ESPN is cutting around 100 staffers this week, including writers and on-air reporters, anchors, and analysts, Bloomberg reports. In a statement about their "content evolution strategy," the company said: "In short, given how fans' habits are changing, our focus continues to be providing high-quality, distinctive content at any minute of the day on any screen."
ESPN, which employs around 8,000 people worldwide, has struggled as the costs of rights deals with sports leagues and college conferences have soared amid falling cable subscribers. ESPN is typically the highest-priced station included in TV packages, and as people increasingly switch to alternative modes of watching television, the network has found itself feeling the squeeze.
Additionally, "the availability of results and news online is ... contributing to viewer losses for the network's flagship SportsCenter program," Bloomberg writes. "ESPN is devoting more time to commentary shows filmed in the studio and less to reports from the field, reducing the need for correspondents."