SO IT BEGINS

CNN Staff Prepares for Incoming Cutting Spree

The network is bracing for turbulence even before a planned deal with Paramount goes through.

CNN is gearing up to lay off staff as the network attempts to modernize for the digital era, according to a report.

A source told Status the layoffs are not expected to be “seismic” and that only a few dozen employees will be affected.

However, the job cuts come even before Paramount’s proposed deal to purchase Warner Bros. Discovery has been finalized, a takeover that could see Paramount CEO David Ellison merge CNN with the now Donald Trump–friendly CBS News division.

Ellison, the son of Trump ally Larry Ellison, previously spent $150 million to acquire The Free Press and made its co-founder, Bari Weiss, editor-in-chief of CBS News. Since then, the network has faced dwindling audiences, a shift in editorial tone more favorable to the Trump administration, and mass layoffs.

“While it will be tough for CNN to endure another batch of cuts, the real bloodletting still lies ahead in the distance,” Status’ Oliver Darcy wrote.

CNN chief Mark Thompson plans to reduce the workforce as part of an effort to modernize the network away from the traditional television model it has long relied on and toward a stronger digital focus.

This plan has already seen experimentation such as a greater focus on short-form video content, as well as two of its biggest stars, Jake Tapper and Anderson Cooper, hosting their shows in podcast-studio-like settings, complete with a buttoned-down look and huge microphones on their desks.

Some CNN staffers have questioned the strategy of trying to capture a younger digital audience by having veteran hosts look more like podcasters.

“It’s kinda like rearranging furniture in a burning house,” independent YouTuber Keith Edwards told Status. “It shows they fundamentally don’t understand why audiences are leaving.”

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Elsewhere, veteran tech reporter and CNN contributor Kara Swisher said she would leave the network if Paramount and Ellison complete the deal to buy Warner Bros. Discovery.

“They’ve already shown several times, including editorial choices, that they have no interest in journalism, and I refuse to work for an organization that doesn’t respect journalists,” Swisher said during a talk at Syracuse University on Monday.

Swisher’s new CNN show, Kara Swisher Wants to Live Forever, is set to debut on the network next month.

The Daily Beast has contacted CNN and Paramount for comment.

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