When ESPN announced it would be cutting ties with many of its on-air personalities, many in the industry were shocked by how massive the cuts were. Jaws dropped, eyebrows raised, and ears perked up when more than 100 employees were laid off.
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All of a sudden, people were talking about a potential end to ESPN's reign as part of a growing movement away from cable subscriptions and toward online streaming services. Along with the chords being cut, jobs were being cut, too.
And one of the ones laid off by ESPN in the process was Ron Jaworski, a former NFL quarterback and analyst whose contract ran through 2022. However, it appears the worldwide leader in sports tried to save Jaworski's job at the eleventh hour.
About two months after Jaworski was added to the list of layoffs, he described his situation as being "in limbo," and he "still may continue to work at ESPN."
But a return to the network was cut short by Disney, who opted to eat the remaining portions of the contracts — like Jaworski's — which ran substantially into the future, and it reflected in its most recent quarterly earnings.
While Disney did not outright make a personnel decision for ESPN, ordering the layoff of Jaworksi specifically, the parent company did pull rank and ordered ESPN to cut a certain amount of costs.
It's a tough, tough business, and it isn't getting easier.
[h/t The Big Lead]
