ESPN Bloodbath: Jeff Van Gundy, Max Kellerman, and Keyshawn Johnson Among 20 Hosts Fired From Network in Latest Round of Layoffs
ESPN fired a number of the network’s biggest stars this week in an effort to save tens of millions of dollars, RadarOnline.com has learned.
The sudden announcement was made on Friday morning via a memo issued to all ESPN staffers and personnel.
According to the memo, roughly 20 stars – including Jeff Van Gundy, Max Kellerman, Keyshawn Johnson, Suzy Kolber, and Jalen Rose – were fired in what was just the latest layoff purge to take place at the seemingly struggling sports network.
“Given the current environment, ESPN has determined it necessary to identify some additional cost savings in the area of public-facing commentator salaries, and that process has begun,” the company announced in a statement.
“This exercise will include a small group of job cuts in the short-term and an ongoing focus on managing costs when we negotiate individual contract renewals in the months ahead,” the network continued. “This is an extremely challenging process, involving individuals who have had tremendous impact on our company.”
“These difficult decisions, based more on overall efficiency than merit, will help us meet our financial targets and ensure future growth.”
NFL Countdown analyst Matt Hasselbeck, NFL draft expert Todd McShay, college basketball analyst LaPhonso Ellis, SportsCenter anchor Ashley Brewer, radio host Jason Fitz and baseball writer Joon Lee were also reportedly among the nearly 20 employees let go on Friday morning.
Also surprising are reports that Friday’s talent purge was allegedly not a directive from Disney, ESPN’s new parent company, but rather a decision made by the sports network itself in an effort to prevent non-talent layoffs.
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Friday morning’s layoffs also marked the latest talent purge to take place at ESPN in recent months after an undisclosed number of employees were let go in April.
Disney CEO Bob Iger, who only recently returned to Disney, is reportedly behind the ongoing restructuring and is reportedly working to cut $5.5 billion in costs in the network’s immediate future.
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Iger also reportedly ordered three rounds of layoffs in an effort to eliminate 7,000 jobs – most of which being staffers who worked behind-the-scenes at ESPN.
“Out of respect to all involved, we don’t plan on releasing a complete list of names,” the network added in their statement this week.