‘It’s Not Your Fault’: Incoming CNN President Consoles Staff Over ‘Uniquely Sh*tty Situation’ While Announcing the End of CNN+

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Incoming CNN President Chris Licht held a staff meeting in which he offered sympathy to the network’s employees as he explained the decision to shutter CNN+.

News broke on Thursday that CNN’s new streaming service will shut down by the end of April amid reports of its struggling launch, scrutiny from Warner Bros. Discovery, and less than a month of operation. Licht confirmed the development in a company email obtained by Mediaite, in which, he said CNN+ chief Andrew Morse will leave the company while Licht works with Alex MacCallum to develop a new business strategy for CNN.

CNN’s Brian Stelter and Oliver Darcy published their own report on CNN+’s downfall, and they described a town hall meeting where Licht and Discovery streaming chief J.B. Perrette broke the news to CNN’s staff. Perrette reportedly expressed frustration during the meeting, saying “Some of this was avoidable…[but] prior leadership decided to just keep going” with CNN+ before the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger earlier this month, which led to questions about the service’s longevity.

From the report:

Licht bluntly told employees it was a “uniquely shitty situation.”

Hundreds of CNN+ staffers may lose their jobs. Licht said in an internal memo that “all CNN+ employees will continue to be paid and receive benefits for the next 90 days to explore opportunities at CNN, CNN Digital and elsewhere in the Warner Bros. Discovery family.”

Staffers who aren’t absorbed elsewhere in the company will receive a minimum of six months of severance, he added.
Licht said in a town hall style meeting with staffers that “this was an incredibly successful launch” but simply incompatible with the newly merged company’s plans.

“It is not your fault that you had the rug pulled out from underneath you,” he said as he vowed to minimize the impacts to staff.