How Does One Celebrate Getting Fired By CNN? Photo Op With Nancy Pelosi, Of Course

After losing a job, there are a number of way employees can react whether it be anger, fear or celebration. For the former CNN CEO, he chose the latter.

What Happened: On Thursday, it was announced that CNN Chairman and CEO Chris Licht was leaving the cable news network.

The move came after several high-profile events for the news network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery Inc WBD.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav took responsibility for Licht’s exit.

“For a number of reasons, things didn’t work and that’s unfortunate and ultimately that’s on me. And I take full responsibility for that,” Zaslav said.

Hours after his exit, Licht was spotted at the Polo Bar in New York City with Devan Cayea, another former CNN employee who had also exited the cable news network. The duo appeared to be celebrating their exit from CNN, according to the Ne York Post's Page Six.

Also seen in pictures with Licht and Cayea is former Speaker of the House and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi.

Page Six reached out to Licht but did not hear back if Pelosi dined with the former CNN members or if they ran into her and shared the photo opportunity.

The photo of Licht celebrating and being alongside Pelosi didn’t go over well with his former CNN colleagues, according to the report.

“It’s gross. He lit a network on fire for a year, left it in ruins, didn’t bother to send a goodbye note to the staff, and instead of saying he’s going to take a moment of reflection, he goes and hangs out at a sceney restaurant, all in an effort to make it look like he’s fine,” a CNN staff member said.

Another CNN staff member said Licht has “learned nothing” after seeing the images from the Polo Bar.

The photos with Pelosi could also come as a surprise to the many employees who were disappointed in the network's coverage of the Donald Trump Town Hall. 

Related Link: Jon Stewart Bashes CNN Over Trump Town Hall, Network Trying To Get Back Into Former Pres's Good Graces 

Why It’s Important: Since airing a Town Hall with former president Donald Trump, CNN has faced backlash from the public and from employees.

An article published by The Atlantic highlighted many issues from CNN and Licht management, including decisions made on how to handle Trump.

Shares of the media company have rallied in 2023, up 43% year-to-date. The stock move comes after the company posted first-quarter financial results that came in shy of analysts’ estimates.

Studio, network, advertising, direct-to-consumer (DTC) and distribution revenue were all down in the first quarter on a year-over-year basis.

The bright spot for the company has been its DTC segment, which includes the popular HBO Max. The company saw global DTC subscribers increase by 1.6 million to 97.6 million at the end of the first quarter.

With major question marks over the future of CNN and the impact of the ongoing writer’s strike on original content for HBO Max, Warner Bros. Discovery could have a bumpy road ahead.

WBD Price Action: Warner Bros. Discovery shares are down 2.25% to $13.71 on Friday versus a 52-week range of $8.82 to $17.65.

Read Next: Nancy Pelosi Unloads 2,900 Apple Shares Right Before WWDC, But There's A Catch 

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