On the heels of massive Disney layoffs, another of the woke House of Mouse’s ventures shocked employees and viewers alike when it unexpectedly and seismically reduced its own workforce.
ABC News joined its parent company Disney in releasing C-suite personnel and firing several key executives, shaking up its newsroom and production teams.
“Throughout the company, teams are being impacted by the downsizing that was announced several weeks ago, including our own ABC News family,” ABC News President Kim Godwin told staffers in a just-released memo.
“While these actions are never easy,” Godwin’s memo added, “they are a necessary step to ensure we’re on solid footing for the years ahead as we chart a sustainable, growth-oriented path forward for the entire organization.”
CNN reported that several “senior vice president” positions were among those affected. Again, as with Disney’s firings, the people impacted were not just fringe diversity personnel or low-level employees; they were key leadership folks. CNN said
, in part:
Among the staffers let go, according to people familiar with the matter, were senior vice president of newsgathering Wendy Fisher; senior vice president of talent Galen Gordon; vice president of talent Mary Noonan; Los Angeles bureau chief David Herndon; vice president of communications Alison Rudnick; senior executive producer Chris Vlasto; and executive editorial producer Heather Riley.
“While this is a difficult time for all of us – particularly those directly affected by these tough decisions – it’s important to remember that together, we are resilient, and will emerge from this period of transition stronger than before,” Godwin’s memo continued.
“In the coming days and weeks, we will share additional information about these teams and our plans,” she said.
Disney CEO Bog Iger, who returned to the helm after Bob Chapek was chased out of town for his own massive failures, has in recent weeks announced that Disney expects to shed some 7,000 jobs in order to save the struggling company over $5 billion.
Iger wrote in his own memo:
As I shared with you in February, we have made the difficult decision to reduce our overall workforce by approximately 7,000 jobs as part of a strategic realignment of the company, including important cost-saving measures necessary for creating a more effective, coordinated and streamlined approach to our business. Over the past few months, senior leaders have been working closely with HR to assess their operational needs, and I want to give you an update on those efforts.
AdvertisementThis week, we begin notifying employees whose positions are impacted by the company’s workforce reductions. Leaders will be communicating the news directly to the first group of impacted employees over the next four days. A second, larger round of notifications will happen in April with several thousand more staff reductions, and we expect to commence the final round of notifications before the beginning of the summer to reach our 7,000-job target.
The difficult reality of many colleagues and friends leaving Disney is not something we take lightly. This company is home to the most talented and dedicated employees in the world, and so many of you bring a lifelong passion for Disney to your work here. That’s part of what makes working at Disney so special. It also makes it all the more difficult to say goodbye to wonderful people we care about. I want to offer my sincere thanks and appreciation to every departing employee for your numerous contributions and your devotion to this beloved company.
