CNN Owner Defends Trump Town Hall: Gotta Hear ‘Both Sides’
“He’s the frontrunner, he has to be on our network,” Zaz said of Trump’s May 10 CNN appearance. “We’re happy he’s coming on there.”

CNBC
The CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, CNN’s parent company, on Friday morning defended the cable network’s upcoming town hall event with Donald Trump by invoking the age-old gotta hear both sides logic. While appearing on CNBC’s Squawk Box, David Zaslav was asked to weigh in on the twice-impeached former president’s scheduled May 10 appearance on CNN. “The U.S. has a divided government. We need to hear both voices,” he told hosts Joe Kernan and Andrew Ross Sorkin. “Republicans are on the air on CNN, Democrats are on the air. All voices should be heard on CNN.” He later added that while “there are a number of advocacy networks out there,” CNN’s mission is “to represent both sides. I think it’s important for America.” Zaz later added of Trump’s appearance: “He’s the frontrunner, he has to be on our network. We’re happy he’s coming on there.”
"Former President Trump is going to be on CNN," says @JoeSquawk.
— Squawk Box (@SquawkCNBC) May 5, 2023
"He should be," says $WBD CEO David Zaslav. "We're in divided government. All voices should be heard on #CNN. That's what you see. Republicans and Democrats are on the air. This is a new CNN." pic.twitter.com/9fQ67Mm0bt
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.
