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| Leyla Gulen |
Gulen wasn't considered "big-time" enough by the suits --true, she did a lot of station promo appearances and was enough of a presence to be considered for something more "prominent" down the line, according to my Circle7 spy, but apparently it wasn't good enough for the springy Gulen.
My best guess is that she's headed back down to LA or perhaps somewhere far from 900 Front.
*Making matters worse is the still anger/resentment about both Zouves/Aqui's lack of credentials --something, as we've noted before, has a lot of KGO staffers royally ticked off.
My advice to both: go get a healthy dose of top-tier deli and buy lunch for the staff. Can't hurt.
*That glossy, love struck feature on the Chronicle's EIC, Audrey Cooper, in SF Magazine has veteran staffers at 5th and Mission screaming and yelling bloody murder-- "A total farce!", says one. "What a joke", says another. The long piece, headlined (hold the barf bag) "One Helluva Hard Job", was long in admiration for the newspaper diva and short on criticism. Curiously, the lengthy love piece didn't talk about many by-line people who can't stand the woman and are outraged over her arrogant and mercurial managing style. By the way, the Chronicle is still losing many millions of dollars --not to mention many columnists and star reporters who are not that much in love with the catty missy who thinks she's a god.
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| Audrey Cooper, EIC of the SF Chronicle |
That Aqui guy is terrible, but the little I've seen of Zouves, she seems okay. The morning show might be the place to groom her. Aqui is unteachable by what I've seen. They also might have considered Gulen for the anchoring job if she desired it. She was already a familiar face.
ReplyDeleteNo tears or drama on Front by the departure of the traffic reporter that wants to anchor World News Tonight next week. Gulen has zilch desk or street experience. Two "newbies" have 20+ years experience combined. Next.
ReplyDeleteThe "no tears or drama" post was most likely written by the new morning EP at 7 who is cheerful on the outside but a backstabber on the inside. Gulen wasn't one of "her people" so she's out. The new EP and news director loves Fresno people. Gulen had experience in Los Angeles which Zouves and Aqui don't. But hey, keep bringing in those Fresno people.
DeleteSure the morning EP is a piece of work, with her inappropriate anecdotes and all, but what the OP said about Leyla is spot-on. She thought she was a big fish and often acted as though she WAS one. Talk about a two-faced back-stabber... She was Black Swan. And her practice anchor demos were abysmal.
DeleteHey Audrey, RuPaul called; she said you can be a candidate on the next season of RuPaul's Drag Race. Goddam, talk about Ass...ASS!!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm Rich's resident comedian. Or at least I think I am. Here is where I say ass, ass. Here is where I insult Christine etc etc. Now a south park reference. Something else as a filler. Now I hit send and get back to my cartoons.
ReplyDeleteDear "Insert cute username here" at 9:39: Very nice!! Don't forget...Steven say HOCK!!!
DeleteSteven say HOCK? But what does it all mean Basil??
DeleteNatasha Zouves....A woman that beautiful doesn't need any credentials. She is in a league of her own. She is in a league the other staffers will never have a chance to play in, no wonder they are ticked off. I had mentioned before that KGO had hit a home run when they hired Natasha, I was wrong. They hit a "grand slam" home run...what a woman! Her newness, her spontaneity, her "everything" brings a smile to my face! Every once in a while someone who is "extra special" comes down the pike into the Bay area news arena, that special someone is Natasha Zouves. I love her laugh! To KGO management, thank you for bringing Natasha to the Bay area!!
ReplyDeleteSomeone please pass the barf bag . . . then whatever you're smoking, because I want some.
DeleteVery Rupert Pupkinesque post by @10:41.
DeleteZouves/Aqui - what a team and what a slam to Circle 7 - they do nothing but laugh and chat their way through the weekend newscasts - no class whatsoever. Do we really have to put up with them? When do they move to the mornings so we don't have to suffer.
DeleteNatasha will never be taken seriously until she keeps her hair out of her eye, stops the goo goo eyes at her co-anchors, and starts delivering stories without sounding like she's reading to toddlers at story time at the library. Glad she moves to the am where I will never watch her.
DeleteThank you Natasha!
DeleteThis is why we need a wall.
DeleteAwwww, that's so sweet. A love letter sent to Natasha Zouves. The only problem is that it seems to be written by Natasha Zouves.
DeleteThe issue with Gulen is that she's just too "White Bread" for TV in San Francisco anymore. The newsbies with an ethnic angle or flavor are the ones who get the opportunities! It seems to me that broadcast TV news folks in LA have gone from 90% white some years ago to probably 10% white now. The same thing is happening in SF. Not good or bad, just a trend that's hard to miss or fight against.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I've seen on the KGO weekend news, Reggie Aqui and Natasha Zouves are an excellent news team. Both were great hires.
ReplyDeleteWhy does KGO need six (6!) weather people?
I can remember Sue Hall on KFRC I believe, doing the all night show. A great DJ personality. What a choice it was back then, Sue Hall or Russ "The Moose" Syracuse on KYA. Radio days that we'll never see (or hear) again!
I'm surprised Leyla's bio is still up on the ABC7 website
ReplyDeleteThe new ABC 7 Morning news is going to be 30 sec stories with anchoring running around the studio with HIGH energy. Its like Nightbeat on steriods.
ReplyDeleteIn plain simple English, the Chronicle is a piece of SHIT. Hard hitting journalism my ass. Sports writing is self-serving from Bruce Jenkins' pennings on surfing to Henry Shrillman and John Shea kissing Giants ass. News features rarely have teeth.
ReplyDeleteThe solution: pick up more wire stories and stories from other newspapers. Ho hum.
Where's my New York Times?
Say Cooper how much did Larry Baer pay you to hang up that Giants calendar?
ReplyDeleteInstead of speaking to a local magazine, maybe you should be doing your best to lessen the amount your employees are paying for their health insurance coverage.
I kinda think Leyla got what was coming to her. As I recall they tossed Sue Hall to the curb for Leyla. I only watched cause I enjoy Eric. Although there were some mornings when it looked like both Mike and Eric would have loved to bitch slap Kristen. I won't watch the two newbies from what I've seen don't care much for them.
ReplyDeleteFrancis from The Bachelor did traffic before gulen and still shows up on 7 from time to time. Sue Hall fills in.
ReplyDeleteLeyla Gulen causes heavy traffic in my pants!
ReplyDeleteHeyoooooooooooooo (in Ed McMahon's voice)
DeleteMe too! Same for Michelle Roberts.
DeleteI spent about 20 years in the technical end of TV in LA from about 1985 and all this stuff has been going on forever. Change the names and places and it's just like LA 30 years ago.
ReplyDeleteEerie.
The SF Mag story about Cooper was fawning because everybody over there wants a gig at the Chronicle. That magazine isn't the place you'd go for hard nosed coverage. Sad thing is that Cooper will believe what they wrote about her. She's not a terrible editor, just uninspired and obviously struggling. She's not respected because she's never written a significant story in her life. The body of her work consists of school board stories in Pleasanton. She's never written for a major metro, she's just served as a mid-level and now top-level editor of one. She's no Bronstein. She'll never write a column at the Chron because it would be too embarrassing. But I don't think the higher-ups care. The Chron has actually cut its losses to about $2 to $3 million a year, so nobody in the Hearst hierarchy is calling for budget cuts. They're too busy with their magazines and TV holdings to care about the Chron. So Cooper is just an administrator, a bureaucrat. Not a visionary, not somebody who is going to position the newsroom to win Pulitzers like a Gene Roberts or Ben Bradlee. As long as she's there, there won't be a newsroom leader who will take pretty good writers and guide them to greatness. And the Chron will remain what it's always been: Mediocre.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the fact that Leyla, who was a MORNING show talent and would often be seen at her desk past 4pm, for God knows what reason, while the nightside crew were hard at work on the evening shows; wasn't seen by management as being a 'hard worker,' but rather someone who needed to get a life. Maybe her scheme backfired.
ReplyDeleteNew ABC7 morning duo is simply dreadful. Whether Gulen is involved or not, these two have nothing to recommend themselves.
ReplyDeleteDo not care for the new morning team. If both Eric and Kristen are gone I wish them luck, but I'm shopping for a new station
ReplyDeleteI, too, am unimpressed with the new morning show. I used to love watching the dynamic between Kristen Tse and Eric Thomas -- they were like dance partners, could finish each other's sentences. (Mike Nicco is awesome too). These two newbies are really boring and hard to listen to. Natasha speaks as tho speaking to children, enunciating every last syllable. I tend to listen the the news while I am getting ready in the morning rather than watch it. It is very hard to listen to these two. Why did KGO have to shake things up? I loved the old morning team!!!
ReplyDeleteThe most welcome attribute of "new girl" Natasha Zouves IS her respect for the Final Consonant!! Her pronunciation and diction are without compare. At least one of her peers on KGO is making a valiant effort to emulate her, but often falls back to "...Fough' the figh' " which has become jarring to listen to. Zouves just does it so well... I wish I'd followed through with the Thank You Note I joked about sending when she first got there...
ReplyDeleteEveryone quit ragging on people you can't compare to. (because we're home on our couches, not conquering the world!)