David Bohrman, a longtime news producer and executive who was responsible for innovations in live and special events and breaking news, including on CNN and other networks, died Sunday. He was 69 years old.
“He was the creator of more news programming than almost any other producer working in television news today,” CNN’s leadership team wrote in a memo to employees Sunday evening.
“Wherever he went, David was an innovator who used the latest technology to improve storytelling,” they wrote. “He was a mentor to many.”
No cause of death was given.
During his years at CNN, Bohrman adopted new approaches to live event coverage, including the Magic Wall, now a standard on election night, while driving programs such as The Situation Room and State of the Union. As senior vice president and Washington bureau chief at CNN, he also launched NewsNight with Aaron Brown and The Moneyline NewsHour.
He also produced more than a dozen presidential debates for the network. This included a memorable Republican presidential debate in 2008 when the candidates, gathered at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, were introduced against the backdrop of Air Force One. Another debate included questions via YouTube videos, and another was held between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama at the Kodak Theater.
That cycle, it featured the first live hologram in news coverage, with Will.i.am appearing on election night. Bohrman also served as executive producer of CNN’s New York bureau’s 9/11 coverage and oversaw coverage of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. This included the first live coverage of the Battle of Umm Qasr.
After CNN, Bohrman became president of Current TV, the cable network of Al Gore and Joel Hyatt, as he moved to a line of progressive hosts.
Bohrman previously worked at ABC News, where he created World News Now, and was on the original staff of Nightline, first as a field producer and then as a senior producer. His experience at Nightline included organizing the first television signal from Mount Everest. He also worked at NBC News in the 1990s and, in 2000, led Pseudo, an early Internet interactive company.
After Gore and Hyatt sold Current TV, Bohrman consulted for networks and other news companies, particularly for election season coverage, including NBC News in 2016 and CBS News in 2020.
CBS News producer Susan Zirinsky, who served as the network’s president during the last presidential cycle, wrote on Twitter that Bohrman “took our coverage of the presidential election to a place we had never been before. He challenged us and it inspired us. We are reborn.”
He began his career at KNXT-TV in Los Angeles. He won six Emmy Awards, two Peabody Awards, a George Polk Award, and duPont Awards.
Bohrman was born in Los Angeles to Delle Bohrman, a television writer, and Stan Bohrman, a journalist and television host.
Bohrman is survived by his wife Catherine, sons Amber and Harrison, and granddaughters Sloan and Paige. Details of services are pending.
