Trio of producers 'part ways' with 'Ellen' show

In the wake of a scathing report last month in which present and former employees painted "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" as a workplace of sexism, retribution and racist undercurrents, three top producers have left the show and the host has addressed staff concerns.

A spokesman for Warner Bros. Television, the show's production company through its Telepictures subsidiary, confirmed to Newsday on Tuesday that executive producers Ed Glavin and Kevin Leman and co-executive producer Jonathan Norman "have parted ways with 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show.' “ The daytime talk show's other executive and co-executive producers were unmentioned and presumably remain. Variety added that resident DJ Stephen "tWitch" Boss has been promoted to co-executive producer.

None of the three fired producers has commented publicly on leaving the show, which has aired in syndication since 2003. In a statement to People magazine Monday, Leman's attorney, Michael Plonsker, said he found it "shocking" that the July 16 BuzzFeed News report, based on interviews with one current and 10 former employees of the show, "has led to the termination of an innocent man — a popular figure and a creative force behind the 'Ellen' show and a string of other projects produced with Ellen."

In a staff email it obtained, BuzzFeed said Monday that Warner Bros. TV executive David McGuire told "Ellen" employees, "We promised you change and a new culture, and we are absolutely committed to that." He said a previously announced investigation by parent company WarnerMedia was "nearing its conclusion," and added, "We heard loud and clear that communication needs to be better, at every level. The EPs are already taking steps to make our communication more frequent and effective."

BuzzFeed also said a current "Ellen" staffer, speaking on condition of anonymity, had confirmed reports of a video conference call Monday from DeGeneres, 62, to employees. Variety, citing industry sources, said the host told the more than 200 staffers that producers had been insensitive to them as "human beings" and that she had found the allegations "heartbreaking."

She denied the report's claim that employees were told never to speak with her directly, calling that "crazy" and "not true." She apologized to those who felt "disregarded."

In a previous letter to staffers, first obtained by The Hollywood Reporter in late July, DeGeneres had apologized to staff, saying that as the show had grown, "I've not been able to stay on top of everything and relied on others to do their jobs as they knew I'd want them done. Clearly some didn't. That will now change and I'm committed to ensuring this does not happen again."