CNN cuts 6% of jobs as part of strategy to focus on streaming

Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.’s CNN division laid off 6% of its workforce, or about 200 employees, on Thursday as the cable news network focuses on streaming and digital audiences amid falling ratings.

Chief Executive Officer Mark Thompson told employees that Warner Bros. would invest $70 million to help support CNN’s pivot, and would use that money to focus on the company’s “new digital path” in the first half of this year. The focus will be on hiring approximately 100 new employees. , including a new streaming service for classic CNN TV.

“The changes we are announcing today are part of this great news organization’s drive to drive profound and irreversible change in the way audiences in America and around the world see news,” Thompson said in a memo to employees reviewed by Bloomberg. It’s part of the reaction.” “Our objective is simple: to shift CNN’s gravity toward the platforms and products where audiences themselves are moving.”

Like other TV news outlets, CNN has faced declining ratings as more consumers move from cable TV to streaming and get their news from other sources, such as influencers. CNN and MSNBC have also seen their viewership decline, while Fox News’s viewership has increased following President Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election.