Similar to 2020, 2021 was a roller coaster year for the television news business. Networks were impacted significantly by the coronavirus epidemic and had to adjust to covering a new administration.
ABC News and CBS News appointed new presidents in spring 2021, and CBS rebranded its morning show with a new co-host and a new studio right after Labor Day.
NBC News built up its streaming service, NBC News Now, adding ABC World News Tonight Weekend anchor Tom Llamas to the team and giving him his own primetime show on the service.
CNN announced the launch of CNN+, a new streaming news service poised to debut in early 2022, and recently added longtime Fox News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace as well as NBC News congressional correspondent and MSNBC anchor Kasie Hunt to the platform’s on-air roster. CNN also shocked the industry by firing its top-rated host in primetime Chris Cuomo.
Brian Williams signed off from MSNBC and NBC News in mid-December, and it appears Rachel Maddow will be winding down her long run as host of MSNBC’s 9 p.m. hour early next year (but she’ll remain with NBCUniversal).
Those are some of the many noteworthy headlines from the year in news media.
We caught up with network presidents and talent earlier this month to reflect on 2021, how their shows and networks may evolve in 2022, as well as the impact of streaming on their respective businesses.
Now, we’re asking you to predict what will happen across the industry in 2022.
We’ll reveal the 2021 TVNewser Challenge results later in the week, but first, we’re sharing the 2022 TVNewser Challenge!
Voting ends Jan. 7, 2022. Good luck!