Embattled CNN Boss Chris Licht Gets the Boot

Aug 23, 2023

After weeks of drama and turmoil, he is out after barely a year on the job.

Senior Media Reporter

Editor at Large

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CNN boss Chris Licht and some of his top allies have been fired after weeks of turmoil and drama that crescendoed with the publication of a devastating magazine profile.

The embattled CEO's exit also comes just days after David Zaslav, head of parent company Warner Bros. Discovery, installed his own longtime lieutenant David Leavy as the network chief operating officer.

"This job was never going to be easy," Zaslav said of Licht's tenure during the network's Wednesday morning editorial call. "He was in the line of fire, and he's taken a lot of hits."

Zaslav also said that "for a number of reasons, things didn't work out," noting that "it's unfortunate" and "that's on me." Licht did not speak on the call and had yet to send a memo to staff about his departure.

David Zaslav

After Licht's ouster, which was first reported by Puck, many of those within his inner circle were also let go—including communications chief Kris Coratti, PR flack Matt Dornic, and Licht's chief of staff Devan Cayea. Business chief Chris Marlin is expected to soon follow.

In the interim, Licht will be replaced by longtime CNN executive Amy Entelis. The network will also be temporarily led by executive vice president of editorial Virginia Moseley and programming executive vice president Eric Sherling.

Licht's brief tenure as the network's boss was marked by plummeting ratings, extensive job cuts, programming shifts that didn't pan out, and high-profile firings of on-air personalities. All of this, it appeared, was part of an effort to reshape CNN into a "centrist" news organization and appeal to a supposedly broader audience.

In the end, Licht's style of leadership apparently made nobody happy—not even Zaslav, whose vision for the network he was trying to implement.

Speaking to how Licht had long lost the newsroom, staffers on Wednesday told The Daily Beast that they’re not only glad that he's gone, but that they wish former boss Jeff Zucker would return.

"It's really sad. He destroyed this place," one on-air personality said of Licht. "Now we have to start over. I’m hoping Jeff comes back, frankly."

Jeff Zucker and Christiane Amanpour

One former staffer who was impacted by the massive December layoffs told The Daily Beast that they celebrated Licht's termination this morning by popping a bottle of champagne.

Licht got off to an inauspicious start last year when his first major move as CEO was to axe CNN+ just weeks after the streaming service's expensive and rocky launch. The termination of the much-hyped digital streamer came just after the Warner Bros. Discovery merger was finalized, foreshadowing further cost-cutting that would be on the horizon.

Layoffs continued throughout the rest of the year, as Licht was tasked with helping WBD clear billions from its budget. Meanwhile, Licht also set about following Zaslav and right-wing investor John Malone's mission to move CNN away from so-called "advocacy" and more towards a more "objective" approach aimed at appealing to conservatives just as much as liberals.

Along the way, Licht fired the network's chief media correspondent Brian Stelter, who had become the face of the network's political news coverage and a primary target for CNN's loudest conservative critics. Licht also sent D.C. correspondent John Harwood packing, who was outspoken in his criticism of the Trump administration.

Licht, who had launched both Morning Joe and CBS This Morning, attempted to use that same formula at CNN—but the results were disastrous. Looking to revamp CNN's low-rated morning programming, he teamed longtime primetime host Don Lemon with anchor Poppy Harlow and White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins. CNN This Morning, however, would become more notable for its paltry ratings and the numerous controversies sparked by Lemon's on- and off-screen behavior.

Eventually, Lemon was booted following a series of sexist on-air remarks, over-the-top interviews, and behind-the-scenes confrontations with his co-hosts. Notably, Licht only pushed Lemon out after giving him an opportunity to undergo "formal training" amid the scandals.

Kaitlan Collins

Internal CNN anger towards Licht really began to grow, however, following the Trump town hall fiasco. The event featured the ex-president steamrolling Collins, all to the cheers of a sympathetic crowd roaring in delight as Trump called her a "nasty person." Despite the onslaught of criticism the town hall faced, Licht doubled down on the "masterful" broadcast and unsubtly swiped at CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy's criticism of the event.

Licht ended up drawing even more outrage from staff after he pulled Darcy aside the day after the town hall and scolded him for his publicly scathing assessment of the broadcast.

The fallout didn't stop there. CNN viewers were turned off by the disastrous town hall, and began fleeing the network almost immediately. In fact, CNN began regularly losing primetime hours to MAGA channel Newsmax, which had previously only attracted a fraction of CNN's audience.

In the end, however, what appeared to fully cement Licht's demise was the 15,000-word profile by The Atlantic's Tim Alberta, which portrayed the CNN boss as aloof, out of touch, and completely obsessed with his own press coverage.

Earlier this week, following the publication of the piece, Licht groveled to CNN staff in an attempt to win them back over. It did not work, obviously.

Yet, as it has in the past, the 24/7 news network outlasts its executives. That was made clear on Wednesday morning when anchor Kate Bolduan informed viewers that Licht was gone. "News to us here at CNN and you at home," she said.

Senior Media Reporter

Editor at Large

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