ESPN lays off big name anchors, analysts as company restructures

ESPN is making sweeping cuts to the company’s roster of employees this week as the sports media giant rolls out changes to its business that has ended the tenures of some notable names at the network.

Longtime baseball broadcaster Karl Ravech, NFL analyst Ryan Clark and reporter Tom Pelissero were all among those let go by the network this week, with dozens more employees behind the scenes also losing their jobs.

In a memo sent to staff on Tuesday, ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro argued the cuts were necessary as the network looks to integrate its business with NFL Media, which its parent company Disney acquired last year as part of a multi-billion dollar deal.

“Over the past several months, we’ve made significant progress integrating the NFL assets that we acquired into ESPN. Throughout this process, we have taken the time to carefully evaluate our collective teams, resources and organizational structure to best position us for the future. As a result, we had to make some difficult decisions about job impacts that we will be communicating today,” Pitaro said in his note, a copy of which was obtained by The Hill.

“While most of the job impacts are tied to the acquisition, we will also notify colleagues in other parts of the company today that their positions have been impacted. We are committed to treating employees with compassion and respect and to providing support as they navigate this transition,” he added.

News of the cuts spread quickly and was met with some criticism online, mainly from observers who took issue with what they say is ESPN’s changing business strategy in recent years.

Launched as the nation’s first-ever sports only cable channel in the late 1970s, in the digital age ESPN has increasingly centered its business around pundits and personalities like Pat MacAfee and reporters with extraordinary access to top leagues like Adam Schefter.

Stephen A. Smith, one of the network’s top commentators, pushed back on the network over its decision to get rid of Clark during his daily talk show on Tuesday, saying Clark was a personal friend and revealing he pleaded with ESPN leadership to keep him.

The cuts come as ESPN, like all major media companies, grapple with changing consumer habits, an increasingly tough advertising market and a push toward subscriber-based streaming services.

Live sports remain the single largest driver of audience for nearly every major media company, and the entrance of tech companies like Amazon and Netflix into the business of streaming sports and entertainment has increased pressure on legacy media companies like Disney to retain audience.

The ESPN cuts are part of a larger workforce reduction effort carried out by Disney, which is reportedly also impacting employees at filmmaker Pixar and Nat Geo most significantly.

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