One of the most powerful people in sports media for the past 30 years, Dick Ebersol, is ending his tenure with NBCUniversal Sports, the Los Angeles Times reported.

While not entirely unexpected, news of his resignation broke suddenly during a week in which Ebersol took part in NBC’s upfront presentation to advertisers in New York. Ebersol has also been involved in NBC’s bid for the 2014 and 2016 Olympic Games.

Ebersol leaves the company during a time of upheaval in the executive ranks, less than four months after the takeover of NBC by Comcast Corp.

He played a variety of roles at NBC, with his influence extending well beyond sports. He was instrumental in creating and running “Saturday Night Live” and was a part of the team behind “Today”–both thriving franchises for the network.

More recently, he had a hand in NBC’s decision to oust Conan O’Brien from the “Tonight Show.”