Ep. 121: CNN's Antoine Sanfuentes and the Changing Landscape of Mainstream Media

Talking Beats with Daniel Lelchuk

“We all have our biases and work through them. As journalists we strive for impartiality— that is the mandate.”

Veteran CNN journalist Antoine Sanfuentes is here, offering his take on the state of the American media apparatus, the twenty-four hour news cycle, truth-seeking, and much more. With a degree in anthropology and a passion for music and photography, he brings a unique vantage point to that all-important anchor of liberal democracy: a free press. In a time as starkly and viciously divided as ours, where does this stalwart of the so-called "mainstream media” see his business fitting in? Does objective truth exist-- and do Americans even care one way or another?

If you like what we do, please support the show. By making a one-time or recurring donation, you will contribute to us being able to present the highest quality substantive, long-form interviews with the world's most compelling people.

Antoine Sanfuentes is the Vice President and Managing Editor for CNN's Washington Bureau, where he oversees the White House and Capitol Hill beats. Sanfuentes joined the network in 2014 by way of NBC News, with over 20 years of experience. During his 24 years at NBC News, Sanfuentes served as the Senior Vice President and managing Editor, Vice President and Washington bureau chief, deputy bureau chief, Senior white house producer and was part of Ann Curry's team that won an Emmy Award for compelling reports on the refugee crisis in Darfur in 2007. In his various roles for NBC News he led the editorial and content direction of NBC News nationwide and oversaw the "Meet the Press" production team. Sanfuentes has earned various awards for his news coverage including the highly coveted Murrow award in 1999, the News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Coverage of a Breaking News Story, Gracie Allen Award, as well as a Headliner Award in 2009. He graduated from American University with a Bachelor of Science (BS), in anthropology and resides in Bethesda, Maryland with his wife and two daughters.