ABC’s “Good Morning America” host George Stephanopoulos has agreed to a new contract, an ABC News spokesperson confirmed to HuffPost on Thursday. The deal became public amid an uproar over the network’s settlement of Donald Trump’s defamation lawsuit.
It was Stephanopoulos’ legally inaccurate “rape” wording to describe a civil verdict in E. Jean Carroll’s sexual assault suit against Trump that prompted the president-elect to sue.
The controversial settlement sparked “speculation about [Stephanopoulos’] future at the network” Deadline wrote in reporting the multi-year contract renewal. It also reportedly set off internal pushback at the Disney-owned network for caving in the legal fight, perhaps setting a precedent for other news organizations now threatened by Trump as he returns to the presidency.
The Los Angeles Times noted that the ratings of “Good Morning America”sliding behind NBC’s “Today” was perhaps a greater concern to ABC than public backlash over the settlement. At an estimated salary of $20 million a year, Stephanopoulos has provided continuity and journalistic heft for a morning show audience that can resist change, the newspaper wrote. He’s cohosted “GMA” since 2009.
Variety reported the contract details were worked out before the defamation payout while a person familiar with the new development told HuffPost it was “not connected to settlement timing.”
The network’s perceived capitulation to Trump had also angered Stephanopoulos, according to Variety.
George Stephanopoulos has reportedly signed a multi-year contract extension. Raymond Hall via Getty Images
Trump sued ABC News after Stephanopoulos, on his ABC show “This Week” back in March, told Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) that the former president was found liable for “rape” in his alleged sexual assault on writer E. Jean Carroll at a New York City department store in the 1990s. Trump was found liable for “sexual abuse,” but not rape, with the judge later commenting that by definitions outside of New York law, Trump’s actions could be understood as “rape.”
In a filing made public over the weekend, ABC News conceded it would pay $15 million toward Trump’s presidential library as part of a settlement.
Trump has vowed to go after news organizations that he believes have treated him unjustly. He sued CBS, alleging it manipulated a “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris to cast her in a better light. On Monday he sued the Des Moines Register for a poll showing Harris ahead before he carried the state easily.
