About a quarter of “CBS Evening News” staffers eligible for buyouts have chosen the option ahead of impending layoffs under editor in chief Bari Weiss, The Post has learned.
Eleven staffers opted for buyouts, which were only offered to non-unionized employees, a source with knowledge of the matter said Tuesday.
They include at least six producers out of the show’s total of roughly 20, according to another source, who added: “Seems like people are jumping ship.”
“It’s a lot of people,” a CBS insider said.
The “Evening News” has over 40 non-unionized staffers, a source said.
A CBS News rep declined to comment.
Last month, the network announcedthe “extraordinary chance” for eligible staffers to take a one-time voluntary buyoutahead of company-wide layoffs that could kick off as soon as March, according to a source.
The offer came afterWeiss told employees in a January townhallthat they were free to leave if they didn’t like her strategy for the struggling news division.
“It’s a free country, and I completely respect if you decide I’m not the right leader for you, or this isn’t the right place at the right time,” she said.
At the town hall, which came as Weiss has sought to shake up the network, she said she wants to invest in more “revelatory journalism” and emphasize “investigative scoops” that will take advantage of both online and traditional platforms.
Source: Drudge Report
