CNN executives told staff in a town-hall meeting Tuesday at the news network’s London headquarters that a consolidation will bring most CNN International’s live production to Atlanta, resulting in UK staff being reassigned Stateside.
A source told Deadline that three half-hour London-based shows and 13 staff positions in the English capital will be impacted by the changes, with those jobs being “reassigned.” One of the half-hours will be replaced with another London-based show within the next few months, the source indicated.
It’s unclear how many of the London-based staffers will move to Atlanta or how soon they can, given visa red tape.
The news came during a town hall meeting Tuesday led by CNN chief Jeff Zucker — who, per a report in the UK’s The Guardian told assembled staff that CNN’s international channel was losing $10 million a year. He added that that digital and newsgathering units will not be impacted in London, which remains the network’s biggest bureau outside the U.S.
The Guardian also reported that those who attended the town hall said the plan for CNN International going forward is to show more simulcasts of U.S. CNN, repeats of Christiane Amanpour’s show and other programming produced out of CNN’s division in Abu Dhabi.
Earlier this month, CNN offered voluntary buyouts that wound up being taken by more than 100 workers at the cable new network. Following the $81 billion acquisition of CNN parent Time Warner by AT&T, the company has put CNN under the WarnerMedia umbrella and broken down operational walls between it and the other parts of the operation. Those deals were consistent with similar offerings at CNN’s corporate siblings HBO, Turner and, most recently, earlier today by truTV.
As part of the post-merger reorganization at WarnerMedia, Zucker was promoted earlier this month to the role of chairman, WarnerMedia News & Sports, and president of CNN.
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