Kim Godwin Steps Down as ABC News President

Kim Godwin, who has served as the president of ABC News since 2021, revealed on Sunday that she is leaving the network.

In a statement issued to staff of ABC News, Godwin announced that she is retiring from broadcast news.

“I have decided to retire from broadcast journalism,” Godwin said in her statement, adding that “after considerable reflection” on her decision, she is “certain it’s the right one.”

“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. 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,” Godwin wrote.

Godwin said:

ABC News was No. 1 when I joined the team and I’m proud to say we’re still No. 1 – an achievement that’s been punctuated in recent months with the highest honors our profession has to offer, from the Edward R. Murrow Award for Overall Excellence in Television, to the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Award for our groundbreaking “Power of Water” series, to our first-ever Primetime Emmy Award nominations for “Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields” and “Aftershock.”

Godwin’s exit from the network comes months after she reportedly lost a fair amount of her power, according to the New York Post.

Debra OConnell, the president of News Group and Networks with Disney Entertainment, reportedly began a review of Godwin and her management skills, accusing her of having a “hands-off leadership style,” according to CNN.

CNN wrote:

OConnell, according to people familiar with the matter, has been astonished by Godwin’s management – or lack thereof – at the network. In private conversations, OConnell has pointed to a slew of problems that have materialized on Godwin’s watch, faulting the embattled ABC News chief for her hands-off leadership stye, which she believes has allowed problems to fester.

OConnell, for example, has been astouned by the fact that a year after Godwin dismisssed the network’s head of talent, Galen Gordon, the important position has yet to be filled. She was not pleased to see ABC News lose its Washington bureau chief, Jonathan Greenberger, to POLITICO just months before a historic presidential election, leaving that crucial seat vacant. And the fact that “CBS Mornings” has been knocking on the ratings doors of “Good morning America” has been yet another source of discomfort.

In an internal memo to staff, OConnell said she would “oversee ABC News” and was “looking forward to working with the leadership team,” according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Former President Donald Trump expressed in a post on Truth Social that he was “happy to report” that Godwin had resigned.

“Happy to report that Kim Godwin, Head of ABC, has resigned. Could it be the unfair reporting on EVERYTHING TRUMP?” Trump wrote. “In any event, GOOD RIDDANCE! Hopefully somebody else will be able to control George Slopadopolous and the rest of the Fake News Thugs over at ABC? Best wishes Kim!”