The hiring of Barron’s editor in chief David Cho to be the new editor in chief at CNBC signals a changing strategy shift for the business news network, according to insiders.
President KC Sullivan, who took over CNBC nearly three years ago, has been pushing a strategy of adding website verticals, sponsorships and a direct-to-consumer approach. Sullivan previously ran CNBC’s international operations from 2013 to 2020.
In hiring Cho, Sullivan gets a business news leader who made dramatic changes at Barron’s, a Dow Jones & Co. publication.
In four years at Barron’s, he expanded its coverage to include enhanced and accelerated stock picks and deeper enterprise and investigative reporting. He also saw its digital subscriptions rise to more than 800,000 and partnered with other parts of Dow Jones on efforts such as the launch of Barron’s Energy Insider, a paid newsletter collaboration with Dow Jones Energy.
His boss at Barron’s, Dow Jones CEO Almar Latour, called him a “great journalistic innovator” in an email to its staff on Thursday.
Outgoing senior vice president Dan Colarusso, who oversee the TV operations, and senior vice president Jay Yarow, who oversaw its digital operations, were seen as leaders wedded to CNBC’s more traditional coverage and strategy. Cho will oversee digital, television and direct-to-consumer content.
As part of Sullivan’s strategy, in the past year CNBC has launched website sections covering sports, wealth, property and executive leaders. “Inside Wealth,” for example, has a sponsor.
The editorial leaders leading that expansion have been digital managing editor Jeff McCracken and Max Meyers, CNBC senior executive producer and vice president of strategic verticals & audience development, according to insiders.
To be sure, Colarusso and Yarow oversaw strategies such as CNBC Make It, which launched in 2016 and covers personal finance and wellness, and the Investing Club, which launched in 2021, as well as subscription products such as CNBC+ and CNBC Pro.
But the change in leadership also signals that the new leaders at Versant, which is being spun off from NBC Universal, are seeking more growth from operations at CNBC as well as cost cutting. And Cho is one news executive replacing two.
