Connect with us

Published

on

Disney decided to renew ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos’ contract — despite having to fork over a $16 million legal settlement — because they didn’t want “his blood on their hands,” The Post has learned.

Stephanopoulos, who hosts “This Week” and is a co-anchor on “Good Morning America,” was handed a multi-year deal — though he took a pay cut from his lofty $20 million annual salary, sources said.

“No one wants a talent mess on their hands,” one longtime network executive told The Post. “No one wants an angry George Stephanopoulos loose in the world. No one wants to humiliate George by firing him or to have his blood on their hands.”

The well-connected former Democratic operative had been in talks with ABC News-parent Disney, which is in cost-cutting mode, before the company’s shocking decision Saturday to settle with President-elect Donald Trump, according to Deadline.

The Mouse House confirmed the extension Wednesday.

“George is well-liked by the liberal-elite in Hollywood and The Hamptons. He’s friends with Jerry Seinfeld, Michael J Fox and Netflix boss Ted Sarandos,” the source said, adding that he operates in the same “bubble” as left-leaning Disney top brass.

“George has carefully cultivated a relationship with [Disney CEO] Bob Iger and board members. He remains a respected member of the Disney family.”

But inside the halls of ABC News, staffers remain “livid” over Iger’s decision to stand by Stephanopoulos and cave to Trump.

“They paid off Trump for a mistake that George made. How many jobs could that $16 million have saved?” said a second network source, citing a fresh round of layoffs at the network.

“I think people are angry at the humiliation of the settlement with Trump. People are angry with George’s unforced errors and his defiance and that he’s rewarded for his mistakes with another lucrative contract even if his salary has been cut,” the first source said.

The source said that even if the journalist is well-regarded by top brass, he isn’t a favorite among staffers.

Sources said Stephanopoulos is a “loner” who doesn’t play well with others.

They noted that Stephanopoulos won’t take part in election night coverage or appear on air with “ABC World News Tonight” anchor David Muir.

“Most great anchors are larger than life. George has always been smaller than life. And this humiliating settlement has made him even smaller, the network exec said.

As part of the settlement, Stephanopoulos was forced to apologize which made the journalist apoplectic and humiliated, The Post exclusively reported Tuesday in an article headlined, Furious George.

A source said ABC News employees are now calling Stephanopoulos Furious George behind his back.

George is mortified about the settlement and livid about the apology but he values money and status more than anything else, the person said. So he will take the paycheck and shut up.

Fiercely ambitious and introverted, Stephanopoulos has an inner-circle of loyalists, but his costly obstinance has alienated the journalist even more, a source close to the anchor said.

“He has just been humiliated. The news division is furious at him for an unforced error,” the person added.

Stephanopolous has remained mum despite multiple requests for comment by The Post this week.

ABC News and Disney declined to comment.

The deal awarded $15 million to a presidential foundation and museum for Trump and another $1 million for Trumps attorney fees.

Stephanopoulos created the legal headache during an interview with Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) in March. The This Week host said that Trump was liable for rape while discussing the civil lawsuit won by journalist E. Jean Carroll.

The Post exclusively reported on Wednesday that Stephanopoulos was repeatedly warned by his producer not to use the word “rape.”

Disneys chances of winning the lawsuit would be damaged if Stephanopoulos ignored his producers warnings, legal experts told The Post.

Iger signed off on the network’s settlement late Friday hours after Florida Judge Cecilia Altonaga rejected a request to delay the case and ordered Trump and Stephanopoulos to sit for hours-long depositions just days before Christmas.

The judge also demanded that Disney turn over emails and text messages sent by and to Stephanopoulos by Sunday, according to reports.

Disneys top lawyer, Horacio Gutierrez, urged Iger to settle the suit rather than risk a civil trial in front of a jury in the president-elects home state,people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.

Iger also was worried that fighting the case could risk damaging press protections and hurt the Disney brand, according to the New York Times.

Continue Reading

Politics

5 countries where crypto is (surprisingly) tax-free in 2025

Published

on

By

5 countries where crypto is (surprisingly) tax-free in 2025

5 countries where crypto is (surprisingly) tax-free in 2025

Looking to live tax-free with crypto in 2025? These five countries, including the Cayman Islands, UAE and Germany, still offer legal, zero-tax treatment for cryptocurrencies.

Continue Reading

Politics

Children with special needs will ‘always’ have ‘legal right’ to support, education secretary says

Published

on

By

Children with special needs will 'always' have 'legal right' to support, education secretary says

The education secretary has said children with special needs will “always” have a legal right to additional support as she sought to quell a looming row over potential cuts.

The government is facing a potential repeat of the debacle over welfare reform due to suggestions it could scrap tailored plans for children and young people with special needs in the classroom.

Politics latest: Minister says ‘those with broadest shoulders should pay more tax’

Speaking in the Commons on Monday, Bridget Phillipson failed to rule out abolishing education, health and care plans (EHCPs) – legally-binding plans to ensure children and young people receive bespoke support in either mainstream or specialist schools.

Laura Trott, the shadow education secretary, said parents’ anxiety was “through the roof” following reports over the weekend that EHCPs could be scrapped.

She said parents “need and deserve answers” and asked: “Can she confirm that no parent or child will have their right to support reduced, replaced or removed as a result of her planned changes?”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Sophy’s thought on whether to scrap EHCPs

Ms Phillipson said SEND provision was a “serious and complex area” and that the government’s plans would be set out in a white paper that would be published later in the year.

More on Education

“I would say to all parents of children with SEND, there is no responsibility I take more seriously than our responsibility to some of the most vulnerable children in our country,” she said.

“We will ensure, as a government, that children get better access to more support, strengthened support, with a much sharper focus on early intervention.”

ECHPs are drawn up by local councils and are available to children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than is provided by the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) budget.

They identify educational, health and social needs and set out the additional support to meet those needs.

In total, there were 638,745 EHCPs in place in January 2025 – up 10.8% on the same point last year.

‘Rebel ready’

One Labour MP said they were concerned the government risked making the “same mistakes” over ECHPs as it did with the row over welfare, when it was eventually forced into a humiliating climbdown in the face of opposition by Labour MPs.

“The political risk is much higher even than with welfare, and I’m worried it’s being driven by a need to save money which it shouldn’t be,” they told Sky News.

“Some colleagues are rebel ready.”

The MP said the government should be “charting a transition from where we are now to where we need to be”, adding: “That may well be a future without ECHPs, because there is mainstream capacity – but that cannot be a removal of current provision.”

Later in the debate, Ms Phillipson said children with special educational needs and disabilities would “always” have a “legal right” to additional support as she accused a Conservative MP of attempting to “scare” parents.

“The guiding principle of any reform to the SEND system that we will set out will be about better support for children, strengthened support for children and improved support for children, both inside and outside of special schools,” she said.

Read more:
Government to ban ‘appalling’ non-disclosure agreements
Government declines to rule out wealth tax

“Improved inclusivity in mainstream schools, more specialist provision in mainstream schools, and absolutely drawing on the expertise of the specialist sector in creating the places where we need them, there will always be a legal right … to the additional support… that children with SEND need.”

Her words were echoed by schools minister Catherine McKinnell, who also did not rule out changing ECHPs.

She told the Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge that the government was “focused on reforming the whole system”.

“Children and families have been left in a system where they’ve had to fight for their child’s education, and that has to change,” she said.

She added that EHCPs have not necessarily “fixed the situation” for some children – but for others it’s “really important”.

Continue Reading

Politics

Government to ban ‘appalling’ non-disclosure agreements that silence victims of abuse at work

Published

on

By

Government to ban 'appalling' non-disclosure agreements that silence victims of abuse at work

Victims will no longer have to “suffer in silence”, the government has said, as it pledges to ban non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) designed to silence staff who’ve suffered harassment or discrimination.

Accusers of Harvey Weinstein, the former film producer and convicted sex offender, are among many in recent years who had to breach such agreements in order to speak out.

Labour has suggested an extra section in the Employment Rights Bill that would void NDAs that are intended to stop employees going public about harassment or discrimination.

The government said this would allow victims to come forward about their situation rather than remain “stuck in unwanted situations, through fear or desperation”.

Zelda Perkins, former assistant to Harvey Weinstein, led the calls for wrongful NDAs to be banned. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Zelda Perkins, former assistant to Harvey Weinstein, led the calls for wrongful NDAs to be banned. Pic: Reuters

Zelda Perkins, Weinstein’s former assistant and founder of Can’t Buy My Silence UK, said the changes would mark a “huge milestone” in combatting the “abuse of power”.

She added: “This victory belongs to the people who broke their NDAs, who risked everything to speak the truth when they were told they couldn’t. Without their courage, none of this would be happening.”

Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner said the government had “heard the calls from victims of harassment and discrimination” and was taking action to prevent people from having to “suffer in silence”.

More from UK

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Weinstein found guilty of sex crime in retrial

An NDA is a broad term that describes any agreement that restricts what a signatory can say about something and was originally intended to protect commercially sensitive information.

Currently, a business can take an employee to court and seek compensation if they think a NDA has been broken – even if that person is a victim or witness of harassment or discrimination.

“Many high profile cases” have revealed NDAs are being manipulated to prevent people “speaking out about horrific experiences in the workplace”, the government said.

Announcing the amendments, employment minister Justin Madders said: “The misuse of NDAs to silence victims of harassment or discrimination is an appalling practice that this government has been determined to end.”

The bill is currently in the House of Lords, where it will be debated on 14 July, before going on to be discussed by MPs as well.

Continue Reading

Trending