Could time be right for CNN, CBS News to partner?
By DAVID BAUDER, AP Television Writer, Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 3:23 p.m. NEW YORK CNN and CBS News have romanced each other off and on for more than a decade, and they are checking again to see if the time is right for a serious business relationship. Talks aimed at joining forces have foundered in the past due to questions of editorial control and complex labor issues. But the gloomy financial outlook for broadcast network news and CNN’s need to kick-start its domestic network’s ratings gives executives at both organizations a greater incentive to overcome the problems. Jeff Bewkes, chairman of CNN parent Time Warner Inc., said Wednesday that “it’s no secret” that CNN talks with broadcast networks and suggested they need CNN more than CNN needs them. “There is a lot of fiscal strength at CNN that essentially puts us in a pretty good position offering a solution to the cost problems and profit squeeze that go on in network news,” he said during a conference call with investors. He sa
