In the piece, Licht talked about how some of CNN’s COVID coverage had been high-strung and lost touch with the country, a criticism that angered many in the newsroom. Every move he made, big programming decisions and small tactical maneuvers alike, seemed to backfire.” “The execution of that theory? Another story. “Licht’s theory of CNN - what had gone wrong, how to fix it, and why doing so could lift the entire industry - made a lot of sense,” Alberta wrote. Author Tim Alberta discussed how Licht’s effort to reach viewers turned off by CNN’s hostility to Trump had failed and damaged his standing with CNN journalists. Licht did not immediately return a message seeking comment.Ī lengthy profile of Licht in Atlantic magazine that came out on Friday, titled “Inside the Meltdown at CNN,” proved embarrassing and likely sealed his fate. Unfortunately, things did not work out the way we had hoped - and ultimately that’s on me.” “He has a deep love for journalism and this business and that has been evident throughout his tenure. “Chris poured his heart and soul into it,” he said. Zaslav said in a memo to CNN staff members that the job “was never going to be easy, especially at a time of great disruption and transformation. Ultimately, the promotion from a show producer to leading an international news organization proved too steep a challenge. Zucker was fired for not revealing a consensual relationship with a fellow CNN executive. Licht, who had produced MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” CBS’ morning news show and Stephen Colbert’s late-night show, was appointed by Zaslav just over a year ago to replace an internally popular predecessor, Jeff Zucker. There were other cutbacks: shows hosted by Lisa Ling and Stanley Tucci were axed, along with the “Reliable Sources” media program and its host, Brian Stelter. Licht oversaw layoffs last year following Zaslav’s decision to shutter the CNN+ streaming service only weeks after it had started. hour that had been without a permanent host since Chris Cuomo was fired in December 2021. Efforts to build a new prime-time lineup moved slowly, with Collins only recently appointed to fill at 9 p.m. “This really caps a tumultuous year for CNN that has seen shrinking profits, programming mistakes and really low employee morale,” CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy said on his own network Wednesday.Įarlier in the year, Licht revamped the network’s morning show, but that proved unsuccessful and led to the firing of longtime personality Don Lemon. Zaslav promised CNN staff a thorough search for Licht’s replacement. Discovery - accepted some of the blame for the network’s turmoil over the past year, and he appointed a four-person interim leadership team. The executive who hired and fired Licht - David Zaslav, the CEO of CNN parent company Warner Bros. Licht, 51, was informed of his ouster Wednesday morning, and it was announced to the staff at the daily editorial meeting - the same place where Licht had said two days earlier that he would “fight like hell” to earn the trust of those around him. NEW YORK (AP) - The chief executive CNN pushed out of a job on Wednesday faced mounting problems in his first year leading the struggling network: viewership and profits were declining, programming blunders were growing and the network’s journalists were losing confidence by the day.Ĭhris Licht’s very bad year culminated in a damning magazine profile last week, and just a few days later his tumultuous 13-month tenure was over.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |