ABC Hit With Massive Layoffs

The entertainment industry giant Disney has wielded the axe at its news division, eliminating approximately 200 positions across ABC News and Disney Entertainment Networks as traditional television continues to weather significant financial challenges.

The workforce reduction, representing nearly 6% of the division’s total employees, will dramatically reshape several flagship programs, according to The Hollywood Reporter. ABC News faces particularly severe cuts, with the data journalism platform 538 shutting down completely while established programs Nightline and 20/20 will merge their production teams.

The network’s morning flagship show, Good Morning America, will consolidate all three hours under a single executive producer, Simone Swink, as the company simultaneously combines its digital and social media operations.

Disney’s broader entertainment networks, including popular channels FX and Freeform, will experience staff reductions primarily in programming and scheduling departments, as initially reported by The Wall Street Journal. These latest reductions follow previous workforce cuts at ABC News last fall when approximately 75 positions were eliminated shortly after Almin Karamehmedovic assumed the presidency of the news division in August.

The turmoil at ABC appears to be creating opportunities for rival network CBS, according to Page Six. Industry veterans vacating Disney-owned properties are finding new homes at CBS News, with former ABC executives Matthew Mosk and Wendy Fisher securing leadership positions following their departures. Most notably, longtime ABC News veteran Tom Cibrowski was recently appointed president and executive editor of CBS News.

Sources told Page Six that this talent acquisition strategy reflects a deliberate approach by Wendy McMahon, president and CEO of CBS News and Television Stations. McMahon, a former ABC executive who previously led ABC’s Owned Television Stations division before joining CBS in 2021, reportedly aims to replicate past programming successes. Cibrowski’s hiring carries particular significance given his role as executive producer when Good Morning America overtook NBC’s Today show for ratings supremacy in 2012.

Meanwhile, ABC News president Karamehmedovic addressed the workforce reductions in an internal memo to staff, acknowledging “reductions to our extraordinary staff” while describing Wednesday as “undoubtedly difficult for our organization.” His message expressed gratitude toward departing employees while attempting to maintain morale among remaining personnel.

Despite efforts to downplay the significance of these cuts, with one ABC executive emphasizing that the reductions represent less than 6% of the total workforce across both divisions, sources indicate additional layoffs may materialize before summer. The latest round of reductions follows Disney’s company-wide structure-driven job cuts announced last September, highlighting the continuing challenges traditional media organizations face in adapting to changing viewer habits and intensifying competition from digital platforms.