Following a series of layoffs by Paramount Global, MTV News has been shut down after a 36-year run.
Twenty-five percent of employees across MTV Entertainment Studios, Paramount Media Networks and Showtime were laid off yesterday (May 9). A memo to staffers from Paramount Media Networks president Chris McCarthy [obtained by Pitchfork] said the company "made the very hard but necessary decision to reduce [the] domestic team by approximately 25 [percent]."
The memo continued:
This is a tough yet important strategic realignment of our group. Through the elimination of some units and by streamlining others, we will be able to reduce costs and create a more effective approach to our business as we move forward. Today we will notify employees whose positions are being impacted with leaders communicating the news directly to those teams/or individuals. These meetings will be followed by individual 1:1s with our HR partners.
MTV News took on many forms since its conception in 1987. It began with the show The Week in Rock, hosted by now-iconic anchor Kurt Loder. He and other correspondents would break up MTV's music video cycle with news about music, pop culture, politics and more. Its programming became more consistent after Loder confirmed the news of Kurt Cobain's death in 1994.
In 2017, MTV News writers faced layoffs after the company aimed to pivot to video.
Twenty-five percent of employees across MTV Entertainment Studios, Paramount Media Networks and Showtime were laid off yesterday (May 9). A memo to staffers from Paramount Media Networks president Chris McCarthy [obtained by Pitchfork] said the company "made the very hard but necessary decision to reduce [the] domestic team by approximately 25 [percent]."
The memo continued:
This is a tough yet important strategic realignment of our group. Through the elimination of some units and by streamlining others, we will be able to reduce costs and create a more effective approach to our business as we move forward. Today we will notify employees whose positions are being impacted with leaders communicating the news directly to those teams/or individuals. These meetings will be followed by individual 1:1s with our HR partners.
MTV News took on many forms since its conception in 1987. It began with the show The Week in Rock, hosted by now-iconic anchor Kurt Loder. He and other correspondents would break up MTV's music video cycle with news about music, pop culture, politics and more. Its programming became more consistent after Loder confirmed the news of Kurt Cobain's death in 1994.
In 2017, MTV News writers faced layoffs after the company aimed to pivot to video.