Then station heads wanted to alter his schedule. A new news anchor was being prepped for the early evening news, but the outlet still wanted Sinkovitz to read the news, albeit at their command.
Sinkovitz wasn't thrilled with the new conditions, and politely, declined and decided to take a break away from the San Jose studios. He wasn't retiring, but he had other things to do and the commute, (he lives in the city), was heavy.
One would think a newsman of Sinkovitz' caliber and veteran status in this town would be heavily courted by other stations. That hasn't been the case. I'm bewildered. Yeah, I know the state of the industry. I understand every outpost seems to be set.
But surely a guy of Sinkovitz' experience, (he spent a good chunk of time at KRON when it was relevant), should merit someone, some place to get him on, oh, say at 5 PM. Goodness knows, it wouldn't hurt.
"Can't believe he's not on the air," offered one influential local industry observer. Somebody speculated that "he's perceived as 'too old." Huh? Have we reached a point where a guy in his 60's is considered "old"?--not to mention the fact that some of the best anchors are well in their 50's and 60's, but I guess I'm thinking too logically. Perhaps talent, local credibility, and news knowledge are irrelevant, pardon me.
In Sinkovitz' case, he doesn't need the money. He's also got a pretty wife and a comfortable life. It would be great to see him anchor another newscast sometime soon. He could be that one last jolt that provides a few stations with immediate buzz and recognition. Oh yeah, and a pretty good newsman too.
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Tom isn't cheap and that's why he's not working right now. Nobody cares about credibility, professionalism, and experience. Sad but true
ReplyDeleteInteresting post. Are you in the industry?
DeleteHe brought it on himself. HE turned down a free money for nothing but read a monitor job because he was too lazy to commute. What did he want? Do the news from his den?.. in his jammies?
ReplyDeleteTom could use a job and commute to keep him away from the table.
Tom certainly has the best and fullest head of hair in the Bay Area in the last 30 years. If indeed execs think he is too old then that is a sad state of affairs. Down here in the Central Coast we have two annoying youngsters reading the news. Marc Cota Robles and Jasmine Veil (they are co anchors and married to each other, isn't that crazy and weird?), anyway if the general trend is towards more of these cutesy airheads reading the news in place of a Sinkovitz type then we are in trouble!!!
ReplyDeleteNews on the Central Coast has always been subpar. Nothing new there. Also, Dan Green & Erin Clark have been at KSBW forever, and they're no better than Jasmin & Marc. Experience doesn't always = excellence.
DeleteDon't get me started on Dan Green and Erin Clark. HORRIBLE! Green is enamored with his own voice.
DeleteBoth news outlets have equally horrible dinasour weathermen. I guess they have yo appeal to the retired old farts down here. The news outfits in the Central Coast make KRON SF seem professional. Incompetence knows no age barriers and Tom would wipe the floor with any of the Central Coast newscasters. It is a shame Tom has not been picked up yet...
Well, NBC in San Jose has made that same mistake with Laura Garcia Cannon who seems to mistake the newsroom for a fraternity party where she gets to flirt and act cutesy all day. What other professional newswoman displays her demeanor? Can't think of one. She'll never make it past the morning drive time news anchor because of her ridiculous presentation.
DeleteTo add insult to injury, all of the Cowles Publishing stations now broadcast their news from Salinas. So the Fox and CBS affiliates supposedly based in Santa Maria have the news read in Salinas - and it's the same crappy news broadcast. Yup, "Your Central Coast News", as bad as it is, can be seen at both 10 and 11 first on the Fox station, then on the CBS station. As part of this, they also eliminated the sports reports completely. That's not necessarily a bad thing since I really couldn't care if Nipomo HS beat Righetti HS in girls volleyball.
DeleteGreat observation. The husband and wife team of Cota Robles and Jas Viel spend the last five minutes of every newscast on celebrity news and American Idol minutiae. Talk about trashy crap. It is so bad that it is good in a bad kind of way.
DeleteAs bad as newscasts are in the Bay Area whenever I visit up there I realize how good you have it compared to what we get in the Central Coast. An interesting question: Have there ever been husband and wife newscast teams? The oddity of it is interesting.
Terry Lowry and Fred LaCosse?
DeleteLoved the guy in SLO who also had great hair, though white instead of salt-and-pepper; when he was perceived as too old, he started doing karaoke on a local cable show...total crack-up.
ReplyDeleteI've watched Tom for years and he never did much for me. Like a chunky bump on a log, reading the news. Does size imply authority?And don't pretend there isn't a double standard. You still want female anchors to be good-looking, while you (men) want us women to appreciate your years of experience and ignore the gray hair and double chins. When Dana King went gray, everyone freaked out, even though it looks good on her. But those ugly black glassess she wears... I digress...
ReplyDeleteIt's the KRON stink. Anyone associated with such a sub-par station is going to find it difficult to transition.
ReplyDeleteI disagree. I'd transition Jackie Bennett any day even with KRON stink all over her. It helps she sits far away from and on opposite sides of Captain Hook. Radunich: keep your three fingered hand off my Jackie you creep!
DeleteSinkovich is in the mold of Dennis Richmond. Solid and no bull.
I'd like to see Tom on Mornings on 2 myself...Tom Sinkovitz is an excellent Anchor, and deserves to be on one of our local media outlets, period!
ReplyDeleteTom Sinkovitz is not only one of the better news anchors in the area, but he's a good guy to boot. He also reminds me of a couple of guys I worked with in TV in Portland, Oregon back in the late 1970s. Solid, calm, measured; in short a pro's pro.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that he's not getting any work however is not a surprise.
A lot of us 'old timers' and 'greybeards' are being thrown out of both TV and radio because of companies that are going cheap and downsizing. Yes, the 'product' isn't as popular as it used to be because of the social media and all of the websites, and yes, the economy is hurting and advertising revenue is down. But the real
people being hurt by all of these cuts are average Americans.
Most average Americans have depended upon TV, radio and the newspapers to get their news and sports and weather for years.
Now suddenly in the last five years, one of the most valuable
assets of our free society is being ruined by greedy corporate interests.
IT'S A VERY DANGEROUS THING.
A country that doesn't have a variety of credible, experienced, and professionally trained journalists, both in print and broadcast is a country that is LESS INFORMED.
Average Americans are now getting much of their news from untrained, unrestricted, and unprofessional sources that deal with opinion, rumor and innuendo as much as they do with journalistic ACCURACY AND INTEGRITY.
There is also another reason why big business and special interest have been able to whitewash things so effectively to suit their needs. Many folks don't know where to go to find a reliable news source because many only paid a cursory attention to radio-TV and the newspapers in the past. So now that those sources of traditional news are drying up and being downsized by these unimaginative and bottom line mega-companies, there is a grave danger for misinformation, especially during these dangerous and difficult times.
Tom Sinkovitz is only one small casualty among the many thousands of seasoned broadcast journalists and professionals who have been cut loose. It's a very bad thing that is happening in our free democratic society, but few Americans, outside of the people who read or respond to this blog seem to have the time to care.
That's not only FRIGHTENING, but SAD!
Sad, but all too true. We're living in a dystopian scenario that I read about in many "science fiction" books in my late teens and early twenties. Burgess, Orwell, and the lot weren't far off. Maybe a bit too optimistic, but otherwise, spot on...
DeleteAmong those of us who work in the biz, he would immediately become the most credible anchor behind a desk. We know the difference between readers, posers, and actual reporters. Tom is the latter. For starters, Tom is a real guy. Very humble. Someone you want to have a beer with. Cannot say that for most of the rest.
ReplyDeleteJackie Bennett? Really? Her delivery is so fake and insincere. Her "whispering" the weather in an elementary and slow manner is irritating to watch no matter how easy she may be on the eyes. I have to flip to Sandya on Ch 7 for my weather.
ReplyDeleteAgreed about Jackie Bennett's fake and insincere delivery. I think she uses the whispey voice to exhude sensuality but it is off putting. Her fake cackles after bad Radnich jokes are even more annoying. She is very hot though....
Delete