HLN is a spin-off network from the original Cable News Network (CNN) television news network in the United States and Canada.  Initially broadcast as CNN2 on January 1, 1982, the network renamed itself one year later to CNN Headline News. The use of "CNN" in the title of the network has been intermittent throughout the network's broadcast years.

The network's programming focused around the idea that a viewer could tune in at any time and, in just 30 minutes, receive the most popular national and international stories, in addition to feature reports. The format, known as the Headline News Wheel, featured "Dollars and Sense" personal finance reports at 15 and 45 minutes past each hour, Headline Sports at 20 and 50 minutes, lifestyle reports at 25 and 55 minutes past each hour, and general news during the top (:00) and bottom (:30) of the hour. Another regular feature was the "Hollywood Minute" which was often fitted in after the Headline Sports segment. In the network's early years, a two-minute recap of the hour's top stories, the CNN Headlines, would run after the sports segment.