SPEAK OUT: CNN Gets Another New York Touch

The network infrastructure still is in downtown Atlanta, but CNN just got another New York touch.

CNN, which pioneered 24-hour news but has been struggling in ratings in recent years, has named former NBC entertainment exec Jeff Zucker as it new president, according to media reports.

Phil Kent, president and CEO of Turner Broadcasting System, which owns CNN, told veteran Atlanta journalist Maria Saporta that it was inevitable that the next president of CNN would be based in New York.

Also, Kent said that much more of the decision making for CNN is taking place in New York and Washington, D.C.

When Ted Turner founded CNN in 1980, it was significant that the organization, which is part of the Time Warner empire, made most key decisions in Atlanta. Turner no longer is involved with CNN or Time Warner.

Recent criticism of CNN, which trails Fox News and MSNBC in ratings, includes that its news coverage is too bland and neutral. Fox is known for a conservative slant, and MSNBC for a liberal touch.

"CNN has lost its luster," Christopher Harper, a former ABC News correspondent and journalism professor at Temple University, told the Los Angeles Times. "It hasn't adapted to what the audience wants, which is more fireworks."

-- Do you still watch CNN for news? Why or why not? Share your thoughts on the Atlanta-based network's future in the comments below.