For your friendly neighborhood Media Research Center News Analyst, Election Night represents a unique slog through hours of coverage stuffed with Acela Media “analysis” which is little more than laundered Democrat talking points- in other words, the usual media brain rot. But on occasion, one is fortunate enough to witness something completely and unexpectedly different.
CNN’s Election Livecast, which was available to CNN All Access subscribers, provided a refreshing alternative to the usual media slop that pollutes the airwaves. The stream was hosted by Harry Enten, and featured such familiar faces as Charlamagne Tha God, Ben Shapiro, Ana Kasparian, Tezlyn Figaro, and Isabel Brown. The set was built to resemble a family/rec room with a large couch with some video games in the back.
Enten was entertaining as moderator, and kept the pace both lively and informal. This format fostered something sorely missing from TV: normal, civil dialogue. Everyone present came off as a normal human being capable of formulating and expressing rational thoughts. Nobody screamed at anybody, there was no overbearing Acela journo trying to shove Democrat talking points down everyone’s throat, and everyone was allowed to finish their sentences.
Consider this sample dialogue after socialist Zohran Mamdani was declared the winner of New York City’s mayoral election:
I submit these three minutes as my concurrence with @CurtisHouck: CNN’s Election LiveCast is 1000X better than NewsNight with Abby Phillip and should eventually make its way to the primetime grid. pic.twitter.com/tj9juAyH7t
— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) November 5, 2025
By virtue of this alone, the Election Livecast instantly proved itself to be orders of magnitude better than anything currently airing on CNN’s primetime grid. Our own Curtis Houck notes that the Election Livecast delivered on the failed promise of CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip:
The CNN All Access stream with Harry Enten, Ben Shapiro, Charlamagne, Ana Kasparian, and Isabel Brown is what CNN Thunderdome with Abby Phillip claims to be, but isn’t.
Imagine a show where strong-viewed people from across the spectrum talk respectfully and the moderator doesn’t…
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 5, 2025
Let’s face it: NewsNight viewership is mostly driven (from both sides of the aisle) by the hope of catching virality in a bottle. Conservatives have to fight to get their ideas across before Phillip cuts in with either an attempted fact-check or narrative redirect. You can call NewsNight many things, but it is not a show dedicated to the fostering of dialogue.
The Livecast delivers on that promise, and delivers a refreshing alternative to the usual Acela Media brain rot. In the interest of fostering actual, normal dialogue, CNN may want to consider moving the Livecast (avec Enten) to primetime.
