Monday, August 25, 2014

Report: CNN, Glenn Beck Talked Content Deal

CNN executives have held talks earlier this summer with representatives from Glenn Beck's The Blaze, a 24-hour news and entertainment network, about a potential joint venture to overhaul HLN, according to wsj.com.

CNN and The Blaze representatives couldn't agree on terms, according to WSJ's sources.

Among the possible deals considered was an arrangement similar to the one being discussed with Vice Media, according to a person familiar with the deal: forming a new venture between CNN-parent Time Warner and The Blaze that would replace HLN's current programming with Blaze programming.

The talks illustrate Time Warner's eagerness to find a solution for the problems at HLN, which has seen its total viewership decline 22% for the season to date, and a 19% decrease in viewers 18 to 49 years old, the demographic that advertisers pay a premium to reach, according to Nielsen.

The talks also signal the ambitions of The Blaze to attain a national cable platform. Mr. Beck, who once hosted a show on what was then CNN Headline News, set out on his own digital distribution platform in 2011 following a high-profile stint on Fox News. That grew into The Blaze, which now has hundreds of thousands of subscribers to its digital video channel and has been picked up by Dish Network.

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