What Former Colleagues Have Said About GMA Meteorologist Rob Marciano - The List (2024)

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In the early part of hisbroadcasting career, television meteorologist Rob Marciano bounced around from town to town — a journey that included Portland, Oregon; Lake Charles, Louisiana; and Hartford, Connecticut. In 2003, he was hired by CNN as a weather correspondent, and in 2012, his career took an unexpected left turn from weather to celebrity-centered infotainment when he was tapped to co-host "Entertainment Tonight" alongside longtime host Nancy O'Dell. Just two years later, Marciano returned to his roots, joiningABC News as senior meteorologist, initially appearing on the weekend edition of the popular morning show "Good Morning America."

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Marciano spent the next decade with ABC News and appeared regularly on "GMA."In late April 2024, Marciano suddenly exited ABC News. As The Hollywood Reporter noted in its initial coverage, it wasn't immediately clear what led him and the network to part ways. However, further details soon emerged. The Los Angeles Times reported that Marciano's exit wasn't his choice, and that he'd actually been fired. Subsequently,another reportclaimed that his firing came about after a very specific incident involving a "GMA" producer.

As more information surrounding the circ*mstances behind his firing have continued to rise to the surface, many questions still remain —and disturbing ones, at that. Take a look at what Marciano's former colleagues have said about the once-popular meteorologist.

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It wasn't all that long after news of Rob Marciano's departure from ABC News and "Good Morning America" that The Daily Beast unveiled a shocking report alleging some pretty outrageous behavior.

In fact, two separate sources told the outlet that the crux of the matter was Marciano's "heated screaming match" with a "GMA" producer. According to that report,ABC Newsmeteorologist Ginger Zee was informed about Marciano's verbal exchange with that producer. Given that she'd allegedly known about similar incidents involving Marciano in the past, Zee opted to speak out about her colleague.

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She took her concerns about Marciano and his temper to her bosses at the network, who were allegedly well acquainted with that particular side of Marciano. This, the report noted, was "the last straw" for the higher-ups at ABC News, who reportedly felt there was no alternative but to take action and terminate him immediately.

Neither reps for ABC News nor Zee herself responded to a request for comment about the report.

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As more details began to emerge about the Rob Marciano's firing from ABC News, several of his former colleagues began to speak out. Some of these offered accounts of their own personal experiences with Marciano, presenting a very different narrative to reports claiming his firing was due to inappropriate anger in the workplace.In fact, someone who worked closely with Marciano told People that his departure was "unexpected,"to say the least. "Rob is always positive, hands on and never anything but professional," the source declared. "People enjoy working with him and he's not difficult to work with."

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Another source who'd worked with Marciano, described by the outlet as a female editor, offered a similar recollection. "Rob was always such a nice guy," she said. Meanwhile, a third source, who reportedly worked with Marciano during his CNN days, praised Marciano for his efforts in ensuring crew members working in the field were well taken care of. "Rob is great," she said, later adding, "He listened. He helped."

Another former colleague similarly sang his praises."He was hard-working and kind to everyone,"she said of Marciano. "So many people in news can be cut-throat, or creepy, or generally unpleasant, but Rob is not one of them."She concluded by describing him as "the definition of a standup guy."

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Interestingly, the former colleagues of Rob Marciano who'd shared their positive experiences withPeople had suspicions that whoever had spoken with The Daily Beast about Marciano's alleged "screaming match" with a "GMA" producer had done so with an agenda.

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One of the sources interviewed described Marciano's firing as being "unexpected"and shared a theory that the far-from-positive reports being floated about him in the media were an orchestrated "hit job" intended to paint him in a negative light in order to justify his firing."The Rob Marciano being portrayed is not the Rob Marciano we know," the source said, insisting that he'd heard only good things about Marciano from other colleagues who'd worked with him. "Rob has always been nothing but professional,"that source said. "He is truly invested in his segments, cares a tremendous amount about his final work product."

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While some of the sources who spoke with People described Rob Marciano in nothing but glowing terms after his firing from ABC News, another of Marciano's former colleagues shared a very different depiction with the same outlet.

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Swetha Sharma, who onceworked with Marciano, recalled that he had a volatile temper — something she claimed had become common knowledge among her and her co-workers.

While Sharma acknowledged that many people had generally positive experiences with him, there were others who countered that narrative."He was nice but that also wasn't everyone's experience with him," sherevealed in her interview with People."There were always stories about him about his temper,"Sharma added,insisting that reports that he was fired after an angry outburst aimed at a producer fit within the opinion that she'd already formed of him. "No one that worked with him or witnessed his behavior is surprised by any of this," she said.

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Rumors continued to swirl about the circ*mstances underlying Rob Marciano's firing from ABC News as more sources at the network came forward. Speaking with the New York Post, those sources alleged that Marciano and Ginger Zee, whose complaint about him had reportedly led to his termination, had longstanding beef with each other.

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According to the Post, Zee and Marciano had been engaged in a long and nasty feud that the network had been trying to keep under wraps. One source, in fact, told the publication that neither party was entirely blameless but that their respective personalities caused them to clash."I think she brought out the worst in him. I'm not giving him a pass," that source revealed. "It's sad because they are two people who are really into the science of the weather, unfortunately their personalities didn't work."

Multiple sources confirmed that characterization of the meteorologists' personality conflict, alleging that Zee took on a more dominant role and treated Marciano like an inferior. "But they were much more peers in terms of experience,"the source said, pointing out that Zee tended to have immutable opinions. "Ginger is a know-it-all," a source described as a media exec, said. "If you say something she disagrees with, she references her Twitter followers, saying, 'You are wrong, my followers on Twitter loved it.'"

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In the midst of the media furor involving "Good Morning America"meteorologist Rob Marciano being sacked by ABC News, an alleged incident from a year earlier resurfaced.

In March 2023, the New York Post reported that Marciano had been banned from the "GMA" studiossituated in the heart of Times Square in New York City. That ban, a source told the newspaper, was imposed on him after his behavior toward a colleague left that person —revealed to be a female staffer —feeling uncomfortable."He was found to have done something ... that was improper, but he was punished for it, and they still haven't let him return," the source divulged at the time.

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Another source claimed, "He made people feel uncomfortable. There was a period where there were some issues, a number of alarming events." In fact, the Post further alleged that Marciano had been taken off the air for a full month. Even after he returned in front of the camera, he wasn't permitted to return to the studio, with a source telling the post that "GMA" exec producer Simone Swink wouldn't allow it even though several months had passed since the alleged episode took place."There were times when [Marciano] was very cranky and angry ... unsavory behavior on his part. He was pulled off to deal with it and he's been back,"another source said.

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Rob Marciano's firing led to renewed interest in what led him to be banished from the "GMA" studios a year earlier, and the The Daily Beast uncovered some unsettling allegations from four sources who came forward.

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According to those sources, Marciano made sexist remarks to a female producer that were deemed to be so inappropriate that he was suspended for a month, confirming that earlier report. What hadn't been previously reported, however, was that he had also been ordered by his bosses to attend anger management classes.

After what was described as a "contentious exchange,"Marciano reportedly backtracked, insisting that what he'd said to the woman wasn't meant to be aimed at her but his estranged wife, who'd filed to divorce him not long before that discussion took place. As a result, when Marciano finally did return to the air, his reports were filmed in locations other than the "GMA" Times Square studio. While he was eventually allowed back into the studio, some of his colleagues felt that his job was hanging by a thread and were far from shocked when he was ultimately let go."I'm surprised it's taken this long," a source, described as a senior staffer at the network, told The Daily Beast of Marciano's eventual firing.

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Rob Marciano isn't the only on-air personality to be fired from "Good Morning America" — and he isn't even the most high-profile. That dubious honor goes to former anchors T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach, who were fired after the revelation of their extramarital affair and subsequent splits from their respective spouses.

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Holmes and Robach, who rebounded from being fired by launching their own podcast, "Amy and T.J.," commented on their former "GMA" colleague in the episode "Mammograms, Weathermen, and a Jelly Roll." "It's a tough situation,"Robach said."Yes, we have walked down that road and it's not an easy one. And I know [Marciano] also has, and I think he might still be going through a divorce. So we know what it's like to have your entire life upended — career and personal life."

Both Holmes and Robach also made it clear they weren't aware of the specifics underlying Marciano's firing and as such wouldn't comment on that. As Holmes said, "Obviously we don't know all the details and some of them that are out there are a little sketchy and some of them are salacious and tabloid-type." However, he admitted, "We hate to see someone who has been a friend and a colleague for a long time to end up in this position."

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