CNN's Jim Acosta May Be Facing A Major Demotion & It Has Everyone Bringing Up Trump

Since President-elect Donald Trump entered the political scene, several media personalities and publications — from MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace to Vanity Fair — have had noteworthy scuffles and longstanding quarrels with him. While detractors feuding with Trump is nothing new for the politician, one CNN anchor's especially turbulent beef with the president-elect very well could have earned him a demotion.

On January 16, 2025, Status News reported that CNN anchor Jim Acosta and his self-titled program "CNN Newsroom with Jim Acosta" may be getting sidelined to the network's midnight slot, as opposed to retaining his usual morning spot at 10 a.m. CNN CEO Mark Thompson allegedly proposed changing when the show will air (via Status). 

Acosta, whose real name is Abilio Acosta, is well-known for his brutal feud with the Trump White House and has tested the politician on issues like the COVID-19 pandemic. He even publicly asked Trump to apologize for the events of January 6, 2021. While his show has generated great ratings for the network, it seems CNN decisionmakers may not be thrilled with Acosta's vocal criticism toward the president-elect, and may be trying to sweep him under the rug as a result.

CNN's Jim Acosta gained a reputation for being unafraid to challenge president-elect Donald Trump. Their tense relations have been well-televised, including in a moment uploaded to YouTube in November 2018, in which Trump visibly and verbally expressed his annoyance with Acosta after the anchor pressed him about calling a migrant caravan an "invasion." Thus, some observers think his potential demotion could be a move designed to appease Trump as he nears closer to reassuming his presidential role. "I don't really care what CNN does but he has the ratings, so this looks a lot like pandering to Trump," MeidasTouch editor-in-chief Ron Filipkowski wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, on January 17, 2025.

The news of Acosta's possible demotion has left several of his followers dumbfounded. Some X users decried CNN's decision, citing Acosta as a crucial counterbalance to Trump and his circle. "Acosta is one of the very few I have ever seen give substantial pushback to any of Trump's minions," another X user wrote. "What a loss for the public if this pans out." Others heavily criticized the network for seemingly bending to Trump's will. "@cnnbrk has now completely bent the knee to Trump," an X commenter said. "Trump's hatred for Acosta is documented."