CNN announces that it will cut its traditional TV news staff by 200 employees, but increase staff in digital areas such as computer technicians and production engineers. Initially, they will hire 100. This means fewer ordinary journalists and more people who can use artificial intelligence. Mark Thompson is in charge of the turnaround after 15 months on the job. It’s going to be tough for mainstream journalism going forward.
The changes to the TV side of the business could be a blow to newsroom morale at an uncertain time in the news industry. But in many ways, the challenge Thompson (67) faces is similar to the one he faced in his two previous jobs, as chief executive of The New York Times and as director general of the BBC. In both of those places, the main traditional sources of revenue were in long-term decline.
Jim Acosta no longer gets primetime. He was the one who fronted CNN in the White House press briefings and at Trump’s press conferences and had several confrontations with Trump. Now he’s losing his show and it’s unclear what role he will play. A clear demotion.