CNN staffers are concerned that a new contract with The Associated Press could lead to job cuts at the third-largest cable news network.
CNN has signed a deal with the Associated Press to use its stories on its website for the first time since it severed ties with the news agency 14 years ago.
But the deal has raised fears of further layoffs among staff at the struggling cable news network. According to PacThe news was first reported by CNN News. The concerns come as CNN chief Mark Thompson is clarifying his strategic vision for turning around the network.
CNN He terminated his contract with the AP in 2010. to place greater emphasis on original reporting and expand our original global news coverage.
A CNN spokesman denied that the new deal with The Associated Press meant any cuts to staff.
“This will enable our journalists to spend more time on enterprise reporting and less time on shorter pieces across platforms,” the spokesperson said. “The goal is to expand our editorial coverage while focusing on key editorial priorities.”
But Thompson hinted in April that further cost-cutting measures were on the way, saying there would be “significant opportunities to eliminate overlapping parallel organisations, structures and activities.”
“I think we can and should look for ways to do what we do better and cheaper,” Thompson said at the time.
He also said the network faces an “existential crisis” due to cuts in its cable TV business and contract terminations.
The former BBC director-general and ex-CEO of The New York Times has a big task ahead of him: turning around CNN, which is struggling in the ratings to compete with Fox News and MSNBC.
Thompson unveiled his vertical-focused plan for CNN to advertisers in May, a revised version of a plan launched seven years ago by former CNN head Jeff Zucker, in which the network launched culture- and lifestyle-focused digital verticals and tiered subscription services built around the network’s personalities, according to people familiar with the matter.
“CNN has a lot to fix,” Thompson said last month.
His comments were in line with a somewhat convoluted blueprint by executives for how CNN can become a more modern media company.
On March 1, he unveiled a five-point plan that included vague bullet points about “building a digital future,” “a global, integrated multimedia news business,” “future-proofing television production,” “developing new revenue streams,” and “communications and culture.”
Meanwhile, CNN reached something of a milestone during the week of May 13, posting its worst ratings since 1991 among prime-time viewers, the demographic most coveted by advertisers.
