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NBCUniversal’s executive vice president of unscripted content, competition and game shows Corie Henson is set to exit the media giant as part of a broader restructuring.

Since taking on the role in 2022, Henson has overseen hits like “America’s Got Talent” and “The Voice” on NBC, “The Traitors” and “Love Island” on Peacock, and programming across the company’s portfolio of channels like Bravo, E!, Oxygen True Crime, Syfy and USA Network.

A spokesperson for NBCUniversal declined to comment.

Henson previously served as EVP and head of unscripted for TNT, TBS and TruTV. She developed and launched an unscripted programming strategy that included “Wipeout,” “Hogwart’s Tournament of Houses” and more. She was also formerly the EVP of Fox Alternative Entertainment, spearheading strategy for shows like “The Masked Singer,” “MasterChef,” “So You Think You Can Dance,” “Hell’s Kitchen” and “Beat Shazam With Jamie Foxx.”

Prior to Fox, she served...

Comcast is officially cutting the cord on most of its cable networks.

The company announced a plan Wednesday that will offload the bulk of NBCUniversal’s financially challenged cable portfolio — excluding Bravo — into a new entity owned by Comcast shareholders. The thinking is the new company will be positioned to acquire other media and digital properties, to gain greater scale in an increasingly streaming-focused landscape. Alternatively, the separation of the NBCU cable group would make it easier to sell the business.

The spin-off company will house MSNBC, CNBC, USA Network, Oxygen, E!, Syfy and Golf Channel. In addition, the company will include digital assets including Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes, online golf-course booking service GolfNow and youth-sports platform SportsEngine. Comcast said it is structured as a tax-free spin-off.

The new NBCU cable TV company — currently dubbed “SpinCo” — will be led by CEO Mark Lazarus, who has served as chairman of NBCUniversal...

Earthquakes usually happen on the west coast of the U.S., but this weekend’s political earthquake was centered squarely in Iowa.

The Des Moines Register/Selzer poll that showed Vice President Kamala Harris leading former President Donald Trump sent shockwaves through the political world. And it caused NBC’s Meet the Press to tear up some of its best laid plans.

“When I went to bed last night, I felt really great about where the panel was, and then I looked at it today, and some of those questions just had to change after Iowa,” recalls Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker. “It is an ongoing process right up until we go to air. It’s a living, breathing set of documents and interviews that we are constantly changing and tweaking right up until we go on … the fact that we’re a country that’s very divided, we have a real responsibility,...

MSNBC recognized the start of the Republican National Convention by giving its flagship morning program the day off.

“Morning Joe” and its early-a.M. companion program, “Way Too Early,” were scrapped on Monday as the NBCUniversal-backed cable-news outlet focused instead on breaking-news coverage tied to this weekend’s assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Most of NBCUniversal’s news outlets — NBC News, MSNBC and the live-streaming service NBC News Now — have offered a single “special report” feed, all of it showing the same coverage of the violent event and its aftermath.

CNN previously reported that executives at NBCU News Group, led by chairman Cesar Conde, were sensitive to the potential effects of a guest on “Morning Joe” saying something that could offend general sensibilities. But MSNBC has been in what producers call “rolling” coverage of the Trump shooting and the investigation into it. On Monday morning, the cable...

CBS News president Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews will exit the company, after a year running the broadcast news division.

The executive will shift to a role as a senior editorial adviser later this month, helping to oversee coverage of the 2024 presidential election, with plans to exit completely after that.

Ciprian-Matthews announced the decision in a note to staff Wednesday, and a source says she immediately went on to lead the 9 a.m. editorial call to discuss the 2024 election.

In her note, Ciprian-Matthews indicated that looming cost cutting at Paramount is a big reason for her exit.

“Some may be asking why I’m announcing this now,” she wrote. “We all know our industry and company are going through a transformation and a number of short- and long-term decisions need to be made. I do not want to be disingenuous with any of you about who should drive these decisions. I’ve always...

CBS News may be on the hunt for another newsroom honcho.

Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews, a veteran journalism executive who was named president of the Paramount Global news unit just last August, told staffers Wednesday morning that she planned to cede her role, opting instead to serve as a senior advisor for coverage of the 2024 presidential election over the next several months before leaving the company.

Shaking up the senior executive structure at a major news organization in the middle of an election year is highly unorthodox, but so too are the struggles of CBS News’ parent corporation. Paramount has agreed to a merger with Hollywood production studio Skydance Media, and top executives at the company and its new suitor have already indicated that a wave of cost cuts is in store.

During a short tenure as president of CBS News, Ciprian-Matthews presided over a new boost at “CBS Mornings,” which has...

Exclusive: The Paley Center for Media has appointed four new trustees to its board and added some high profile executives to its L.A. contingent on the West Coast.

Kristin Dolan, CEO of AMC Networks, Omar Abbosh, CEO of Pearson, Brad Karp, chair of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, and Dennis Mathew, chairman-ceo of Altice USA are new to the board of trustees of the nonprofit programmer and think tank that explores all things media.

The Los Angeles Board of Governors is also expanding with Jesse Collins, founder and CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment; Sharb Farjami, North America CEO of GroupM; Daryl Lee, Global CEO of McCann Worldgroup; Christian Muirhead, co-chairman of WME; and Ben Samek, CEO of Banijay America. They join Bela Bajaria, Jennifer Salke, Kevin Beggs, Greg Berlanti, Frances Berwick, Casey Bloys, Robert A. Boyd II, Campbell Brown, Brian Robbins, George Cheeks, Agnes Chu, Channing Dungey, Michael Kassan,...

NBCUniversal may have kicked off TV’s upfront week with the Wicked trailer, Snoop Dogg, and adorable penguins, but it closed Monday with a more dedicated pitch to one of its marquee divisions: It’s Spanish-language business Telemundo.

Held inside The Shed’s eight-story glass-encased McCourt space, Telemundo focused its tight presentation on its recent ratings wins over arch-rival TelevisaUnivision, with some not so subtle jabs at its competitor.

“We constantly change and give our audiences what they want, while others continue to do the same thing, night after night, week after week, year after year,” Telemundo’s new chairman, Luis Fernandez, told the crowd.

“We are known for being innovators, and filling the void of content to represent Latinos from all walks of life,” added Cesar Conde, the head of the NBCU News Group who also oversees Telemundo. “No other media company can do that because we are the...

After an opening performance by a guitar-picking Jimmy Fallon — who sung about, among other things, how “next year I’ll be a hologram” — the NBCUniversal upfront got underway Monday at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

So you didn’t make it to the home of the Rockettes? Here’s what you missed:

-NBCUniversal Chairman Mark Lazarus briefly took the stage to crow “while others have been spinning, we’ve spent the last year investing in our content, tech and overall experience.” “No one else can do what we do,” he added.

-Talent like Jabari Banks and Jesse L. Martin talked up content like The Irrational and Bel-Air before tossing to a breathless video package touting NBCUni content that was hosted by Mark-Paul Gosselaar.

-NBCUniversal Studio Group Chair and Chief Content Officer Donna Langley chatted about how she’s “excited to build up our story legacy across film,...

NBCUniversal showed major love for its film division, primarily the highly anticipated Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande-led “Wicked,” during its 2024 upfront presentation Monday in New York.

While not the traditional venue for touting upcoming movies — as this week is all about wooing Madison Avenue to shell out big bucks for prime ad placement on TV — with film chief-turned-overall content boss Donna Langley on stage for her first upfront, the move was a natural moment for synergy.

Langley teed up a new trailer for “Wicked,” a treat just for those attending the presentation at Radio City Music Hall, and promised it will drop wide later this week.

Upfronts 2024: Full Coverage @ Variety.Com

NBC will air “Wicked” behind-the-scenes special “Defying Gravity: The Curtain Rises on Wicked” on Nov. 25 ahead of the Nov. 27 release of the film. The special will then be available for streaming on Peacock. Langley also boasted about...

Just about any CEO panel these days will inevitably reach the topic of artificial intelligence, and today’s NewFront sit down with the leaders of five major news organizations was no exception.

But it was CNN Worldwide CEO Mark Thompson who warned of what was at stake.

“If we get it wrong, we’ll get disintermediated, and people will get our stuff one way or the other in the way that AI companies have scraped everything we have ever done anyway, and they will provide it in other ways and our businesses will collapse,” Thompson said. “If we get it right, it could be a golden age of news experiences for people in this country and around the world.”

Thompson talked of AI being used as a way where people can find content “easier and quicker.”

AI was among a number of challenges that the CEOs addressed at the event.

The chants and shouts of pro-Palestinian demonstrators disrupted the entry to the Washington Hilton for this year’s White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, but once inside, attendees were greeted with what has become the usual scene: Celebrities on the red carpet, a crush for the security line and glitterati packed into a cavernous ballroom.

“I want to thank my wife for enduring lots of jokes and for agreeing to individually meet everyone in this room right after the ceremony,” the evening’s featured entertainer, Colin Jost, quipped about Scarlett Johansson, who posed for photos with a non-stop stream of attendees. She continued to do so later in the evening, at the Comcast-nbcu after party at the French ambassador’s residence.

Joe Biden laughs at Colin Jost as he entertains at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.

The protests outside — now ubiquitous at any public event, much less one that mixes politics,...

CBS News is ready to launch a new salvo in TV’s streaming wars.

With many of its rivals bolstering their streaming offerings in recent months, CBS News plans to broaden its efforts by debuting a new signature “whip-around” live-streamed program, “CBS News 24/7” that will rely on journalists both from the national news outlet as well as from CBS local stations — and serve as the new name of the broadband outlet. CBS will also expand current streaming programs led by anchor John Dickerson and the CBS News Washington bureau and launch a 1 a.m. program called “CBS News Roundup” for late-night viewing.

“CBS News 24/7 is a decidedly ambitious evolution of our streaming efforts,” said Wendy McMahon, president and CEO of a unit that comprises CBS News, local stations and syndication, in a statement. “Data backs up our bet on a fresh, timely, and distinctive approach to breaking news and live coverage.

Telemundo has a new leader after its current chairman, Beau Ferrari was made a strategic advisor to the executive who has oversight for both news and Spanish-language programming at parent company NBCUniversal.

Luis Fernandez, who retired from Telemundo in 2021, will return to the large NBCU unit. Meanwhile, Ferrari was named an advisor to Cesar Conde, the chairman of NBCUniversal News Group. Telemundo, which maintains operations in news, stations and entertainment, is part of Conde’s portfolio.Ferrari is expected to work on strategic growth opportunities.

Fernández, who will report to Mr. Conde, previously served as President of Noticias Telemundo, the news division of Telemundo.

“Throughout his extraordinary career, Luis has time and again shown visionary leadership, building and growing the most successful Spanish language media organizations in the United States and overseas,” Conde said, in a statement. “At this moment in Telemundo’s storied history, we are so fortunate to...

Luis Fernández, an executive with experience in news, sports and entertainment media, has been named Chairman of NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises.

Beau Ferrari, who had held the Chairman title for the past three years, will segue to a senior advisory role working with NBCU News Group Chairman Cesar Conde to develop new opportunities for the news portfolio.

The new post marks a return to Telemundo for Fernández, who previously served as President of Noticias Telemundo, the Hispanic media company’s news division.

Fernández also served as CEO of Radio Television Española (Rtve), Spain’s state-owned public radio and television corporation, where he supervised television, radio and digital divisions. Other previous posts include President of Univision Entertainment and Univision Studios, where he developed broadcast and social media programs during a historic ratings period for the company. He also was part of the management team of soccer organization Real Madrid, holding the title...

Telemundo Enterprises is getting a new chairman.

The Spanish-language content division of NBCUniversal has named Luis Fernández its new chairman. Fernández, the former president of its news division Noticias Telemundo, will report to Cesar Conde, who oversees the NBC News Group, the NBC local stations and Telemundo.

He succeeds Beau Ferrari, who was elevated to chairman of Telemundo three years ago. Ferrari will become a senior advisor to Conde.

Fernández, who had led Telemundo’s news division since 2015, had previously retired from the company at the end of 2021. Before joining Telemundo, he served as CEO of Radio Television Española (Rtve), Spain’s state-run TV and radio service; as president of Univision Entertainment and Univision Studios; and as international CEO of Real Madrid.

“Throughout his extraordinary career, Luis has time and again shown visionary leadership, building and growing the most successful Spanish language media organizations in the United States and overseas,...

Who’s doing it better — Kristen Welker or Jake Tapper?

The two journalists, one the new moderator of NBC News’ “Meet The Press,” the other the anchor of the weekday “The Lead” and a co-anchor of “State of the Union” at CNN, aren’t typically pitted against one another. But there they were on a recent Thursday afternoon around 4:30 p.m., duking it out for the future of their medium.

Welker was holding forth on “Meet the Press Now,” a show earmarked for streaming users on the broadband outlet NBC News Now. Tapper was anchoring his regular Thursday broadcast of “The Lead,” a program that is now also streamed to subscribers of Max, the main broadband hub of Warner Bros. Discovery. Both were grilling Republican congressmen about the recent ouster of former U.S. Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, and, while not necessarily realizing it, hoping to appeal...

Update: Chuck Todd signed off of his final broadcast as moderator of NBC News’s Meet the Press by handing his successor, Kristen Welker, a reliable alarm clock and telling viewers that he’ll be focusing on network projects tied to bridging the political divide.

Welker appeared in the final minutes of Sunday’s show, with a montage of her asking hard-hitting questions at a presidential debate in 2020 and of other notable figures.

“You have left very big shoes to fill and I just want to make you proud,” Welker told Todd.

“I take this responsibility so seriously,” Welker said. “I am ready because you have helped me get ready, Chuck. You’re someone who invests in the people who you care about and you have invested in me, and I am just so eternally grateful for that.” She credited Todd for bringing her to D.C. and teaching her...

Liz Jenkins has been named to the newly created position of chief business officer for NBCUniversal Studio Group.

Jenkins joins the conglomerate from Reese Witherspoon’s multimedia company Hello Sunshine, where she most recently served as chief operating officer. The executive will report to NBCUniversal Studio Group chairman and chief content officer Donna Langley, who announced the hiring Tuesday.

Langley also shuffled her cabinet of lieutenants, elevating some execs while changing the reporting structure of others. Peter Levinsohn, formerly vice chairman and chief distribution officer for Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, has been elevated to chairman of global distribution for the studio group. Jimmy Horowitz has also been upped, with the “vice” dropped from his title, becoming chairman, NBCUniversal business affairs and operations.

Jenkins’ hiring and the shuffling occur after this summer’s reorganization of NBCUniversal. Comcast president Mike Cavanagh expanded Langley’s responsibilities to include overseeing all content for the company,...

Comcast president Mike Cavanagh addressed the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes during the NBCUniversal parent company’s second quarter earnings call Thursday.

“We are committed to reaching a fair deal with the guilds as soon as possible,” Cavanagh said. “Beyond that, for all involved in the industry, broadly, a prolonged work stoppage and the longer it goes, the worse it’ll be. It is obviously going to have a negative impact all around.”

The WGA work stoppage has been ongoing since May 2, while SAG-AFTRA went on strike July 14.

The strikes have brought scripted film and TV production to a standstill across Hollywood as the actors and writers unions continue picketing against the studios repped by the AMPTP.

“As you look at Peacock, I wouldn’t point out anything in particular related to strikes and its effect in 2023, the second half of the year,” Cavanagh told analysts Thursday. “Obviously, the longer a strike,...

Media giant Comcast beat on its top and bottom line for the three months ended in June with theme parks and studio strong, even as the latter basks in another giant opening, for Opppenheimer, in the current third quarter.

Total revenue nosed up 1.7% to $30.5 billion for the second quarter ended in June. Net income jumped 25% to $4.28 billion. Eps of $1.02 compared with $0.76 a year ago.

At studios, adjusted Ebitda surged by $258 million to $255 million driven by the The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which grossed $1.3 billion in worldwide box office in the second quarter, and Fast X.

Theme Parks adjusted Ebitda increased 32% to $833 million, its highest on record, reflecting year-on-year growth at Universal Beijing, Universal Japan and Universal Hollywood. The parks in Asia were still partly closed or at reduced capacity for part of last year.

“The consistent investments...

Comcast reported its Q2 earnings Thursday, with its NBCUniversal division reporting some huge gains but also underscoring the challenge of making streaming into a profitable business. Overall, Comcast handily smashed Wall Street expectations in both revenue and earnings per share.

Peacock now has 24 million subscribers, up from 22 million last quarter and 13 million a year ago, and its revenue rose by 85 percent to $820 million. But the streaming service continues to lose money, reporting a loss of $651 million in the quarter, compared to a loss of $704 million last quarter, and $444 million a year ago. Notably, Comcast said that most of the new subscribers in the quarter were the result of converting free Comcast subs into paying subs.

And the advertising market continues to be challenged, with the media division reporting an advertising decline of 4.9 percent compared to last year. Overall media revenue was essentially flat, thanks to improved distribution revenue (including the...

Anyone looking for a sign of Comcast president Mike Cavanagh’s strategy as the recently installed overseer of NBCUniversal got a bright one Thursday.

The seasoned finance exec unveiled a significant revamp of the company’s senior management ranks today. Donna Langley, Mark Lazarus and Cesar Conde headed the list of those gaining promotions, while Susan Rovner, chairman of entertainment content for NBCU television and streaming, was a high-profile exec to exit the company.

Donna Langley

One notable aspect of the new org chart is Langley’s new dual role overseeing both film and TV. At companies of comparable scale to NBCU, the film and TV realms are still generally run separately even though the line between them gets blurrier every day. Amazon, Apple and Netflix have all made moves to unify the management at the very top of the food chain, but traditional media firms still have separate silos.

Donna Langley: Now with TV!

The chairman of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group has added television oversight as part of a Thursday restructuring at NBCUniversal; Langley’s title is now chairman, NBCUniversal Studio Group & chief content officer. Susan Rovner, who was chairman of entertainment content for NBCU’s television and streaming division, is leaving the company.

Rovner’s counterpart, Frances Berwick, will be elevated to chairman, NBCUniversal Entertainment, a newly formed role reporting into both Langley and NBCUniversal Media Group Chairman Mark Lazarus.

The news was announced Thursday by Mike Cavanaugh, who took over in April after Jeff Shell exited following an investigation into sexual harassment. Cavanaugh’s restructure includes himself as president but no CEO; in place of that position are a hand-picked leadership team. In addition to Langley overseeing all content, Lazarus will lead Peacock, NBC Sports, and affiliates, Cesar Conde has the news division, and Mark Woodbury leads parks.

Executive is one of four operational heads to lead NBCU as Comcast head decides not to name one CEO.

Universal Filmed Entertainment Group chairman Donna Langley has been promoted to chairman of NBCUniversal Studio Group & chief content officer, taking charge of the new unified division in a role which adds oversight of television and streaming content strategy to her purview.

Langley is one of four operational heads at NBCU under Comcast president Mike Cavanagh, who said on Thursday (July 6) he will not name a new CEO following the recent departure of Jeff Shell.

She will now oversee NBCU’s creative...

Executive is one of four operational heads to lead NBCU as Comcast head decides not to name one CEO.

Universal filmed Entertainment chairman Donna Langley has been promoted to chairman of the newly created NBCUniversal Studio Group & chief content officer.

Langley will oversee a unified content strategy across the NBCUniversal portfolio bringing together the film and television studios and is one of four operational heads at NBCU under Comcast president Mike Cavanagh, who said on Thursday (JUly 6) he will not name a new CEO following the recent departure of Jeff Shell.

Langley will oversee NBCU’s creative teams including Universal...

NBCUniversal is getting a major C-suite shake-up.

Comcast president Mike Cavanagh is undertaking a significant executive reorganization of NBCUniversal, giving expanded responsibilities to executives Donna Langley, Mark Lazarus and Cesar Conde, and cutting the number of direct reports he deals with on a regular basis to four operational leaders.

Langley, the chair of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, will now oversee all content for the company, including for streaming and TV. Her new title will be chairman of the NBCUniversal studio group & chief content officer.

Conde, the chairman of the NBC News Group, will add oversight of Telemundo, the company’s Spanish-language division, as well as the company’s local TV business. Lazarus will be chairman of the NBCUniversal media group, which will include oversight of advertising and distribution, as well as the business operations of the TV networks and streaming platforms, and NBC Sports.

Mark Woodbury will continue as a direct report to Cavanagh,...

NBCUniversal is going through another restructure.

Donna Langley, who was Chairman, Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, is being promoted to oversee all of the company’s entertainment divisions including film and TV.

Susan Rovner, Chairman, Entertainment Content for NBCUniversal’s Television and Streaming division, is leaving.

Mark Lazarus, Chairman, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming, and Frances Berwick, who is now Chairman, NBCUniversal Entertainment are also getting promoted.

The moves come as Comcast President Mike Cavanagh puts his stamp on the company after taking over following Jeff Shell’s exit after an investigation into sexual harassment.

Cavanagh will continue to lead NBCU as President of Comcast and will not name a new CEO. Instead, he will hand responsibility to four operational heads: Donna Langley, Mark Lazarus, Cesar Conde and Mark Woodbury; and four key corporate leaders: Kimberley Harris, Anand Kini, Adam Miller and Craig Robinson.

As part of this new structure, Langley will oversee the NBCUniversal Studio Group,...

Universal film chief Donna Langley is set to take control of content and creative ops across NBCUniversal’s portfolio of brands, as TV chief Susan Rovner exits the company.

The shakeup in leadership is the first major restructuring move made by Comcast president Mike Cavanagh since he took direct oversight of subsidiary NBCU upon the ousting of CEO Jeff Shell in April.

In a memo to staff Thursday, Cavanagh announced NBCUniversal will be reorganized into four key units: NBCUniversal Studio Group, led by Langley, NBCUniversal Media Group, run by chairman of TV and streaming Mark Lazarus, NBCU News Group, run by existing news boss Cesar Conde, and the Universal Destinations and Experiences Group, headed up by parks boss Mark Woodbury.

Cavanagh is doubling down on his decision to not name a new CEO of NBCU, and instead continue to oversee the media company from his role as president of Comcast.

Comcast unveiled a shock change atop its entertainment arm NBCUniversal on Sunday, putting in charge trusted corporate executive Mike Cavanagh to replace NBCU CEO Jeff Shell.

In a Monday regulatory filing, the company detailed that Shell had engaged in “inappropriate conduct with a female employee, including allegations of sexual harassment,” leading it to retain outside counsel to investigate. “Evidence was uncovered that corroborated the allegations,” the filing highlighted. As a consequence, Comcast “terminated Mr. Shell’s employment with cause,” meaning he won’t have right to severance pay, with immediate effect.

Attorney Suzanne McKie of Farore Law stated to multiple outlets that her client, CNBC journalist Hadley Gamble, made a complaint against Shell that sparked an investigation.

Shell’s departure brings up questions about who will take over as his permanent successor and how they will handle questions such as the future ownership of Hulu (of which Comcast is a...

It’s not that we Latin people are silent, it’s that we are muted mostly because there are not enough Latinx journalists to amplify what is happening in our communities. Look at New York City. We are equal to whites in population but you barely see any Latino names on mastheads or the bylines of stories. And it’s not just The New York Times — it’s also Saturday Night Live, the New York Post, The New Yorker, New York Magazine. It’s our city and we are invisible.

When NBC News announced in January that Hallie Jackson, its senior Washington correspondent, would leave the anchoring duties she had held at MSNBC since 2016, some eyebrows rose. But NBC News was chasing something else on the rise: Digital audiences.

Since Jackson began anchoring a late-afternoon hour on NBC News Now in December 2021, a growing audience has sought her out. Viewership surged 108% over the course of a year. “You don’t see those numbers in many businesses,” says Janelle Rodriguez, the NBC News executive vice president who oversees the streaming outlet, in an interview. “When you see that level of audience increase, you know you are on to something,” On Monday, Jackson will double her time on her program, “Hallie Jackson Now,” to two hours, which means she will hold forth from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

NBC News Now is also on Monday expanding its evening lineup. Gadi Schwartz will...

The new year is kicking off with some notable changes at NBC’s newsgathering operations, including daytime and streaming programming shifts as well as layoffs impacting the division.

Over at the digital platform NBC News Now, Hallie Jackson is getting a vote of confidence with an additional hour of the senior Washington correspondent’s show, which will now air from 5 to 7 p.m. Et.

“On Now, she’s covered everything from the midterms, to mental health, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and climate change, making sense of the news of the day for our viewers in her signature conversational style, and now, going even deeper with the new hour,” stated Janelle Rodriguez, who was just promoted to executive vp NBC News Now to oversee the service in addition to NBC Nightly News.

On the cable news side, MSNBC is retooling its daytime programming schedule, with changes including José Díaz-Balart taking over the 11 a.

NBC News and MSNBC were undergoing a round of layoffs on Thursday, although the impact appeared to be less severe than the staff reductions at other media entities.

The layoffs were in the double digits, according to a source, out of a workforce of about 3,500. CNN reported that the number was around 75. The staff cuts also were scattered across the divisions, according to the source. No on-air talent was expected to be impacted.

This follows the announcement earlier this week of layoffs across the parent company NBCUniversal, numbering in the dozens.

The layoffs come a day after a reorganization of NBC News, with Noah Oppenheim departing as president and his duties split among three top executives, with each reporting to NBCU News Group chairman Cesar Conde. The network has been adding positions in recent years to areas like streaming. Like other networks, NBC News has been positioning for growth in...

Noah Oppenheim, president of NBC News since early 2017, will leave the organization in an unorthodox shake-up that will elevate three different executives, effectively separating the massive news outlet into different pieces, all of which will report to Cesar Conde, chairman of NBCUniversal’s portfolio of news assets.

Under a new structure, Libby Leist, the NBC News executive who oversees “Today,” and Janelle Rodriguez, the NBC News executive who supervises the streaming outlet NBC News Now, will both report to Conde. They will be joined by Rebecca Blumenstein, a senior editor at The New York Times who will take up the role of president of editorial for NBC News and who will also report to Conde. Blumenstein is charged with oversight of editorial, news gathering, bureaus, field operations, booking, “Meet the Press,” “Dateline,” and NBC News Studios.

The reorganization means that NBC News’ most popular programs will no longer be under...

NBC News president Noah Oppenheim is exiting his post after five years, stepping down and inking a film and TV production deal with NBCUniversal.

Oppenheim’s departure is part of a larger reorganization at the NBC News Group, with much of his responsibilities shifting to a new hire: New York Times veteran Rebecca Blumenstein, who will become president of editorial for NBC News.

According to a memo from NBC News Group chief Cesar Conde, Blumenstein will oversee editorial, newsgathering, booking and the NBC News bureaus around the world. She will also oversee the Dateline and Meet the Press franchises, as well as NBC News Studios.

However, Conde also said that he is elevating executives elsewhere at the company: At the Today show, Libby Leist will become executive vp, overseeing all aspects of the morning news franchise. And Janelle Rodriguez will become executive vp of NBC News Now, overseeing the streaming news outlet,...

Noah Oppenheim, who has served as president of NBC News since 2017, is leaving his position, while the network’s news division undergoes a restructuing.

New York Times deputy managing editor Rebecca Blumenstein will join the network and take on many of the division duties, while other executives will oversee flagship shows Today and NBC Nightly News.

Oppenheim will take a production deal at NBC Universal, according to a staff announcement on Wednesday from Cesar Conde, the chairman of the NBCUniversal News Group.

Blumenstein’s title will be president of editorial for NBC News, a new role, and she will oversee editorial, news gathering, bureaus, field operations, booking, Meet the Press, Dateline and NBC News Studios.

Under the reorganization, other oversight of the NBC News division will be split among other executives, each of whom will report to Conde. Libby Leist, who has been senior vice president of Today and NBC News,...

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The afternoon email hit some inside CNN like a ton of bricks. The cable news channel, now under Warner Bros. Discovery (its second owner in just a few years) was going to face budget cuts and layoffs. “There is widespread concern over the global economic outlook, and we must factor that risk into our long-term planning,” CNN CEO Chris Licht wrote in a late-October memo.

At a network town hall on Nov. 15, Licht confirmed to moderator Alisyn Camerota that layoffs will hit the division in December. Those cuts are part of an industrywide pivot, as media giants prepare for a difficult winter, seeking to reduce costs however they can. And news divisions will not be spared.

At Disney, CEO Bob Chapek sent a memo to division leaders Nov. 11 outlining a hiring freeze, canceling all travel not deemed “essential” and a new “cost structure...

Update: CNBC anchor Andrew Ross Sorkin will debut a limited series on NBC News Now on Wednesday evening, starting with an interview with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla following back to back bouts with Covid.

Sorkin’s show, called Special Report with Andrew Ross Sorkin, will debut at 10:30 Pm Et. An early clip of the interview here.

Sorkin is the co-anchor of CNBC’s Sqwawk Box and is a financial columnist for The New York Times and editor at large of DealBook. He’s the latest figure from NBCU to provide content on the streaming service.

In the interview, Bourla pushed back on claims that Pfizer didn’t test the Covid vaccine to see if it prevented transmission. He told Sorkin that “there is no other vaccine in the world that has been tested so intensively.”

Previously, March 9: CNBC anchor Andrew Ross Sorkin will host and produce a limited series for NBC News Now,...

CNBC Chairman Mark Hoffman is stepping down after 17 years at the business news channel. His last day will be Sept. 12.

“CNBC stands for something. It impacts the business world, investors, and individuals struggling to make sense of their money. You’ve made a difference,” he wrote in a memo to staff on Tuesday, which was obtained by TheWrap. “How do you measure a business success beyond the financials and KPIs? I’d start by assessing the quality of the team, the enduring strength of the brand, and the prospects for growth. At CNBC, we’re three-for-three.”

He continued, “I’m humbled and grateful to have had this time with all of you and so proud of what we have done together. No matter where life takes me, professionally and personally, I’ll be rooting for CNBC!”

Kc Sullivan is returning to the network to replace Hoffman. He most recently served...

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Mark Hoffman, the TV executive who has led the business news channel CNBC since 2005, will step down from the company in September, he told employees in a memo Tuesday morning.

Kc Sullivan, who previously led CNBC’s international businesses and most recently served as a senior international d sales executive for the company, will succeed Hoffman as CNBC’s president. Sullivan will report to NBCU News group chairman Cesar Conde.

Hoffman has served as chairman of CNBC since 2015, after being named its president in 2005.

“Over the last 17 years as President and then Chairman, Mark has overseen the steady continued growth of CNBC as the world’s #1 business and money news brand,” Conde wrote in his own memo to staff Tuesday. “No business news organization comes close to the reach and influence of CNBC, a true testament to Mark’s leadership.”

The TV news business is a volatile one,...

Mark Hoffman is stepping down as the longtime head of CNBC in September, and will be succeeded by NBCU executive Kc Sullivan.

The leadership change, to take place on Sept. 12, will mark the end of Hoffman’s tenure at the network, one of the longest in cable news channel history.

Cesar Conde, chairman of the NBCUniversal News Group, said in a statement, “The growth and success of CNBC over so many years is a testament to Mark’s leadership over a nearly three-decade-long career marked by many wins along the way. During his tenure, CNBC became a world leader and every year it has grown better and stronger. It continues to expand both domestically and internationally through new platforms and plays an essential role in keeping audiences and markets informed in real time about consequential issues and events.”

Hoffman first joined CNBC in 1997, then left three years later to lead...

The closing bell is ringing for Mark Hoffman, the longtime chief of stock-market chronicler CNBC.

Hoffman said in a memo Tuesday that he plans to step down from the role after a 17-year tenure. His last day at the helm would be September 12. He will be replaced by Kc Sullivan, the president and managing director of NBCUniversal’s global advertising and partnerships business.

“Once defined as a moribund domestic cable channel that many thought would never fully recover from the dotcom bubble bursting, CNBC is today a global multimedia powerhouse, punching far above its weight, in the digital age,” Hoffman said in his note.

CNBC may be best known for the market prognostications of Jim Cramer and the wry morning presence of Becky Quick, but behind the stock-and-bonds commentary is a large business that thrives mainly by catering to a broad but niche constituency: people with skin in the game in the world of finance.

President Joe Biden still plans to attend this weekend’s White House Correspondents’ Association dinner even after Vice President Kamala Harris has tested positive for Covid and health officials are warning that the most recent variant is especially contagious.

It’s a sign of the eagerness of the Beltway crowd to get on with the business of socializing.

And it is a business: Packed into the next five days are loads of parties and receptions, sponsored by talent agencies, networks, news divisions and media outlets, as well as corporate brands, as a showcase for D.C.’s boldfaced names.

One of the prized tickets has been UTA’s Friday night event at Fiola Mare restaurant, which in years past has gone into the wee hours, gathering many of the agency’s news media figure clients. CAA also is hosting a reception earlier in the evening. WME said that it was...

NBCUniversal News Group has signed a multi-year exclusive partnership with the Aspen Ideas Festival, the annual gathering of policy and political leaders in Aspen, Co.

The plans call for bringing the festival events to NBC News, MSNBC, CNBC and the streaming service Peacock, as well as other news brands. NBCU News Group and the Aspen Institute will be jointly creating content for the event.

NBCU is taking the place of longtime media partner The Atlantic. The media company’s sales team also will sell packages across the various platforms.

The festival will take place from June 25 to July 1 in Aspen. Network journalists and anchors will be featured in interviews and other events at the festival. The festival, which launched in 2005, also features experts in other areas alike arts, science and culture.

In a statement, Dan Porterfield, the president and CEO of Aspen Institute, said that the partnership “is an exciting...

Stephen Labaton, an executive at Booz Allen Hamilton and former correspondent for The New York Times, has been named executive vice president of communications for the NBCUniversal News Group.

He’ll report to Cesar Conde, chairman of the news group.

Mark Kornblau departed as executive vice president of communications during the summer to take a post at Softbank.

Labaton has spent the past three years as EVP of corporate affairs for Booz Allen Hamilton, where he led a team focused on strategic communications, media relations, marketing and government relations, among other duties. He previously spent six years at Finsbury, the communications firm, as president-North America and chairman of its worldwide crisis practice.

At the Times, he was senior writer and national correspondent in Washington and New York, covering regulatory, legal, political, technology and economic issues. He was chairman of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and a longtime board member.

José Díaz-Balart will host a new 10 Am Et show on MSNBC, as Hallie Jackson takes over a slot later in the day at 3 Pm Et.

Díaz-Balart will end his role as anchor of Telemundo’s nightly newscast Noticias Telemundo at the end of the month, but will still anchor monthly specials and breaking news events.

Those were among the schedule changes the network announced on Tuesday.

Ayman Mohyeldin, who had been in the 3 Pm slot, will shift to weekends with a show called Ayman. He’ll also be hosting a Friday show on the streaming channel The Choice from MSNBC.

José Díaz-Balart Reports will premiere on Sept. 27. Ayman will debut on Sept. 18.

In addition to anchoring MSNBC Reports in the 3 Pm hour, Jackson will launch a show for NBC News Now this fall.

Díaz-Balart will continue to anchor NBC Nightly News Saturday. When he began anchoring that newscast, he became...

NBC News and MSNBC correspondent Steve Kornacki, the data guru who became one of the breakout stars of election night coverage last year, will develop a game show for NBCUniversal’s television and streaming group, and will officially join NBC Sports with plans for appearances during Olympics coverage and Super Bowl Lvi.

The game show, which he will host, will showcase his interests in statistics, sports and politics, but details of the show have not yet been announced.

The expanded scope for Kornacki is part of a new deal with the network, according to the Los Angeles Times, which first reported on the new gigs.

Kornacki already has appeared on NBC football coverage and the Kentucky Derby, and he’s lately been sizing up the Preakness. He’ll join the sports team in Japan this summer for coverage of the Tokyo Olympics, and then next year for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics coverage.

Steve Kornacki will soon be fully focused on a topic perhaps even more American than presidential elections: NFL football.

His new deal with NBC keeps him not only at NBC News and MSNBC, where he shone on Election Night 2020 and through the following days, but appearing on “Football Night in America,” “Sunday Night Football” and the 2022 Super Bowl telecast.

The Los Angeles Times first reported the news. NBCUniversal News Group chairman Cesar Conde told the paper, “His interests really vary — so we’re fortunate to have a wider NBCU portfolio that’s equally dynamic.”

Kornacki, who correctly picked Medina Spirit to win the Kentucky Derby, has a mind for data and and numbers, so football is a natural fit – and he’s appeared on “SNF” since the election – but he’ll also be covering the Olympic Games and Triple Crown horse racing.

Kornacki picked Medina Spirit at 12-to-1 odds to...

CNN announced changes to its weekday morning and dayside lineup Wednesday, including new assignments for Victor Blackwell, Ana Cabrera, Alisyn Camerota and Brianna Keilar. The news network also unveiled new roles for Jim Acosta and Boris Sanchez on weekends, with all changes effective in April.

The net said Laura Jarrett and Christine Romans will continue to anchor Early Start from 5-6 am.

John Berman and Brianna Keilar will anchor New Day from 6-9 am, weekdays. Keilar most recently anchored CNN Right Now from 1-3pm weekdays. Prior to that, she was CNN’s White House correspondent during the Obama Administration. Berman has been co-anchor of New Day for the last two and a half years.

Poppy Harlow and Jim Sciutto will continue to anchor CNN Newsroom from 9-11 am.

Kate Bolduan will continue to anchor At this Hour from 11am-noon.

John King will continue to anchor Inside Politics with John King weekdays from noon-1pm.