Primetime Live Executive Producer Shelly Ross is stepping down, replaced by 20/20 EP David Sloan, at least for the time being.
After just a year in the job, Ross got squeezed out of her job as executive producer of the fading news mag, but will stay with the network for now.
Ross will develop and produce new shows "across all divisions of [ABC]," likely working off the balance of her multi-year contract.
Too much friction with Charlie Gibson resulted in Ross getting yanked off of Good Morning, America last spring, despite leading a revival of the morning show. At Primetime Live, Ross had the misfortune of facing off against CBS' powerhouse Thursday night lineup and viewership has plunged.
Sawyer, who is also co-anchor of Primetime Live, said in a statement that “Shelley is filled with so much creativity -- so many big and bold ideas -- she will continue to challenge and inspire all of us, and now in an even wider circle.”
In its most recent outing, Primetime Live was a distant third in its time period at a 2.1 rating/6 share in the key 18-49 demo, but it was still the network's top-rated timed period of the night.
