CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss and President Tom Cibrowski on Friday announced a new round of layoffs at the “Tiffany network” as well as the closure of CBS News Radio after nearly 100 years of operation.
The cuts are expected to affect roughly 6% of the 1,100 staffers in the newsroom, according to multiple reports.
“Today we are reducing the size of our workforce, and employees who are affected will be notified by the end of the day,” Weiss and Cibrowski wrote in a note to staff.
The pair attributed the decision to industry trends.
“It’s no secret that the news business is changing radically, and that 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. That means some parts of our newsroom must get smaller to make room for the things we must build to remain competitive,” they added.
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In a follow-up email to staffers about an hour later, Weiss and Cibrowski announced the closure of CBS News Radio. The radio network was founded in 1927.
“We informed our CBS News Radio team and approximately 700 affiliated stations that we will end the service on May 22, 2026,” they said. “Unfortunately, this decision means that all positions within the CBS News Radio team are being eliminated.”
Weiss and Cibrowski described the decision as tough but “necessary.”
“A shift in radio station programming strategies, coupled with challenging economic realities, has made it impossible to continue the service,” they said.
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CNN reported that Weiss tried to keep the radio network off the chopping block but “the financials made it impossible.”
This marks the second round of layoffs at CBS News since David Ellison acquired Paramount, the parent company of CBS, last summer and hired Weiss to lead the news organization. About 100 CBS News staffers’ roles were eliminated as part of the October 2025 cuts.
Weiss, who had no experience working in broadcast TV prior to her hiring, has also faced criticism for some of the decisions she’s made there, including for postponing the release of a “60 Minutes” piece about a notorious prison in El Salvador hours before it was set to air.
Besides, her decision to name Tony Dokoupil the anchor of “CBS Evening News” has not translated to higher ratings, as the show places last in viewership figures among the three broadcast networks.
