Mass Exodus At CBS News After Tense Staff Meeting With Bari Weiss
CBS News is not what it once was. The newly named editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, held a tense staff meeting in January. Nearly a dozen staffers have since left the network. Keep reading for more details on the mass exodus.
Bari Weiss Holds Staff Meeting, Encourages Employees To Leave
A lot has changed at the CBS Broadcasting building in New York City in the last year. The changes began even before Paramount Global and Skydance Media merged into Paramount Skydance in August 2025. A few months before the merger was finalized, CBS revealed that Stephen Colbert’s late-night talk show had been canceled, effective May 2026.
Bari Weiss, a former opinion columnist at the New York Times, took over as the editor-in-chief of CBS’s news division. CBS Nightly News anchor Maurice DuBois and John Dickerson resigned shortly thereafter. CBS Mornings host Tony Dokoupil stepped in to anchor the evening news.
The ongoing turmoil has made headlines for months. Bari Weiss held a staff town hall meeting in January to quell fears and address the future of CBS News. She spoke about the changing landscape of news programs and the lack of trust viewers have in the media. She warned of changes to come and acknowledged that not everyone would be on board with the changes.
“If that’s not your bag, that’s OK. It’s a free country, and I completely respect if you decide I’m not the right leader for you, or this isn’t the right place at the right time,” Bari Weiss told the staff, according to multiple outlets.
Mass Exodus
In a surprising twist, Gayle King spoke up to defend Bari Weiss during the staff meeting. Speculation about Gayle King’s future with the network has dominated headlines for months. But Deadline reported that CBS offered buyout offers to staffers in the days after the tense meeting.
Nearly a dozen employees accepted the buyout offers, including at least one producer. Alicia Hastey sent her staff a fiery email explaining why she chose to take the buyout, noting the problems within the news division.
More Cuts Expected
After the merger, nearly 100 Paramount employees were laid off, including some staff at CBS News. The network’s parent company is cutting costs, and they’re reportedly not done yet.
Despite several staffers taking buyouts, CBS is expected to make even more cuts in the coming months. Variety reported that 15% of the remaining staff could be laid off. The cuts are part of the network’s plan to move away from anchors and use paid commentators. Expect more changes at CBS News, especially as ratings continue to tank.
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