Chris Licht is assembling his leadership team at CNN –

CNN CEO Chris Licht has assembled his executive team to name direct reports who will support the cable news channel’s global operations.

Licht’s appointments are mostly longtime CNN employees, reflecting CNN’s desire to shift its focus to hard news rather than making dramatic changes.

“With this strong team in place, the real work begins,” Licht wrote to the team on Wednesday afternoon. “I have no doubt that these leaders will individually and collectively address the challenges ahead and create new opportunities for CNN in the ever-evolving media landscape.” These senior executives are now developing plans for their leadership teams and we’ll be sharing those decisions in the coming months. I am extremely excited about the future of CNN and this team, and I want to move forward and roll my arms together.

Among the executive promotions, one in particular stands out: Virginia Mosel, who will become executive vice president of editorial, overseeing CNN’s television and digital news gathering. Moseley, who previously oversaw television news gathering, will now add digital oversight, previously led by Andrew Morse. Mosel, whose husband, Tom Nides, currently serves as the US ambassador to Israel, will move to New York.

Licht also officially announced the addition of two strangers to its executive team: Washington post Veteran Christine Korat Kelly, named CNN’s head of global communications on Wednesday, and Chris Marlin, a friend of Licht’s who will lead strategy and business operations, will be tasked with finding new revenue and optimization opportunities around the world. the business. “

But most of Licht’s team are CNN veterans, notably three executives who ran CNN before Warner Bros. Discovery was looking for a successor to former CNN president Jeff Zucker.

Michael Bass will remain as Executive Vice President of Programming and will lead CNN’s daily editorial call; Amy Entellis, who leads content and talent development as executive vice president; and Ken Jautz, executive vice president of news, including operations and production oversight, also at HLN.

Licht also said that Johnita Due will become executive vice president of integrity and inclusion, overseeing diversity and inclusion efforts as well as standards and practices. The channel is also continuing its search for a new digital director, with Licht telling staff that an “international search” is underway.

Licht was named CNN’s chief executive in February and officially took over after the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger took effect in May.

You can read Licht’s full memo below.

The team

I’d like to share some interesting news about our new management structure and the people I’ve asked to help me run this great organization.

First of all, thank you for your patience, as I have met many of you. I’ve met over 1,000 CNN reporters from around the world and I’m constantly in awe of the passion and drive they bring to work every day. Taking the time to better understand this huge company was critical to my decision making, as I thought about the leadership team that would best serve the needs of the company, our audience, and all of you. In these meetings, I learned more about the dedication of our employees around the world and the exceptional work that continues to make our brand the envy of the industry. With all that said, I’m pleased to share with you CNN Worldwide’s executive leadership team.

Michael Bass will continue to serve as executive vice president of programming for CNN US. Michael’s steady hand has led CNN to many important stories and moments: he is committed to the brand and its mission, and he is an exceptional leader and a fantastic journalist. He will continue to lead the 9 am editorial call and will continue to program for CNN USA networks.

Virginia Mosel will now serve as EVP of Editorial at CNN US, joining Rachel Smolkin’s Digital News Group. We are fortunate to continue Virginia’s extensive newsgathering expertise in an expanded role that will further consolidate our resources and coverage across all platforms. Virginia will now be based in New York.

Amy Entellis will continue to serve as EVP of Talent and Content Development. Under Amy’s leadership, CNN Original Series and CNN Films have flourished, becoming hallmarks of our portfolio and reaching new audiences, making them a core element of our brand. Her vision for the future of this part of our business is incredibly valuable to all of us. I look forward to continuing to rely on your experience as we plan our next chapter.

Ken Jautz will continue as Executive Vice President of News. Ken has more than a third of our employees worldwide in his operations and production role. His leadership has been critical to our organization for decades, in a role spanning the past 34 years, and that experience will be even more important as we face new operational challenges during our integration with WBD. Ken will also continue to serve as Executive Leader of HLN.

Jonita Due will be EVP of Integrity and Inclusion. This is a newly created position that reflects Jonita’s role as an advocate for news content at CNN and her decades of leadership in diversity, equity and inclusion. In this role, he ensures our voice through linear digital sales and keeps our brand integrity intact. Jonita has led many unique inclusive initiatives and I asked her to continue nurturing diverse talent and helping them advance our ranks. The Standards & Practices and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion teams will report to him. His leadership role at DEI will continue in news and sports.

As a result of this new structure, Calvin Sims will leave the organization and Calvin’s team will now report to Johnita. CNN weathered many storms during Calvin’s tenure, each one deftly navigated. I want to thank Calvin for his talent and leadership. Please join me in wishing you good luck in your future endeavors.

Chris Marlin will serve as executive vice president of strategy and business operations for the group. As you heard me say, Chris is tasked with finding new revenue and optimization opportunities across the enterprise, as well as aligning our resources globally. In this role, you will develop strategic, operational and business frameworks that expand our business capabilities and keep us on track for results and performance. It will also work closely with the WBD on larger scale projects.

Robin Garfield will remain as director of research and executive vice president of program and content strategy, leading the research and planning teams. He will report to Chris Marlin. Research is critical to our business, and this alignment serves to support our broader business objectives.

Chris Korat Kelly joins CNN as Executive Vice President and Chief Communications Officer. Coming from The Washington Post, Christina has had an impressive career and experience in journalism. In fact, it all started here at CNN. In this role, Christine will lead our global communications and brand strategy and oversee our CNN Worldwide PR and Communications teams, as well as global marketing. Rick Levchuk, senior vice president of creative marketing, will inform you. Rick will continue to be a driving force behind our global marketing efforts and I want to thank him for keeping us afloat during this transition. Please join me in welcoming Christine back to CNN. It will start on August 15th and will be based in New York.

According to Christine, I would like to thank James Anderson, who served as acting head of communications. As David Levy announced in May, James has decided to leave the company after an impressive 17 years of service. We couldn’t have asked for a better manager during the final months of the transition and I really appreciate James’ flexibility and guidance along the way.

Ramón Escobar will serve as Senior Vice President of Recruitment and Talent Development in an expanded role that includes overseeing our employees. Ramón is exceptional at what he does; For me, it’s imperative that we have his voice at the table. Ramon will continue to work closely with Amy Entelli in her expanded role and now reports to me.

Mike McCarthy will continue as Executive Vice President and General Manager of CNNI. You’ve heard me say that we need CNNI now more than ever, and Mike’s decades of experience and strong leadership will continue to impact our newsgathering teams around the world.

Rani Raad will continue to serve as president of CNN Commercial Worldwide. Even in difficult times, Rani managed to earn an income, which is not easy; I am grateful to have him on the team.

Lisa Reeves will continue as Senior Vice President of Talent Negotiations and Labor Relations. There is no one better at this than Lisa. We are lucky to have it.

Sam Feist will continue to serve as Senior Vice President and Head of the Washington Department, reporting to me. His unique role in managing important relationships in Washington and overseeing the office’s operations is essential to this network at this time. Few red letters have Sam’s heart broken.

The position of Chief Digital Officer is of the utmost importance to me and a national search is underway to find a permanent leader. Until we do, Wendy Brundage will remain as interim digital director. I really appreciate Wendy and her leadership through this transition.

We also have mission-critical leaders shared across news and sports, including Ellen Russ, who will continue as Senior Vice President of People and Culture (HR); Neil Chugan, who will serve as CFO of News & Sports, and David Vigilante, who will continue as EVP and General Counsel of News & Sports. These leaders impact important parts of our business every day, and I’m excited to continue to partner with them.

I am very excited to meet these leaders and plan our short-term and long-term goals. I’m sure you have questions about these changes and what they mean – you’ll have a chance to ask what you think of our next town hall on August 11th. More details on this will come soon.

With this strong team now the real work begins. I have no doubt that these leaders, individually and collectively, will meet the challenges ahead and create new opportunities for CNN in the ever-evolving media landscape. These senior executives are now developing plans for their leadership teams and we’ll be sharing those decisions in the coming months. I’m very excited about the future of CNN and this team, and I want to move forward and raise our hands together.

Chris