Former CNN boss Chris Licht said he regrets giving an interview An Atlantic Magazine Profile He hastened his departure from the conflictLeft leaning news channel.
“If I could say one thing to anybody, don’t bring any reporters to the gym,” Licht told a Manhattan audience on Saturday — a reference to a quote to which he bragged that he compared his predecessor, former CNN chief Jeff Was more athletic. Zakhar.
In a 15,000-word profile, the then-CNN boss described himself as thin-skinned, isolated and jealous of Zucker, who was still popular in the eyes of top network stars.
In one particularly outrageous passage, Licht was quoted as saying while he was doing squats with heavy weights in the gym: “Zucker couldn’t make it work.”
“The Atlantic article I absolutely should not have done,” Licht ESPN analyst Stephen A. Said during an interview conducted by Smith Saturday at the New York Press Club’s journalism conference.
He said that he initially resisted the idea of agreeing to the magazine interview but eventually agreed because of his “ego”.
“Well, imagine saying yes after being told no several times, but then finally saying yes because you know that, when it comes out in a year, I’ll have everything saved,” Licht said.
“Now, I had never failed at anything before. So I just thought, you know what, it’s been a year, they’re going to write about ‘Wow, look at all these great things that have happened,'” Licht said in the Atlantic profile. Said.
“So, no, I should have done that.”
Licht, whose disastrous 13-month tenure as head of CNN ended last June when he was let go by Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, acknowledged Saturday that he was struggling to win “the trust of the organization.” Failed. Which ultimately led to his expulsion.
“When you try to change something dramatically, you can’t do it alone,” Licht said.
“You have to build the trust of the organization. They have to trust you. And I didn’t maintain that trust.”
Licht said he was appointed head of CNN during a “crazy time”, although he also said he was “not letting myself be freed from a bind.”
“As long as I was there, I couldn’t build the trust to get people to quiet the noise and follow me,” Licht said.
When Smith was asked to “find out” what was the reason for his dismissal, Licht Televised town hall mentioned in May 2023 With Donald Trump – during which moderator Kaitlyn Collins was stopped repeatedly by the now-elected president His supporters at the New Hampshire venue cheered his answers.
Licht defended it on Saturday Decision to host town hall with TrumpAt the time, CNN staffers blamed Licht for this failure – accusing him of putting Collins in a “no-win situation”.
On Saturday, Licht defended the decision to hold the stage at Town Hall.
He told Smith, “I still believe to this day that it was the right thing to do.” Licht said one of his regrets was that CNN did not inform viewers that the town hall included an audience made up of Trump supporters and center-right voters.
“Remember, we hadn’t seen Trump for a very long time,” Licht said of the thought process that went into the town hall broadcast.
“It was the first time he answered very difficult questions in a long time. And the fact that his complaint resonated with New Hampshire voters is part of the story, but it had to be communicated to people at home and that’s something I would have done differently.
Licht said the blowback came from people who “didn’t want change” and that he reacted by “picking up some fights I shouldn’t have.”
“There are some things I should have done – some alliances I should have built, or people I should have trusted more,” he said.
The post sought comment from CNN.
(TagstoTranslate)Media(T)US News(T)Chris Licht(T)CNN(T)David Zaslav(T)Mark Thompson(T)Warner Bros. Discovery
