Layoff Shock & Disbelief Rain Down at ABC News

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Thursday will go down as a very dark day for ABC as Disney’s forecasted layoffs reached the network’s news division, making employees keenly aware of the fact that no one working under the Disney name is safe from CEO Bob Iger’s job cuts. And we mean no one.

Shock and disbelief rushed through the doors, down the corridors, and into the offices and studios at ABC News on Thursday as Disney’s massive layoff initiative became painfully personal for many employees at the Disney-owned news division. The wave of cuts reached as far as the senior executive level at the news organization, setting into motion a massive newsroom restructuring while an even broader downsizing rained down in other parts of the Disney Company universe.

The cuts are part of a widespread effort to reduce salaries and purge Disney of “useless” employees on the way to saving The Walt Disney Company more than $5.5 billion.

“Throughout the company, teams are being impacted by the downsizing that was announced several weeks ago, including our own ABC News family,” ABC News President Kim Godwin said to staffers via interoffice memo. “While these actions are never easy, they are a necessary step to ensure we’re on solid footing for the years ahead as we chart a sustainable, growth-oriented path forward for the entire organization.”

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Among those dismissed on Thursday were senior vice president of newsgathering Wendy Fisher, Galen Gordon, senior vice president of talent, Mary Noonan, vice president of talent, Los Angeles bureau chief David Herndon, vice president of communications Alison Rudnick, senior executive producer Chris Vlasto; and executive editorial producer Heather Riley.

Those closest to the matter say staffers were shocked by the laying off of so many high-level execs at ABC News.

“There’s a ton of shock that’s gone through the newsroom,” one ABC News staffer said. “So many people with institutional knowledge are gone.”

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The cuts reportedly totaled 50 across the ABC News organization, including some roles that were open and not yet filled.

“While this is a difficult time for all of us – particularly those directly affected by these tough decisions – it’s important to remember that together, we are resilient, and will emerge from this period of transition stronger than before,” Godwin continued in her memo to staff members.

On Thursday, Godwin said she promoted Katie den Daas, London bureau chief, to the role of vice president of newsgathering. She also said that Derek Medina, executive vice president, will now be in charge of talent strategy. Stacia Deshishku, executive editor and senior vice president of news at ABC, will now oversee investigating and enterprise units.

“In the coming days and weeks, we will share additional information about these teams and our plans,” Godwin said.

ABC News suspends Whoopi Goldberg from “The View” after comments about the Holocaust

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ABC News has suspended Whoopi Goldberg for two weeks from The View. The suspension came on Tuesday evening, only hours after Ms. Goldberg apologized for comments she made about the Holocaust.

Earlier this week, during Monday morning’s episode of The View, Goldberg first garnered backlash for comments she made insisting that the Holocaust was “not about race,” but rather about “man’s inhumanity to man.”

Later on Monday, Goldberg appeared on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert and attempted to explain the reasoning behind her comments, but her comments on Colbert’s show only made matters worse. On Monday evening, as the backlash and controversy continued to fester, Goldberg issued an apology, saying she had been wrong to make those comments.

“I’m sorry for the hurt I have caused,” Goldberg said in a written statement of apology.

Tuesday morning’s episode of The View included yet another apology from the newly-embattled television personality, who said the following on-air:

“I said something that I feel a responsibility for not leaving unexamined because my words upset so many people, which was never my intention. I understand why now, and for that, I am deeply, deeply grateful because the information I got was really helpful, and it helped me understand some different things. I said the Holocaust wasn’t about race and was instead about man’s inhumanity to man,” Goldberg explained during Tuesday’s episode. “But it is indeed about race because Hitler and the Nazis considered Jews to be an inferior race. Now words matter and mine are no exception. I regret my comments, as I said, and I stand corrected. I also stand with the Jewish people as they know and y’all know, because I’ve always done that.”After her on-air apology, Goldberg conducted an interview with Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, who attempted to explain why Goldberg’s comments were hurtful. Later on Tuesday, Greenblatt said he accepted Goldberg’s apology via Twitter, saying he appreciated the chance to discuss the importance of educating people about the Holocaust.

But Goldberg’s apologies didn’t spare her from disciplinary measures from ABC News. In a statement, Kim Godwin, ABC News President, described Ms. Goldberg’s comments about the Holocaust as “wrong and hurtful.”

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“While Whoopi has apologized, I’ve asked her to take time to reflect and learn about the impact of her comments,” Godwin said. “The entire ABC News organization stands in solidarity with our Jewish colleagues, friends, family, and communities.”Godwin also sent her staff an internal email about Ms. Goldberg’s suspension, saying that “words matter, and we must be cognizant of the impact our words have,” as she explained the decision to take disciplinary measures against the actress and comedian. She further described the difficulty in making such a decision, saying it’s “never easy.”

During the Second World War, six million European Jews lost their lives at the hands of Germany’s Nazi Party, led by Adolf Hitler. At the time, the deaths accounted for nearly 1/3 of the world’s Jewish population. Nazis also murdered five million non-Jews as well, believing those they murdered were inferior, thus rationalizing their heinous acts of torture and genocide. In all, 11 million people lost their lives at the hands of the Nazi regime.