Al Jazeera cuts 500 staff worldwide

Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera is cutting about 500 jobs – many of them in Doha – as part of a reorganisation that will reduce headcount by 11%. It comes soon after Al Jazeera said in January it was shutting its underperforming US cable TV station, Al Jazeera America. A statement from the Qatari broadcaster said most of those affected would be based at the Doha headquarters. The lay-offs are part of Al Jazeera's plan to maintain its position in the industry "in light of the large-scale changes under way in the global media landscape", Mostefa Souag, Al Jazeera's acting director-general, said.