- RT America is permanently laying off the majority of its staff, according to a memo obtained by CNN.
- The news comes after DirecTV announced it was dropping the network.
- Funded by the Russian government, RT America launched in 2010.
The American branch of Russian state-run media outlet RT is shutting down and laying off most of its staff, CNN reported on Thursday.
RT America will be "ceasing production" at all locations because of "unforeseen business interruption events," according to a memo obtained by CNN.
"Unfortunately, we anticipate this layoff will be permanent, meaning that this will result in the permanent separation from employment of most T&R employees at all locations," the memo said, according to the report.
It was previously announced that social media access for RT — and state-run news site Sputnik — would be largely shut down in the EU.
"The state-owned Russia Today and Sputnik, and their subsidiaries, will no longer be able to spread their lies to justify Putin's war," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Sunday.
The layoffs at RT America, which launched in 2010, come after satellite provider DirecTV announced it was dropping the network. The network also aired on the public airwaves in Washington, DC.
According to CNN, staff were informed of the layoffs at an "all-hands" meeting on Thursday.
"RT America is done," one laid-off employee posted on Twitter.
In recent years, RT America hosted shows from the likes of former CNN personality Larry King and right-wing comedian Dennis Miller. Since 2017, it had received more than $104 million in funding from the Russian government — half that money coming in 2020.
It is not the end of RT as a brand, however, with English-language content still being produced from an office in Moscow. As of Thursday evenining, the channel was still streaming live on YouTube in the United States.
Radio Sputnik, another arm of the Russian state, continues to air on AM radio in the US capital.