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CNN CEO Chris Licht’s controversial tenure has come to an finish.
Licht has stepped down as CEO and chairman of CNN, a job he held for simply over a 12 months, efficient instantly, Warner Bros. Discovery confirmed. The information was first reported by Puck.
“I’ve nice respect for Chris, personally and professionally,” Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav mentioned in a press launch. “The job of main CNN was by no means going to be straightforward, particularly at a time of big disruption and transformation, and he has poured his coronary heart and soul into it.”
Licht’s departure got here days after a harmful profile of him in The Atlantic that described a “meltdown” on the community. The piece detailed how Licht was in search of to courtroom Republican viewers however had “misplaced the arrogance of his personal newsroom.” For one, he confronted criticism for a CNN city corridor with former President Donald Trump, throughout which Trump repeated his false claims in regards to the 2020 election. Rankings have additionally been in decline.
The “blistering” profile “referred to as into severe query Licht’s judgment, his means to guide the community’s employees, and his general skilled capabilities as CNN’s high govt,” CNN’s personal media reporter Oliver Darcy wrote. Licht reportedly apologized in an editorial assembly on Monday, promising to “combat like hell” to win the newsroom’s belief again. However on Tuesday, The Wall Avenue Journal reported high anchors like Jake Tapper, Erin Burnett and Anderson Cooper have “voiced their issues about Licht’s management.”
Warner Bros. Discovery mentioned the corporate will provoke a seek for Licht’s alternative however has a “sturdy interim management staff” in place. Based on media reporter Brian Stelter, who left CNN throughout Licht’s tenure, Zaslav mentioned in an editorial name “it did not work out” with Licht, and he takes “full duty.”