunt, Alison Roman, Audie Cornish, Sara Sidner, Scott Galloway, Rex Chapman, Cari Champion, Jemele Hill and Kate Bolduan, who kicks things off at 7 a.m. with her 5 Things.
We also spotted Bill Weir, Dana Bash, Poppy Harlow, Laura Coates, Brian Stelter, Oliver Darcy, Jon Avlon and CNN legal analyst Ellie Honig. Additionally, CNN executive producer Javi Morgado and CBS Mornings executive producer Shawna Thomas, and CBS News communications svp Lance Frank were in attendance.