Layoff Bug Bites TNN
By Linda Moss -- Multichannel News, 1/24/2001 12:31:00 PM
MTV Networks is laying off 125 employees, most of them staffers at TNN: The National Network in Nashville, Tenn., officials said Wednesday.
The layoffs, which represent 35 percent of MTVN's Nashville work force, come as the programmer moves to make New York the new base for TNN, which was formerly The Nashville Network. The laid-off workers will be leaving the company during the next six months.
'Given TNN's new national position and programming focus, it will now be based in New York, allowing the network to take full advantage of MTV Networks' operations and resources here,' MTVN said in a prepared statement.
Viacom Inc. merged MTVN and CBS Cable, which owned country-music networks TNN and CMT: Country Music Television, both Nashville-based. But MTVN has repositioned TNN from a county-music service to a 'pop entertainment network.'
The Nashville layoffs involve employees who work for TNN and the TNN section of country.com. TNN's online operations will be relocating to New York, and country.com will exclusively pertain to country music.
MTVN officials stressed that CMT's headquarters and operations will remain in Nashville.
'CMT remains completely committed to remaining in Nashville and programming country music,' MTVN said in its statement.
TNN's sports and outdoor-programming unit, headed by Brian Hughes, will be staying in Nashville, a TNN spokeswoman said.
However, the uplinking of CMT and TNN will now be handled by MTVN's operations center, which is based in Long Island, N.Y.
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