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The bottom line is also coming under closer scrutiny at ABC's news division. Most of the layoffs so far have been in lower-echelon production jobs. Says Washington Bureau Chief George Watson: "We have not cut into the teeth of the news-gathering and producing-operation." Yet staff morale has plummeted, and some insiders claim that personnel are being spread too thin. "It will reflect in the quality of the show," predicts a staffer at ABC's newsmagazine 20/20, which lost four positions in the cutbacks. "We are already burnt out." Says a New York City-based producer: "I don't know if the new management understands the need for bench strength."
ABC News President Roone Arledge, 54, who gave up his second hat as president of ABC Sports when Capital Cities took over, argues that the cutbacks are simply an effort to streamline operations, and were initiated by the news division itself as the result of a study begun in late 1984. "When I first came to ABC News," says Arledge, "by and large it was not a competitive force in network journalism. We had to get people's attention. Our needs are different now. We have more depth than the other two networks."
The new regime may actually bring fresh projects to the news division. Arledge's group is developing ideas for a new hour-long prime-time show, possibly to air in the Thursday time period opposite NBC's top-rated The Cosby Show; several soft news/entertainment shows are also being considered for that slot. Other news programs in development include a weekly half-hour business show for Sunday afternoons and a health series for Saturdays.
On the entertainment side, the new economy kick is taking many forms. Actors and other on-air talent for such ABC-produced daytime shows as Good Morning America and the afternoon soaps will, according to a recent company edict, be limited to 5% salary increases, except in special cases. Producers are also feeling the pressure. Esther Shapiro, executive producer of Dynasty, decided against Arledge hiring a high-priced actor for her show this season when the task of get ting company approval proved too onerous. Before the takeover, ABC gave its top-rated sitcom Who's the Boss? $50,000 to shoot part of one episode at a softball field. "I don't think we could do that now," says Producer Robert Sternin. "I really think the money has dried up."
Still, new ABC Entertainment President Brandon Stoddard insists that the network will not cut corners in trying to reconstruct a winning prime-time schedule. "We've got to protect what goes on screen," says Stoddard, 49, who was named programming chief last November after running ABC's mini-series and theatrical-films operations, "because what goes on the screen will make us succeed or fail." The network has ordered 27 pilots for potential fall series, more than either of its two rivals. Lucille Ball will star in a new sitcom, and other prospective series include a sci-fi drama based on the 1976 film The Man Who Fell to Earth. "Some of the shows may be expensive, some of them may be less expensive; that's a secondary consideration," says Stoddard. "The cheapest program is the program that works."