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CNN 10
Pros: Solid, quick coverage of current news and human-interest stories.
Cons: Ads can distract students or surface inappropriate content. Limited lesson resources.
Bottom Line: These 10-minute daily video segments can be used as a springboard to deeper discussions around media literacy, but teachers need to provide supplementary material.
With its reliable news in 10-minute video segments, CNN 10 allows teachers to keep students abreast of current events without overwhelming them with extra info or commentary. CNN 10 can be used as a starting point for a variety of activities. For instance, post a discussion question of the day related to a news topic and ask students to talk in small groups about how the story affects them. Ask students to choose a story of interest and probe into it for more depth. Flip the classroom by having students watch selected videos at home, and facilitate related projects in class. Promote collaboration and creativity by having students create their own news broadcasts related to curricular goals. Finally, promote media literacy by having students compare CNN's coverage with other media coverage of the same stories.
CNN 10 offers limited supports for classroom use: broadcast transcripts, weekly quiz questions, and a daily email "heads-up" sent the night before to teachers. In December 2019, CNN 10 began using YouTube as its preferred platform for viewing new episodes and hosting archived broadcasts. CNN 10 also encourages students to subscribe and participate in the community through comments. If you are concerned about students accessing comments or encountering inappropriate material, show the newscast on your classroom screen instead of using student devices. As with all video content, CNN 10 reminds teachers to preview each episode before sharing with students.
CNN 10 is a feature of the CNN website where middle and high school students can get news in 10-minute video segments. On the CNN 10 homepage or YouTube page, students will find the video of the day followed by recent videos. The main feature is the daily news report by high-energy broadcaster Carl Azuz, posted Monday through Friday from August to May. These segments feature the news of the day paired with background info. Each story comes with a transcript. Friday stories also offer a printable weekly news quiz with 10 questions covering the week's stories.
With so much controversy surrounding the news, media literacy skills are more important than ever. Students need to build awareness of different kinds of reporting, to practice thinking critically about what they read and watch, and to keep up with responsible info on current and world events. CNN 10's daily news broadcast offers a worthy platform for practicing all of these skills. The daily videos cover a lot of territory and pick up some more obscure stories. Videos dig fairly deep into topics and provide a commentary-free broadcast where students can learn about current events and human-interest stories outside of the hyperbole, bias, and spin of 24/7 cable TV and social media news. Each story is also supported by relevant vocabulary and history as well as accessibility supports like captions and a transcript. The 10-minute length might stretch some students' attention spans, but the balance is that the videos provide more substance than super-short snapshots of headlines. Overall, there's a good, timely basis of info students can dig into, but teachers will need to offer supplements to make sure students go beyond consumption to deep thinking, open-ended discussion, and even creation.
Learning Rating
Community Rating
A Fantastic Resource
Those who say this is a biased source are sorely misguided. I have students who identify as very conservative who come in daily asking if we are going to watch it. Yes, CNN is a left-leaning source. But Carl and his team do a great job of staying down the middle and just providing the facts. Students stay engaged due to the variety of segments they have and the number of topics covered...and Carl's puns at the end help too! I highly recommend for any classroom. Students need to be more aware of what is going on in the world. This helps them become knowledgeable citizens.
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