Norby Williamson, an ESPN executive who was with the company for almost 40 years, has exited the Worldwide Leader. The story was first reported by New York Post media columnist Ryan Glasspiegel.
The report states that ESPN president of content Burke Magnus decided the two executives did not share the same vision for the long-term strategy for the network.
Wiliamson began his career in the ESPN mailroom in the 1980s and was the first producer of SportsCenter. His most recent title was Executive Editor & Head of Event and Studio Production.
Known to many inside the business, but Williamson became more familiar to the public recently when Pat McAfee called him out on his ESPN show saying, “We are very thankful for the ESPN folks being very hospitable. Now there are some people actively trying to sabotage us from within ESPN. More specifically, I believe, Norby Williamson is the guy who is attempting to sabotage our program.” A source familiar with the situation indicated this had nothing to do with Williamson leaving.
In a note sent to employees, Burke said:
Colleagues:
I am reaching out with some important news. Norby Williamson will be leaving the company today after nearly 40 years of dedicated service.
During Norby’s career, he made significant contributions across many important roles within Content. Through his steadfast commitment and attention to detail, Norby has had a lasting impact on the sports fans’ experience. His wide-ranging influence includes SportsCenter, breaking news coverage, immense creativity within event and studio productions and diverse storytelling across various ESPN platforms.
Norby wanted to share the following message:
“Almost 40 years ago in 1985, I was so very fortunate to be offered an opportunity at ESPN. Due to the exceptional hard work, creativity and commitment of the people of ESPN, and to a much lesser extent my contributions, I’d like to think we’ve left our great company in a far better place than we found it.”
As soon as possible, we will be conducting a full search for a new senior content executive to help lead our team. Additionally, we will soon provide details about our interim reporting structure. We understand you may have questions about this transition. I, along with my direct reports, will be available to address any questions in the coming days.
We thank Norby for his many contributions to ESPN and wish him all the best in his future endeavors.
Burke
