Embattled ABC News Chief Kim Godwin Out at Network: ‘I Leave With My Head Held High’

(Photo by John Nacion/NurPhoto via AP)

Embattled ABC News President Kim Godwin stepped down on Sunday evening following a corporate restructuring that limited her control of the network.

Back in February, Debra OConnell, the president of Disney’s news group, was named as Godwin’s new boss. Disney is the parent company of ABC and OConnell has experience examining divisions across the company for corporate reviews, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Godwin sent an email to staff on Sunday night informing them of her departure. A successor for Godwin’s position as president of the division has not been named at this time.

She noted in her email that she is retiring from broadcast journalism after four decades in the business.

“I have decided to retire from broadcast journalism,” Godwin said in the email. “Anyone who’s passionate about what we do knows there’s no other business like it, so this was not an easy or quick decision.”

She added, “But after considerable reflection, I’m certain it’s the right one for me as I look to the future and prioritize what’s most important for me and my family.”

Her departure comes after a week of bad headlines about her stewardship of the storied news brand. CNN’s Oliver Darcy reported on Thursday that Godwin was “skating on thinning ice” and that she was conspicuously absent from the network’s daily editorial meeting that day, which was instead led by OConnell.

He reported:

Over the last 24 hours I’ve spoken with more than 20 people inside and close to the network, many of whom contacted me on their own volition to candidly share their complaints about Godwin and the era of angst she has ushered in since taking the helm in 2021. The newsroom leader, they have told me, has made several profound errors, including her hands-off approach to governing, a lack of strategic vision for the newsroom, the elimination of talent-relations leadership, the appointment of an inner-circle that has alienated staffers, among a stream of other complaints.

Godwin joined ABC News in 2021 after previously serving as a vice president at CBS News.

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