Athan Stephanopoulos takes over site with 144 million users
(Bloomberg) — CNN has named Athan Stephanopoulos as its new chief digital officer, appointing a veteran of the online video business to grow its audience as the network braces for further cost-cutting.
Stephanopoulos, who will start in the new position on Nov.
14, was previously the president of NowThis, a news site aimed at younger audiences that’s owned by Vox Media. He’ll oversee editorial, product, technology and other operations, and report to CNN Chief Executive Officer Chris Licht, the company said in a statement.
Stephanopoulos is a first cousin of ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos.
In the statement, Licht said that Stephanopoulos’s “vision for digital journalism, alongside his leadership and business acumen, is exactly what we need to build CNN’s digital future.”
He’ll take over one of the most read news websites with CNN.com, which had a monthly average of 144 million unique users in 2021.
But he joins the network as it has undergone a series of cuts in recent months and likely faces more. Warner Bros. Discovery Inc., which took over CNN in April, shut down the CNN+ streaming service just a few weeks after its launch.
Last month, CNN laid off a number of employees in its podcasting unit.
Stephanopoulos replaces Andrew Morse, who left CNN after the shutdown of the streaming service.
Warner Bros. faces significant debt and has been seeking $3 billion in cost savings since its merger with Discovery Inc.
In a memo to staff Wednesday, Licht said CNN has restructured its digital team and is “investing significantly in the product.” But he also warned that “there is widespread concern over the global economic outlook, and we must factor that risk into our long-term planning.”
“All this together will mean noticeable change to this organization,” he said.
“That, by definition, is unsettling. These changes will not be easy because they will affect people, budgets, and projects.”
On Thursday, Licht also announced that Wendy Brundige, interim leader of CNN’s digital organization, will become senior vice president of CNN Digital Worldwide.
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