Why is Jim Acosta reportedly leaving CNN? Network's scheduling rearrangement explored

Jim Acosta, one of CNN's chief correspondents, is reportedly expected to leave the channel in the coming days. According to the Daily Beast, Oliver Darcy-Status, a fellow CNN media correspondent, revealed this news in a newsletter published on Monday, January 27.

According to the media outlet, the reason behind Acosta's alleged exit from the channel is influenced by the latest slot change. The journalist was offered a proposal by Mark Thompson, the CEO and chairman of CNN, sent Acosta a proposal for a programming makeover, as part of which his 10 AM show was shifted to a midnight slot.

After some consideration, Jim Acosta decided not to take the proposal and is likely to quit the channel altogether. However, at the moment, no announcement of Acosta's exit has been confirmed by the channel.

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Jim Acosta's 10 AM slot is replaced by Wolf Blitzer's show

Per The New York Post, Jim Acosta's slot at CNN has now been replaced by Wolf Blitzer's The Situation Room, which he co-hosts alongside Pamela Brown. The changes have been categorized as part of the network's schedule re-arrangement.

Another important fact about this shift is that it took place days before Donald Trump's inauguration as the 47th president of the US. The decision makes more sense in light of Trump's history with Acosta, which hasn't been pleasant.

Throughout Trump's last presidency, Jim was notorious for digging into him, and often picked fights with him. Acosta's resistance to the Trump administration had gotten him nearly banned from all the press briefings within the White House at one point.

Even besides Trump, Acosta's relationship with other members of the administration was also testy at best, as The New York Post reports.

In 2018, amidst a heated back-and-forth argument with the then-45th president, Jim heard Trump saying:

"CNN should be ashamed of itself having you working for them. You are a rude, terrible person. You shouldn’t be working for CNN."

The argument resulted in the White House seizing Acosta's press pass, which was prevented by CNN's meddling. The channel argued that such a thing would violate Jim's First and Fifth Amendment rights.

In 2020, Acosta was involved in another argument with Trump at a New Delhi conference, where the president told the journalist that his "record is so bad," that he "ought to be ashamed" of himself.

Jim retorted, "I’m not ashamed of anything, and our organization’s not ashamed."

However, Trump had the last word in the argument, telling Jim, "You probably have the worst record in the history of broadcasting."

Despite the seeming connection between Trump's inauguration and Acosta's slot change, Mark Thompson insists that the two aren't linked and that his new shift doesn't have anything to do with politics.

The alleged news of Acosta leaving CNN is received with disappointment among other CNN staffers. An insider told Fox News Digital about it:

"Many viewers like Jim… if there is anyone who could make the overnight go it’s him. It’s sad to see him go."

Jim Acosta isn't the only journalist to be reportedly exiting CNN in the near future. As part of a broader pivot in its programming, the channel laid off over 100 staffers last week, the Daily Beast reports. Thomspon has clarified in a memo previously that the network is preparing to focus more on digital news.

However, per The New York Post, it appears as if the current leadership at CNN is attempting to approach politics in Trump's second term more neutrally.

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Which correspondent would replace Jim Acosta in his midnight slot on CNN remains to be seen.