“CNN Lightens Up In A Quest” For Viewers

“CNN is aiming to give its network more personality by using familiar anchors in more light-hearted ways,” the Times of London explains.

Richard Quest is a perfect example: In his hour-long new show, called “Quest,” he “sets out to ask what makes a great person. As only CNN can, Quest goes about his task by interviewing members of the global political A-list, quizzing former President Bill Clinton, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and the spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. How much insight he extracts is unclear, but each interviewee spends a fair amount of time laughing.”

“Ask, though, if this kind of activity represents a dumbing down of the CNN agenda, and both Quest and his boss quickly intervene. The presenter’s argument is that ‘if a news channel is to compete in a multichannel world, our delivery has to be rounded,’ meaning that serious issues can be tackled in a variety of ways.”