See How Breaking News Travels From Real World to TV Viewers
While you may not meet Anderson Cooper or John King, the tour of the network that started 24-hour news is a fascinating look behind the scenes.
As intoned by James Earl Jones’ booming gravitas, “This is CNN” has become one of the most recognized programmatic introductions on television—and perhaps a fitting one given this Atlanta-based network’s role in shaping the 24-hour news cycle of today.
While CNN has branched out to studios across the country, the Atlanta headquarters still provide a great opportunity to get an up close look at a national newsroom.
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While much of CNN’s news programs are now filmed in studios in New York, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles, there is still a hub of activity at the network’s headquarters in downtown Atlanta, adjacent to Olympic Park. And visitors to the city can experience some of that “newsroom” energy with a tour of the CNN Studios.
This approximately 50-minute guided walking tour will show guests an exclusive peek of the Atlanta studios and explain how a live news broadcast is produced and sent to viewers across the globe.
The tour kicks off with a ride up an eight-story, 196-foot escalator—reportedly the world’s largest freestanding escalator—toward an exhibit area that covers the history of CNN and Turner Broadcasting, including memorabilia from some of the most significant events the network has covered.
(As a cautionary note, the long escalator ride up is followed by several stair flights down by the end of the tour; there are limited elevator-accessible tours each day, so anyone who required elevator service should book in advance.)
Visitors can then enter a theater that re-creates CNN’s control room and experience all the behind-the-scenes elements that make up a successful news show. They can also stop by a special-effects studio to get a close-up view of some of the technology that they often see on television, including TelePrompters, the blue chroma key system used for weather reports, and the magic touchscreen that CNN staff make tremendous use of on election night.
Further on, visitors can see the CNN team in real-life action from an observation station above the newsroom.
And for those adventurous folks who want to get really close to the action, CNN offers a VIP tour package that allows patrons to tour the actual Headline News control room and go inside HD Studio 7, the state-of-the-art studio where a lot of CNN daytime broadcasting takes place.
A second upgraded option is the “Morning Express With Robin Meade” tour, which occurs once a day at 8:30 a.m. While similar to the regular VIP tour, this option gives guests a chance to watch one of the studio’s daytime programs unfold.
For both of these VIP tours, however, CNN notes that given the potential of breaking news, they may be cancelled, rescheduled, or rerouted at any time. Both of them also have limited availabilities, and space should be reserved in advance, though reservations are also recommended for the regular tours.
On the other side of the cost spectrum, the CNN Center includes a free public area that features a variety of retail outlets as well as a wide assortment of casual and sit-down restaurants. If you come by during lunchtime, you may catch a glimpse of a CNN personality grabbing a bite to eat; who knows, maybe even James Earl Jones will make an appearance. ■
For more information, call (404) 827-2300 or (877)-4CNNTOUR or click herel.
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Published online: 18 February 2016
Published in print: February 6, 2016 – February 19, 2016
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