“Reliable Sources” host Brian Stelter said he’ll be “rooting for” CNN for the rest of his life as he signed off his final broadcast Sunday, following the show’s cancellation this week.
“So much of the media ecosystem in 2022 is garbage, but so much of it is spectacular,” he said in his closing remarks. “The hard part is sorting out the treasure from the trash.”
The network announced Thursday that “Reliable Sources” had been canceled after three decades, and that Stelter, who had hosted the show since 2013, will depart the network. The host thanked CNN’s current leadership “for letting us say goodbye,” and also thanked former CNN President Jeff Zucker by name.
"I’m going to be rooting for this place for the rest of my life," Stelter said at one point.
Stelter and his guests on the final broadcast both reflected on changes in media since the show premiered in 1992, and on how news media might look in the future.
“It’s loony to say the media is the enemy of the people. The media is the people,” Stelter said, addressing developments in media in the last 30 years. “And people are flawed, and opinionated, and hopeful, and believing in accountability.”
Stelter hosted journalist Carl Bernstein on Sunday’s program, as well as media critics Eric Deggans, Jodie Ginsberg and David Zurawik. Journalist Brian Karem, who was the first guest on “Reliable Sources” in 1992, also made an appearance as the last guest.