CNN executive Meredith Artley announces departure

Meredith Artley, a CNN senior vice president and editor-in-chief of CNN Digital Worldwide, announced in a memo to the newsroom that she would be leaving the network after more than 12 years.

“I’m so proud to have played a role in guiding, growing and championing CNN’s journalism across our digital platforms for all these years. We’ve grown the team of dedicated digital journalists more than threefold. We’ve also grown the number of CNNers who do digital journalism regardless of where they sit on an org chart,” she wrote in her memo, which was obtained by The Hill. 

“We’ve doubled-down on breaking news and distinctive storytelling in many forms and on many platforms. We invested in new beats and approaches to engage audiences. Those audiences have grown massively, as has our lead over worthy competitors. And the business of digital keeps going up, with more upside to come,” she continued.

Artley said that she would be with the network for another week or two to assist in the transition. 

Her coming departure was first mentioned during a staff call, which included CNN Worldwide CEO Chris Licht, according to Axios.  

The development comes after AT&T and Discovery Inc. in April said their merger between Discovery and AT&T’s WarnerMedia, CNN’s parent company, was closed. The merged company is now known as Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. 

Later in April, CNN announced its streaming service CNN+ would be shutting down after just one month. 

The network has also seen other high-profile departures in recent months. Earlier this year, former CNN Worldwide President Jeff Zucker announced he would be stepping down from his role after he did not disclose that he had a relationship with another CNN senior executive, Allison Gollust, who later left the network, too.

The New York Times reported in mid-February that before former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) was set to make a March 2020 appearance on CNN, Gollust had allegedly discussed interview topics with him.