CBS News braces for layoffs as Paramount Skydance slashes costs post-merger

Staffers at CBS News are facing a new round of layoffs and a potential overhaul for the network's struggling evening broadcast as parent company Paramount Skydance moves to slash $2 billion in costs following its recent merger.

• Painful but quick: New president Jeff Shell, formerly of NBCUniversal, promised the cuts would be a one-time event to avoid the "layoffs every quarter" approach of the past regime. At a press conference, Shell admitted the process would be “painful” but swift, while CEO David Ellison suggested the final cost-cutting number could exceed the $2 billion target.
• Evening news in peril: The uncertainty is most acute at the “CBS Evening News,” whose dual-anchor format has failed to find an audience, leaving it a distant third in the ratings. The recent departure of its executive producer for “60 Minutes” has only intensified questions about the show’s future leadership and strategic direction.
• A gamble gone wrong: The network’s bet that it could capture new viewers after moving on from the format anchored by Norah O'Donnell never paid off. An attempt to capitalize on an anchor change at rival NBC also failed to materialize, costing the broadcast hundreds of thousands of viewers.

Paramount’s new leadership is making a high-stakes bet that one deep, painful cut can stabilize the company for future growth. But for the journalists at CBS News, the move is part of a brutal, industry-wide correction that shows no signs of slowing down.

• Also on our radar: The cuts at Paramount come as the company makes massive new investments, including a $7.7 billion deal for UFC rights. Elsewhere in the media landscape, financial pressures are forcing other moguls to deleverage, with Byron Allen selling off a third of his local TV stations. The market turmoil has even led to complete collapses, with Redbox owner Chicken Soup for the Soul recently shifting to a Chapter 7 liquidation.