Embattled CNN anchor Jim Acosta announced Tuesday that he is leaving the network — and took a parting shot at the Trump administration by urging viewers not to “give in to the lies” in a final on-air rant.
Acosta, a former White House correspondent at CNN who often butted heads with President Trump during his first term, was reportedly slated to be relegated to the graveyard shift from his current morning slot.
“You may have seen some reports about me and this show. And after giving all of this some careful consideration and weighing an alternative time slot CNN offered me, I have decided to move on,” Acosta said at the end of his 10 a.m. program.
In his final message to viewers before signing off, the raging anchor equated Trump to “a tyrant.”
“Don’t give in to the lies. Don’t give in to the fear. Hold on to the truth. And to hope, even if you have to get out your phone, record that message,” he said.
“I will not give in to the lies. I will not give in to the fear. Post it on your social media, so people can hear from you, too.”
Acosta, who is of Cuban descent, said the highlight of his career was traveling with then-President Barack Obama to his ancestral homeland to interview Raul Castro in 2016.
“As a song of a Cuban refugee, I took home this lesson. It is never a good time to bow down to a tyrant,” Acosta said.
Acosta will be replaced in the mornings by “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown” as part of a reshuffle of the ratings-challenged lineup by CNN boss Mark Thompson.
Thompson had reportedly offered Acosta a less-prominent midnight-to-2 a.m. slot — and the opportunity to anchor the show from the West Coast.
Instead, Acosta chose to pull the rip cord after 18 years at the network.
“I have always believed it’s the job of the press to hold power to account. I have always tried to do that here at CNN. plan on doing all of that in the future,” Acosta said.
“Until then, I want to thank all of you for tuning in. It has been an honor to be welcomed into your home for all of these years.”
Hours later, Acosta posted a video message to X, saying he would start his own Substack.
“Welcome to my new venture,” he said.
CNN thanked Acosta before showing him the door.
“Jim has had a long, distinguished nearly 20-year career at CNN, with a track record of standing up to authority, for the First Amendment and for our journalistic freedoms,” the company said in a statement.
“We want to thank him for the dedication and commitment he’s brought to his reporting and wish him the very best in the future.”
Trump cheered Acosta’s departure in a post on Truth Social, calling him “one of the worst and most dishonest reporters in journalistic history.”
After the 2020 election, Acosta transitioned from his role as chief White House correspondent to CNN’s chief domestic correspondent, stepping away from direct political coverage.
However, his exit comes at a time when CNN’s leadership is seeking a more neutral political stance, particularly as Trump returns for a second term.
Last week, Thompson announced a major restructuring that includes 200 job cuts — about 6% of CNN’s workforce — and a strategic shift toward digital media. The layoffs primarily affect producers, editors and non-air staff essential to TV operations.
Thompson, a former New York Times executive known for steering the paper toward digital success, outlined his vision in an internal memo. “Our objective is a simple one: to shift CNN’s gravity towards the platforms and products where the audience themselves are shifting,” he stated.
CNN’s transformation includes streamlining its cable TV operations while expanding its digital subscription services.
Plans include developing a streaming service for news content and launching a lifestyle-oriented digital product. To support this digital transition, parent company Warner Bros Discovery has invested $70 million. Despite the job cuts, CNN plans to create at least 100 new positions in digital media.
CNN is not alone in downsizing; NBC News, The Washington Post, and the Associated Press have also announced job cuts as part of cost-saving measures.
The restructuring follows CNN’s struggle to retain viewers, particularly since Trump’s election win. The network’s web traffic hit a two-year low in December, dropping to 90.5 million unique visits from a peak of 175.5 million in 2020.
WBD’s broader restructuring will split its cable TV networks, including CNN, from its streaming and studio operations, consolidating them into a new unit called Global Linear Networks.
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