In a business, you can get caught in the middle of mergers, acquisitions, restructurings, and cost-cutting strategies that have nothing to do with your talent or your work ethic but most of the time, the only one who might be losing at the end of that game is you.

It has been happening for decades. It will keep happening. And it is not limited to one country or one company. It is not personal.

For instance, in the United States, two of the biggest media companies just merged and created what, on paper, is the largest local TV station group in the country. In practice, it created thousands of people wondering if they still have a career next month. Most of the executives walked away with millions in bonuses. Floor crews, audio operators, and news control room operators walked away with termination notices.

One of them posted on Reddit: "I want to give up."

Not "I am frustrated." Not "I am exploring options."

"I want to give up."

I have been through this. Years ago, new leadership came into a company I worked for and the first thing they wanted to do was cut costs and change how things were done. Not because things were broken, but because that is how the Argentinian executives wanted to show their value to the owner. They show up, cut positions, and call it efficiency.

If you are going through this right now, or if you have been through it before, you know what I am talking about. The uncertainty. The anxiety. The sleepless nights calculating how long your savings will last.

Forget "Stay Calm"

Let me be honest with you. All those comments about "stay calm, take it easy, clear your mind" do not work.

It is not their bank account. It is not their family that depends on the money you bring home. It is yours. So instead of telling you to breathe, I am going to tell you to act.

Three things you can do right now.

1. Identify What You Can Control

This is the most important step because it tells you where to put your energy today, not next month, not when the layoffs are announced. Today.

What you can control right now:

The quality of your current work. The show you have next weekend. Whether you update your CV or keep putting it off. Whether you start reaching out to your network for opportunities.

If you read the last edition of The Ministry of Broadcasting about asking for help finding a job, this is where it connects. The people who start moving before the announcement are always in a better position than those who wait for it.

What you cannot control: the CEO's plan, the investor call, the spreadsheet that decides which positions are "redundant." Let that go. Focus on what you can actually move.

2. Face the Worst That Could Happen

Put the worst scenario on paper. Not in your head at 3 AM. On paper.

The worst that can happen is that you lose your job. If you lose your job, you live on savings for a period of time. During that time, you find something. Maybe not the same role. Maybe not the same salary. But you find something.

I can tell you this because thousands of broadcasting professionals have done it. You will go through a tough moment. You will have doubts about yourself. You will wonder if they fired you because you were not good enough. And then you will bounce back.

When the worst is written down and you have a plan for it, it loses its power over you.

3. Put Yourself First

This is the hardest one. Especially if you have been with your company for years.

You think the company is your life. The people you have worked with for a decade, they feel like family. And some of them are. But the company itself is a business. And when the business needs to cut costs, loyalty does not protect you. A spreadsheet does not care how many long days you gave them.

Putting yourself first is not being disloyal. It is being smart.

If a new opportunity comes your way that gives your family stability, you cannot hesitate. You do not need to feel one percent bad about looking for new opportunities while your company is going through a merger. That is not betrayal. That is survival.

If you wait, your anxiety grows. Your options shrink. And at the end, the executives who managed the deal walk away with millions while you walk away with a broken heart and maybe a package if you are lucky.

Don't Take It Personal

I know. Even reading that line is hard.

Watching a company you gave years of your life to get restructured, downsized, or merged into something unrecognizable hurts. Getting laid off without an explanation, or worse, finding out via email, sucks. There is no way around that.

But here is what I have learned.

The people making these decisions are doing their job. Most of the time, you are just a number to them. They do not even look at your name. They look at your salary and how much money your position represents in the restructuring plan. That is it.

So don't take it against your boss. Don't take it against the company. Don't let the anger push you into a message or a conversation you will regret.

Be respectful. Accept the decision. And walk away with the best you can get, or walk away toward the new opportunity you already started building if you followed the steps above.

It is business. It sucks, but it is part of how this market works. And the bridges you keep intact today are the ones that might lead you somewhere better tomorrow.

Your company is not going to build your career. You are.

If you are going through one of these processes right now, start with those three steps. Identify what you can control. Face the worst scenario on paper. Put yourself first.

And if you have lived through a merger or acquisition and came out the other side, I want to hear your story. What did you do? What would you do differently? Hit reply and tell me.

The more we share these experiences, the less alone the next person feels when that email hits their inbox.

Talk soon,

Oscar S.

30,000 subscribers on my YouTube channel.

4,000 subscribers to this newsletter.

Hundreds of industry colleagues and dozens of friends in this business.

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I had the opportunity to talk about the work we are doing for this summer’s World Cup. But that was not the experience that impacted me the most.

Earlier that day, as part of the Summit, there was a Women in Broadcasting workshop. An opportunity to share time with three very successful women who are leaders in our industry in the UK.

Lowri Davies, Director of Broadcast Services at Premier League Productions.

Nia Wyn Thomas, Football Senior Producer at Sky Sports.

Alison Lombardi, Head of Production and Executive Producer at FilmNova.

The workshop gathered over 50 women from our business at different levels. Production managers, production assistants, executives, talented directors. Women who are building their careers and women who have already built them.

Lowri, Nia, and Alison shared their stories. Full of successes, but also full of self-doubt at different moments in their careers. And still, they pushed through and got to where they are today.

We were about 4 men in the room who were lucky enough to witness the conversations and participate.

It was amazing to see the flow of conversation. Opportunities, challenges, visibility, lack of respect, support, growth. All of it, out in the open.

The “Bitchy” Label

One thing impacted me more than anything else.

Most of the women in the room, if not all of them, agreed on this: a woman is easily labeled as “bitchy” if early in her career she shows a strong character. Or even if she simply fights back when a man is being disrespectful.

The best example came from a young director who walked into the truck and the “boys” around her asked if she was the graphics operator. When she said she was the director, one of them responded: “And do you know how to do that? I am not sure I want to work this show.”

While extreme, this kind of experience is still part of what our colleagues face in many productions today.

We Men Are Bitchy Too

My question to the ladies at our table was simple.

Why are you so concerned about showing up as bitchy, when we men are not concerned about it at all? We overuse confrontation. We push back without thinking twice. In short, we men are bitchy and we don’t lose a second of sleep over it.

This is not about being disrespectful. It is about showing up for yourself.

I get it. You don’t want to fight with the crew you are working with. But sometimes, showing up strong while remaining respectful is the first step to earning their respect.

You have the talent. You have prepared to do your job. You have the same rights as any of the guys in the room. Why would you tolerate being disrespected when none of them would?

It is not about being feisty. It is about showing up for yourself and caring zero about the “bitchy” label.

This Should Not Be a Conversation

I think that under normal circumstances, we should not even be talking about this. We would all be treated the same no matter our gender.

Our industry has improved. A lot. But it is still not equal and fair to all the women out there. Those who already are in the room and those trying to get into the business.

Part of that improvement is women feeling safe enough to be themselves. No matter if this is still a boys club in many places.

And no matter how much you need the work, don’t tolerate disrespect. You can be respectful, but if you need to protect yourself, don’t be afraid of being bitchy.

If You Need Support— risewib.com

SVG Women in Sports — svgeurope.org/women and sportsvideo.org/svgw

Gals n Gear — galsngear.tv

Participate in one of their programs or simply talk to people in the same situations you are. You will find support and guidance to navigate this complex business we love, and where we need all of us.

If you know a woman in broadcasting who needs to hear this, forward this edition to her.

Sometimes knowing that someone else went through the same thing is all the push you need.

Talk soon,

Oscar S.

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There are never enough cameras. No matter how many you give them, they will always ask for more.

And if you give them a new toy, a new resource, a new piece of gear, they will use it as much as they possibly can. Every shot. Every angle. Every chance they get, just to justify having it.

Now, I am not talking about all directors. But it happens with most of them, especially the younger ones.

The veterans already understand something that takes years to learn: just because you have the most luxurious camera or the most advanced technology doesn’t mean it needs to be in every shot. They know that camera numbers are not the reason a great show is a great show.

I want to highlight this because of what I saw this past week.

The Winter Olympics Got It Right

If you have been watching the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, you already know what I am about to say.

The FPV drones.

They have been delivering breathtaking shots in skiing, luge, and speed skating. The kind of perspectives that make you feel like you are right there on the mountain, on the ice, inside the competition.

But here is what impressed me the most, they are not overusing them.

The drones show up at the right moments. They help tell the story of speed. They reveal the complexity of the landscape where these athletes are competing. They give context, emotion, and information, all without overstaying their welcome.

It is so beautiful to watch how the production teams are deploying FPV drones at these Olympics that I did not want to miss the opportunity to highlight it. They are not showing off the technology. They are using the technology to show off the athletes and the sport.

That is a massive difference.

One Camera. One Shot. Forever.

Now let me take you to the Super Bowl.

Obviously, the game was well covered at the highest level. The halftime show, whether you liked it or not, was also great from a production standpoint.

But I want to point you to the pre-game ceremony. Specifically, when Charlie Puth was singing the U.S. national anthem.

There is a shot that, to me, is extraordinary.

Charlie Puth is singing. A steadicam operator has him framed perfectly. And then, at the exact right moment, the operator, zooms out, tilts up, smoothly, precisely, to reveal a formation of U.S. military jets flying over Levi’s Stadium.

From the singer to the sky. One continuous movement. One camera.

In principle, it seems easy. You might say, “Yeah, anyone could do that.” But think about it. One operator. One camera. One chance to get it right. The timing had to be perfect: the tilt, the speed, the framing, the coordination with the flyover. There was no second take.

They did it not once, but twice.

Those shots will live forever in the memory of anyone who appreciates great television. And it was not a drone. It was not an aerial. It was one Steadicam, operated by someone who knew exactly what they were doing, guided by a director and producers who gave the exact right call at the exact right moment.

What I keep learning

Here is what both of these examples remind us:

Resources should be used to tell a story. Resources should not be the story.

Having drones is not the story. How you use those drones to show the speed of a downhill skier, the danger of a luge track, the scale of a skating oval, that is what makes them valuable.

You could have hundreds of cameras at the Super Bowl. But it might be the one Steadicam, one of the usual tools in the compound, that gives you the shot everyone remembers for the rest of their lives.

The next time you are planning a production, ask yourself: am I adding this resource because it helps me tell a better story, or because I want to have it on the truck?

There is a big difference between the two.

If you watched the Milano Cortina Olympics, the Super Bowl, or even tonight’s NBA All-Star Game, and something caught your eye (a shot, a transition, a moment of great television) share it with me. Hit reply.

The more we discuss these details, the more we learn. And the more we learn, the better we get at putting resources to work in our own productions.

Talk soon,

Oscar S.

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“I got a job offer from a YouTuber,” he said. “At the same time my company is being acquired. And I don’t know which option is riskier.”

That was the opening line of a conversation I had towards the end of 2025 with a colleague and friend.

This is someone who has spent close to 20 years in our industry. He started as an assistant producer, worked his way up, and is now Director at a major U.S. network with international operations.

On paper, a very safe position.

In reality, not so much.

The company he works for is in the middle of a classic acquisition process that you might have heard about. The kind many of us have lived through at least once. New ownership. New strategy. New org charts. And eventually, fewer roles.

He knows this. But like most people in that situation, he doesn’t know when or how it will hit.

And then the recruiter called.

A role at a production company built around a YouTuber with more than 3 million subscribers.

The offer was serious.

More money.
Comparable benefits.
And even the possibility of ownership in the production company running that channel and a few others.

Still, he was stuck.

“What would you do?” he asked me.
“It feels risky. I’ve been where I am for more than twenty years. And this is… a YouTuber.”

That word carried a lot of weight.

To him, YouTube still felt unstable. Fragile. Not “real” in the way a network is supposed to be real.

But the irony was hard to ignore.

The network he works for is being absorbed by another company.

That’s when I told him something very simple.

“I honestly don’t know what is riskier right now.”

If he leaves and the YouTube company fails, that’s risk.

But if he stays, there’s a very real chance he could be without a job in the next 6 to 12 months anyway. Not because of performance. Not because of lack of talent. But because acquisitions do what acquisitions do.

Yes, he might get a severance package.

But after that, there’s no certainty. No timeline. And no control.

I told him this:

If the offer is solid
If the company is properly structured
If they pay people on time
If they have a track record of treating crews well
If you’ve done real due diligence

Then this might not be reckless.

It might actually be rational.

He paused and then said something that stayed with me.

“I’m very traditional. It still scares me to say I might work for a YouTuber.”

I get that.

Many of us grew up believing that networks were stability and everything else was a gamble.

But the landscape has changed.

Many YouTube-first businesses today are well-funded, professionally run production companies with diversified revenue and long-term plans.

Meanwhile, many traditional organizations are shrinking, merging, and quietly removing layers.

The risk didn’t suddenly appear because of YouTube.

The risk was already there because of the acquisition.

I still don’t know what he decided. Last time we spoke, he was still evaluating his options.

But he told me the conversation gave him clarity.

Standing still didn’t mean being safe.

It just meant letting someone else decide his future.

And that’s the real lesson here.

Business information is not just for executives.

Understanding who owns your company
What stage it’s in
How decisions are made
And what typically happens during transitions

This is something all of us need to stay on top of.

Because just like organizations will make decisions regardless of how long you’ve been there, you also have to make decisions for yourself and your family.

Sometimes the biggest risk isn’t leaving.

Sometimes the biggest risk is staying because it feels familiar.

Bulletin Board

• If you have doubts about the impact that the pandemic had in our industry don’t miss this video created by industry veteran David Maldow. He explains how a tool like Zoom works at a highest level for streamers and traditional broadcasting environments.

• 59 already took my course “The Global Business of Sports Productions” and you can do it too. Remember that if you are a subscriber of The Ministry of Broadcasting you can get a special price in this link.

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