Colbert taunts new CNN CEO Chris Licht for taking difficult job: 'Told you so'
'I’m telling you not to go,' Colbert warned Licht before he took the top job at CNN
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Comedian Stephen Colbert told CNN boss Chris Licht that he shouldn't have taken the job at CNN and continues to taunt him by saying "told you so" when the two of them speak, according to the New York Times.
"CNN would be lucky to get you," Colbert told Licht, who was Colbert's producer before he took the CNN gig, said. "But you’re my friend, and I’m telling you not to go."
The New York Times reported that the two speak every Friday and that Colbert starts every conversation with "I told you so."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Licht told Colbert in February the CNN offer was a "calling" and Times reported that democracy was at stake for Licht.
"Late Show" host Stephen Colbert speaking on Oct. 26, 2022. (Screenshot/CBS)
"The uninformed vitriol, especially from the left, has been stunning," Licht told the Times. "Which proves my point: so much of what passes for news is name-calling, half-truths and desperation."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CNN began laying off employees at the end of November as part of a wider cost-cutting measure under new parent company Warner Bros. Discovery.
Licht told the outlet that the network's layoffs were the "low point" of his time as boss so far.
"I want CNN to be essential to society," Licht also told the Times in an interview. "If you’re essential then the revenue will follow."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jeff Zucker, left, was replaced by CNN chairman and CEO Chris Licht earlier this year. (Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
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Licht took over the network after former boss Jeff Zucker left the network for failing to disclose a "consensual relationship" with a CNN staffer.
During an appearance in front of Warner Brothers Discovery’s board in October, Licht was asked about his plan to make CNN less partisan.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Licht emphasized that his plan to make CNN less partisan did not mean the network wasn't committed to the truth. He added that former president Donald Trump was not going to "dictate" their agenda.
CNN chairman and CEO Chris Licht. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
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"This wasn’t to plot a new course but to assure people we would not let up one inch in being truth tellers," he said. "The change is we will not do Trump 24/7 or let him dictate our agenda."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CNN also scrapped its morning show, "New Day," and replaced it with "CNN This Morning," which is hosted by Don Lemon, Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins.
Licht told the Times that he loved the collaboration of the "CNN This Morning" hosts.
"The chemistry is great. I love the collaboration. Every day, it evolves. It’s not like me giving orders. It’s so much fun," he said.