TVNewser confirmed that NBC News reduced the number of staff members on Thursday, laying off approximately 40 people across various departments.
According to sources, these reductions affect almost 3% of its workforce of 1,500 employees. NBC News also has 50 positions open and is looking to add more than a dozen new positions in the coming weeks as it seeks to improve its digital operation.
The NBC News layoffs occurred at the same time CNN announced that it was laying off 6% of its workforceamounting to 200 people. These cuts were also part of a larger pivot to a digital-first strategy.
In announcing the CNN cuts, network President and CEO Mark Thompson said: “The changes we are announcing today are part of an ongoing response by this great news organization to profound and irreversible changes in the way audiences in America and around the world consume news. “
Thompson noted that despite the cuts, CNN will add 100 new digital-focused roles in the first half of 2025 after receiving $70 million from its parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.
NBC News is currently in the process of parting ways with his cable siblings MSNBC and CNBC as parent company, Comcast, are looking to exit the linear cable business. This recent round of layoffs is not part of this reorganization, but rather a realignment of business strategy.
Corporate restructuring has impacted NBC News and CNN as they pivot their businesses. NBCUniversal is spinning many of its cable assets into the newly created Spinco, while WBD creates two new operational divisionsCNN joining the Global Linear Networks division alongside TNT, TBS, TLC and Discovery.
More changes are likely ahead for NBC News in the coming months as Spinco prepares for its planned launch in late 2025.
