The lessons of Licht

Former CEO of CNN Chris Licht.
Former CEO of CNN Chris Licht.
Reuters

Chris Licht was appointed less than a year ago to rescue a CNN reeling from poor ratings and declining trust. On Wednesday he was fired.

The ice had been thinning under Licht for months, but a blistering 15,000 word profile in The Atlantic earlier this week was the coup de glace, as it were: It portrayed a man whose mission of making CNN a less ideologically “liberal” and more widely trusted network was undone by an aloof management style, clashes with his predecessor, and disastrous programming gambles like last month’s Trump Town Hall.

It’s hard to deny that Licht had a real problem to solve: CNN, like many mainstream media, had struggled with how to calibrate its coverage of Trump, an immensely popular politician who obliterates norms (for better and for worse) and who tells overt lies that erode America’s democratic institutions. At times the network veered into a kind of breathless partisanship that Licht wanted to rein in.

But whether Licht’s failure was one of mission or approach, the same basic problem remains: mainstream news media in America are suffering a crippling crisis of trust. Barely a third of Americans think mass media report the news fairly. Less than a quarter think journalists act in America’s best interests. The only news channel in America that is overwhelmingly trusted is… The Weather Channel.

No one has found a good formula, at scale, for how to fix this. That is, how to treat anti-establishment perspectives fairly without platforming insidious lies, how to make good, hard-hitting journalism profitable in a polarized world where outrage seems to pay the bills, and above all how to cover Trump.

The fact that the highest profile attempt to “fix” a mainstream media platform’s perceived trust deficit ended barely a year after it began would be sobering at any time, but it’s a particularly bad omen ahead of a 2024 presidential election cycle that promises to be at least as polarizing, chaotic, and disorienting as the last two.

In the fateful Atlantic profile, Licht said that, after 2016, “the media … absolutely learned its lesson.” Did we?

Tell us what you think. Does the media have a trust problem? If so, why, and how should it be solved? Include your name and location and we may select your comment for publication.

More from GZERO Media

This summer, Microsoft released the 2025 Responsible AI Transparency Report, demonstrating Microsoft’s sustained commitment to earning trust at a pace that matches AI innovation. The report outlines new developments in how we build and deploy AI systems responsibly, how we support our customers, and how we learn, evolve, and grow. It highlights our strengthened incident response processes, enhanced risk assessments and mitigations, and proactive regulatory alignment. It also covers new tools and practices we offer our customers to support their AI risk governance efforts, as well as how we work with stakeholders around the world to work towards governance approaches that build trust. You can read the report here.

- YouTube

Brazil’s Supreme Court has sentenced former President Jair Bolsonaro to 27 years in prison for plotting to overturn the 2022 election and allegedly conspiring to assassinate President Lula. In this week's "ask ian," Ian Bremmer says the verdict highlights how “your response… has nothing to do with rule of law. It has everything to do with tribal political affiliation.”

Supporters of main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) attend a rally to protest against the arrest of Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul and main rival of President Tayyip Erdogan, a day after the removal of the CHP's Istanbul provincial head Ozgur Celik by a court over alleged irregularities in a 2023 CHP provincial congress, in Istanbul, Turkey, September 3, 2025.
REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo

After a weekend of mass protests in Turkey, a court in Ankara has postponed its decision in a highly charged case that could oust Turkey’s main opposition leader – and boost the fortunes of long-time President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

- YouTube

China is going all in on renewables, breaking monthly records on clean energy installation and generation. Bill McKibben tells Ian Bremmer that Beijing's bet on solar and wind gives them a competitive edge on a new episode of GZERO World.

Stephen Graham, winner of Best Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie and Best Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, Owen Cooper, Best Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, and Erin Doherty, Best Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, for "Adolescence", Best Limited or Anthology Series pose with their awards at the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles, California, U.S., September 14, 2025.
REUTERS/Daniel Cole

8: Netflix teen murder series "Adolescence" won eight Emmys including for best limited series. Supporting actor Owen Cooper,15, became the youngest male actor to win an Emmy.