Licht out at CNN
June 7, 2023
Chris Licht, CEO of CNN, is out at the news network. The NYT reports he met with WBD chief David Zaslav, who then told staff that Licht was departing immediately.
Licht had been handpicked a year ago by Zaslav to steer CNN after the departure of its long-time chief Jeff Zucker. However Licht’s tenure was dogged by controversy.
An interim group of leaders — the CNN veterans Amy Entelis, Virginia Moseley and Eric Sherling, as well as the newly appointed chief operating officer, David Leavy — are set to take over before a permanent leader is installed.
Licht’s first task was to close the CNN+ digital subscription product, and since then there have been issues with anchors such as Don Lemon, internal uproar after a ‘town hall’ with Donald Trump, falling ratings and declining profits.