Noreen Malone profiles Brian Stelter, writing about his transition from blogger to New York Times reporter to CNN host:
Stelter has rejuvenated “Reliable Sources” by focusing more on primary sources than [previous host Howard] Kurtz, whose show was a sea of talking heads (and eventually, a sea of problems). Stelter has worked to book reporters. That CNN continued the show in the [CNN President Jeff] Zucker era is a bit of a surprise, but it has a surprisingly robust viewership of 350,000 to 500,000–thanks in no small part to its post-Fareed Zakaria time slot. Stelter says there’s no network imperative to bring in a different viewership, but proudly cites his own tender age as possible evidence they might want a slightly different direction and a show that includes coverage of Gawker, Buzzfeed, and Hulu alongside the Times. “Listen, they hired a 28-year-old,” he told me. “That may say something. I’m glad they were interested in having a younger host. I think I look at media differently than anyone older would.”
