CNN Initiates Mass Layoffs

[Valin]

National Review

Isaac Schorr

December 1, 2022

On Thursday, CNN initiated the layoffs that CEO Chris Licht foreshadowed the day prior in an email sent to staff.

Chris Cillizza, a political reporter and editor-at-large, Martin Savidge, Alex Field, Mary Anne Fox, and Alison Kosik were among the most recognizable names let go by the network. HLN, the subsidiary network formerly known as CNN Headline News, is expected to be scaled back significantly and will no longer feature live programming as a result of the cuts, according to Variety.

Licht had told employees that the layoffs would have far-reaching consequences for “both our departing colleagues and those who remain.”

“It is incredibly hard to say goodbye to any one member of the CNN team, much less many. I recently described this process as a gut punch, because I know that is how it feels for all of us,” wrote Licht, who had previously hinted at the restructuring in an October memo.

(snip)