CNN announces 6% layoffs, 200 jobs

Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.’s CNN division let go 6% of its workforce, or about 200 employees, Thursday as the cable news network focuses on streaming and digital audiences amid declining ratings.

Chief Executive Officer Mark Thompson told staff that Warner Bros. will invest $70 million to help support CNN’s pivot, and that money will be used in part to hire about 100 new employees in the first half of this year focused on the company’s” new digital path,” including a new streaming service for the classic CNN TV.

“The changes we’re announcing today are part of an ongoing response by this great news organization to profound and irreversible shifts in the way audiences in America and around the world consume news,” Thompson said in a memo to staff reviewed by Bloomberg. “Our objective is a simple one: to shift CNN’s gravity towards the platforms and products where the audience themselves are shifting.”

Like other TV news outlets, CNN has faced declining ratings as more consumers move from cable TV to streaming and obtain their news from other sources, such as influencers. CNN and MSNBC have also seen drops in viewership following President Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election.

As cable-TV suffers a widespread decline in viewers, CNN has been building a digital subscription product to provide news tailored to consumers’ new viewing habits.

Costco defends diversity practices

Costco is pushing back on a shareholder proposal that urges the wholesale club operator to conduct an evaluation of any business risks posed by its diversity, equity and inclusion practices. Investors were expected to vote on the recommendation during the company’s annual meeting Thursday.

The National Center for Public Policy Research, a conservative think tank based in Washington, submitted the proposal, arguing that Costco’s DEI initiatives hold “litigation, reputational and financial risks to the company, and therefore financial risks to shareholders.”

The think tank has made a similar proposal to Apple, and like some American companies that already scaled back or retreated from their diversity policies, cited a U.S. Supreme Court decision in July 2023 that outlawed affirmative action in college admissions.

Costco officials could not be reached for comment on the DEI proposal.

Jobless claims tick to 2021 level

Jobless claims applications ticked up modestly last week, but the total number of Americans collecting unemployment benefits rose to their highest level in more than three years.

Applications for jobless benefits rose by 6,000 to 223,000 for the week ending Jan. 18, the Labor Department said Thursday. Analysts were expecting 219,000 new applications.

Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered a proxy for layoffs. The total number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits for the week of Jan. 11 climbed by 46,000 to 1.9 million, the most since November of 2021. The rising level of continuing claims, the total number of Americans collecting jobless benefits, suggests that some who are receiving benefits are finding it harder to land new jobs. That could mean that demand for workers is waning, even as the economy remains strong.

Bloomberg and The Associated Press contributed to this report.