"While winding down the 538 brand, ABC News will continue to provide best-in-class polling and political data analysis that it has offered for decades."
As part of layoffs implemented by Disney, ABC News’ polling website 538 is hitting the chopping block.
Richard Horrmann, senior vice president of strategic communications for Disney Entertainment Television, told USA Today, "While winding down the 538 brand, ABC News will continue to provide best-in-class polling and political data analysis that it has offered for decades."
Overall, 6 percent of employees at the ABC News Group and Disney Entertainment Network units, or around 200 employees, will be impacted by the layoffs. 15 employees at 538 are being let go of, per the Wall Street Journal.
Horrmann said that affected staff were made aware of the layoffs on Wednesday. "We have worked hard to minimize the number of affected employees as much as possible." He said that the company is evaluating "new ways to effectively manage resources and boost efficiencies."
Other changes occurring amid the layoffs are the consolidation of ABC news magazine shows 20/20 and Nightline, and all three hours of Good Morning America will be consolidated under one person. The morning show previously had a separate production team for the third hour.
In the Disney Entertainment Networks unit, staffing reductions in scheduling and program planning are planned. The unit oversees broadcast networks and cable channels such as FX and Freeform.
ABC had previously placed the polling site, founded by pollster Nate Silver in 2008, "on the chopping block" as Silver’s contract was set to expire in the summer of 2023. ABC had controlled 538 since 2018, after an exchange of assets with ESPN, also owned by Disney.
Powered by The Post Millennial CMS™ Comments
Join and support independent free thinkers!
We’re independent and can’t be cancelled. The establishment media is increasingly dedicated to divisive cancel culture, corporate wokeism, and political correctness, all while covering up corruption from the corridors of power. The need for fact-based journalism and thoughtful analysis has never been greater. When you support The Post Millennial, you support freedom of the press at a time when it's under direct attack. Join the ranks of independent, free thinkers by supporting us today for as little as $1.
Remind me next month
To find out what personal data we collect and how we use it, please visit our Privacy Policy
Comments
33 days ago | Comment by: Dean
What are they going to do with all of those DEI hires? Hire them at Marvel?