CNN's Acosta Considering Leaving Amid Time Slot Talks

CNN anchor Jim Acosta is considering leaving the network amid discussions with the cable news outlet that would strip him of his morning time slot in exchange for a midnight eastern broadcast instead, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Acosta has been an on-air personality for CNN since 2017 and became known for his combative questioning of President Donald Trump during his first term. Yet a recent proposal by CNN Chairman and Chief Executive Mark Thompson to move him from his 10 a.m. show to a 2-hour midnight ET newscast has Acosta weighing whether he wants to remain with the network, according to the Times.

“We are in active discussions with Jim about a new time slot and will have more information to share soon,” a CNN spokesperson told the Daily Mail.

The proposed new show could be broadcast out of Washington D.C., where Acosta lives with his family, and he would not be required to relocate, according to the Times. The midnight eastern time slot would be prime time on the West Coast, airing from 9-11 p.m. PT. Acosta’s current ratings in the 10 a.m. timeslot are decent, suggesting that the proposal is a reaction to the anchor’s previous interactions with Trump when the president had Acosta’s press pass temporarily suspended, according to the report.

The LA Times reported that some CNN staffers are furious with the proposal and suggest it’s an example of network brass capitulating to the incoming Trump administration.

The drama surrounding Acosta and his future with the network comes the same week it was announced that massive layoffs would hit the Discovery-owned network, with hundreds of employees expected to be impacted as the companies seek to streamline their business to compete for a global digital audience.

“I know that whatever the total number of job losses, the impact on the individuals involved can be immense,” Thompson wrote in the memo, obtained by CNBC. “The process of change is essential if we’re to thrive in the future, but I both acknowledge and regret its very real human consequences.”

The cuts are expected to impact 6%, or roughly 210 employees.

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