Layoffs Are Coming To ESPN And ABC News
Issue #117 ESPN and ABC News are looking at their staff counts and making crucial decisions as to who stays and who goes. Uneasiness is setting in as all levels will be impacted.
Layoffs Are Coming To ESPN And ABC News
Dark clouds are starting to hover over the vast Disney empire as expected layoffs mandated by CEO Bob Iger are beginning to take shape.
The media conglomerate is expected to let go as many as 7000 people across its divisions as it looks to generate $5.5 billion in savings.
These cuts said to happen within the next four to six weeks, are expected to be brutal as executives have been told to look at everyone and everything.
ESPN and ABC News are responding to this news accordingly.
At ESPN, chairman Jimmy Pitaro is leading an effort that will see cuts from the highest to the lowest of levels, meaning executives and on-air talent are also not being spared.
Premium talent like Stephen A. Smith, Scott Van Pelt, recently acquired Joe Buck, and Troy Aikman may be excluded from the cuts, but everyone else should be nervous about whether they will still be around.
Smith even alluded to the impending cuts at the House of Mickey, saying, “Hell, for all I know, I might be one of them," adding, "Now, I doubt that. But it’s possible. No one knows."
The worldwide leader in sports has already tightened its belt when it comes to content spend, as it let its rights with the Big Ten and MLS expire and is keen on focusing on the big draws such as SEC Football, NBA, MLB, and NFL, and is establishing itself in the growing Formula 1.
The last time ESPN experienced significant layoffs was in 2017; before that, it was in 2015.
Meanwhile, at ABC News, president Kim Godwin has told staff to “hold on” and said she shares the same anxiety as them regarding the impending layoffs. Like with ESPN, all departments will be scrutinized as the news division aims to trim the fat.
One potential casualty could be the data and analysis website FiveThirtyEight helmed by Nate Silver. The site, acquired in 2018, has not yet turned a profit for the news division and has already put a hire hold on key positions such as managing editor, politics editor, and sports editor.
With Silver’s contract at ABC News expiring in the summer, letting go of him and his publication may look attractive as it may minimize the expected bloodshed.
Unfortunately for ABC News staff, this latest round of impending layoffs is taking place just as they had recovered from the last round, which happened during the pandemic in late 2020.
The work at ESPN and ABC News must continue despite this news, but the mood within these entities must be unsettling.
(New York Post, The Street, Vanity Fair, The Daily Beast)
RECAP
Apple Interested In Bidding For Premier League And EFL Rights
Whatever the outcome is with AppleTVPlus and its partnerships with the MLB and the MLS, one thing is clear Apple is all in when it comes to sports. So much so that the streamer is now interested in acquiring streaming rights to the Premier League and the English Football League. The rights to stream these games would only apply in the U.K., as NBC Sports owns the U.S. rights. The current rights, held by Sky Sports, BT Sport, and Amazon, end after the 2024-2025 season and cost $6.5 billion; with Apple potentially joining the fray, the price for the next rights will definitely be higher. The aforementioned Amazon has shown to be a worthy streaming competitor as it has also acquired rights to stream NFL games on Thursday nights, the U.S. Open tennis tournament in the U.K. and Ireland, and the Champions League tournament in the U.K., Italy, and Germany. Back stateside, Apple and Amazon are in contention for Pac-12 media rights, going up against sports media giant ESPN. (Bloomberg, Front Office Sports )
DirecTV And Newsmax Agree On New Carriage Terms
Newsmax is officially back on DirecTV. The conservative-leaning news channel returned to DirecTV, DirecTV Stream, and U-Verse this past Thursday after a nearly two-month absence. The two companies exchanged pleasantries as the new deal was announced. Still, it did not hide the fact that the two were embroiled in a dispute that became a political firestorm. Newsmax tried to use its political leverage to force DirecTV’s hand into accepting its demands for a carriage fee. GOP politicians and former president Donald Trump involved themselves in the dispute asserting that what DirecTV was doing to Newsmax was political censorship. It’s not known what the new terms were, but for now, all is well between the two entities. (Los Angeles Times)
Netflix’s Ad Tier Hits 1 Million Users
Netflix's decision to add an ad tier is slowly starting to pay off. The streamer revealed that it now has 1 million users who have subscribed to that particular tier. This feat was achieved in its second month after the tier was introduced in November 2022. It has aided in bringing new customers to the streamer as well as reacquainting previous subscribers who dropped it due to escalating prices. The ad tier currently accounts for 20% of new signups. Netflix reports that it has not seen much movement from those who already pay for the non-ad tier offerings to the ad tier offering, which some analysts had predicted would happen. What is not known, as of now, is how much of a bump these new subscribers have made to Netflix’s overall subscriber count and whether they have managed to slow the pace of churn. (Bloomberg)
QUICK RECAP
Dominion vs. Fox News: Fox Corporation argues its executives weren’t involved in fraud broadcasts. (New York Times)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Hearings wrapped up, and a trial decision not yet made (Reuters)
Fox News uses its lifestyle programming to woo Madison Avenue. (Variety)
Dominion vs. Fox News: The two parties battle it out in court. (The Guardian)
Dominion vs. Fox News: The two parties battle it out in court. (The Los Angeles Times)
Dominion vs. Fox News: The two parties battle it out in court. (The Wall Street Journal)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Producer sues the network over sexism and coached testimony. (The Washington Post)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Abby Grossberg was fired after she sued the network over Dominion revelations. (Variety)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Network tries to silence producer who worked on Tucker Carlson’s show. (The New York Times)
Dominion vs. Fox News: The two parties seek pre-trial wins. (Reuters)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Is Fox News’ Sean Hannity really a journalist? (The Washington Post)
Dominion vs. Fox News: First Amendment experts believe Fox News will settle. (The Hollywood Reporter)
Profile: CBS News’ Michelle Miller on her new book. (TVNewser)
Profile: Fox Sports’ NFL reporter Kristina Pink on what fuels her. (The Athletic)
Profile: CBS Morning's Gayle King on her morning show and CNN rumors. (TVNewser)
Profile: ESPN's Stephen A. Smith speaks on more than just sports. (Mediaite)
Steve Rosenberg is no longer with Diamond Sports Group. (John Ourand/Twitter)
The Pat McAfee Show bidding heats up, with Amazon the favorite now. (Awful Announcing)
T.V. executive, Rob King was fired by ESPN after alleged online harassment. (The New York Post)
Former MLB exec David Samson to host two shows for Meadowlark Media. (John Burand/Twitter)
ESPN's Mike Greenberg is recovering from a heart procedure. (New York Post)
Fox News’ Benjamin Hall’s memoir leads the New York Times Best-Seller list. (Mediaite)
DAZN signs a three-year deal to carry American 7s Football League. (John Qurand/Twitter)
AppleTV Plus to charge for Friday Night MLB baseball. (TechCrunch)
Fox News has let Tucker Carson go rogue. (Mediaite)
Vice News Tonight celebrated its 1000th episode. (TVNewser)
New York state is considering adding tax to streaming services. (The Streamable)
The NFL to vote on adding flex schedule to Amazon Prime's Thursday Night Football package. (Sports Business Journal)
MLB Network to revamp its MLB Tonight show. (Michael McCarthy/Twitter)
CNN to debut new weekly show The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper on Sunday, April 16. (CNN Press Room)
ESPN's Scott Van Pelt loses his voice during his SportsCenter show. (Mediaite)
LIV Golf claims T.V. deals were allegedly killed by PGA Tour executives - Q.R.
What happened to the influence of local T.V. sportscasters? (Sports Illustrated)
Boston sports radio producer apologizes to ESPN's Mina Kim for sexist comments. (Front Office Sports)
Fox News correspondent Alicia Acuna’s son got caught up in Denver high school shooting. (TVNewser)
World Baseball Classic was a hit for Fox Sports. (Sports Media Watch)
NBC News pays homage to former foreign correspondent Martin Fletcher with a special Christie’s exhibit. (TVNewser)
Netflix is working on its cloud gaming service. (The Verge)
MSNBC's new show Inside with Jen Psaki starts with big numbers. (Brian Stelter/Twitter)
LIV Golf fails to register in the ratings department. (Mediaite)
Scripps News creates a new long-form unit to aid its documentary programming. (TVNewser)
ESPN's Joe Buck says production decisions don’t involve him and Troy Aikman. (Awful Announcing)
CNN crew robbed in San Francisco. (Mediaite)
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A MarkHenry Media LLC publication - Issue #117 - 2023