Watkowski Ally, Campbell, Leaving ABC TV Group to Run Disney Africa, Middle East, Europe; 'Regime Change' Might Be Coming to KGO-TV

Rebecca Campbell

SHE'S BEEN HEAD of the ABC "O and O's --her name is Rebecca Campbell; why is this important? Campbell was just promoted to run Disney Africa/Middle East and Europe; oh, and Campbell is a close ally of KGO-TV (ABC7) ND, Tracey Watkowski.

Now that Campbell is leaving, the thinking in and around 900 Front is that Watkowski might be on the way out.

Said a station source: "there's a lot of speculation in the newsroom about 'regime change finally coming to KGO.'"

Watkowski is loathed by a number of ABC7 staffers; senior staffers at that; her management style is that of "rule by intimidation" and she's known to play the favorites game; an activity that has garnered much resentment and ridicule among the rank and file. In addition, she lacks basic people skills and creates loads of tension even among her friends. 

But the biggest X factor that affects Watkowski in lieu of Campbell's leaving is the recent Heather Ishimaru settlement; it was Watkowski who messed with the veteran reporter and was at the center of the conflict; Disney, (ABC parent) hates settling lawsuits that are not in its favor and they had to shell out millions in the Ishimaru case.

Watkowski has been involved in a number of legal conflicts and somehow kept her gigs. The story goes as long as Campbell was in charge of the O and O's, Trixie was safe.

Maybe not anymore.

Ask Rich Lieberman

ANSWERING YOUR BAY AREA RADIO/TV QUESTIONS...Name and town please 

The Bay Area's Top 10 Worst TV News Anchors

TOP 10 WORST BAY AREA TV ANCHORS

After much ballyhoo from outside forces (thanks Chuck Barney) over the Top 5 Best Bay Area anchors we doubled down. There's a lot more than five worst anchor so we give you the Top 10. Actually, there's more than ten but 10 is enough for now.

1. Darya Folsom/KRON: Darya, you knew I couldn't resist and yeah, you're not disappointed. Darya, after a gazillion years at KRON wrecking your morning coffee, still craves attention. Because, you know, who else would eat a banana on live TV and resort to planking? Uh, here comes Darya, the giddy, breathless, cheerleader-like attention witch more suited for a high-school glee club than morning news anchor in the Bay Area. Darya needs more attention like I need an extra piece of NY Cheese Cake. 

2. Reggie Aqui/KGO: A shameless, egotistical mutt with all the flair of a Toledo Opera festival. I still don't get why KGO thinks this moronic mutant is popular; he's not. Certainly if he were, the ratings on Circle7's morning show would be better. Instead, we get a daily dose of Reggie's eternal dreckfest. It would be merely embarrassing if it were some small market but Bay Area citizens in the #4 market expect better. Aqui is a mutant ninja fool that causes severe trauma. Quick, stop this schmuck before he performs more damage.

3. Gasia Mikaelian/KTVU: She's not as garish as Folsom but she's making an honest push. The "Gas" is an irritating, egotistical, LOUD!, giggling drama queen with more annoying habits every day designed to pollute the Bay Area airwaves. She's HIT PAYDIRT. Gasia believes she's the star of the show and therefore, her mindset appears to be: "How can I make a fool of myself today?" I believe the hairspray has penetrated The Gas' brain because nobody would commit such downright inanity on a daily basis. Uh, except Mikaelian. 

4. Mike Mibach/KTVU: Gasia's chief enabler on KTVU and part of the god-awful, "The Nine". Mibach apparently got this gig because he's a pretty boy that hails from South SF (which automatically makes him a qualified TV News anchor, sure thing) Mibach apparently believes the more he talks, the better the program. And talk, talk, talk, he does only nobody really knows just what the heck he's saying. That makes a lot of sense.

5. Allen Martin/KPIX: A mean-looking, angry, boorish, putzy jerk who last laughed during the Carter administration. Martin is one of those jerks who thinks his you-know-what doesn't stink and he's some sort of modern-day Cronkite. Sure, Allen, and I'm Beyoncé. 

6. Natasha Zouves/KGO: This annoying diva's best attribute is that she sounds like Julia Child in heat. Was that element that got her the gig or is it her close proximity to Reggie Aqui that makes ordinary people act like complete buffoons? I don't know the answer but I do know this: Zouves' would be better served behind the cosmetics counter at an Anaheim Nordstrom. Her Channel 7 routine leaves a bad case of mental anguish every morning. 

7. Steve Aveson/KRON: This is KRON's way of saying, I guess, "hey, we're not that bad!". Great. If only this nauseating, over-bearing, BORE could pretend that he's not curing cancer on a nightly basis. Aveson comes across as a righteous, holier-than-though butthead with all the news acumen of an Iowa 7-11. He'd be better off as an obituary reader for the Des Moines Public TV access channel. 

8. Brian Hackney/KPIX: The most OBNOXIOUS, arrogant, insipid excuse for a TV anchor. Mr. warmth's science credentials (he's fixated on this) allows him the chance to tell everyone "I'm smarter than you" --great, maybe PIX should get him on Jeopardy and spare the air with this pompous tonsil who exudes more BS than a Dallas Ringling Brothers farewell.

9. Heather Holmes/KTVU: "Anchor?" Seriously? The politically-correct manual would banish me to GITMO for having the gall to call out the vastly overrated, complete puzzlement that IS Heather Holmes. Holmes is to news anchoring is what Kim Kardashian is to speaking at the Harvard Commencement address. First off, Holmes dresses like she's a torch singer about to hit the stage at the Venetian Club. But a TV News anchor? Plus, she stumbles virtually every sentence --I think she's on a mission to challenge Wendy Tokuda. 

10. JR Stone/KRON: Where did they find this guy? And why are we subjected to this robotic, BIG-HEADED monster on a nightly basis? Stone has NO personality; no sense of humor; no sense of news acumen; no sense of ad-libbing too; other than that he's a just a peach of a guy.

OUY VEY !

*Follow me on Twitter.

The Top Five Bay Area TV News Anchors

TOP 5 (ranked in order)


1. Dan Ashley/KGO (ABC7) The almost, three-decade veteran has quietly built up a tenure as one of the most compelling, steady, and smooth anchors in Bay Area TV News history. Ashley is right up there with some of the great broadcasters --including Dennis Richmond, Dave McElhatton, and the late

Pete Wilson. Most impressive thing I like about Ashley is that he anchors four, (sometimes) five different newscasts per night. That's not an easy task but Ashley is able to pull it off quite nicely.  

2. Frank Somerville/KTVU: I've had my issues with Frank but have grown to appreciate his solid work for over twenty years at the still-dominant, news powerhouse. KTVU has lost a lot of its news legacy; it's once mighty stream of anchors and reporters have either left or retired but Somerville still commands the screen. Yeah, he really does "look like an anchorman" but behind the face is a hard-working TV News journalist who is as passionate off air as he is on air. A versatile presence on social media too which is all important these days, like it or not.

3. Jessica Aguirre/KNTV (NBC Bay Area) If there's still such a thing as "star power", even in something as mundane as local TV News, then Aguirre has that "IT" factor. She's been on the Bay Area TV screen for almost thirty years; made her mark at KGO and has become NBC's most prominent anchor in Silicon Valley. Aguirre also "looks like something" --her screen presence (that's right, I said it) is just as alluring as ever and that's saying a lot for a middle-aged woman anchor. 

4. Ken Bastida/KPIX (CBS5) OK, so he can't ad-lib that well and he's sort of superficial; that said, Bastida has somehow survived at PIX for over two decades when most people said he would never make it as a TV guy. The former KFRC news guy has worked with the likes of Wendy Tokuda, Kate Kelley, and McElhatton. He isn't "great" by any standards but he reads very well off the teleprompter and is one of PIX's few star talents that viewers seem comfortable with. 

5. Terry McSweeney/KNTV (NBC Bay Area) This might be a surprising entry in my Top 5 but I've always liked McSweeney; in fact, if I were station brass I would seriously find a spot for the versatile newsman during the week. For starters, McSweeney has a personality, a sense of humor, and seems to be having a cool time on the air. Some anchors think they're a sort of god and come off as ancient boors. McSweeney reads the news well and looks like the type of guy you could have a beer with at the local pub. Yeah, he doesn't take himself too seriously and that's an A-plus in my book. 

Lawrence Karnow in Line for Fulltime KRON Weather Gig But Dollars Might be Issue

IF Lawrence Karnow wants the fulltime KRON weather gig on the weeknight --it's his to have--only Karnow may balk at the $130K a-year salary KRON is offering for the job, soon to be vacated by Philly-bound, Brittney Shipp.

$130K is a nice salary but in San Francisco doesn't net you a whole lot of money.

On the other hand, KRON might go to their usual young female-looking-to-work-in-SF and willing to take a meager salary.

Stay tuned.

I will.

*415 Media Developing...

Brittney Shipp Heading Back to Philly; Henry Wofford Lights Up KRON 'Sports Night Live'; Kelley Not Too Popular with KTVU Staff; When I RIP People Here; 415 Media Monday Coffee and a Bagel

  MONDAY COFFEE

*I thought Brittney Shipp was auditioning for an LA gig because KRON is never a long-term option no matter what; turns out Shipp, the weeknight weatherwoman is going back to Philly, where she came from.

FTV got it first.

I'm guessing Shipp came to realize that San Francisco is really great but dealing with a station that still doesn't get it and has issues galore, combined with the cost of living makes Philly sound romantic.

*I'm not always negative on KRON; "Sports Night Live" --the pro football version--was on last night and featured a welcome sight: Bay Area TV Sports vet and former Comcast anchor, Henry Wofford was on the set with JR Stone.

It was a crisp, well-paced, informative highlight show with emphasis on the Raiders and 49ers. In this day and age of multiple sports shows on cable, a LOCAL program is welcome news especially if it works and KRON's works, so far.

Wofford is a delight to watch and seems to be having a good time being back on the local airwaves. Here's hoping his KRON stint is permanent and that he anchors every now and then. 

*It would never be the same again; nothing is the same again. Too bad because KTVU used to be king here and now still is (with less viewership) but number 1 overall in many time slots.

But the BIG story around "uptight" (a worker's words, not mine) KTVU/Fox2 seems to be the growing dissatisfaction with GM, Gregg Kelley.

Kelley is not popular with rank and file staff and has alienated much of the KTVU News work force with a mercurial style and less-than-people-friendly personality.

Because the station is tops in the Bay Area's news wars probably makes Kelley safe at his Jack London Square gig but the natives seem to be getting restless. In addition, for a news TV station that is the most-watched, one could reasonably expect a bunch of happy campers but that's not the case at Channel 2. FOX apparently doesn't believe in the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" formula. 

*When I RIP media members in this market (and I do RIP and it's harsh on purpose) it's intended to be about a person's work; anchoring, reporting, etc...I don't mean it to be personal unless I believe the person is mugging, chattering endlessly, acting stupid and/or is, in my opinion, unqualified.

So, yes, kick me if you want, for a really intense and blunt assessment --good and bad for some of the on-air talent here. 

My critiques are written with the sole purpose of getting eyeballs and gathering interest; if the individual has some family issues and is hurting, it's not my intention to pile on. 

That said, if there's any of you that have been going through a crisis, my apologies if I poured some salt on a wound. That was never my intention. 

Part of having a public job is acknowledging that your life is open book and that no matter what form of hell you might be experiencing hardly anyone on the Internet gives a damn. I know from first-hand experience.

Saturday Thoughts and Prayers; 415 Media Message to Readers

Been a rough last three days; normally, I back off writing heavy personal stuff because I don't want to use it to elicit sympathy. But so many of you have e-mailed and sent notes, ok, so I'll be up front.

On Thursday morning, my mother fell and hit her head. She was dazed and was bleeding on the right side of her temple. She was conscious, thank god, but my sisters took her to the doctor and hospital. She's OK but had to have five stitches. She'll be fine which is good since I'm a wreck. 

Mom is so darn strong --she's feeling a lot better and is really ticked off because she fell. I swear. As many of you know, falling is a major medical issue for elderly people. Mom just had her 95th birthday on Aug 26. She looks great. And she's 100% lucid even after the fall but we can't have her falling. She knows that.

Reminds me of a great line by Judge Judy: "If you wanna live, don't fall." 

I want to get some things off my chest. 

My mom needs me now more than ever even though she's so amazingly independent. She walks, she gets around, she's going to be all right. Somehow, someway.

THANKS...AGAIN...to all of you that wrote/e-mailed your concern. Again, I didn't want to make this an issue. It's all too personal but some of you who read me and come here to expect a media column I wanted to let you know we're good for now.

The gist of 415 Media is made available so I can be close to her and help her out in times of need. Thursday was one of those days. We have help from nurses but not enough. Limited insurance means. It sucks. But we'll persevere, mom too, she's not ready to leave yet.

Thank God.

If all goes well, (thanks Jim Eason) I'll be back on Monday with your normal 415 Media that you love and look forward to.

One more time: THANK YOU ALL for caring and sending along your thoughts and prayers.

God Bless You All. 

Rich@415 Media