CNN “reversed course” in D.C. bureau leadership
Less than a month after CNN significantly revamped political coverage by removing senior vice president Adam Levine, above, from his role overseeing its D.C. bureau and replacing him with Philip Rucker, the network abruptly reversed course, reports TheWrap.
On April 15, continues TheWrap, CNN executive editor Virginia Moseley informed staff that Levine has been reinstated as the D.C. newsroom’s day-to-day leader, while Rucker has been promoted to a role overseeing broader domestic news coverage, Oliver Darcy reported in his Status newsletter.
According to Darcy, a former media reporter for CNN, Levine will still report to Rucker, the former Washington Post editor CNN hired with much fanfare in January. CNN didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Levine was stripped of the role on March 21, states TheWrap, “when CNN announced it had placed Rucker in charge of all D.C. editorial and management of newsgathering teams. Levine meanwhile was demoted to heading up CNN’s investigative team and running a new “hub desk” in Washington.
“In a letter to staff at the time, Moseley gushed that those changes created “a new structure for Washington as we continue to enhance and streamline the Global News operation.”
“The about-face comes during a tough time for CNN, which has enacted several rounds of layoffs, including a reported 200 job cuts, or about 6% of its staff, in January, during the same period Rucker was hired.”
