MTV News to shut down amid Paramount layoffs

The MTV — formerly “Music Television” — news division is expected to shut down amid a new round of layoffs made by Paramount Global, the company announced in a memo to staffers.

In the memo, obtained and published by Variety, Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks president Chris McCarthy said the reason was due to the pressure felt from “broader economic headwinds like many of our peers.” 

“To address this, our senior leaders in coordination with HR have been working together over the past few months to determine the optimal organization for the current and future needs of our business,” McCarthy wrote.

McCarthy added that the layoffs will affect 25 percent of employees across the Showtime, MTV Entertainment Studios, and Paramount Media Networks groups in the U.S., which include MTV News, Variety reported. 

“As a result, we have made the very hard but necessary decision to reduce our domestic team by approximately 25 [percent],” the president said in the memo, referring to the decision as “a tough yet important strategic realignment of our group, adding that the decision will help reduce necessary “costs and create a more effective approach to our business as we move forward.” 

“Today we will notify employees whose positions are being impacted with leaders communicating the news directly to those teams/or individuals.” McCarthy added. “These meetings will be followed by individual [one-on-ones] with our HR partners.”

The groups under McCarthy will be divided into two functions: Studios, which will integrate Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios into one team, and Networks, which will combine nine separate teams into one portfolio group. 

MTV News, initially launched in 1987 as a weekly news program called “The Week in Rock,” became a viable news outlet for Generation X and millennials, as the news division covered news and topics in the music, entertainment, pop culture and political realm, according to the Hollywood Reporter. 

The program also hosted town hall specials that featured prominent guests such as former Presidents Obama and Clinton, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). 

MTV News, which has experienced previous layoffs in the last decade, also made stars in their correspondents and video announcers such as Kurt Loder, Sway Calloway, Ananda Lewis, Chris Connelly, Tabitha Soren, John Norris and Serena Altschul.