News Division May Face Layoffs Says Report

It looks like the winds of change are blowing hard over at ABC News, and they’re not the kind of changes anyone wants to see. According to recent reports, ABC News staffers are bracing for some serious belt-tightening as the Disney-owned network faces major budget cuts. Even the top-rated morning show, Good Morning America (GMA), isn’t safe from the chopping block.

Here’s what we know: Disney has demanded that GMA slash its budget by a staggering $19 million, an increase from the already daunting $17 million initially projected. This comes as Disney begins a wave of layoffs across its TV group, including networks like NatGeo and Freeform, where 140 jobs were cut this week alone.

Now, you might be wondering, are the show’s big names—Robin Roberts, Michael Strahan, and George Stephanopoulos—going to feel the pinch? Not likely. These top talents have contracts that protect their hefty salaries, which are estimated to be between $17 million and $18 million each. Instead, it’s the behind-the-scenes staffers, like producers and bookers, who are likely to face the brunt of these cuts.

This news comes as GMA faces increasing competition from NBC’s Today show. While GMA still leads in total viewers, Today has been gaining ground, especially in the key 25-54 age demographic that’s so crucial for advertisers.

In the second quarter of the year, Nielsen reported that GMA had 2.8 million total viewers and 494,000 viewers in the demo, while Today wasn’t far behind with 2.7 million viewers but led with 620,000 demo viewers.

Some insiders are pointing to a shift in GMA’s content as part of the problem. According to one former ABC News executive, the show has leaned heavily on live hits and in-studio segments, with fewer taped pieces that might offer more in-depth or quality reporting. This approach, while perhaps cost-effective in the short term, may not be resonating as well with viewers who expect more substantive content from their morning news programs.

And it’s not just GMA that’s feeling the squeeze. Across the network, there’s talk of cost-saving measures like a hiring freeze and not filling open positions. There’s also speculation that ABC News Group and Networks president Debra OConnell may save on overhead by promoting from within rather than hiring a high-paid executive to replace former ABC News president Kim Godwin, who stepped down in May after a tumultuous tenure.

This shake-up at ABC News isn’t just about trimming the fat—it’s about surviving in an increasingly tough media landscape where every dollar counts. With networks under pressure to maintain profitability while adapting to changing viewer habits and the competition from streaming services, these cuts may be just the beginning of more drastic changes to come.

For the staffers at ABC News, these cuts will undoubtedly be painful, as the network is already “cut close to the bone,” according to insiders. But for viewers, this might also signal a shift in the kind of content they can expect from GMA and other ABC News programs as the network looks for ways to balance quality with cost.