THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, October 8, 1996 TAG: 9610080290
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARIE JOYCE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 52 lines
The Christian Broadcasting Network of Virginia Beach has laid off 26 employees, including a vice president, a company spokesman confirmed.
Most of the employees were told Monday, said Gene Kapp, CBN's vice president of public relations.
He said the company cut the jobs to devote more money to ``World-Reach,'' a worldwide media campaign to promote 500 million conversions to Christianity over the next five years.
``This is a continuing refinement toward our focus for WorldReach,'' he said.
CBN, with about 950 employees, is a nonprofit organization founded by television evangelist Pat Robertson. It sponsors ``The 700 Club,'' a Christian television program.
Monday's round of layoffs, which were spread across various departments, is the third such reduction in a year.
Last October, CBN cut 65 jobs, saying the company would devote the money saved to international outreach programs.
And in January, Operation Blessing, a relief organization sponsored and funded largely by CBN, laid off 22 people, a third of its staff.
The highest-ranking employee to lose his job apparently was Norman C. Mintle, CBN's vice president of ministry events. Mintle spoke last month on ``The 700 Club'' to promote tent revivals held on the company's grounds. His CBN biography said he was in charge of ``life-changing conferences, special events and entertainment for the entire family.'' Before that, Mintle served as vice president of programming, and, before that, executive producer of ``The 700 Club,'' where he expanded the show's news segment.
Mintle and his family live in Chesapeake, according to a biography circulated by CBN in late summer.
Kapp confirmed that Mintle was among those laid off, but said the company does not discuss specifics of individual employees affected.
While Kapp said the layoffs are not a sign of financial problems, he did note that ``The 700 Club'' is facing stiff competition from an ever-growing list of television shows available to viewers.
``Look at how many opportunities and alternatives there are for viewing,'' he said.
CBN will be aggressively promoting the show ``to remain, quite frankly, competitive in a very, very competitive television market,'' Kapp said.
Kapp said he's not sure how much money the company will save with the layoffs.
``The 700 Club'' is carried on The Family Channel cable TV network and stations worldwide. CBN owned The Family Channel until 1990, when it was sold to International Family Entertainment Inc. Robertson serves as the chairman of Virginia Beach-based IFE, a for-profit company.
KEYWORDS: LAYOFFS CHRISTIAN BROADCASTING NETWORK by CNB