ABC shakeup: Entertainment president Channing Dungey is leaving

The Hollywood Reporter

Dungey, who became the first African American to lead a broadcast network in February 2016 but is most famous for firing Roseanne Barr earlier this year, is exiting her job amid an influx of Fox executives from the Disney-Fox merger. Dungey will be replaced by Freeform head of originals Karey Burke. Dungey has been working for ABC Studios and ABC Entertainment for 14 years. Dungey became ABC Entertainment president after developing hits like Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder as ABC's head of drama development. As The Hollywood Reporter notes, Dungey "leaves ABC in better standing than when she took the reins, care of added hits including The Good Doctor. Still, the last few months haven’t exactly been great for the network. The Barr-free follow-up to Roseanne, The Conners, is pulling a fraction of the original series’ ratings, and after the seismic blow of (Shonda) Rhimes leaving ABC Studios for Netflix in 2017, fellow network darling (Kenya) Barris followed suit over the summer. Both showrunners maintain affection for and close ties to Dungey." Burke has overseen breakout shows at Freeform including The Bold Type, Grown-ish and Marvel's Cloak and Dagger. "I’m incredibly proud of what the team and I have accomplished over the years, and all the meaningful and impactful programming we’ve developed," Dungey said in a statement. "This job has been the highlight of my career. While I’ve loved every moment, and knew I could call ABC home for many years to come, I’m excited to tackle new challenges." As TVLine notes, "the move means that four of TV’s broadcast networks have replaced their top executives just in the past three months: NBC’s Robert Greenblatt stepped down in September, Fox named Charlie Collier to replace Gary Newman last month, and CBS’ Les Moonves was fired after a series of sexual harassment allegations."