ESPN reportedly plans another big round of layoffs in the coming weeks
BY PETE GRATHOFF
NOVEMBER 10, 2017 9:10 AM
Once upon a time, “SportsCenter” was must-see television for fans. But ESPN’s one-time signature program apparently will be at the center of another round of layoffs that reportedly will happen in the coming weeks.
Sports Illustrated reported that more than 100 people will lose their jobs after Thanksgiving. This is from the SI story:
The layoffs, which were described by a person briefed on the plans, will hit positions across ESPN including front-facing talent on the television side, producers, executives, and digital and technology staffers. The SportsCenter franchise is expected to be hit hard—including on-air people—given the frequency of the show has lessened considerably on main network ESPN.
As more people drop cable in favor of streaming, ESPN has felt the financial pinch. In April, ESPN cut a number of long-time journalists as part of a round of layoffs that included 100 people.
According to the Los Angeles Times, ESPN weighed down the earnings of its parent company, Walt Disney, in a report on Thursday. The Times said that Disney’s “revenue declined 3 percent and the company failed to meet analysts’ expectations.”
The holiday season may seem like a harsh time to shed jobs. But Sports Illustrated said one reason why ESPN is planning the layoffs between Thanksgiving and Christmas is so employees can received another year in the stock vesting program.
Originally Posted by ku_jhawk23:
Well....he is a GIANT Prick.
He could be an axe murderer for all I know but other networks have had 30 years to create a highlight show that could rival NFL Primetime and none of them can come close. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud:
Berman is also the face of ESPN Football.
He'll be at ESPN as long as he wants.
He WAS the face of ESPN football, but not anymore.
He is essentially off the air now and doesn’t host any of their high profile NFL programming... Sunday NFL Countdown, Monday NFL Countdown, the NFL Draft, etc. [Reply]
Originally Posted by BDj23:
I don't understand the Berman hate, maybe it's just nostalgia from when I was a kid and the home run derby, but he's far from the worst talking head on that shitty network.
Have you watched him lately on anything that isn't completely scripted?
He's very annoying and loud. His schtick is 20 years in past. [Reply]
Originally Posted by KCChiefsFan88:
He WAS the face of ESPN football, but not anymore.
He is essentially off the air now and doesn’t host any of their high profile NFL programming... Sunday NFL Countdown, Monday NFL Countdown, the NFL Draft, etc.
ESPN+ is growing quickly, in part because of Chris Berman and Prime Time.
I watch it every week and really missed it while Berman was "retired".
It's still the best weekly wrap up show, IMO, and by a wide margin. Inside The NFL on Showtime pales in comparison to the program it was in the 80's and 90's while on HBO. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud:
ESPN+ is growing quickly, in part because of Chris Berman and Prime Time.
I watch it every week and really missed it while Berman was "retired".
It's still the best weekly wrap up show, IMO, and by a wide margin. Inside The NFL on Showtime pales in comparison to the program it was in the 80's and 90's while on HBO.
Primetime is still great but Berman live is a disaster. His schtick is much better scripted than delivered ad lib. [Reply]
People talk about politics or cord cutters and all that stuff, and what gets ignored is ESPN is now paying $2.7 billion per year to have the NFL. They pay $1.4 billion for the NBA and that's probably going up in a few years. Then they're going to pay about a billion dollars a year for MLB and the NHL. And that doesn't even count college sports.
Although to be fair cord cutters is part of that. Live sports draws viewers so that's what they're spending money on, and not the talent to cover and call the games. [Reply]
Originally Posted by htismaqe:
Primetime is still great but Berman live is a disaster. His schtick is much better scripted than delivered ad lib.
Yeah, he certainly does not have the same delivery as when he was in his prime but I still find it more entertaining than any of the other wrap up show.
ESPN just wanted Kenny Mayne out, for whatever reason. They offered him a 61% pay reduction to stay and he chose to leave and it had absolutely nothing to do with cuts.
As for ESPN+, I'm actually surprised that their subscriber rates are currently at 12.1 million. I've been a Disney+ Bundle subscriber since launch because it was such a great deal to have Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ for only $12.99 (now $13.99). I switched over to the Ad-Free bundle around June of last year and I still think it's the best value of any of the existing streamers.
Considering that paid Disney+ subscriptions are nearing 100 million, it's kind of shocking that only around 12% have purchased the bundle. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud:
Yeah, he certainly does not have the same delivery as when he was in his prime but I still find it more entertaining than any of the other wrap up show.
ESPN just wanted Kenny Mayne out, for whatever reason. They offered him a 61% pay reduction to stay and he chose to leave and it had absolutely nothing to do with cuts.
As for ESPN+, I'm actually surprised that their subscriber rates are currently at 12.1 million. I've been a Disney+ Bundle subscriber since launch because it was such a great deal to have Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ for only $12.99 (now $13.99). I switched over to the Ad-Free bundle around June of last year and I still think it's the best value of any of the existing streamers.
Considering that paid Disney+ subscriptions are nearing 100 million, it's kind of shocking that only around 12% have purchased the bundle.
I have the ad-free bundle as well and agree - it's the best value in streaming right now. [Reply]
And my problem with Berman is that players bumbling and stumbling is one thing but when he goes off script, it's the same one liners over and over again. [Reply]
man, Primtime with Berman and TJ was sooooo good back in the day.
hard to imagine back in the day, I used to tune into Primtime just to see what else happened around the league that day before all the Monday morning newspaper articles etc. man...times have changed lol. [Reply]
man, Primtime with Berman and TJ was sooooo good back in the day.
hard to imagine back in the day, I used to tune into Primtime just to see what else happened around the league that day before all the Monday morning newspaper articles etc. man...times have changed lol. [Reply]
Originally Posted by BigBeauford:
Has a little to do with politics.
A lot to do with cord cutters.
A lot to do with younger people not giving a shit about sports at anywhere near the level our elders do.
All true and technology/media expansion has played a huge role.
In the old days all we had was ESPN and local news to see sports updates. Now there are channels dedicated specifically to NFL/MLB/NBA, plus online and on social media.
Why watch a show that has little bits of everything when we can just see exactly what we want? [Reply]
Originally Posted by sedated:
All true and technology/media expansion has played a huge role.
In the old days all we had was ESPN and local news to see sports updates. Now there are channels dedicated specifically to NFL/MLB/NBA, plus online and on social media.
Why watch a show that has little bits of everything when we can just see exactly what we want?
Yep. That's why I have the Hulu bundle. I use my ESPN+ subscription to read insider articles and watch football specific programming. I have no real interest in any other sports so if I'm just going to watch live TV, it's going to be NFL Network. [Reply]