Jim Acosta Out At CNN!

Jim Acosta ain't doing the midnight shift.

The longtime CNN host is out.

Mediaite and Status News broke the news.

Jim Acosta, the longtime White House correspondent who often clashed with President Donald J. Trump during his first term is the latest major player in CNN cuts.

Warner Bros. Discovery has hinted branching off CNN and other networks after showing dismal quarter end earnings. Comcast has also planned on spinning off CNBC, E! Entertainment, MSNBC and USA Network.

Oliver Darcy, former CNN Media Analyst reported that Acosta is bowing out.

Darcy, a former CNN reporter, on Monday night said the 18-year veteran of the network has indicated to associates that he plans to leave the network after being removed from his 10 a.m. weekday time slot by CNN CEO Mark Thompson.

Earlier this month, Darcy said Thompson asked Acosta to anchor a show during the graveyard shift – from 12am to 2am.

Demotion.

The anchor, I’m told, signaled to associates in private conversations over the weekend that he intends to depart the network after its chief executive, Mark Thompson, booted him from the morning programming lineup — a move that conspicuously coincided with Donald Trump’s return to power.

CNN brass, as we first reported earlier this month, decided to strip Acosta of his 10am show, which he has anchored to great ratings success over the last 11 months, at times even seeing higher viewership than programs in the channel’s prime time bloc. Acosta was instead offered the less-than-desirable option of anchoring a show from midnight until 2am ET. CNN pitched the gig to Acosta as anchoring during prime time on the West Coast and said he could move to Los Angeles to host the program. But the reality is the program would have aired at a time in which cable news viewership is at its lowest levels.

Regarding Thompson’s suggesting that Acosta move to midnight, one source familiar with the situation said CNN was offering a sacrifice of sorts to Acosta’s longtime nemesis, President Donald Trump.

“They want to get rid of Acosta to throw a bone to Trump,” a source told Darcy. 

“Midnight is not a serious offer when his ratings are among the best on the network.”

CNN is making major readjustments to its schedule.

The Lead with Jake Tapper will be moving to 5-7 p.m. ET, up from its current 4-6 pm slot. Debuting at 4 pm will be The Arena, hosted by Kasie Hunt who currently anchors CNN This Morning. Audie Cornish will be taking over that 6 am slot while Rahel Solomon will lead a new show called 5 Things at 5 am.

Wolf Blitzer will also be moving to the 10 am slot with Pamela Brown.

Last week, CNN also laid off about six percent of its workforce.

Joe Walsh, a former Republican lawmaker and staunch critic of Trump slammed the decision saying that cable news is dying because of its willingness to bow to a habitual liar and convicted felon. He said that the decisions that CNN made will not bring in MAGA or even Republican viewers. They are totally locked on Fox, Newsmax and NewsNation.

Holding Trump accountable seems like a losing battle when it comes to revenue and advertising.

Don Lemon and Robin Meade have launched podcasts post CNN. 

Maybe Acosta could bring a fresh face to podcasting.