Cenk Uygur joined the WSJ Media Mix podcast to discuss the impending death of cable news and the rise of Donald Trump

By: Jack Marshall

The cable news business faces challenges, as younger consumers avoid pricey cable subscriptions and increasingly access news content online instead.

But according to Cenk Uygur, founder of online news service TYT Network and host of the progressive-leaning web show The Young Turks, cable news networks such as CNN and MSNBC are in bigger trouble than many people think—and may even cease to exist in the next few years.

“Some of these cable companies are going to fall into the ocean much quicker than people realize,” Mr. Uygur said during this week’s WSJ Media Mix podcast.

“People are going to be shocked if in a year and a half or two years from now these guys are out of business. This election has given them a little bit of a bump, but they’re going to crash hard after the election,” he said.

Not only are cable networks struggling to attract younger viewers, but their advertisers are increasingly buying ads online instead, Mr. Uygur said. That’s opened up an opportunity for new digital entrants, like his own, which aren’t tied to the business models or cultures of cable news networks, he said.

“What the audience wants is an outsider point of view that doesn’t cater to the insiders, which is almost all of what television does,” he said.

Nonetheless, The Young Turks is developing a weekly, one-hour election-focused show with cable channel Fusion, which is scheduled to debut this month.

For more from Mr. Uygur on the rise of Donald Trump and how Facebook has impacted the election, check out the episode and subscribe on iTunes,Google Play Music, Spotify or Stitcher.

Read it here: http://www.wsj.com/articles/founder-of-the-young-turks-says-cable-news-companies-will-fall-into-the-ocean-1473275677?mod=e2tw