MTV News is set to shut down all operations this week, amid a series of mass layoffs at its parent company Paramount Global.
As Fox News reports, the decision was announced in a company memo on Tuesday, thus bringing an end to the pop culture and news outlet 36 years after it was first created. MTV News had been founded in 1987 in an effort to create content that would blend music and pop culture with news and politics, ostensibly to appeal to members of Generation X as well as the then-upcoming Millennial generation.
Paramount has announced other layoffs around the company, including 25 percent staff cuts for both MTV and Showtime, as detailed in a memo by Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Network’s Chris McCarthy.
“This is a tough yet important strategic realignment of our group,” said McCarthy. “Through the elimination of some units and by streamlining others, we will be able to reduce costs and create a more effective approach to our business as we move forward.”
Last week, Paramount Global announced that it had seen a staggering loss of $1.1 billion in the first quarter of 2023. The company’s streaming services were especially impacted, with Paramount+ and Pluto TV losing a total of $511 million in the first quarter.