Possible restructuring at DC?

[MajorHoy]

This was posted by Bleeding Cool, for whatever that's worth.

We have heard high-level gossip from one side that Dan DiDio is no longer Publisher. However, when other enquiries to other sources have been made, I have been told that no, DiDio is still sharing the DC Comics Publisher role with Jim Lee. And, to be fair, he has survived many a rumour of his departure. And has outlasted them all.

But, yes, all agreement is that there are big changes being announced in the offices of Burbank right now. What will come out the other side, I do not know.

I presume that someone will be issuing press releases very soon…

UPDATE x 1: Picking up lots of comic book industry chatter on this. That there have been a number of odd publisher/editorial meetings this week in the lead up to today.

There is also a general understanding that it may be departments other than editorial affected more by… whatever it is that’s going on. Which would mean Dan & co are safe, for now.

But also not to expect anything official until all those involved have been informed.

UPDATE x 2: Current word is to expect positions of vice president and up to be affected, but that editorial positions are to be safe till summer as the new management team adjusts to the situation.

The big all-staff meeting is expected to take part in an hour, at 5.30pm, Pacific Time. However I am told that John Cunningham, SVP Sales Trade Marketing and Mark Chiarello Senior Art Director left the offices early today and will not be present at the meeting,

UPDATE x 3: The meeting should be happening now, but it’s getting late in the UK for me so I’ll be stepping away. I am sure press releases will be sent to the various media partners of DC Comics. But here’s the latest, from multiple connected sources.

This is all happening in relation to Warner Bros Consumer Products having a number of layoffs today. This is not a DC thing, but this is how things affect DC Comics, that has reached me.

John Cunningham and Mark Chiarello, mentioned above, are out at DC. So is Eddie Scannell, VP Consumer Marketing.

There are to be shifts at Vertigo and a streamlining of the editorial process. But any further editorial employee changes will be delayed until the summer.

Updating…

https://www.bleedingcool.com/2019/01...Rqg78.facebook

[Bruce Wayne]

They fired Mark Chiarello? That's not good.

But the idea they'll get rid of Didio is frankly wishful thinking.

[Jekyll]

They fired Mark Chiarello? That's not good.

But the idea they'll get rid of Didio is frankly wishful thinking.

Yep! That guy has more lives than most comic characters.

[9th.]

I guess the 7th Crisis was at DC headquarters.

[Comic-Reader Lad]

This is all happening in relation to Warner Bros Consumer Products having a number of layoffs today.

I'm thinking that the larger Warner Bros layoffs are as a result of AT&T's purchase of Time Warner. I'm thinking that over this year, each unit of Time Warner, now WarnerMedia, will have bunches of layoffs/restructuring, and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

I think it's obvious that AT&T wants to position itself as a cellular/streaming leader, and that means that everything in the company must serve that end. I wouldn't be surprised to learn within the next year that the separate DC Universe streaming service is being absorbed into a larger WarnerMedia streaming service. Or maybe I'm just projecting my own idea that I came up with when I heard about the DCUSS.

I think AT&T should create a WarnerMedia Streaming Service that has a DC Portal, a Warner Movies Portal, Warner TV Portal, Warner Archive, HBO, Looney Tunes, Cartoon Network, etc. etc. so that all the entertainment libraries in the WarnerMedia family can be accessed from a single point.

I think even if it were priced at 30 bucks a month, people would go for it because there would be enough content that you would never run out of things to watch.

Anyway, going back to DC specifically, I do agree that Dan DiDio has more lives than Streaky the Supercat, but while I personally think that Dan DiDio has never been an outstanding EIC/Publisher, he seems to have lasted through every previous restructuring even when Paul Levitz was ousted and Diane Nelson brought in.

If I had all the power, I'd get rid of DiDio and make Jim Lee the new Art Director (keeping it a VP title as befits Lee) because I don't know what business either of these two has being a major comic book publisher. Get Lee drawing comics again. That's the value he adds to a company, not his magnificent publishing skills.

Let's open these questions to the forum:

(1) Do you want Dan DiDio out as publisher?

(2) Do you want Jim Lee out as publisher, but to stay with DC in a more art-centric role?

(3) Who do you think should replace DiDio and/or Lee as Publisher of DC Comics going forward?

(4) Do you think DiDio should stay with DC in another role, say, line editor or writer?


I've already answered my first two questions with "Yes." The 4th question I'd answer with "No."

For the new Publisher, the only one I could think of who is already inside the comics industry that I'd be comfortable with is Karen Berger. She left Vertigo in a huff after DiDio brought back a lot of the DC-first characters, like Swamp Thing and Constantine, back to DC.

If DiDio goes, maybe Berger can be persuaded to come back and spearhead the entire company. She has her Berger Books imprint at Dark Horse that will be launching, but that's a niche of a niche proposition.



So, what are your answers to the four questions above?

[Vakanai]

They fired Mark Chiarello? That's not good.

For those of us not up on DC's inner workings, who is this guy, what does he do, what of note has he done, and why is this not good?

[byrd156]

I guess the 7th Crisis was at DC headquarters.

Damn, that's a good one.

[Comic-Reader Lad]

We now have more information from the Hollywood Reporter:

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/he...kforce-1178694

DC Laying Off 3 Percent of Its Workforce
Seven of the company's 240 employees are believed to be affected.


DC is laying off staff as part of an organization restructure of the Warner Bros. division that will see it focus on its original core business of publishing, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. It is believed that seven employees, around three percent of DC's 240-person workforce, have been impacted.

Layoffs at DC, a subsidiary of Warner Bros., include high-level figures including senior vp sales trade marketing John Cunningham, vp consumer marketing Eddie Scannell and senior vp art director Mark Chiarello among those who have left the company, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Rumors about changes at the company, home to the DC, Vertigo and MAD brands, have been circulating since Wednesday afternoon, helped by early, unsubstantiated reports that speculated that DC publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee could be among those leaving the company; that is not the case, with both actively continuing in their current positions.

The company has been organized into three distinct areas as of Wednesday's news: Editorial, which will continue to be overseen by editor-in-chief Bob Harras; Production & Manufacturing, which remains under the purview of senior vp manufacturing and operations Alison Gill; and the newly created Publishing Support Services, which will handle sales, marketing and promotion for DC product and be handled by longtime DC veteran Hank Kanalz as senior vp publishing strategy & support services.

DC Collectibles, the merchandising arm of the company, will be moved under Warner Bros. Consumer Products' Toy team.

This move comes on the same day as a reorganization of Warner Bros. Consumer Products, in which 10 percent of staff will be laid off, sources say. Pam Lifford heads both divisions under her role as president, Warner Bros. Global Brands and Experiences.

DC moved its publishing operations from New York to Burbank in 2015. The past year has included big behind-the-scenes moves, including Diane Nelson stepping down in June as president of DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Consumer Products after 22 years with the company. A week later, Geoff Johns exited as DC president and chief creative officer for a writing a producing deal at DC and Warner Bros. In September, DC launched its streaming service, DC Universe, which features original series, comics and film content from the Warner Bros. library.

A DC representative declined to comment.

The news was announced to DC employees via memo Wednesday afternoon. The memo, written by Lifford, is below.

Today has been a challenging day. We have made organizational changes across DC that we believe will help to strengthen and evolve the division for future success. With these changes come difficult decisions which we take very seriously.

We recognize and appreciate that all of our employees have made considerable contributions to our business and that it is difficult to lose colleagues, many of whom have been here for a long time and have made an important impact on DC. We thank them for their hard work and dedication to DC. As always, we are committed to taking care of our employees and will be as thoughtful as possible with those who are impacted by these changes.

Together with Dan and Jim, and the executive team, we have spent time assessing DC’s business, as well as the comic book publishing landscape. DC is going back to its roots of delivering epic stories with our world-class characters, stories and brands. Being a premier house of storytelling will never go out of style and we intend to ultimately super-serve our existing fans, while providing new compelling content that engages and excites even more fans around the globe. Rest assured, the direct market will remain at the heart of our business – and will continue to be one of our greatest strengths.

The new streamlined structure is focused on creating, delivering and supporting a robust publishing operation that will allow DC to be nimble, navigate an industry in change, and thrive. As we communicated today, we are forming three distinct work streams – Editorial, Production & Manufacturing and Publishing Support Services.

• Editorial will continue to be run by Bob Harras, SVP & Editor-In-Chief, who will now also be responsible for new initiatives and global publishing, editorial scheduling, and art direction

• Production & Manufacturing will continue to be run by Alison Gill, SVP Manufacturing & Operations

• Publishing Support Services is a new business unit consisting of all departments that support the sales, marketing and promotion of our books, and this will be run by Hank Kanalz who is taking on additional responsibilities as SVP Publishing Strategy & Support Services As a result – DC Collectibles and its team will be part of the Consumer Products Toy team moving forward.

We recognize there are other groups across DC who are not fully dedicated to supporting the publishing business and, therefore, are not directly addressed in today’s news. As The Global Brands & Experiences structure continues to develop, I look forward to sharing more with you as that evolves.

Many of you will have questions and in the coming days you will receive more information from Bob, Alison and Hank about their teams. Together with Dan and Jim, I will be hosting Town Hall meetings Thursday on the individual floors to discuss these changes and provide more insight.

Thank you again for your support, hard work and loyalty to DC. Each of you are incredibly valued and I look forward to seeing you tomorrow afternoon where I will do my best to answer any questions.

Pam

[Vakanai]

(1) Do you want Dan DiDio out as publisher?

Yes, but not because I have anything against his decisions or whatever like many people here. I want him replaced simply because he's had the job for a long time and honestly I feel like occasional editorial shake ups are a good thing.

(2) Do you want Jim Lee out as publisher, but to stay with DC in a more art-centric role?

Yes, because he's a good artist.

(3) Who do you think should replace DiDio and/or Lee as Publisher of DC Comics going forward?

No clue, there are better informed people to figure that out than I.

(4) Do you think DiDio should stay with DC in another role, say, line editor or writer?

Yes. Man must have valuable experience that should be relevant somewhere in the company.

[Dthirds3]

As long as somone who dosent want to see everm member of the teen titans dead(why dose didio hate them), and gets batman and the outsiders released finally.

[kurenai24]

For those of us not up on DC's inner workings, who is this guy, what does he do, what of note has he done, and why is this not good?

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[Denirac]

The “Getting back to its publishing roots” sounds like we’re getting DC Re-Rebirth, isnt that how that was described?

[Comic-Reader Lad]

The “Getting back to its publishing roots” sounds like we’re getting DC Re-Rebirth, isnt that how that was described?

To me, that quote is just generic corporate speak like "do more with less," "redouble our efforts" and "reaffirm our core values." That kind of shit. The top brass says this stuff all the time in order to spin firings as a good and necessary thing.

Given that the memo came from Pam Lifford, who has the title of "President, Warner Bros. Global Brands and Experiences," I don't think the statement has anything to do with the creative side of things. Such a statement about any future story direction of DC would come from DiDio. I don't think Lifford knows a Multiverse from her elbow. So far, these firings seem to be a purely business thing -- consolidating and restructuring corporate departments.

If the article from Bleeding Cool is true and there will be other developments in the Summer that might affect editiorial, then maybe DiDio and Lee will be affected. However, I'd expect DiDio to throw Bob Harras and Bobbie Chase under the bus before that happens.

Still, the next few months at DC are going to be more interesting for what's going on behind the scenes than what's going on inside the comics. The shameless gossip in me is stoked for further developments.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

This was inevitable once Diane Nelson was replaced. Didio will likely live to fight another day, but I would guess he and Lee are adjusting to the demands of their new boss, Pam Lifford, who obviously has her own ideas about how things should be run, just as Nelson made changes when she took over from Levitz, who made his own adjustments when he took over from Jennette Khan, and so on...

It's a shame that people lost their jobs, but that's how these things work sometimes. Hopefully, they all find new jobs soon.

[jetengine]

I want Didio gone because its incredibly clear the man cant seperate his personal issues from his professional ones. If Teen Titans was a constant money loser and an anvil around the companys neck, sure I'd get his loathing. It generally isnt though and his ridiculous obsession with killing characters linked to the stronger IPs (which are great for marketing and merchandising) is not a smart move. Similarly his lack of PR savvy is astonishing. As soon as he actually admitted he hated Nightwing I'd of thrown him on his ass. Now I'm not a particularly big Nightwing fan but you NEVER ackowledge fan negative sentiment and you NEVER let these conspiracies gaib ground.