Alex MacCallum returned to CNN to oversee an effort to make the storied news outlet more relevant to digital audiences. Now she may be poised to do a lot more.
MacCallum, a media-industry veteran who has helped The Washington Post and The New York Times manage their own digital transitions, was named chief operating officer of Warner Bros. Discovery‘s CNN in a memo issued Thursday by Mark Thompson, the news division’s CEO.
“Alex MacCallum is already playing a crucial role in turning our vision of the future CNN into a reality,” Thompson said in a note to staffers, adding: “In a remarkable two year run back at CNN, Alex has already achieved an impressive set of critical accomplishments in record time. On top of building a world-class digital operation and transforming our core products, she’s led and launched a direct-to-consumer sub business, assembled a set of outstanding leaders in audience, data, product and tech, engagement and monetization, and has built excellent collaborative working relationships with all of CNN’s other top leaders.”
MacCallum’s new role was previously reported by the media-industry newsletter Status.
The new assignment appears to put MacCallum over many of her colleagues who specialize in CNN’s more traditional journalism — the kind that fills the company’s linear cable networks, which continue to generate the bulk of the revenue and operating profit that fuels its finances. But those business flows are in trouble. CNN is expected to finish 2026 with 62 million cable subscribers, according to Kagan, a market-research firm that is part of S&P Global Intelligence, compared with 67.1 million subscribers in 2024. Still, fees from advertising and distribution are seen rising this year, perhaps due in part to the 2026 midterm election, a news cycle that typically draws broader audiences to the network.
MacCallum was given no oversight over CNN’s newsgathering. Senior CNN news executives, which include Amy Entelis, Virginia Moseley and Eric Sherling, continue to report to Thompson. That trio has helped CNN keep on track despite a succession of management transitions at CNN in recent years. MacCallum’s new duties include overseeing consumer strategy; business operations; strategic partnerships and business development; and special “mission-driven” project work.
CNN has had a chief operating officer in the past. In 2023, David Leavy, a longtime lieutenant of Warner CEO David Zaslav, was given the role, and assigned to oversee many of CNN’s business operations. He was put in place as Chris Licht, the former CNN chief, met with a series of public challenges as well as staff pushback. Leavy left CNN two years later and, soon thereafter, Warner Bros. Discovery.
MacCallum is on her second stint at CNN. During the first, she helped launch CNN+, a subscription streaming hub that was launched with great fanfare, but scuttled quickly after CNN’s parent WarnerMedia, merged with Discovery Communications. Some observers think killing the service was a massive error, as it slowed CNN’s move to cultivate broadband audiences while rivals like NBC News and Fox News moved forward. Now, MacCallum may have the standing to keep critical initiatives in place.
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