Summary: Rupert Murdoch, CNN’s rise to prominence and the Gulf War

CNN, the first 24-hour news channel in America, was established in 1980. It didn’t rise to prominence until 1991. It rode on the Gulf War — between U.S. and Iraq — to significance.

How? It was the only news channel with reporters who were able to communicate with the public. Its three reporters, who were later tagged 'Boys of Baghdad', were the only journalists with access to the public when the US bombed Iraq.

There were no visuals when they reported. Only their voices were being heard on TV. That night alone, CNN gained billions of viewers. That was the start of their rise to superiority.

PS: Rupert Murdoch was busy building News Corp at this time. He would later — from 1996 — put up a good fight against CNN, bringing it to its knees.

PS2: It was at this time (1991) the largest non-accidental oil spill in history happened. As the Iraqi military saw that the war was over, they retreated. However, they didn't do so without leaving devastation behind. They emptied millions of gallons of crude oil onto the water bodies.