AT&T shakes up management at WarnerMedia after $85B acquisition

March 4 (UPI) -- AT&T is shaking up the executive wing at WarnerMedia just nine months after acquiring the business for $85.4 billion.

Former NBC Entertainment and Showtime chief Bob Greenblatt will be the new chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment. Greenblatt will oversee HBO, TNT, TBS and TruTV as well as streaming services, the company said. Greenblatt helped launch famous NBC shows including This is Us, The Voice and Chicago Med.

CNN Chief Jeff Zucker, Warner Bros. chairman and CEO Kevin Tsujihara and Turner International leader Gerhard Zeiler will take on added responsibilities.

"Adding Bob Greenblatt to the WarnerMedia family and expanding the leadership scope and responsibilities of Jeff, Kevin and Gerhard -- who collectively have more than 80 years of global media experience and success -- gives us the right management team to strategically position our leading portfolio of brands, world-class talent and rich library of intellectual property for future growth," the company said.

The shakeup occurs one week after the Justice Department lost an appeal to prevent AT&T from buying Time Warner. Friday, longtime HBO CEO Richard Plepler resigned after nearly 30 years in the post. He didn't give a reason for his departure but it came as a surprise to staff and outside observers.

Zucker will be the new chairman of WarnerMedia News and Sports, where he will oversee Turner Sports, Bleacher Report, AT&T Regional Sports Networks and CNN Worldwide.

Zeiler will be the chief revenue officer for WarnerMedia, overseeing HBO and Turner affiliates.

AT&T's consolidation has raised fears of layoffs.