ABC News guts ‘GMA3,’ 538 in latest round of layoffs

ABC News and Disney Entertainment will lay off around 200 staffers, including eliminating teams working on “GMA3” and its  538 brand.

It was not immediately clear how many staffers were affected, but reports indicate that the network bid farewell to nearly all of its “GMA3” team and 538 staffers.

As part of the layoffs, the network opted to reorganize the two hours of “Good Morning America” and the one hour of “GMA3: What You Need to Know” under executive producer Simone Swink, who previously had only been responsible for “GMA” proper.

Previously, “GMA3” had its own production team and EP, Catherine McKenzie, who was laid off. 

“GMA3” anchors DeMarco Morgan and Eva Pilgrim were not affected by the changes. 

In addition, the network’s investigative team executive producer Cindy Galli and vice president of news and non-fiction production and studio operations Zach Toback were also let go.

The cuts also affected other parts of the newsroom and other parts of Disney Entertainment.

These layoffs come on the heels of ABC wrapping up its move from Lincoln Square to the new building parent company Disney recently completed in Hudson Square. 

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Rumblings of cuts after the move had been circulating for months, according to insider sources. 

The closure of 538, a political data journalism site that Disney bought in 2018, was widely anticipated. After buying the brand from founder Nate Silver, the site was initially put under ESPN because it offered analysis of sports-related analytics as well. It was later moved under ABC News and focused more on politics. 

Silver’s contract was not renewed after a 2023 round of layoffs at ABC News. As part of his exit, he retained the rights to the key forecasting model the site used. He later would found the Silver Bulletin. 

538 previously spelled out its name as “FiveThirtyEight.” Visitors attempting to go to www.fivethirtyeight.com or its previous home under the abcnews.go.com subdomain are now being redirected to a general politics news page.

ABC’s layoffs are the latest in a trend of cuts that have hit the media and journalism industry as these companies adapt to growing focus on streaming and an often wobbly advertising market.