Jim Acosta to Exit CNN Amid Programming Shake-Up

CNN is losing one of its more high-profile anchors amid a larger programming pivot.

Jim Acosta, the former White House correspondent who now anchors the 10 a.m. hour on the venerable cable news channel, is set to exit the company, a source familiar with the move confirms to The Hollywood Reporter.

“Jim has had a long, distinguished nearly 20-year career at CNN, with a track record of standing up to authority, for the first amendment and for our journalistic freedoms,” said a CNN spokesperson in a statement. “We want to thank him for the dedication and commitment he’s brought to his reporting and wish him the very best in the future.”

Acosta also announced the news with an on-air signoff, “I just wanted to end today’s show by thanking all of the wonderful people who work behind the scenes at this network. You may have seen some reports about me and this show. And after giving all of this some careful consideration and weighing an alternative time-slot CNN offered me, I have decided to move on. I am grateful to CNN for the nearly 18 years I have spent here, doing the news. I consider it a public service.”

He continued, “People often ask me if the highlight of my career at CNN was at the White House covering Donald Trump. Actually, no. That moment came when I covered President Obama’s trip to Cuba in 2016 and had the chance to question the dictator there, Raul Castro, about the island’s political prisoners. As the son of a Cuban refugee, I took home the lesson … it is never a good time to bow down to a tyrant. I have always believed it’s the job of the press to hold power to account. I’ve always tried to do that at CNN and plan to go on doing it in the future.”

He said he will share more about his future plans in coming days. “Until then, I want to thank all of you for tuning in. It has been an honor to be welcomed into your homes, for all these years.”

CNN unveiled sweeping changes to its lineup last week, including a morning edition of The Situation Room, which will be hosted by Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown in the hour. According to former CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy, who broke the news of Acosta’s exit, he was offered the midnight timeslot, which would have been live on the West coast. However, that time period is seen as a lower-rated window.

Acosta is the first big name to exit CNN in the changes being implemented by CEO Mark Thompson. Thompson last week also told staff that the company intends to lay off a couple hundred employees in a pivot to digital, with a new streaming service in the works.

The anchor was a foil to President Trump during his first term, and he actually had his White House “hard pass” revoked, sparking a lawsuit from CNN.

Jan. 28, 8:20 a.m. Updated with CNN and Acosta’s statements.