CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss told staffers Tuesday morning that leadership still does not know what many of the newly merged company’s long-term plans will mean for the news division, even as she sought to reassure employees that no immediate changes are coming.
“The truth is, there is a lot that we still don’t know,” Weiss said during CBS News’ 9 a.m. editorial meeting and in a memo obtained by TheWrap. “What we can tell you right now is that nothing is going to change. This is a process that’s going to unfold over time.”
Her remarks came as Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery officially closed their merger, bringing CBS News and CNN under the same corporate roof and raising immediate questions about how the two major national news organizations will coexist inside the combined company.
“Obviously, it’s a very exciting day for the company,” Weiss told staffers. “Tom and I know that it raises infinite questions about CBS News, about what’s next, and we wish that we could answer all of those questions.”
Skydance has already settled one of the biggest leadership questions. Mark Thompson will remain atop CNN while Weiss continues to lead CBS News, preserving separate editorial leadership for the two organizations. But broader questions remain about resources, operations and whether the news divisions could eventually share functions as Paramount integrates Warner Bros. Discovery.
For now, Weiss told CBS News staffers to focus on their reporting.
“The best guidance that we can share is that we should focus always on the work that we do,” she said.
Weiss pointed to what she described as momentum inside CBS News and urged the newsroom to continue producing journalism that distinguishes it from competitors.
“We just have a lot of momentum, and we have done remarkable work that everyone here should be extremely proud of,” she said. “And at CBS, that shouldn’t change.”
She added that employees should remain focused on “delivering scoops, exclusives, revelatory journalism that you can’t get anywhere else.”
CBS News president Tom Cibrowski echoed that message, telling employees that the newsroom should “double down” on its work as the corporate transition begins.
“The main thing is that momentum word, the big M word that Bari said,” Cibrowski said. “We’ve got that, the work is fantastic, and now is the time to double down and focus on our work at CBS News.”
The comments offer an early look at how CBS News leadership is addressing employees as Paramount begins integrating Warner Bros. Discovery’s television, streaming, film and news businesses.
For CBS News, the immediate directive is continuity. The longer-term structure remains unresolved.
“I know that everyone, again, has a lot of questions,” Weiss said. “Some of them, I hope, will be answered in the town hall, but for now, the MO and the directive of the company is to focus on what we do best.”
Employees are expected to hear more from company leadership during a town hall later Tuesday.
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