Michael Bass, the longtime CNN programming chief who played a role in devising the network’s more passionate demeanor during the Trump era, is leaving the network.
His departure was revealed to staffers at the Warner Bros. Discovery-backed outlet’s daily news meeting Monday. Bass was a key lieutenant and longtime colleague of Jeff Zucker, CNN’s former top executive, and one of a troika of senior executives who led CNN for an interim period after Zucker’s abrupt ouster earlier this year. Bass will leave the company at the end of 2022.
In a note to employees, CNN CEO Chris Licht said the decision to leave was Bass’. Internally, however, there is widespread acknowledgment that the network, which has been suffering in the ratings since the 2021 inauguration of President Biden, has grappled with finding content that is more competitive with that of its peers.
“We are launching a search for Michael’s replacement, and we will communicate an interim plan in the coming days,” Licht said. One potential successor may already be on board: Ryan Kadro, a veteran producer who led efforts at “CBS This Morning” and news programming at the short-lived Quibi, has already taken a development role at CNN, and had a role in the launch of its new morning program. Licht has expressed confidence in the new show, led by Don Lemon, Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins, though it has struggled in the ratings.
CNN is in the midst of an era of cost-cutting, brought on by its parent company’s financial woes. Warner Bros. Discovery is navigating a punishing debt load, and CEO David Zaslav has vowed to demonstrate to Wall Street that the company is taking it seriously. At CNN, Licht has cautioned staffers about potential job cuts and has already presided over a diminishing of the company’s original-series production unit. That group is led by Amy Entelis, another of the three senior executives who helped run CNN after Zucker’s exit.
More to come…