‘Completely Fabricated’: CNN Blasts Report CEO Chris Licht Hired Extra Security Following Network Layoffs

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The Daily Mail reported that CNN CEO Chris Licht hired extra security for his 17th floor office following mass layoffs that swept the network in recent weeks, but a representative for the network vociferously denied the story in a comment to Mediaite.

Last Thursday, CNN made major cuts to its staffing list as part of a revamp of the network under the leadership of Licht.

According to Puck, sources inside the network reported that Thursday, Licht appeared to have an increased presence of security around him and his office on the 17th floor.

Earlier in the day, Licht had told staffers that he would be in the executive conference room with the “door open, so that employees could talk directly with him about the new round of layoffs”:

Some CNN sources who passed by Licht on Thursday did notice the presence of multiple security guards standing outside of the conference room, and at least one walking around with Licht as he moved about the floor.

The website did distinguish that this was an increased security force as opposed to the security staff that are present daily:

Guards are always present on the 17th floor at Hudson Yards—this is a global news network, after all, and one all-too-familiar with angry protestors and bomb threats—but the heightened security presence on a day of layoffs suggested Licht was mindful of how raw emotions were, and that a Jerry Maguire moment, or something worse, was not out of the question.

The Daily Mail cited Puck’s reporting to claim that “CNN CEO Chris Licht reportedly was forced to hire extra security to wait outside a conference room where he was working after gutting hundreds of the network’s staff in a recent round of layoffs.”

However, CNN is pushing back on the report. A representative for the network told Mediaite the claim about security is “untrue” and called out the Daily Mail article as having “a completely fabricated headline.”

This post has been updated with additional information.