CBS News to End Radio Service After Nearly 100 Years

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CBS News announced it will shut down its radio service in May after nearly 100 years, as part of a new round of layoffs.

The service is scheduled to end on May 22, impacting more than 700 affiliate stations, according to editor-in-chief Bari Weiss and president Tom Cibrowski, who made the announcement on Friday.

Employees will be informed by the end of the day if their positions are affected. Reports indicate the cuts could affect about 6% of the workforce, or over 60 employees.

"While this was a necessary decision, it was not an easy one," Weiss and Cibrowski said, citing a "shift in radio station programming strategies" and economic challenges that made continuing the service impossible.

"Parts of our newsroom must get smaller to make room for the things we must build to remain competitive," they added.

CBS recently came under the control of David Ellison, son of tech billionaire and Trump ally Larry Ellison, following his acquisition of Paramount as part of a broader merger with his Hollywood studio Skydance last year.

David Ellison's earlier takeover of Paramount was approved by the Trump administration after Paramount agreed to pay $16 million to settle a lawsuit brought by Trump over a 60 Minutes interview.

Last October, Ellison appointed former New York Times opinion writer Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News, aiming to modernize content at Paramount and establish CBS as the "most-trusted name in news."

Weiss, who has criticized broadcast media for perceived partisanship and liberal bias, has expressed her intention to change editorial decision-making at CBS.

CBS News maintains a partnership agreement with the BBC, allowing the sharing of news content including video footage. BBC News remains editorially independent from CBS.

In recent months, several high-profile journalists have left the network, including 60 Minutes correspondent Anderson Cooper, who announced in February he would leave the program to spend more time with his family.

Weiss faced criticism in December after deciding to pull a 60 Minutes segment about the Trump administration's deportations of Venezuelan men to a detention center in El Salvador. She explained in an editorial meeting that the segment "did not advance the ball" and required more interviews.

Since taking over, Weiss has introduced several changes, including plans announced in January to hire new contributors and restructure digital news coverage.

In their memo to staff on Friday, Weiss and Cibrowski acknowledged that "it is no secret the news business is changing, and we need to change along with it."

"New audiences are burgeoning in new places, and we are pressing forward with ambitious plans to grow and invest so that we can be there for them," they added.

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