CNN still fancies itself the "most trusted name in news," yet, even former CEO Chris Licht admitted last year that that trust — assuming at one point they actually had it — is long gone and they need to restore it. He didn't last long.

The problem, of course, is that CNN claims to be fair and without bias, yet anti-conservative views have long been part of its DNA, as the network's on-air talent routinely bases its reports on Democratic Party talking points. Even token conservatives on the network are a joke, and sound more like liberal pundits.

The struggling network is now desperately trying to get out of its death spiral, and step one is to cut costs by axing the remaining big name talents who have extremely large salaries.

New CEO Mark Thompson is preparing ruthless cuts to remake the network as ratings plunge — leaving Anderson Cooper, Chris Wallace, Wolf Blitzer and Jake Tapper facing dates with the axman, a source says.

"Anderson knows he's on the chopping block because he makes a whopping $20 million a year. He's already started looking for a new gig!" a network insider exclusively tells In Touch. "Chris Wallace takes $8 million and figures he's a likely target, too!"

Insiders say other network favorites — including $15 million man Blitzer and $8 million gent Tapper – are also bracing for the boot!

"Everybody knows the focus is on cutting costs," the insider continues. "No one is safe!"

For now, no big changes are expected, because the contracts for the so-called "heavy hitters" don't expire until after the elections in November. But after then? Well, anything can (and probably will) happen.

A rep for Tapper insists talk of his ouster is false. But Thompson is known for wielding a sharp axe to get to a desired bottom line. He recently removed hosts Poppy Harlow and Phil Mattingly from CNN This Morning and consolidated all the network's production offices to Atlanta to save dough.

Sources say he has no use for the star system and the hefty salaries that come with it. He's reportedly seeking to replace marquee names with talent who built their audiences on social media — including former FOX and NBC anchor Megyn Kelly, who has 1.72 million subscribers on YouTube.