Longtime ABC News star George Stephanopoulos has reached a new deal that will keep him at ABC News and as an anchor on “Good Morning America” for the near term.
The news should end speculation that the well-paid Stephanopolous was on his way out as the Disney-owned network, along with every news organization, looks to trim the high overhead of pricey talent deals. An industry source with knowledge of the deal said the length of the extension was shorter than a typical on-air talent pact — which is another sign of the times for the TV news business. A source close to the situation said the deal was in the works well before the network reached a $15 million legal settlement with lawyers for President-elect Donald Trump over a libel claim involving Stephanopoulos. Stephanopoulos is known to have been surprised and angered by the settlement that includes an apology for an instance when the anchor referred to Trump and referenced “rape” in connection with the civil judgment against him following litigation by writer E. Jean Carroll.
The Los Angeles Times was the first to report the news of the new deal. Under his previous pact, Stephanopoulos was one of the highest-paid anchors on TV, making up to $18 million per year. The fate of Stephanopoulos has been at the center of much speculation in recent days, following Disney CEO Bob Iger‘s approval of a $15 million settlement and an additional $1 million, as well as a quasi-apology, to settle a lawsuit from incoming President Donald Trump.
As Variety has reported, Stephanopoulos is believed to have been blindsided by the deal and unaware that Disney had decided to settle. Over the weekend, he deleted his account on X, formerly Twitter, where he had more than 2.3 million followers, in the wake of heavy blowback to the Disney settlement. Representatives for Stephanopoulos referrred calls to ABC News. ABC News could not immediately be reached for comment.
Trump had sued ABC News over the anchor’s comment in a March 2024 interview on “This Week” that “Donald Trump has been found liable for rape by a jury.” Stephanopoulos was referring to a jury’s verdict that found Trump had sexually abused the writer Carroll in the 1990s.
Separately, talent reps have been keeping a close eye on shows like ABC’s “Good Morning America” in the wake of other recent major trims in the news business. “GMA” has a high overhead from the salaries of its three core anchors: Robin Roberts, Stephanopoulos and Michael Strahan. And with Stephanopoulos’ contract up first, and it was expected to be a tense renegotiation.
“GMA” has recently been locked in a tough ratings battle with NBC rival “Today”; “GMA” averaged 2.69 million viewers last week, behind “Today’s” 2.83 million average. “Today” anchor Hoda Kotb opted to depart, and even though salary was not cited as her reason for leaving, most still saw it as a high-profile example of TV’s new austerity push when it comes to talent and production costs — especially on long-running franchises like “Today” and “GMA.”
Stephanopoulos’ last reported deal renewal was in 2019, when he signed a four-year pact to continue at the network. He later extended that contract in 2021, adding new production duties, including a new program on politics for Hulu and four hour-long specials for primetime, while “World News Tonight’s” David Muir was made lead anchor for ABC News’ special reports and news of national importance.
Stephanopoulos has been with ABC News since 1997, when he joined the news outlet as an analyst, following a stint as communications director in the Clinton White House. He became the host of the Sunday public-affairs program “This Week” in 2002. In 2009, he joined “Good Morning America.”
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