Feb. 6--ATLANTA--AOL Time Warner's top executives came to town for a pep rally Monday, but the biggest cheers went to Ted Turner, who said he is sticking with the company.
AOL Time Warner's chiefs are on a mission to reassure employees that the future is bright for their recently merged company. They started with a two-hour meeting at Philips Arena with thousands of workers from Turner Broadcasting System, which includes CNN.
Several employees who spoke outside the closed-door meeting said morale is low, particularly at CNN, where one in ten employees lost jobs recently. They questioned how having fewer employees will improve the quality of what the company produces. And they said they want proof the company can capitalize on the combination of America Online's Internet power and Time Warner's media assets.
However, they also said they were glad to hear directly from AOL Time Warner executives portraying a powerful new company.
Turner Broadcasting employees described what went on inside Philips Arena.
AOL Time Warner Chairman Steve Case and Chief Executive Gerald Levin got polite applause.
By far the loudest cheers and a standing ovation went to CNN founder Ted Turner, who lost power with last month's merger of America Online and Time Warner.
Turner is a co-vice chairman of the new company, but he no longer has direct oversight of the Atlanta-based TV networks he built. That change and a lowered profile in the new company led some to speculate that he might leave.
But at Philips Arena, Turner likened himself to a basketball player.
He was a starter once, he said. Now, he said, he has chosen to take the bench rather than retire.
Turner told them, 'If you love the game, you stay in it,' the employees said.
He can get in playing time as well as a big paycheck, 'so why shouldn't I,' Turner said to laughs.
Last month, Turner remained publicly quiet when pink slips went out to 500 Turner Broadcasting System employees, most at CNN. The cuts included the Turner Environment Division, known as TED, that was designed to spread awareness of environmental issues dear to Turner's heart.
On Monday, Turner portrayed the layoffs as a reality of business, according to employees.
He pointed out that more Turner Broadcasting employees lost their jobs after the company became part of Time Warner in 1996. And he said the heartily endorses the latest merger.
Other AOL Time Warner executives at Philips Arena acknowledged that employees face a stressful time because of layoffs. They also said employees may be skeptical because Turner Broadcasting's earlier merger with Time Warner may not have met their expectations for collaboration between the companies.
Case, the company chairman, told employees to think of AOL Time Warner as one company where all units will work together. He also stressed that the company needs to make its financial goals, a task analysts have said may be difficult as the nation's economy slows.
Ken Novack, who is an AOL Time Warner vice chairman along with Turner, won applause when he said the company's upper ranks will become more diverse. Men hold almost all the top positions.
Employees had questions for executives. Would Turner Broadcasting scale back or delay building plans it announced last summer for downtown and Midtown Atlanta? No, they said they were told. Does the company plan to sell its Atlanta sports teams, the Braves, Hawks and Thrashers? No. Are any more layoffs planned? No, the executives said.
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(c) 2001, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
