CNN, founded on June 1, 1980, by Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld, was the first 24-hour cable news channel, headquartered in Atlanta, and is now part of Warner Bros. Discovery. As of December 2023, it had about 68.9 million US subscribers (down from 80 million in 2021) and ranked third in cable news viewership behind Fox News and MS NOW, averaging 580,000 daily viewers in June 2021. Globally, its programming reaches over 212 countries via CNN International, and it licenses its brand to channels like CNN-News18 in India and CNNj in Japan. The network has faced criticism from both sides: conservative media accuse it of left-wing bias, while others criticize it for false balance supporting conservative positions. Its success made Turner a media mogul and led to its acquisition by Time Warner in 1996, expanding to 42 bureaus and over 900 affiliated local stations. The first newscast was anchored by David Walker and Lois Hart, with Bernard Shaw as the first news anchor.