Earlier this month, it was reported that ESPN on-air layoffs would happen toward the end of the month. A few have happened, but not many.
Today, the month ends. And, reportedly, a cluster of on-air layoffs are coming.
Michael McCarthy of FrontOfficeSports.com reports that ESPN will lay off “roughly 20” on-air employees on Friday.
It remains to be seen whether and to what extent the departures will impact ESPN’s NFL coverage. Recently, former Patriots linebacker Rob Ninkovich was let go. Earlier this month, Andrew Marchand of the New York Post mentioned Steve Young and Suzy Kolber as possible departures.
The moves are part of a broader restructuring aimed at cutting costs. Which is what corporations sometimes do. Even when the company is operating in the black, pressure always exists to generate more and more and more profit, especially when those companies are owned by shareholders who buy and sell the company’s stock in public marketplaces.
ESPN has been owned by Disney since 1995. The last major layoffs happened in 2017, when Trent Dilfer and Danny Kanell (among others) were laid off from ESPN’s NFL coverage.