Mark Thompson isn’t going anywhere, at least not yet.
CNN’s chairman and editor-in-chief told staff Monday he’s sticking around after Paramount Skydance’s $81 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, which is supposed to close Tuesday. He’ll report straight to David Ellison, who runs the new combined company (just called Skydance now). Bari Weiss is also staying put as editor-in-chief of CBS News.
Thompson’s pitch to the newsroom was basically: I talked to these guys, and they get it. “I have real confidence that they both understand and will fully support” the independent journalism CNN has always claimed to stand for, he wrote. The fine print of how CNN actually fits into the new company still isn’t locked in, but he says his job, and his authority, stay the same. He’s also still pushing the digital subscription plan, and says the new bosses are into it.
One TV exec close to the situation put it bluntly: Trump will lose it if CNN doesn’t change, and Ellison already promised him it would. “That’s what matters.” The same person called Thompson a temporary fix and figured he’ll be out in 12 to 18 months. His contract is up in the spring anyway; the Times has already reported he’s been talking about a renewal.
The theory from that side: eventually someone merges CNN and CBS to cut costs, because running two expensive news divisions under one roof doesn’t make much sense, and Weiss probably isn’t the one who ends up in charge of both.