CNN is launching a ‘guns in America’ beat

By MixDex Article may include affiliate links

CNN is forming a “guns in America” unit that will cover issues surrounding gun violence and deaths as well as gun control and the second amendment.

The formation of the beat was announced by Chris Licht, CEO of CNN, in a memo marking 30 days since he joined the company officially on May 2, 2022.

Licht referred to the new initiative as both a “beat” and “unit” in the note to staffers, which seems to imply there may be more than one person involved, though it’s not immediately clear who might be part of it or if they would be assigned full time to it or not.

In larger newsrooms, beats often have both at least one on-camera correspondent and at least one producer working behind the scenes on stories. Other staffers may be involved either on a full or partial time basis, or individuals may also be pulled from the general pool of producers, editors, bookers, videographers and other functions, as needed.

Partial text of the memo is below.

On the editorial front, I am excited to announce the creation of a new beat — Guns in America. In the wake of the mass shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde, the role of guns — who buys & sells them, who makes them, and who regulates them are central to understanding all sides of this complex and divisive issue. CNN is uniquely positioned to foster informed policy discussions in this space and help illuminate possible solutions to America’s epidemic of gun violence. More details to come soon on this unit.