Jim Walton to Step Down as Chief of CNN

By BRIAN STELTER

Time Warner said Friday that Jim Walton, the embattled president of CNN Worldwide, will hand the news giant over to a new chief at the end of the year.

The announcement came in the middle of a year of widespread scrutiny of CNN's - and by extension Mr. Walton's - performance. CNN, while hugely profitable, has been plagued by an identity crisis, particularly at its flagship cable news channel CNN/U.S., where the ratings have sagged.

“CNN needs new thinking,” Mr. Walton said in an internal memorandum. “That starts with a new leader who brings a different perspective, different experiences and a new plan, one who will build on our great foundation and will commit to seeing it through. And I'm ready for a change. I have interests to explore and I want to give myself time to do it.”

Mr. Walton's boss, Phil Kent, the president of Turner Broadcasting, has made his dissatisfaction with CNN/U.S. known in recent mo nths, as has his boss, Jeff Bewkes, the chief executive of Time Warner. In a statement, Mr. Bewkes said that he respects Mr. Walton and supports “the decision that he and Phil Kent have reached.”

Mr. Bewkes said that the CNN Mr. Walton inherited in 2003 “was underperforming,” with its earnings “in serious decline.” Mr. Walton, he said, grew the business into a “financial powerhouse” with annual growth of 15 percent.