CNN Radio’s Capitol Hill correspondent Lisa Desjardins brought some humor to the mass buyouts currently underway at the 24-hour news channel and other Turner Network companies.
The reporter shot a video goodbye after accepting her buyout offer from CNN.
“It is not easy to say goodbye and unfortunately we had a lot of goodbyes here lately,” Desjardins, who has worked for the company for nine years, said on the video. “I know a lot of folks are worried about the future and I also know a lot of buyout offers are on the table.”
Also read: 550 Buyouts, Layoffs Imminent at Turner; HLN, CNN Among Cuts (Exclusive)
The video included sharing word clouds from both company e-mails and her personal e-mails regarding layoffs over the past six months, shots of her stealing office supplies and goodbye remarks to associates.
As TheWrap reported first on Monday, about 550 buyouts are to be offered at Time Warner’s Turner network this week, including a large number of those at CNN and HLN. If the buyouts are not taken voluntarily, mandatory layoffs will be made next. Of those buyouts, about 200 will take place at CNN and HLN.
The buyouts follow shortly after Turner Broadcasting System CEO John Martin revealed in an internal memo last week that corporate restructuring was coming in the next two months.
Also read: Glenn Beck’s The Blaze Talks to Time Warner About Replacing HLN
“Division leaders now are reviewing the working groups’ reports on their respective areas of oversight,” Martin wrote. “Over the coming weeks, they will work with me to finalize the organizational changes we will implement.”
Martin’s note also stated that the company will “start 2015 a more streamlined, nimble and efficient company focused on driving programming, monetization and innovation, in a culture that emphasizes and rewards continuous improvement.”
CNN’s ratings have been doing well during times of big, national breaking news — but the cable news net regularly ranks far behind Fox News and battles with MSNBC probably more than it would prefer.
Watch the video above.