CBS names Wendy McMahon president and CEO of CBS News after exit of Neeraj Khemlani

CBS has named a new boss at CBS News following the exit of co-president 
Neeraj Khemlani, who was fired from the network amid a slew of HR 
complaints from employees.

Wendy McMahon, who has served as co-president of CBS News alongside 
Khemlani for the past two years, will take on a larger role as president 
and chief executive of CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures, CBS 
said in a Monday statement.

The announcement comes a day after The Post broke the news that Khemlani 
was ousted from the Tiffany Network after a tumultuous two-year reign that 
was marked with clashes with “CBS Evening News” anchor Norah O’Donnell 
over her contract and HR complaints of alleged “bullying,” “rude” 
behavior.

On Monday morning, Khemlani dialed in to CBS’ morning editorial call to 
say a brief farewell, telling employees he was “proud” of the work he did 
at the network, an insider told The Post.

In the expanded role, McMahon will lead all of CBS News’ broadcast and 
streaming operations, 27 local television stations in major US markets, 14 
local news streaming channels and CMV’s first-run syndication programming, 
as well as its content licensing to television stations and the division’s 
national advertising sales business, CBS said.

McMahon, who joined CBS in 2021 from ABC, where she was the president of 
its TV Stations group, will continue to report to CBS CEO George Cheeks.

During the network’s noon Zoom meeting, McMahon announced that she was 
elevating 30-year CBS veteran Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews to the role of CBS 
News president.

The exec, who most recently served as executive vice president for 
newsgathering, will have editorial oversight for CBS News across all 
platforms, the company said Monday.

Ciprian-Matthews, who has been passed over for the role of CBS News 
president in recent years, has held several senior editorial roles, from 
Washington bureau chief to the London bureau and overseeing coverage of 
presidential election coverage, international conflicts, natural 
disasters, political events and terrorist attacks. 

McMahon touted Ciprian-Matthews’ commitment to the network’s “journalism 
and to the people and culture of CBS News.”

Ciprian-Matthews added: “It is a true privilege to make sure we continue 
our mission long into the future — with integrity in our reporting and a 
firm commitment to the values, the culture and the wonderful people of CBS 
News.”

Khemlani’s downfall comes after The Post reported on July 30 that the exec 
blew up at chief financial officer Stacey Benson and another female 
executive on her team during a budget meeting in April.

Since taking the reins in May 2021, Khemlani — a former Hearst executive — 
has been under “immense pressure” from Cheeks to hit certain budget 
numbers, insiders said. He immediately clashed with O’Donnell over 
contract matters, The Post reported.

Khemlani’s combustible temper, meanwhile, translated to plunging morale 
among CBS News staffers, who at the time described their boss as “rude” 
and “micro-managing.” As previously reported by The Post, those complaints 
have led to a larger internal review headed by CBS corporate HR exec 
Whitney Delich.

The review, which began in 2022, was focused on how Khemlani speaks to 
women and employees of color.

Prior to the probe, Singapore-born Khemlani had been subjected to a “360 
performance review” by his bosses and direct reports, which resulted in 
mandatory counseling on how to speak to employees “without sarcasm” while 
using “friendly body language,” multiple sources said at the time.

Meanwhile, Khemlani had been under a directive from Cheeks to slash costs 
and restructure the network, in what some see as a possible path to spin 
off the network as its parent, Paramount Global — which also owns 
Paramount Pictures, Showtime, MTV and Nickelodeon, among others — focuses 
on streaming.

In addition to layoffs, CBS under Cheeks has sold its headquarters in the 
iconic “Black Rock” tower in Midtown Manhattan. It also sold the CBS 
Studio Center in Los Angeles. It is trying to sell CBS’ sprawling 
broadcast center on Manhattan’s West Side.

Paramount Global boss Bob Bakish, too, has pushed to sell off non-core 
assets like storied book publisher Simon & Schuster and its BET Group, 
which owns BET (Black Entertainment Television) and VH1 along with the 
BET+ streaming service.

Last week, the company sold Simon & Schuster to private equity firm KKR 
for $1.62 billion, months after a federal judge blocked its purchase by 
rival publisher Penguin Random House for $2.2 billion because of antitrust 
concerns.

The sale process for BET is ongoing.

https://nypost.com/2023/08/14/cbs-names-wendy-mcmahon-president-and-ceo-
of-cbs-news/