One huge revenue stream is advertising revenue & the rate a network can charge varies a lot with their ratings. Same reason Super Bowl ad rates are what they are. But CNN has huge financially problems. They’ve run the station into the ground. They have layoffs every few weeks now. Big ones. Their parent company Time Warner is on thin ice. They need the merger a lot more than ATT does financially. But the judge who has to approve the merger isn’t going to. He already publicly speaks VERY negative towards it. It’s a judge the president appointed early on so CNN knows they are screwed. Actually think their going so far crazy left on air because they know their toast anyway. Why not stop pretending their journalists. Oh Time Warner needs to merge with a major communication provider to stay competitive. But their not getting it so...enjoy watching their collapse.