OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
It appears the controversial CNN anchor Jim Acosta, who was the CNN White House correspondent when former President Donald Trump was president, may be the next person dismissed by the network.
CNN has not made it a secret that it is making changes to the network that bring it more to a neutral territory and that has meant dismissing some of its old talent.
A new report from former Mediaite managing editor Jim Nicosia said that the network has decided he no longer fits with the new direction of the company.
“SCOOP: Another “big name” about to exit @CNN. (Stay tuned),” he said at the start of the week.
“Discovery Executive: ‘He does not have a place in the new CNN. He reminds us of the Zucker period we are looking to move far from. The only reason he is still on air was not to look like we were ‘cleaning house’ for political reasons right after the closing,’” he said. “I agreed not to report the name until the end of the week.”
Discovery Executive: "He does not have a place in the new CNN. He reminds us of the Zucker period we are looking to move far from. The only reason he is still on air was not to look like we were 'cleaning house' for political reasons right after the closing"
— Jon Nicosia (@NewsPolitics) October 11, 2022
On Friday he gave the name of the person as Acosta.
“The person this Discovery exec was talking about is Jim Acosta. CNN (like they did when I reported about Stelter being let go) will be to defend the person. That’s what network PR people do. Keep in mind many of the recent people let go had big support within the network but did not fit into the ‘middle ground’ vision CNN is being pushed into.
“Since Acosta was the main Trump lightning rod between the ‘old’ CNN and the new owners future vision he will either go quick, or with a lot of internal pushback. Stay tuned,” he said.
The person this Discovery exec was talking about is Jim Acosta. CNN (like they did when I reported about Stelter being let go) will be to defend the person. That’s what network PR people do. Keep in mind many of the recent people let go had big support within the network /more
— Jon Nicosia (@NewsPolitics) October 14, 2022
“One important thing that this executive wanted to stress is they are nowhere near done, and Acosta won’t be the last of the ‘old guard’ to go, but this ‘takes time’ and ‘they’re getting an incredible amount of internal push back from people who want to stay a resistance network,’” he said.
One important thing that this executive wanted to stress is they are nowhere near done, and Acosta won’t be the last of the “old guard” to go, but this “takes time” and “they’re getting an incredible amount of internal push back from people who want to stay a resistance network”
— Jon Nicosia (@NewsPolitics) October 14, 2022
He is correct. The network said his story about Stelter being fired was incorrect weeks before they announced that he and the company had parted ways.
The network has seen a big change in recent times.
Conservative CNN analyst Mary Katharine Ham has penned a vicious tell-all about being suspended from CNN by the former head of the network.
In it she claimed that former network CEO Jeff Zucker suspended her after she made comments on the scandal that involved from CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin being caught masturbating on a video call.
It started on Twitter when she suggested that the shooting of a Republican Congressman during practice for a Congressional baseball game did not get the coverage it deserved on the network.
“I lived a block from the baseball field. Under 48 hours, the news vans were gone. I was on TV, live from the baseball field where they played the game a day later, after almost being canceled by mass murder, but my topic was ‘Mike Pence reportedly hired a lawyer,’” she said.
I lived a block from the baseball field. Under 48 hours, the news vans were gone. I was on TV, live from the baseball field where they played the game a day later, after almost being canceled by mass murder, but my topic was "Mike Pence reportedly hired a lawyer." https://t.co/b5lIakIwIb
— Mary Katharine Ham (@mkhammer) January 7, 2022
“You’re welcome to talk yourself into idea that a similar murder attempt on an entire team of Democrats would have gotten the same treatment. I think the shooting of Gabby Giffords is pretty analogous and disproves that theory. Even without that data point, it’s just not true,” she said.
You're welcome to talk yourself into idea that a similar murder attempt on an entire team of Democrats would have gotten the same treatment. I think the shooting of Gabby Giffords is pretty analogous and disproves that theory. Even without that data point, it's just not true.
— Mary Katharine Ham (@mkhammer) January 7, 2022
That was when another CNN talent, Andrew Kaczynski, showed a photo of her reporting on the shooting for CNN.
“It looks you discussed the baseball game?” he said.
She responded by saying “Got jack to say about Cuomo and Toobin, but gotta fact-check me when he’s got nothing.”
In her piece she claimed that she was punished for mentioning Toobin in that tweet.
“In case you’re wondering, as I did, how my punishment for tweeting about Toobin compares to Toobin’s suspension for his offense, I can tell you. He was off air for eight months; I was off for seven. One month was the difference between punishment for jacking off at work versus commenting on the inadvisability of jacking off at work,” she said.
“On one hand, the people who made this call about me are gone from the network, so maybe I could let it lie. But on the other hand, many of my colleagues no doubt knew about my banning from air, but not the reasons behind it, thereby leaving the impression I must have done something tantamount to Toobining. I did not,” the analyst said.
“I was told it was Jeff Zucker, now gone, who put this order in place and a deputy, also gone, who kept it there,” she said. “I was also told I wasn’t informed of the network’s displeasure because I had just had a baby and someone in the old leadership thought I might be a ‘loose cannon.’ Not as loose as Toobin’s, but I digress.”
