Laura Coates’ Prime Time Move On CNN Shows Centrist Pivot Is Just an Illusion

Screenshot via CNN

When Warner Discovery President and CEO David Zaslav expressed in April an interest in CNN distinguishing itself from “advocacy networks,” it suggested a big change was underway for the go-to punching bag for Donald Trump and conservatives.

Over the following months, Brian Stelter’s Reliable Sources was dumped, multiple people including John Harwood parted ways with the network, and the schedule has been shaken up like a snow globe held by a an eight-year-old hopped up on sugar.

Chris Licht’s leadership appeared to suggest a more centrist future for the network, with Licht even reportedly meeting with Republican lawmakers and expressing hope that more of those conservative voices would be on CNN’s airwaves.

The latest change at CNN, though, suggests that not all that much is actually changing. Jake Tapper was moved to a later slot at 9 p.m., and Alisyn Camerota and Laura Coates will be covering the 10 p.m. block, at least through the midterm elections.

Tapper and Camerota have their fair share of conservative critics, but it’s Coates’ new position that most indicates all this talk of moving to the middle and trying to be more objective is just hot air.

You don’t need to dig too deep to find exactly where Coates lies politically. Her monologues practically write themselves.

Just this month, Coates appeared on CNN where she compared Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) to segregationists for transporting migrants to blue states like New York.

“Now, the numbers, racked up by Governors Abbott and DeSantis put the segregationists of that dark period, well, frankly, to shame in the numbers alone,” she said.

On the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, Coates was one of many alarmists hitting the doomsday clock, predicting — during one appearance — that gay marriage and interstate travel would be next on the chopping block.

“Well, fundamental rights include interstate travel, include the idea of same sex marriage, include same sex relationships, just to name a few. Now this is essentially gone. What’s next?” she asked.

Coates is also, of course, a vocal and regular critic of CNN’s favorite topic of discussion, Donald Trump. The legal analyst and attorney has argued the former president incited the January 6 Capitol riot, describing his actions as “criminal” in July.

Elsewhere, while railing against Trump’s “Big Lie,” she accused “Republican-led legislatures” of pushing an even “bigger lie” — using “falsehoods” to restrict voting rights.

Regardless of whether you agree with Coates on any of these issues, her commentary is hardly nonpartisan or objective. Her promotion doesn’t indicate potential change, but rather just more of the same from CNN. Announcing Coates is taking her anti-Republican rhetoric to CNN’s evening lineup feels like an announcement that could have been made long before Zaslav and Licht came around. Are we getting balanced news from CNN or just nightly left-wing takedowns to compete with Fox News’ Tucker Carlson and others?

CNN being reborn as some kind of beacon for news minus the left-leaning advocacy would be quite a trick at this point, and this latest announcement shows that’s probably all that such a potential change really is: a trick.

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.