- CNN CEO Chris Licht has apologized to his staff over a disastrous profile published by The Atlantic on Friday.
- "As I read that article, I found myself thinking, CNN is not about me," Licht said in an editorial call Monday morning.
Three days after The Atlantic published a bombshell profile about him, CNN CEO Chris Licht has apologized to his staff in an editorial call.
Media reporter and former CNN employee Brian Stelter has the details from the call, which he said Licht began by praising anchor Jake Tapper and others for last night's town hall with GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley.
"I know these past few days have been very hard for this group," Licht said. "I fully recognize that this news cycle and my role in it overshadowed the incredible week of reporting that we just had, and distracted from the work of every single journalist in this org. And for that, I am sorry."
"As I read that article, I found myself thinking, CNN is not about me," he continued. "I should not be in the news unless it's taking arrows for you. Your work is what should be written about."
"To those whose trust I've lost, I will fight like hell to win it back, because you deserve a leader who will be in the trenches, fighting to ensure CNN remains the world's most trusted name in news."
The Atlantic profile, written by Tim Alberta, described Licht as aloof from staff, in contrast to his well-liked predecessor Jeff Zucker. Alberta reported that Licht ignored his colleagues at CNN's holiday party in favor or reading his press coverage on his phone, and that one of his lieutenants ordered control room staffers to remove a reference to sexual assault from the chyron during the network's disastrous town hall with Trump.
Early in his reign, Licht moved his office from the newsroom on the 17th floor of CNN's New York City headquarters to one on the 23rd floor, where staffers had little access to him.
Puck's Dylan Byers reports Licht told staffers on the call that he will move his office back to the newsroom.
Licht's peers at the top of the media industry have compared the profile to watching a "snuff film." Insiders at CNN have also shared their theories on how the article became such a spectacular and ill-timed mess for Licht and CNN.