SerpApi.Org
EXCLUSIVE: National Geographic was hit by this morning's latest round of Disney layoffs and one of its longest serving executives was one of those affected.
Charlie Parsons, SVP, Development at the factual brand, is exiting as part of the cuts. Parsons has been with the broadcaster for over 15 years and has worked on some of its biggest titles including One Strange Rock, Hostile Planet and Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted as well as recent shows including Pompeii: Out of Time with Tom Hiddleston and Best of the World with Antoni Porowski.
Deadline understands that just under 100 employees were laid off across Disney Entertainment Television with Nat Geo and ABC News being particularly hit.
The cuts were signaled earlier this year by new CEO Josh D'Amaro, who said in April that it was looking to "streamline our operations in various parts of the company to ensure we deliver the world-class creativity and innovation our fans value and expect from Disney."
Other execs at Nat Geo include some of Parsons' development colleagues, including directors in the division and Terry Danuser, VP, Casting and Talent Relations. Danuser, who previously spent over a decade at Discovery, has been with the company for over 11 years.
Parsons, not to be confused with the Survivor creator of the same name, joined Nat Geo in 2010, having previously been a director of content at the Travel Channel, where he worked on series including Man v. Food and Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, and as an executive producer at Discovery Channel and Science Channel.
Other Nat Geo projects that he worked on included Life Below Zero, events such as Earth Live and Yellowstone Live as well as documentaries LA 92 and The Cave and its movies such as Killing Jesus.
