CNN TO AIR MORE PROGRAMS IT DOESN’T PRODUCE

CNN chief Jeff Zucker has approved a strategy to acquire new programming from outside producers, according to Capital New York media reporter Alex Weprin. Weprin, who recently stepped down as coeditor of TVNewser.com, wrote that the strategy “will hamper CNN’s revenue but is meant to shore up its viewership in key demographics and reduce its dependence on coverage of big breaking news stories to attract viewers and advertisers.” It is being implemented following the successful launch of the independently produced Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown and the documentary Blackfish. A special with Bourdain titled Last Bite, which is due to air live from a former liquor store in Las Vegas on Sunday, is seen as a pilot for another Bourdain series. Weprin also reported that CNN staff have been busy at international film festivals buying up rights to documentaries.