CBS News eliminated multiple streaming programs on Wednesday as part of newsroom0-wide layoffs, just one part of Paramount’s sweeping job cuts and a blow to the news organization’s headcount as Bari Weiss’ already turbulent tenure as editor in chief gets into full swing.
It was not immediately clear how many people were affected, though some reports pegged the figure at nearly 100 jobs. The cuts affected CBS News’ streaming companion shows to “CBS Mornings” and “CBS Evening News,” both of which were canceled, according to a source familiar with the matter. Its Johannesburg bureau is also closing.
Its Saturday morning show is also getting a format change, according to the source, and it’s unclear if it will retain its “CBS Saturday Morning” moniker. Its hosts, Michelle Miller and Dana Jacobson, were both laid off, according to the New York Post.
It was unclear whether Weiss’ other journalistic operation, the anti-woke news and opinion site the Free Press, was affected by the layoffs. Paramount acquired the site earlier this month for roughly $150 million, and Weiss remains its top editor.
A Free Press spokesperson did not respond to an immediate request for comment, though the division — as does CBS News — still has jobs posted.
A spokesperson for CBS News did not have a comment. Weiss told staffers during an editorial call on Wednesday that it was an “enormously difficult day” for the network, according to Semafor.
Paramount is laying off 1,000 employees across the company on Wednesday following its merger with David Ellison’s Skydance. The cuts are the first round of job losses at CBS News since Ellison took hold of Paramount in August, while the parent company is expected to eventually cut another 1,000 employees, including some in international divisions.
While layoffs are common after a merger, they come as Paramount Skydance builds a media empire by investing billions into sports, films and acquisitions, and attempting to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, a move that would impact another news organization: CNN.
The layoffs are spread throughout Paramount’s workforce, Ellison told staffers in a memo on Wednesday, framing them as necessary for the company’s future growth.
“In some areas, we are addressing redundancies that have emerged across the organization,” Ellison wrote. “In others, we are phasing out roles that are no longer aligned with our evolving priorities and the new structure designed to strengthen our focus on growth. Ultimately, these steps are necessary to position Paramount for long-term success.”
The reduction in staff comes as Weiss has tried to make her mark on the century-old news organization. She’s reportedly trying to lure big names in TV news, including Fox News’ Bret Baier and CNN’s Anderson Cooper, and has used her contacts to help CBS News land interviews with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and Condoleezza Rice. She has also brought on former New York Times colleague Adam Rubenstein as a deputy editor for both CBS News and the Free Press, and Breaker Media reported that Weiss hired former Wall Street Journal editor Charles Forelle as a deputy.
But she’s also rankled some staffers over her demands and suggestions. Weiss initially asked staffers to submit a memo detailing how they spent their workdays, prompting the Writers Guild of America East, the union representing many CBS News staffers, to ask its members to hold off until they received further guidance on the demand. The union eventually told staffers the memos, or lack thereof, would not be used as a basis for discipline or termination.
“Today, we once again see the toll on media workers and the news industry caused by unfettered corporate consolidation,“ the WGA said in a statement. “The WGAE and WGAW are working with impacted members to ensure our collective bargaining agreements are enforced and labor law is followed in these layoffs at Paramount Skydance.”
Meanwhile, Weiss’ Free Press staffers, including assistant editor Josh Code and Weiss’ sister, Suzy Weiss, have also made appearances on CBS. And Weiss discussed booking “The Da Vinci Code” author Dan Brown to discuss the recent robbery of the Louvre Museum in Paris, according to Breaker Media, puzzling some staffers.
Some high-ranking CBS News staffers already said they plan to leave. The news organization’s head of standards, Claudia Milne, said earlier this month she would leave the network, and “CBS Evening News” co-anchor John Dickerson said on Monday he would end his 16-year tenure in December.
