This success occurred partly because Licht allowed the show's hosts Gayle King, Charlie Rose, and Norah O'Donnell, to talk freely about news events and about themselves.

[17] As executive producer, he focused on management issues that host Stephen Colbert had previously handled, as well as shortening the opening credits and adding a comedy sketch immediately before them.

I think we can be a beacon in regaining that trust by being an organization that exemplifies the best characteristics in journalism: fearlessly speaking truth to power, challenging the status quo, questioning ‘group-think’ and educating viewers and readers with straightforward facts and insightful commentary, while always being respectful of differing viewpoints.

[24] In late 2022, Licht received criticism as CNN terminated the contracts of several long-time correspondents including Brian Stelter, John Harwood, and Jeffrey Toobin.

[29] The following year, the series won an Emmy for Outstanding Investigative Journalism in a Regularly Scheduled Newscast for a story on fraud at compounding pharmacies, which he co-executive produced with Steve Capus.

He later wrote a book about the resulting experience, What I Learned When I Almost Died: How a Maniac TV Producer Put Down His BlackBerry and Started to Live His Life, which was published in 2011.

[31][32] Joe Biden, the then-vice president and a survivor of an aneurysm himself, cold-called Dr. Vivek Deshmukh, a highly recommended neurosurgeon, to ask him to take care of Licht.