Ehab Al Shihabi, Al Jazeera America's CEO has ben axed, the news network announced on Wednesday. Al Jazeera America or AJAM has been in trouble recently following a series of management defections within a week including a lawsuit by a former employee who was fired after criticizing his boss for being anti-Semitic and sexist.

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Veteran news executive Al Anstey, the managing director of Al Jazeera English, will replace Al Shihabi who ran Al Jazeera America since it began two years ago. In an email to the staff, Al Shihabi welcomed Anstey and said he would remain as the chief operating officer.

Marcy McGinnis, Al Jazeera's former senior vice president of newsgathering, who resigned this week, told The New York Times that Al Shihabi's management style was based on a "culture of fear." Other resignations last week were from the head of human resources and the chief of communications. 

In a news conference held on Monday, Al Shihabi said that charges against the network about being anti-Semitic and sexist were ridiculous. Despite being less frequently watched, Al Shihabi described the network as successful. 

Al Jazeera America announced the changes in management in a news release. According to Mostefa Souag, chairman of its board of directors, Anstey has the ability to create strategic changes that will lead the channel to success.

Anstey had previously worked for The Associated Press, Reuters, and CBS News. In a statement, he said that he would like to uplift everybody's ambitions in making Al Jazeera appealing to the American audience and that he will do all he can to reach the highest standards of excellence and journalism.

It appears that the removal of Al Shihabi from his position as CEO had been a sudden one. While Shihabi was conducting a regular meeting on Wednesday morning with senior executive producers, the announcement was distributed via companywide email, according to the network's newsroom. 

TagsAl Jazeera, television, news channel, Management, CEO, Ehab Al Shihabi, Al Shihabi