CNN Audio Launches New Narrative Podcast Series The Account from CNN

CNN Audio announced today the launch of their latest podcast offering, The Account from CNN. The Account is CNN’s new home for powerful, narrative-driven audio storytelling. The series will be made up of multi-episode seasons featuring in-depth reporting from the network’s unparalleled roster of global journalists as they immerse listeners in dynamic news stories.

“We are launching The Account as a home for audio-first storytelling built specifically for listeners, not just adapted for them,” said CNN Audio Executive Producer Steve Lickteig. “This narrative style gives our journalists the space to comprehensively capture their reporting from multiple angles and points of view, and each series within the feed will showcase a story uniquely suited to our reporters’ expertise—stories best experienced through the depth and intimacy of podcasting.”

The series’ first season, Persuadable, follows CNN Senior Correspondent Donie O’Sullivan as he investigates how and why some individuals are susceptible to modern conspiracy theories. O’Sullivan has been covering this beat for more than a decade, but now he’s digging into the factors that can lead people directly into webs of misinformation. In this deeply personal project, O’Sullivan empathetically reflects on his own mental health journey as he considers what people may be seeking out in fringe beliefs. Through conversations with cult survivors, psychologists, and the families of those embedded in these communities, O’Sullivan leaves listeners with practical takeaways for navigating this slippery world and breaking free from the grip of conspiracy.

“We are living in what has been described as the ‘golden age’ of conspiracy theories, but we often focus too much on the things people believe rather than why they believe them,” said O’Sullivan. “In Persuadable, we wanted to show how anyone is capable of holding irrational beliefs so that when our loved ones find themselves deep in conspiracy theory rabbit holes, we have the tools to help. That started with an open conversation about my own mental health struggles.”

The first episode of Persuadable is available now wherever you listen to podcasts. The second episode will debut on Wednesday, May 7, with the final episode to follow on Wednesday, May 14. Details on future seasons of The Account will be released in the coming weeks.

CNN Audio is the exclusive producer of audio content and podcasts for CNN Worldwide including All There Is with Anderson Cooper, Chasing Life with Dr. Sanjay Gupta, The Assignment with Audie Cornish, Terms of Service with Clare Duffy, CNN 5 Things, CNN 5 Good Things, CNN One Thing, Chance Encounters, and more.