CNN boss Mark Thompson to lay off hundreds after Election Day ratings wipeout: report

[mystery-ak]

 CNN boss Mark Thompson to lay off hundreds after Election Day ratings wipeout: report
By Ariel Zilber   
Published Nov. 12, 2024, 4:24 p.m. ET

Ratings-challenged CNN is reportedly set for a major bloodbath — with boss Mark Thompson expected to lay off high-priced on-air talent as part of wide-ranging layoffs.

The cable network — which lagged behind rivals MSNBC and Fox News during last week’s Election Night coverage — will implement “layoffs that will impact hundreds of employees across the organization,” according to Puck News.

Thompson, who took over last year after the ouster of Chris Licht, will cull personnel from CNN’s television production teams whose “talents won’t necessarily be needed in the new digital-first landscape,” the outlet added.

The network’s workforce is reported to be coping with “an atmosphere of high stress and high anxiety,” according to Puck.

Thompson, the former CEO of the New York Times and the BBC, may also demand deep cuts to the massive salaries raked in by its struggling primetime stable of anchors, which include Anderson Cooper, Erin Burnett and Kaitlan Collins.

Cooper, who anchored the Election night coverage, rakes in an annual salary reported to be as high as $20 million. Burnett makes about $6 million and Collins takes home a more budget-friendly $3 million.

The Post has sought comment from CNN.

more
https://nypost.com/2024/11/12/media/cnn-boss-mark-thompson-to-lay-off-hundreds-after-election-day-ratings-wipeout-report/

[IsailedawayfromFR]

More DNC employees will be available.  This time it will be on their paycheck instead of just being contractors.

[cato potatoe]

I would start by replacing the overpaid celebrities, instead of gutting the staff.  Find people with a journalistic mindset (as opposed to the Pyongyang method of using the state to fact check citizens) and memorable personalities. 

[catfish1957]

The political junky I am, I bounced around from network to network watching the returns. 

CNN's was the absolute worst.  Hard to read graphics, too much infused commentary, and way too much time spent on bullshit side stories.

They sucked, and now will pay the price.

MSNBC?  Just a tad better, but not much.   Fox, and Newsmax had the best.  Fox best graphics, and Newsmax best commentary.  Fox flooded the floor with too many pundits, which detracted from coverage.  Newsmax, a tiny player suffered from budgetary issue...thus big board  pizzazz. 

So ranking the cable networks..

1. Newsmax
2. Fox News
3. MSNBC
4. CNN

[DefiantMassRINO]

"former CEO of the New York Times and the BBC" - not exactly entertaining media outlets.

So, CNN's target demographic is middle-aged. college educated WASPs and WASP wannabe's?

Why pay big salaries to human on-air talent when you could have AI-generated personas be the foundation of your Prime Time lineup?

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2315678121
The making of an AI news anchor—and its implications
Matyas Bohacek and Hany Farid
December 27, 2023

This summer saw a months-long strike that pitted writers and performers against major Hollywood studios. A particularly fraught point of contention centered around the use (or not) of generative AI (also known as synthetic media or deepfakes). Aiming to find common ground, so that AI and writers can co-exist, the writers’ settlement requires that AI-generated material cannot be used to undermine a writer’s credit, and its use must be disclosed to writers. Protections for performers include that studios give fair compensation to performers for the use of digital replicas and for the labor unions and studios to meet twice a year to assess developments and implications of generative AI. ...

[catfish1957]

The making of an AI news anchor—and its implications[/size]

Remember how hilariously futuristic this seemed?  Now add 100X more realistic graphics.