| CNA | |
| Type: | News channel |
| Picture Format: | 1080i HDTV |
| Owner: | Mediacorp |
| Country: | Singapore |
| Language: | English |
| Area: | Worldwide |
| Headquarters: | Mediacorp Campus, One-north, Singapore |
| Former Names: | Channel NewsAsia |
| Website: | |
| Terr Serv 1: | Digital terrestrial television |
| Terr Chan 1: | UHF CH 33 570MHz DVB-T2 Channel 6 (HD) |
| Online Serv 2: | YouTube |
| Online Chan 2: | Available on (Some shows won't be broadcast) |
| Online Serv 1: | meWATCH |
| Online Chan 1: | Available on or mobile app (Singapore only) |
CNA (stylised as cna; an initialism derived from the previous name, Channel NewsAsia) is a Singaporean multinational news channel owned by Mediacorp, the country's state-owned media conglomerate. CNA broadcasts free-to-air domestically in Singapore, and internationally as a pay television channel to 29 territories across the Asia-Pacific.[1] [2] It also streams on Mediacorp's domestic meWatch platform, and on free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) platforms and YouTube internationally.
The network has been positioned as an alternative to Western-based international media in presenting news from "an Asian perspective".[3] [4] Alongside its main focus as an English-language news television channel, CNA also produces news and current affairs content in Singapore's other official languages of Chinese, Malay, and Tamil, which is distributed via digital outlets and Mediacorp's local channels in the languages. Mediacorp's Channel 5 previously aired a simulcast of CNA during the daytime hours until 1 May 2019, when it was replaced by an Okto block.[5]
The CNA brand also encompasses digital media properties, including its website and social media outlets, as well as a co-branded news radio station in Singapore, CNA938.
The idea of a news channel has been first suggested by Woon Tai Ho, who would soon become CNA's first vice-president.
Despite the economic recession the region was facing at the time, Mediacorp, then known as Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) was suggesting the creation of a news channel (initially rumoured to be a business channel) in 1998. Under the initially-planned format, the channel was set to provide business news mirroring CNN and CNBC, with a tentative launch date of 1 January 1999.[6]
In October, TCS announced the name of the new service, Channel NewsAsia, and that its cost would be of $20 million in the first year, and $100 million at the long-term period of five years.[7] [8] With the then-upcoming launch of the channel, it was decided that all of Channel 5's current affairs programmes were to move to CNA, leaving only the main news (News 5 Tonight) with only one edition at 9:30pm.[9]
In a surprise move, one of its initial presenters, Christine Tan, left CNA ahead of its launch for CNBC Asia.[10] Two further presenters had left CNA despite heavy promotion for its launch.[11] The launch of the channel was still set to go as planned, but still aired promos featuring the resigned presenters during its test transmissions.[12] The channel's initial slogan was "We know Asia".[13]
Channel NewsAsia launched on 1 March 1999, opening with a speech by Minister of Information and the Arts George Yeo at Raffles Place. Attending the cerimony were CNA staff, TCS executives and representatives from both media and business circles.[14] [15] The channel initially focused on Singapore. It started to be distributed in other Asian countries and Australia by satellite on 28 September 2000, after a decision taken on 1 March,[16] with the hopes of promoting it as a pan-Asian network.[17] Public opinion was divided over its editorial independence, as the channel was touted as a government mouthpiece.[18]
Jill Neubronner, who was also a newscaster and reporter for TCS since 1995, left CNA in December 2000 for CNN.[19]
CNA received praise from the Programme Advisory Committee (Pace) on 2 September 2009 for, among other things, its coverage of the 2008 United States presidential election and the political situation in Malaysia and Thailand.[20]
In August 2012, CNA agreed to be broadcast in Myanmar through satellite-TV operator Sky Net.[21] CNA opened its Myanmar news bureau in the capital Yangon in October 2013 – the bureau officially opened in January 2014 – as only one of four foreign news organisations licensed to operate in the country at the time.[22]
On 21 January 2013, CNA underwent a major relaunch, introducing a new studio at the Marina Bay Financial Centre, a new Mumbai bureau, an expansion in programming, and the new slogan "Understand Asia". With the changes, CNA added additional news and current affairs programmes focusing on business and the "dynamism and progress" of Asia, and added the new late-night newscast News Pulse (which would feature coverage of international headlines, predominantly involving the Americas and Europe) to expand into a 24-hour service. Managing director Debra Soon explained that "as the focus of the world economy shifts towards Asia, we believe we are well positioned to deliver what we've been doing daily since 1999, and help audiences around the world better Understand Asia."[23] [24]
In July 2014, CNA opened its Vietnam bureau.[25] Other bureaus the channel had opened at the time were Beijing, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Seoul and Tokyo; unofficial offices were also maintained in other cities such as Mumbai, New Delhi and Washington D.C.
In September 2014, the channel announced plans to expand its studio in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, into a fully functional satellite office with high-definition capabilities.[26]
On 26 May 2015, CNA began broadcasting in high definition. In July 2015, CNA's reach was placed at 58 million households in 26 countries.[27] CNA began broadcasting in India on 19 November 2015, through satellite operator Tata Sky. The move extended the network's reach to 14 million households in India.[28]
On 1 August 2018, CNA was launched on Astro in Malaysia. It stayed on Channel 533 and moved to Channel 515 on 1 April 2020.
In March 2019, marking the network's 20th anniversary, Mediacorp announced that Channel NewsAsia would officially rebrand as "CNA" full-time, citing a need to abandon a "TV-centric" identity to emphasise its multi-platform operations. This would include the relaunch of its news radio station 938Now as CNA 938, and the upcoming citizen journalism initiative Tell CNA.[29] [30]
In March 2024, the channel marked its 25th anniversary; CNA announced plans to further expand its presence in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, launch a website in the Indonesian language (which will leverage AI-based translation software developed in partnership with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research), and bringing back the program East Asia Tonight beginning in April.[31] The channel formally launched in the UK on the Channelbox platform on Freeview in late April 2024 as a free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channel.[32] The network made its formal launch to North America on June 13, with a FAST launch by June 2025.[33]
See main article: List of programmes broadcast by CNA.
The logo of the channel is a red uppercase A, heightening the Asia in the official channel name. The A is shaped like an open delta whose crossbar is lowered to represent an emerging Asia. The A is painted red representing its auspicious status in Asian cultures, as well as being "striking and bold". The channel's name is written in black, representing its status as a brand of record.[34]
CNA has been criticised for its pro-government bias in Singapore. In its 12th biennial report released on 2 September 2009, Pace stipulated that "the broadcaster was adopting a conservative and careful approach in its reports and programmes", while being labelled as the "voice of the Government".[20]
CNA's programs are transmitted into two separate broadcast feeds: