On His Way Out the Door, CNN's Oliver Darcy Critiques David Zaslav and WBD

Maybe it’s a coincidence or maybe it’s not, but Oliver Darcy — who wrote the popular “Reliable Sources” newsletter for CNN — posted his last edition Wednesday night. The newsletter was about the “tough day” David Zaslav had yesterday, and the way that Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is struggling under the CEO’s leadership.

David Zaslav had a particularly tough day … The Warner Bros. Discovery boss watched Wednesday afternoon as his company’s already anemic stock price plummeted more than 10% in after-hours trading, hitting a dangerous new low of $6.90 after the company reported second quarter earnings.

When WarnerMedia and Discovery merged in April 2022 to form Warner Bros. Discovery, and Zaslav became the CEO, the stock price was approximately $25. Since then, the stock price has dropped nearly 70 percent — and 50 percent this year alone — reflecting the company’s problems.

It’s not entirely Zaslav’s bad decision-making. WBD is being impacted by the broader decline of traditional media. Their once-profitable cable channels — CNN, HGTV, TNT, and TBS, among others — have lost much of their viewership as consumers increasingly shift to streaming platforms. Zaslav has struggled to successfully pivot to the streaming world with Max (formerly HBO Max), which itself is facing challenges in a highly competitive market.

One of WBD’s strengths was live sports programming, but Zaslav’s leadership has seen setbacks here, as well. The company recently lost the rights to broadcast NBA games — almost entirely because of Zaslav’s bad negotiations — a significant blow that essentially renders the value of TNT and TBS worthless.

There is speculation about WBD’s future, including the possibility of merging with another company or even being acquired. As Darcy wrote, “That said, WBD has shown a reluctance to sell any of its major assets. And whether it can get out of the corner it finds itself in without taking such a step may prove to be difficult.”

Interestingly, Darcy didn’t mention in the newsletter that it would be his last. However, this morning, he launched a new independent newsletter called “Status,” which appears to cover the media industry, similar to the focus of “Reliable Sources.”

“Reliable Sources” has a notable history at CNN. It used to be written by Brian Stelter, who also hosted a Sunday morning show covering the media industry. Stelter was ousted in 2022 during a period when CNN was run by Chris Licht. Licht’s tenure was marked by attempts to shift CNN’s editorial direction, which many viewed as an effort to strip CNN of what little personality it had.

CNN has announced that the “Reliable Sources” newsletter will go on hiatus for the rest of the summer and return with a new lead writer this fall. It will be interesting to see if CNN considers rehiring Stelter, especially given that Licht is no longer with the network.

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