Tough times for TV talent
Cory Bergman July 16th, 2008
TVNewsday has a good write-up on the rapidly-changing outlook for local TV news talent. With revenue either flat or in decline (Gannett announced a 6% drop in revenues for its TV stations today), layoffs are growing increasingly common and higher-paid talent are seeing their salaries cut. (Bob Papper, who conducts annual salary surveys, says he’s not seeing any meaningful change to date — but surveys tend to lag actual events by a year or so.) Other trends: more freelance hires and one-man bands, and of course, everyone is being asked to do more. “Management must maintain a TV station’s profit margins even as viewers, not waiting for the evening local news to come on, turn to the Internet for news,” says Paul Douglas, a popular meteorologist who was let go from WCCO. And most agree: this is not cyclical, but a transformational change in the cost structure of local TV.
4 Comments Add your own
1. tdc | July 16th, 2008 at 8:57 am
last quarter it was “flat is the new up”.
maybe this qtr. it’ll be sold as ” -6% is the new up”.
writing on the wall anyone?
2. Anonymous | July 16th, 2008 at 9:47 am
NEWS ANNOUNCERS
Very few stations have people that stay 15+ years and seek out like minded people you think say, Des Moines is a really cool place and I want to be a part of this station by being part of the community. Those people were hired in the 70s to the late 80s and they are retiring. Some broadcasters were short-sighted and jettisoned them and they moved to other stations and made their impacts their, even if the news dept wasn’t as ‘visionary’.
Face it…in Boise Carolyn Holly and Dee Sarton are those people, Walt Baker at KBCI and the lady doing Dialog for Idaho Public Television, Joan C——-Hansen(?) are the emeritus in service types and other than Larry Chase (management) and Larry Gebert (who was in radio here in the 70s I gather) and Rick Lantz the other KTVB main weatherman and both are locals, Weiser, ID and Ontario, OR most of the the rest left for city government, local to national broadcasting services and production, one became director of the Idaho Lottery. the local traffic roporting services and a bunch split (or retired or died obviously).
It works out that KTVB is the “legacy” channel in our area and you know which is yours or if you are lucky to have more than one.
The usual problem with this is that nobody does the homework until those people retire or pass away. At least KTVB has been looking for people that fit the bill constantly, Edgar Linares is a favorite of mine (plus his voice isn’t constantly chewed by colds), Alyson Outen is a former KBCI reporter who is very good and I hope she sticks around. Nobody at KTRV sticks out even Vin Crosby and the morning weather guy at KBCI keeps me from enjoying it at all. KBCI tries but they are no. 4 of three and meeds to work on it badly. It took them two days to get to a story once…of course, with all the fake assualt and rape, kidnapping claims we get around Boise it may be as well (one more debunked today).
3. Eric | July 16th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
My anchors contribute nothing to my news site. For one of their salaries I could have an entire investigative reporting staff dedicated to the web.
Because the delivery personalities have less bearing on local news sites than the content itself, I look forward to the day where the money we currently invest in pretty faces will go to better/more actual journalism and content.
4. Anonymous | July 17th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
@Eric: Agreed. There are stories of anchors all across the country where their pay is high and their contribution is low.
Mark my words. As newspapers figure out online video, television stations will begin to feel more of a crunch on the web.
Why would I go to a TV website if I can get similar quality video and much more in-depth journalism from the local newspaper site?
The game will be won by content depth and quality of presentation, not by how many pretty, well-spoken “faces” a site has.
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