Staffers at CNN are in a panic over Paramount’s impending takeover of the cable news channel’s parent company Warner Bros. Discovery — and the massive bloodbath that is expected to come after CEO David Ellison completes the $81 billion deal in the coming weeks.
asserted
Ellison → impend → weeks
“People are very nervous,” one CNN staffer told The Post.
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staffer → tell → Post
“It’s dark.
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It → ’ → ?
It’s like when you do hurricane coverage.
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you → ’ → coverage
You see the storm spinning off the coast of Haiti and moving towards Florida and you’re just waiting and you’re like, ‘Oh, s–t’.”
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you → see → t
“Bloodbath coming, including at CNN,” a TV exec said.
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exec → come → CNN
“That’s the next big step — slashing and burning.”
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That → ’ → ?
Inside CNN, staffers have been more or less kept in the dark by top brass, who are themselves unsure who will be running the network once Ellison takes over.
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Ellison → keep → network
“There’s been a complete absence of information about what’s going on and who is going to be in charge,” a CNN staffer told The Post.
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staffer → go → Post
CNN boss Mark Thompson is set to lead a staff town hall about the merger on Wednesday.
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Thompson → set → Wednesday
But there’s little hope of gleaning much insight on the new leadership structure until Ellison officially closes the deal.
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Ellison → ’ → deal
Employees are looking at how CBS News has changed under Ellison’s stewardship, pointing to the overhaul of the network under news boss Bari Weiss.
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News → look → Weiss
“What’s been playing out at CBS News is fueling a deeper sense of dread and anxiety … not only how they’ve treated people and the editorial changes they’ve made, but that it’s also been a disaster.
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it → play → people
The ratings are at their lowest point,” said a CNN insider.
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insider → say → point
“You can’t look at the ratings and say, it is working, Now they’re going to try this at scale?
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they → look → scale
” the person added.
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person → add → ?
As many insiders viewed Weiss’ overhaul as extreme, the show, which is two episodes into its new season, has not improved viewership numbers.
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which → view → numbers
A CBS source said Weiss “broke something that didn’t need fixing.”
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that → say → something
Critics also pointed to last-placed “CBS Mornings” and “CBS Evening News,” which have posted new lows under Weiss’ leadership, and an editorial vision that they claim, is more deferential to the Trump administration.
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they → point → administration
Weiss defenders, however, say she is making the left-leaning CBS News more balanced.
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News → say → ?
Sources at CNN dismissed editorial board idea as ineffective and hard to implement.
“It’s been proven in this country when you do these sorts of things, it’s not enforeceable,” one staffer said.
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staffer → dismiss → things
Inside CNN, staffers are pulling for Thompson to continue running the network without any oversight from Weiss.
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Thompson → pull → Weiss
“He very much wants to be the editorial leader,” an insider said.
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insider → want → ?
“He has no interest in someone else coming in and telling him what to do.
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someone → have → what
Other gripes inside the network include the question of foreign investment, pointing to the fact that the merged Paramount-WBD will be owned by a total foreign equity ownership stake of 49.5%.
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WBD → include → %
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Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.
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Report → start → news
CNN sources are upset over the notion that the foreign entities could have an impact on its international coverage.
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entities → upset → coverage
Meanwhile, staffers at CBS News are also wringing their hands about how the merger could impact their jobs, as well as the editorial direction of CNN.
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merger → wring → CNN
“I’m feeling defeated and dejected,” one CBS staffer said.
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staffer → feel → ?
“The vandalism David and Bari have done to CBS News has been catastrophic.
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David → do → News
“Ellison is still going to get his hands on CNN and if they do just one quarter of the damage they’ve done to CBS, CNN is over.
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CNN → go → CBS
It’s sad for news.
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It → ’ → news
It’s sad for America.
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It → ’ → America
It’s just sad.”
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It → ’ → ?
The Aporia
