Wednesday, March 18, 2009

CUMULUS KNBR 'Purge Begins In Earnest; Round Two of Layoffs Begin--Popular 15-Year Engineer Let Go-Several More to Follow

CUMULUS has begun a second round of layoffs, as predicted in this space, by letting go KNBR 680 15-year veteran engineer Steve Cordova, as part of an overall series of layoffs that are set to begin in earnest at it's cluster of SF radio stations, including KFOG-FM, "107.7--The Bone" and KNBR 1050.

An inside source at KNBR, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told me the following: "Steve was an essential part of the daily operation for each and every station of the Cumulus SF 'operation--he's one of the smartest, tech-savvy, 'mr-fix it's I've ever dealt with in radio. If he's expendable, no one, repeat, no one is 'safe at the SF Cumulus cluster."

So far, no notable on-air KNBR personalities have been let go, but an industry analyst who is familiar with Cumulus' Atlanta operations predicts that the radio conglomerate, which posted a record $397 million loss yesterday, is preparing to begin in earnest a series of "staff reductions" at the all-sports outlet, and that includes "people you wouldn't think are in trouble".

Recently, KGO Radio, owned by reeling Citadel, laid off over ten on-air staffers, reporters, salespeople, and on-air anchors, as the broadcasting business downsizes in these dire economic times.

Stay tuned. Developing Story
Rich Lieberman 03-18-'09 2: 37 PM PST

No comments:

Post a Comment