ATLANTA — Turner Classic Movies last week was the latest target in efforts by Warner Bros. Discovery to cut costs, and its future is now in question.
Despite several ownership changes, the venerated cable network, which Ted Turner launched in 1994, has largely kept to its original mission of honoring classic movies. It’s a beloved brand by its core fans, many who attend the annual TCM Classic Film Festival, which happens in Los Angeles in April.
But last week, TCM chief and 25-year veteran Pola Changnon lost her job, followed by several of her top managers. Overall staff was slashed from 90 to just 20, according to an unnamed insider who spoke to The Wrap, though many employees’ duties have been dispersed among multiple cable networks. Changnon’s duties have been placed in the hands of Warner Bros. Pictures bosses Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy.
Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav, aware of the backlash, met with directors and TCM fans Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and Paul Thomas Anderson to try to allay their concerns about changes at TCM.
“Turner Classic Movies has always been more than just a channel,” the trio of directors said in a joint statement. “It is truly a precious resource of cinema, open 24 hours a day seven days a week. And while it has never been a financial juggernaut, it has always been a profitable endeavor since its inception,” Spielberg, Scorsese and Anderson wrote in a joint statement following the conversation. “We have each spent time talking to David, separately and together, and it’s clear that TCM and classic cinema are very important to him. Our primary aim is to ensure that TCM’s programming is untouched and protected.”
The statement concluded with a positive tone: “We are heartened and encouraged by the conversations we’ve had thus far, and we are committed to working together to ensure the continuation of this cultural touchstone that we all treasure.”
All cable networks are in trouble with tens of millions of households cutting the cord over the past decade in favor of streaming services and online options like YouTube and TikTok. TCM, which runs no advertising, curates older movies with commentary from a series of hosts including Ben Mankiewicz, Alicia Malone and Dave Karger. Much of the commentary is taped in Midtown’s Warner Bros. Discovery Techwood campus, where TCM originated nearly three decades ago.
Karger posted a note on Twitter acknowledging the mess: “A note to our passionate TCM viewers: It’s been a tough week to say the least and I’m beyond heartbroken that we are losing so many brilliant colleagues who are also dear friends. I’ve seen all of your support online and it means so much to all of us. My goal (and I know the other hosts agree) is to try to be a stabilizing and familiar presence in the months ahead. There will be some bumps, but we will all be on the road together.”
S&P Global Market Intelligence estimates that TCM’s revenue will drop slightly to $252.7 million in 2023. Most of that comes from affiliate revenue, fees paid by cable providers to carry the network. TCM also has a hub on Max, the streaming service. But that site isn’t curated or run by anyone connected to TCM, according to The Wrap.
On air, TCM viewers won’t notice much change in the near term.
But the internal management cutbacks represent “an incredible loss of institutional knowledge,” wrote TV reporter Maureen Lee Lenker last week. “The people who built and loved TCM — who believed in its mission, who were passionate about carrying the torch for our cultural history and cinema.”
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