ESPN and the rest of the sports media industry were left reeling Tuesday as the Mothership ejected approximately 10 on-air talents, while pink-slipping a large contingent of behind-the-scenes staffers at NFL Network.
After speaking with multiple sources, here are my five takeaways from the layoffs, which included ESPN dropping talents such as Ryan Clark, Karl Ravech, David Lloyd, Tom Pelissero, Cam Newton, and Bart Scott:
Blame It On NFL Network Merger
Chairman Jimmy Pitaro made it clear that ESPN’s biggest round of layoffs in three years was tied directly to Disney’s acquisition of NFL Network. Anytime two companies merge, the bean counters look at who’s doing what. When they find two people doing the same job—or close to it—one goes out the door.That’s what’s happening as ESPN absorbs a network it competed with for over 20 years. ESPN has made “significant progress” integrating NFLN, Pitaro wrote in an internal memo obtained by Front Office Sports. But as always with mergers, it “had to make some difficult decisions,” added Pitaro.
‘Year of the Super Bowl’
