CNN boss Chris Licht laid off numerous high profile employees at the
left-wing news network this week and completely gutted its sister
network HLN.

Licht cut all live programming on HLN and got rid of the network�s
�Morning Express with Robin Meade� and �Weekend Express,� the New York
Post reported.

Other top figures who were laid off include CNN reporters Alison Kosik,
Martin Savidge, Alex Field, Mary Ann Fox, and Chris Cillizza, the
report said.

CNBC added that the network let go of �hundreds of staffers� out of the
network�s roughly 4,400 employees.

In memo to employees at the company, Licht said that the goal of the
strategic review that led to the layoffs was to �better align our
people, processes and resources with our future priorities, strengthen
our ability to deliver on CNN�s core journalistic mission and enable us
to innovate in the years ahead.�

The memo said that the network would focus on programming, news-
gathering, and digital.

The broadscale changes that he announced included:

� HLN: Beginning December 6, CNN will no longer produce live
programming for HLN and instead will simulcast CNN This Morning. HLN
Crime programming will move under the WBD Networks led by Kathleen
Finch and will be merged with ID. I want to take a moment to thank
Robin Meade � she is not only an exceptionally popular anchor, but also
one of the longest-running morning hosts in history. I know the HLN
audience will miss her and the other HLN talent.

� CNN International: CNN International is reorganizing some of its
teams and bureaus, and effective immediately, the 5:00-5:30pm ET show
will be replaced by a simulcast of CNN US for that half hour.

� CNN en Espa�ol: CNNE�s linear network will seek to expand its
audience by diversifying the network�s programming beyond news. We will
continue to produce news for CNNE, and throughout next year, we will
look to develop a far more robust digital platform for CNNE with the
aim of launching it in 2024. We believe that investment will better
serve and significantly grow our Spanish-language news audience, and we
will have more to share on that in 2023.

� U.S. Newsgathering: We are restructuring across some of our beats,
realigning resources to staff up in some units and in more areas around
the country. This will help us deliver on our goal of covering the
United States more broadly. Many of the staff reductions in
Newsgathering will be offset by the addition of new roles to best serve
our audience across platforms.

� Contributors: We are also shifting our approach to paid contributors.
In some areas, we will rely more on our CNN journalists. Overall, we
will engage contributors who are subject-matter experts that expand and
diversify the viewpoints we bring our audience.

� Programming: Our programming teams will see some reductions in show
staffs and, in some cases, the combination of teams for our dayside and
weekend lineups.

� Creative Marketing: The Creative Marketing team will see an overall
reduction in size, realigning around in-house production and
consolidating creative and strategy roles in New York. Roles will be
added to both support that work and expand our digital and growth
marketing efforts.

� Research: Research is reorganizing to focus resources on CNN�s core
businesses and to optimize our recently integrated Digital Analytics
and Data Science teams.

� Operations: The Operations teams are restructuring to align with the
changes to other units across the organization.

� CNN Digital: CNN Digital conducted an exercise earlier this fall to
ensure they were best structured for the future. They made changes then
and, as a result, there are no further impacts in this process.

Licht said that the changes were needed to make the company stronger
and put it in a position to make big investments in the future without
worrying about failure, which comes after the network had to cancel its
streaming service CNN+ shortly after it launched.

�To our departing colleagues, I want to express my gratitude for your
dedicated and tireless service and for your many contributions to CNN,�
the memo concluded. �To all employees, I want to underscore the
importance of taking the time you need to best be able to move forward.
You can find resources to support you now here. I will be holding a
town hall on Tuesday to answer your questions, which can be submitted
anonymously here.�

--
Let's go Brandon!

Ubiquitous <weberm@polaris.net> wrote:
> CNN boss Chris Licht laid off numerous high profile employees at the
> left-wing news network this week and completely gutted its sister
> network HLN.
>
> Licht cut all live programming on HLN and got rid of the network’s
> “Morning Express with Robin Meade” and “Weekend Express,” the New York
> Post reported.

Q: what do you call this?

A: a good start.

>
> --
> Let's go Brandon!
>
>

--
The last thing I want to do is hurt you, but it is still on my list.

On Friday, December 2, 2022 at 10:00:33 AM UTC-6, anim8rfsk wrote:
> Ubiquitous <web...@polaris.net> wrote:
> > CNN boss Chris Licht laid off numerous high profile employees at the
> > left-wing news network this week and completely gutted its sister
> > network HLN.
> >
> > Licht cut all live programming on HLN and got rid of the network’s
> > “Morning Express with Robin Meade” and “Weekend Express,” the New York
> > Post reported.
> Q: what do you call this?
>
> A: a good start.
> >
> > --
> > Let's go Brandon!
> >
> >
> --
> The last thing I want to do is hurt you, but it is still on my list.

Political ad spending dried up.