CNN Lays off 50, blames technology, audience

It's being reported that CNN will be laying off some 50 editorial staffers, primarily in the Atlanta headquarters.  In laying the blame on technology and audience shifts, CNN SVP Jack Womack took a slightly different approach, apparently arguing in an internal memo that social media and user generated content has made the network "less reliant on editorial staffers, particularly photojournalists."  Referencing a three-year internal review of it's "workflow", Womack reportedly wrote that CNN’s review found that user-generated content, through CNN iReport, and social media in general did a fine enough job in producing and distributing breaking news stories. Womack’s memo indicated the review showed less need for staff photojournalists, as well as recommending changes in how photojournalists were assigned stories.

So CNN is now outsourcing its reporting to the public (or at least some of it).  Any guess what the impact will be on CNN's credibility and integrity?

Sources - CNN Lays Off 50 Staffers, Citing ‘Workflow Changes,’ Reliance On User-Gen,  paidContent.org
Dozens of Jobs Cut at CNN; New York, Atlanta, Washington, DC, Miami, LA Staffers Pink-Slipped,  TVNewser