'Inmates running the asylum' at CNN as CEO is ousted on heels of Trump town hall

close

Video

Gutfeld: CNN showed its boss the door

'Gutfeld!' panelists react to CNN's ousting of its CEO Chris Licht after a little more than a year on the job.

CNN faced brutal mocking after its most recent CEO, Chris Licht, was fired after holding the position for only one year. 

The "Gutfeld!" panelists held no punches Wednesday night, joking that Licht’s only notable accomplishment was firing Don Lemon.

Licht’s short tenure was described as tumultuous and "stained by a series of severe missteps," according to CNN. Under his leadership, the network reportedly saw low ratings, shrinking profits and cratering employee morale. 

"Outnumbered" co-host Kayleigh McEnany, who worked as a commentator for CNN before joining the Trump White House, suggested a tagline for the floundering organization. 

CNN'S CRYBABIES CHASE OUT LICHT FOR THE CRIME OF BEING MORE NEUTRAL

Chris Licht, now former chairman and CEO, CNN Worldwide, spoke onstage during the Warner Bros. Discovery Upfront 2023 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on May 17, 2023 in New York City. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)

"CNN needs to be, ‘where you go to commit career suicide,’" she said. "You got Stelter, you got Chris Licht now. You got Chris Cuomo, and then you've got my favorite, Don Lemon."

"By the way, I left [CNN] voluntarily. I guess I'm one of the few," McEnany added.

Greg Gutfeld suggested an alternative reason for Licht’s firing.

"Chris was canned for spearheading CNN's biggest success in years, the Trump town hall," he said. "It was their first ratings win in ages, and it was great TV. And yet Chris is out because it's not about great TV at CNN."

Gutfeld explained his argument, saying that Licht didn’t cater to CNN employees who are "still suffering from Trump derangement syndrome." Ultimately, Gutfeld said he believes Licht was fired because of the viewership Trump brought in for the event last month. 

"They just hate it when that evil orange man brings them so many eyeballs," Gutfeld said.

CNN faced furious criticism for airing a town hall in May with former President Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 GOP nomination. (Screenshot/CNN)

"Fox & Friends First" co-host Todd Piro echoed Gutfeld’s claim.

"He literally tried to turn CNN into a fair and balanced network and got run out by the inmates that are running the asylum," Piro said. "All they want CNN to be in the current day and age is against Trump and against Republicans."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

And though the network claims its goal is to move to a center-alignment politically, Piro predicted the next CEO tasked with moving toward the middle will also be out within a year. 

"It is a mess over there," he said.

Video