In the midst of what has been one of the media’s most disruptive weeks in years, Michael Corn, the president of Nexstar’s NewsNation cable news channel, took a moment to gloat.
“We are, as you probably know, the fastest growing news station in America right now,” Corn told a crowd of several dozen gathered at the station’s new New York studio Tuesday afternoon. “We are also currently the fastest news channel in America. In fact, some of our competitors have downsized drastically this week. We are expanding and taking on quite a bit.”
It’s something of an understatement for the news channel, which has piled its lineup with familiar faces for TV news viewers, including ABC News and MSNBC veteran Dan Abrams, former CNN and ABC News anchor Chris Cuomo, former NBC News and ABC News anchor Elizabeth Vargas, Fox News alumni Leland Vittert, and MSNBC and CNN veteran Ashleigh Banfield.
“If you look at our lineup, I don’t think there’s a TV station in America that wouldn’t die of envy today to see this killer’s driving talent that we’ve gathered here,” said Corn, as he looked at the herd. anchors gathered a few feet away.
Local TV giant Nexstar hosted its guests on the second floor of New York’s landmark art-deco Daily News Building (it’s also known as the Superman Building, thanks to its use as the home of The Daily Planet in the Superman era). movies and TV series).
The purpose of the event was to officially cut the ribbon on new studios for both local TV station WPIX and NewsNation. Among the guests who walked through the studio was New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who was seen chatting with on-air talent from the local TV station and cable news channel, including Cuomo, Abrams, Vargas and Banfield . Nexstar CEO Perry Sook was also on hand to cut the ribbon.
“The contrast couldn’t be greater,” Sook said. “If you look at the media landscape, you know that there are layoffs at competing companies. There are high-profile anchor terminations, I think that’s the right word to say, and as Michael Corn said, we’re hiring and we’re trying to build this.
Earlier this month, the channel went 24/5, 24/7 from Monday to Friday, and Sook said it would be 24/7 by the end of next year.
NewsNation’s New York studio is a testament to that investment. Executives praised the 359 LED panels and 112 TVs scattered throughout the presentation room, and the studio has what the company claims is the largest TV control room in the world.
“I can confirm that by the amount of money it cost to build,” Sook said to the crowd’s laughter. “But you wouldn’t be spending that money if you didn’t have this incredible team of journalists that you believe in and they believe in the mission and give their best every day to carry it out.”
Sook, who briefly worked as a local news anchor on a West Virginia station before moving into the corporate side of local TV, billed himself as NewsNation’s biggest believer. Vargas and Banfield recalled meeting him where he outlined his vision for the channel.
“This network two years later is further ahead than both Fox and CNN were in their 40-plus and 25-year-old journey two years ago, and they had a lot less competition than they do today,” he said. “I’m not worried about the ratings, minute by minute, I’m worried about good television, interesting television, smart television and growing.”
Nexstar executives have said NewsNation is already profitable (in addition to transportation costs, the company sells ad packages alongside its local TV stations and The CW, which it acquired last year).
With the rest of the TV news universe in chaos, NewsNation hopes it can find a model that sticks, and that news consumers like the product as much as the executives who run the show.
