The first round of ESPN’s wave of layoffs is underway, with one of the company’s longest-tenured employees on the list.
ESPN VP/communications Mike Soltys is leaving the company in June as part of a new wave of layoffs that began Monday, according to Sports Business Journal. Soltys, whose 43-year tenure with ESPN made him its second-longest tenured executive, confirmed the report on social media soon after.
While ESPN layoffs have always resulted in the ouster of long-tenured talent and executives — including some who had been with the company from its 1979 beginning — the departure of Soltys is particularly notable as he has led ESPN’s public relations arm for more than three decades. He is also responsible for one of the more memorable quotes in ESPN history, saying of Keith Olbermann in 2001 that he had not only “burned bridges,” but “napalmed them.”
The layoffs that began Monday are the first of three rounds that will eventually cut 7,000 jobs total across The Walt Disney Company. According to the New York Post, the first round will focus on behind-the-scenes personnel like Soltys rather than talent.
While talent will not be targeted in the first round, some deals are already being affected. Per the same Post report, ESPN’s Chris Fowler will remain with the company as its lead college football and tennis voice, but for a “small increase” over his current $3 million/year salary. Talent in the $2-5 million salary range are expected to be targeted with buyouts or not have their contracts renewed, and the Post report specifically mentioned “Monday Night Countdown” as a possible show ESPN will look at closely.
The new layoffs are the third major round of cuts at ESPN in the past decade. Most notably, ESPN laid off dozens of front-facing talent in 2017.
