One of the most influential executives in sports media works at ESPN.
Norby Williamson, who has been involved in nearly every aspect of ESPN’s content and operations from programming, production and news during his nearly four decades at ESPN, will no longer work at the company, with effective immediately, according to an ESPN staff memo. .
ESPN content president Burke Magnus made the decision, even though Williamson had several years left on his contract, according to executives briefed on the decision.
Magnus wanted to go in a different direction as the company moved forward and felt that Williamson was not the best person to oversee production.
An executive with direct knowledge of the decision said Athleticism“It was time.”
In recent months, Williamson made headlines after Pat McAfee – host of “The Pat McAfee Show” on ESPN – claimed on his show that Williamson was behind leaks of bad news. television audiences for the program and had called Williamson a “rat.” ESPN sources said the incident had no bearing on Friday’s decision.
“This has absolutely nothing to do with the Pat McAfee episode,” said former ESPN executive vice president Mark Shapiro, who worked closely with Magnus and Williamson and is now president of Endeavor and TKO. Athleticism. “Norby was not fully aligned with the content vision that Jimmy (Pitaro) and Burke had laid out. More than anything, after his incredible journey, it was time to pass the torch.
In the memo sent to ESPN staff, Magnus said a “comprehensive search for a new senior content manager to help lead our team” was underway. The thinking at ESPN is that multiple people could fill Williamson’s position or his responsibilities could be distributed differently.
Writer and podcaster Jemele Hill, a former ESPN personality, experienced professional friction with Williamson, like other on-air talent.
“My reaction is somewhere between amused laughter and ‘I never thought I’d see this day,'” Hill said. Athleticism. “I don’t know the circumstances of his departure, but I suspect it’s no coincidence that an earthquake hit New York City the same day this announcement was made.”
Williamson was as influential as one could be at ESPN without being president. His recent responsibilities included overseeing ESPN’s NFL and college football content. He is most associated with “SportsCenter,” which he had a heavy hand in directing.
Williamson joined ESPN in 1985 as an employee in the company’s mailroom and quickly rose through the ranks, eventually becoming one of the company’s most powerful executives, giving him the ability to make or break a career.
“I was very fortunate to be offered an opportunity at ESPN,” Willamson said in Magnus’ internal memo. “Thanks to the exceptional hard work, creativity and commitment of the people at ESPN, and to a much lesser extent my contributions, I would like to think we left our great company in a much better place than where we found him.”
In January, McAfee accused Williamson of sabotaging his program by leaking false audience information to the media.
“There are people who are actively trying to sabotage us at ESPN,” McAfee said. “More specifically, Norby Williamson is the one trying to sabotage our program.”
ESPN finally sent out a statement saying everyone was on the same page. Magnus was photographed shortly after with McAfee at a soccer game, and McAfee posted the photo on social media.
It was the final chapter of Williamson’s run, which ended Friday.
“Norby was ESPN,” said Traug Keller, who had his own experience as an influential ESPN executive. Athleticism. “No one took command and control like him. He has an uncanny knack for turning the ratings tide, as he did with “SportsCenter,” “First Take” and countless others. And he did the hard things that senior leaders above him wanted to do but didn’t want to do themselves. He’s on ESPN’s Mount Rushmore, right next to George Bodenheimer.
Required reading
(Photo by Norby Williamson in 2005: Marc Bryan-Brown / Getty Images)