Paul Finebaum, an ESPN contributor for a decade, is weighing in on the layoffs that saw about 20 on-air personalities exit the sports network.
“It’s pretty tough, and I say that loving my job and loving the company,” Finebaum said during an appearance on The Marchand and Ourand Sports Media Podcast. “But it was the worst day in my 10 years at ESPN. I can’t explain Bob (Iger’s) thinking. I think you have to trust his track record, but it doesn’t really excuse the state of mind that a lot of us, if not all of us, were in.”
He continued, “And I say as an employee nobody knew Friday. Especially those of us who were on the air whether we would be around at the end of the day. I’ll spare you a lot of the things that have been said on Twitter and on social media because [ESPN] is a special place to work. But it can be cruel, and I think because most of the names were very well-known — far better than mine — there’s a chirping out there, there’s a lot of schadenfreude from, ‘Hey, look what happened to him or to her,’ but it still hurts.”
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Finebaum reflected on the decision that the company had to make saying that it was a “business decision. That’s the part that you have to understand when you work there, there’s good and there’s bad.”
ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith also talked about the massive cuts saying his former co-workers “deserved better than the times we’re living in.” The First Take co-host also hinted that there would be more layoffs ahead adding, “This ain’t the end, more is coming,” he said. “And yes, ladies and gentlemen, I could be next.”
The personalities that were let go included Jeff Van Gundy, Jalen Rose, Max Kellerman, Keyshawn Johnson, Matt Hasselbeck, Chris Chelios, Steve Young, Rob Ninkovich, Neil Everett, Ashley Brewer, Joon Lee, LaPhonso Ellis, Todd McShay and Jason Fitz.