Jeff Zucker, the president of CNN Worldwide and former president and CEO of NBC Universal, discussed his career over breakfast with a small group of Hopkins students and faculty on Sept. 11.
Zucker prefaced the meeting by committing to be casual and approachable in his dialogue with the students.
“Interrupt me at any point,” he said. “This [meeting] is totally interactive and conversational.”
Although the meeting itself was informal, students recognized that getting the chance to have breakfast with Zucker was no trivial matter.
“It is such an incredible opportunity to listen, let alone speak to, the man presiding over one of the greatest news organizations of our time,” freshman Sara Chishti said. “Hearing about [Zucker's] own journey to success, in addition to his insight about the changing face of television in the digital era, was truly inspiring.”
Zucker started his career in journalism serving as president of The Harvard Crimson while attending Harvard University. In 1986, NBC Sports offered him his first job as a researcher for the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea; from there, Zucker’s career took off. He worked for NBC/Universal for 26 years.
“It was a relationship, a marriage to my job,” Zucker said.
Zucker gained experience climbing through the ranks of the company. He became executive producer of The Today Show at age 26 and eventually became the president and CEO of NBC Universal.
After the Comcast buyout of NBC brought an end to Zucker’s career at the company, he was brought on as the new president of CNN Worldwide.
Zucker talked about the challenges of his position, balancing his many responsibilities with both work and family. By his own admission, Zucker has trouble getting five hours of sleep a night before he wakes up to watch CNN at 5:30 a.m.
Nevertheless, Zucker said he feels that his commitment to his career is worth these sacrifices.
“I love news and I love entertainment. CNN gives me a great front-row seat for everything that’s going on in the world. There’s no better brand,” Zucker said.
When the meeting opened up to students’ questions, Zucker articulated his belief in the importance of being passionate about one’s work. According to Zucker, the effort that it takes to find success will pay off if people find jobs that they are passionate about.
“Don’t get caught up in what somebody else wants you to do or what society wants you to do,” Zucker said. “Do what you love, and you’ll do it better. But once you find a career, you work your butt off in it.”
In addition to asking about unemployment and the pressure to succeed, many students sought Zucker’s opinion on today’s changing marketplace and his plans for CNN’s future.
“Anyone who thinks they know what the world will look like in five years is full of it,” Zucker said.
He went on to cite the rapid changes that have already influenced the young adults of the twenty-first century, including the touch screen, the iPhone and the iPad.
“The world is changing so fast, it’s impossible to know where it’s going,” Zucker said. “All of you are growing up in this time of digital media, which is so different from what I knew... but it’s important that we adapt.”
Zucker’s audience confirmed the validity of his observations about rapid technological advancement. Of the 12 students at the event, only three had cable subscriptions or planned to acquire them. Instead, they explained that they get entertainment from online sites like Netflix and YouTube. Zucker recognizes that today’s forms of entertainment are very different from the ones that dominated society when Zucker began his career.
“We have a saying that people these days will get their news first from Twitter, but they’ll come to CNN to see if it’s true. And I’m okay with that,” he said.
With the rapidly growing prominence of convenient online news sources like Twitter, Reddit, Vice and Buzzfeed, Zucker believes that it’s vital for CNN to stay focused on the accuracy of news, rather than the quantity of news stories.
“We have high standards of journalism that some of these [other sources] might not. We’re proud of the news we publish,” he said.
CNN is one of the largest international breaking news organizations and is seen and consumed in over 212 countries and territories around the world.
“[Zucker] knows how to lead,” Chishti said. “Even if [the world] is changing, and CNN changes along with it, he stays committed to the work he knows how to do well. I think that’s something we could really learn from.”
Students also directly questioned Zucker about his leadership style.
“I am confident, inclusive, positive,” Zucker said. “I am a little bit of a micromanager — I am involved. And I am quick to give credit to others... I am always there for my people in the good times... because that gives [me] the credibility to be there in the tougher times.”
Although Zucker does not think CNN’s future looks bleak, he emphasized that the world is unpredictable. He intends to maintain his style of leadership regardless of changes in the media industry.
Editor's Note: This article has been corrected. Sara Chishti was inaccurately quoted.
