By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-01-16 19:02:16 | Updated at 2025-01-20 20:47:05
4 days ago
CNN is set to move longtime anchor Wolf Blitzer to mornings, according to a new report.
Blitzer, 76, one of the network's main anchors, currently enjoys a plum spot on the cusp of primetime. He mans The Situation Room weekdays from 6pm to 7pm ET.
He has done so for the past two decades, and the new shuffle could see him gain an extra hour of exposure. However, some suggested the move could be a way 'something of an off-ramp' for the broadcaster, as he enters his golden years.
The news was first reported by the Status newsletter, which was started by former CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy upon his departure from the station last August.
Multiple people 'familiar with the matter' told him the plan is part of a greater one masterminded by new CEO Mark Thompson - the old New York Times boss brought in to overhaul the network under its Warner Bros. Discovery parent.
Several said Thompson's plan is designed to allow for a fresh array of faces each evening, while still keeping one of it's most well-known stars.
Sources also pointed out how one casualty from the shakeup could be Blitzer's friend Jim Acosta, who currently hosts CNN Newsroom at 10am.
That hour is reportedly now set to go to Blitzer and Chief Investigative Correspondent Pamela Brown, 41, for the yet-to-be-named show.
CNN is reportedly set to move longtime anchor Wolf Blitzer to mornings, as part of greater shuffle that will 'likely' effect his old friend Jim Acosta (seen with Blitzer on the set of Situation Room with Political Correspondent Sara Murray), who currently hosts CNN Newsroom
Multiple people 'familiar with the matter' told Status the plan is part of a greater one masterminded by new CEO Mark Thompson (seen here in May) - the old New York Times boss brought in to overhaul the network under its Warner Bros. Discovery parent
'It’s unclear if the new morning program will be renamed “The Situation Room,”' seven-year CNN vet Darcy wrote in his report, released Thursday.
He also pointed out how CNN’s morning programming is currently rivaling its evening programming - meaning roughly the same number of people will be tuning in to see Blitzer.
Moreover, they'd be turning into a familiar face, with Blitzer first appearing on CNN back in 1990.
He's since surfaced as one of the struggling station's most iconic anchors, though was recently denied a raise, according to The Ankler.
Still, he signed a new multi-year deal amid flailing ratings - re-signed to a new three-year deal, one that sources told the Ankler will see his pay frozen at roughly $3 million annually - the same sum he had been making before.
However, shortly thereafter, another online newsletter started in part by a CNN staffer, Puck, disputed The Ankler report, saying it 'got almost all the salary figures [of Blitzer and fellow stalwart Jake Tapper] wrong - in some cases egregiously'.
Information obtained by the newsletter indicated Tapper and Blitzer 'make millions more than $7 million and $3 million, respectively.'
The broader point about personalities being forced to renew at equal or lower rates, sources said, was true.
That hour is reportedly now set to go to Blitzer and Chief Investigative Correspondent Pamela Brown (seen here with Jake Tapper) for a yet-to-be-named show. Both Tapper and Blitzer were reportedly recently denied raises
'It’s unclear if the new morning program will be renamed “The Situation Room,”' seven-year CNN vet Oliver Darcy wrote in his report released Thursday
As a result, Acosta’s program would air from 9am to 10am, losing his 10am timeslot and a subsequent hour manned by co-host Brown in the process
Both newsletters said Tapper also re-signed to a three-year deal, as he too could prove part of the looming shuffle.
According to Status, Tapper, 55, could see his eponymous weekday show pushed back an hour closer to primetime, from 4pm to 5pm.
That's because by moving Blitzer to the mornings, Thompson would effectively be opening up a new one-hour block of programming.
To make room for Blitzer and Brown's two-hour morning show, he would have to find an extra hour, the insiders noted.
On option reportedly being floated is cutting an hour off 'CNN News Central,' which airs live weekdays 7am to 10am.
As a result, Acosta’s program would air from 9am to 10am, losing his 10am timeslot and a subsequent hour manned by co-host Brown in the process.
This would leave noon open for Blitzer and Brown - with Acosta’s show 'a much likelier target' than News Central, according to Darcy.
This comes after Acosta was already relocated to weekdays from weekends just this year, all while repeatedly criticizing soon-to-be president Donald Trump.
This would leave noon open for Blitzer and Brown (pictured) - with Acosta’s show 'a much likelier target' than News Central, insiders said
The recent shift seen from Jackson (pictured), insiders said, 'signals a gradual transition', as ' CNN certainly recognizes [Blitzer's age]. '[The network] appears to be unfolding something of an off-ramp' as a result,' the report concluded
Erin Burnett, currently the anchor of Erin Burnett OutFront from 7pm to 8pm, could also see her show stretched two hours, sources said
Insiders said other programming combinations Thompson could implement to free up the extra hour include moving Kasie Hunt, currently appearing early in the morning, to 4pm after she was brought in 2022 by disgraced chief executive Jeff Zucker to anchor a show on CNN+, which has since been dissolved.
Reportedly well-liked 'by key executives' - and said to being earning more than $1 million a year - she could be tapped to play a more prominent role to earn her paycheck.
However, gifting her a 4pm show 'could irk some of the network's other anchors who might have their eyes on a show of their own,' insiders told Darcy - who also reported it's possible CNN will change its afternoon lineup in a way that does not involve Hunt or Tapper.
Erin Burnett, currently the anchor of Erin Burnett OutFront from 7pm to 8pm, could see her show stretched two hours, sources said.
Either way, the changes are set to have an impact on the station's ratings, which have been in the tank since Donald Trump's election win.
Moreover, CNN is also reportedly on the verge of some layoffs - after already being hit with a series of high-profile exits.
The recent shift seen from Jackson, according to Darcy, 'signals a gradual transition', as 'CNN certainly recognizes [Blitzer's age].
'[The network] appears to be unfolding something of an off-ramp' as a result,' the report concluded.
DailyMail.com has reached out to CNN for comment.
