This week's PR Roundup looks at the reaction to ABC News not renewing veteran journalist Terry Moran's contract, the latest Muck Rack State of Journalism report and a leaked memo regarding JPMorgan's dipping employee morale.
Veteran Journalist Terry Moran Out at ABC News
What happened: This week ABC News made itself the news after parting ways with veteran correspondent Terry Moran, ending his nearly 28-year tenure. The decision came after Moran posted a now-deleted message on X describing President Donald Trump and White House aide Stephen Miller as "world‑class haters." The post focused on Miller and said, “Miller is a man who is richly endowed with the capacity for hatred. He’s a world-class hater. You can see this just by looking at him because you can see that his hatreds are his spiritual nourishment. He eats his hate.”
ABC acknowledged that the post violated its standards on impartiality and professionalism, noting it occurred just days before Moran’s contract was set to expire. The network emphasized its commitment to objective journalism as the rationale behind the decision.
“We are at the end of our agreement with Terry Moran and based on his recent post—which was a clear violation of ABC News policies—we have decided to not renew,” ABC News said in a statement. “At ABC News, we hold all of our reporters to the highest standards of objectivity, fairness and professionalism, and we remain committed to delivering straightforward, trusted journalism.”
The move sparked debate across media and political circles. Advocates for free speech argue that ABC caved to mounting political pressure, citing previous incidents like Disney’s $15 million settlement over defamatory coverage.
Moran quickly announced plans to launch a Substack newsletter, positioning himself as an independent journalist intent on continuing reporting in an “increasingly critical time.”
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Communication takeaways: There are a lot of heat points to hit in this story, in regards to reputation, media trust and PR, but Brian Hart, Founder and President at Flackable, sees this as more of an internal communications story about sending a deliberate message to staff.
“In 2023, comedy legend Chris Rock did a Netflix special called “Selective Outrage,”" Hart notes. “It was in response to Will Smith walking on stage and slapping him at the Oscars. ABC/Disney’s response to the Terry Moran post is Big Willie Style selective outrage on full display.”
Hart goes on to say that journalists voicing their personal opinions on social media can be problematic, particularly in an era where mainstream journalists are branded as biased and trust in media is low. But he sees Moran’s post as “vanilla” compared to commentary dispensed by media personalities at other networks.
“ABC and Disney, through selective outrage, chose to metaphorically slap him,” Hart says. “I suspect this could have a chilling effect across the network.”
He also thinks that ABC News is making a big mistake in a creator economy where news organizations prop up their journalists as online influencers.
“If they wanted to part ways with Moran … they could have done that quietly, and it would have been easy given his contract situation,” Hart says. “They decided to make a spectacle out of it. This was intentional. This was selective outrage.”
Farrell Kramer, former Head of Comms at NYSE and EVP at Weber Shandwick, offered some advice on LinkedIn for anyone—public figure or humble employee—thinking about sharing personal opinions on social media.
“Personally, I always try to let something I’ve just written sit a bit and marinate before sharing broadly,” he says. “I find when I come back to it, I have a bit more perspective and can better polish the prose and hone the thinking.
"When it comes to topics that are at all controversial, this approach moves from optimal to critical. The downside can be epic.”
Muck Rack State of Journalism 2025
What happened: This week Muck Rack released its 2025 State of Journalism report. The report provides insight from surveyed media on how they are adapting to rapid shifts in news consumption and technology—including the rise of AI, social media platform changes and independent publishing.
Media professionals personally weighed in on day-to-day challenges and changes, what influences coverage and what communicators must understand to earn it. Some of the key findings include:
- 77% of journalists use AI tools, with ChatGPT at the top of the list.
- Social media plays a smaller role in producing journalism this year (dropping from 33% to 23%), but it remains a key channel for promoting stories.
- Facebook is considered the most valuable platform, but journalists are shifting attention to LinkedIn, Instagram and Bluesky.
- More than one-third of journalists now self-publish outside of traditional newsrooms, with 61% of those earning income from their independent work.
Communications takeaways: The annual report remains a key indicator of what journalists are looking for from PR professionals, as well as technology trends and industry pain points. It’s important for communicators to understand what reporters and editors are dealing with in order to develop effective media relations discourse.
“The definition of a newsroom, and journalism itself, is changing,” says co-founder and CEO of Muck Rack, Gregory Galant. “Journalists are no longer tied to legacy organizations. They’re publishing independently, building audiences and in many cases, monetizing that work. What we’re watching is a key industry shift, one that’s not just reshaping journalism, but how PR pros engage with journalists.”
JPMorgan RTO Mandate Busts Employee Morale
What happened: A leaked internal memo from JPMorgan this week revealed that its full-time return-to-office mandate (which shifted employees from three to five days in the office starting in March) has taken a notable toll on morale. According to their annual employee survey, scores for health and well-being, work‑life balance and internal mobility all dipped compared to last year.
CEO Jamie Dimon and HR Chief Robin Leopold acknowledged the challenges in the internal memo, which first appeared in Barron’s.
"Health and well-being scores remain favorable, though they dipped slightly year on year," the duo wrote. “We know returning full-time to the office has been an adjustment, and one that not everyone agrees with, but we continue to believe in-person is how we do our best work, and how we foster connections and mobility opportunities."
Despite internal strain and pushback—some employees even petitioned for hybrid work—the JPMorgan team reiterated a commitment to employee well-being, promising to enhance transparency around promotions and invest in digital tools like generative AI to support staff success.
The bank continues to argue that in-person collaboration is core to productivity, even as competitors like Citigroup maintain more hybrid-friendly policies.
Communication takeaways: For internal communicators, linked information such as this memo can cause quite the headache. Relationships will have to be repaired with employees. It also poses quite the challenge for external PR regarding not only employee recruitment but also customer retention. More consumers are paying attention to corporate policies and how employees are treated, and stories like this could have an impact.
Parry Headrick, Founder and Chief Evangelist, Crackle, who displays a passion for his agency employees on his LinkedIn posts, shared his opinion on where JPMorgan needs to go from here.
“The saying "it takes a lifetime to build a reputation, but only a moment to lose it" describes the fallout from Jamie Dimon’s ill-advised RTO mandate for JP Morgan employees,” Headrick says. “The only way to repair the damage is to acquiesce to employee concerns about quality of life and mental health. Short of that clear concession, everything is just lip service.”
Nicole Schuman is Managing Editor at PRNEWS.