415 Media Exclusive: Julie Watts Leaving KPIX. Headed To Sacramento CBS 'Oand O' KOVR

Julie Watts leaving KPIX for KOVR

415 MEDIA EXCLUSIVE

WATTS LEAVING 'PIX

Julie Watts, the wholesome, sometimes consumer, sometimes weather anchor, is leaving KPIX and headed for Sacramento CBS O and O (Owned and Operated) KOVR.

KPIX brass let their staff know this (Wednesday) evening, according to a source close to the station. That same source told me the news and a little more too:


"She wasn't happy here and wanted to do more consumer and investigative stories, said the person who is in a position to know.

Watts has been at KPIX since 2010. Her reporting garnered seven Emmys and numerous industry awards. Presumably, in hungry Sacramento, she'll be able to do more and get extra air time; it's unusual for a smaller market to snatch a Top 10 personality like Watts but that's what Sactown CBS did.

Good for Watts and good for CBS and its state capital eyeball.

Breaking: 415 Media Exclusive: Cate Caugurian Leaving KPIX; Headed To Chicago; Staffers Pissed at Bastida and Cook Over 'Sophomoric Behavior'

Cate Caugurian off to Chicago; leaving KPIX

   JUST AS I was beginning to really appreciate the work of passionate KPIX reporter/occasional anchor, Cate Caugurian....comes word to me, via a reliable CBS source near Battery gulch that Cuagurian is leaving PIX and is headed to Chicago to work at an undisclosed station.

Caugurian leaves at a time when there's quite a bit of upheaval at the station; Bruno Cohen, the GM announced his retirement earlier this week. Plus, Caugurian herself was a central figure in some recent, in-house jealousy rage.

Meanwhile, 415 Media has learned that a vast majority of the staff is "royally pissed" off at the sophomoric behavior of prominent on-air talent Ken Bastida and Elizabeth Cook.



Ken Bastida and  Elizabeth Cook

"They giggle and chirp constantly; it's like 'high-school homeroom crap in the newsroom --they're laughing and giggling while everyone else is working, " said a well-placed source.

Hey, Join The KPIX Weather Watchers So We Don't Have To Pay You, Dumbass

 KPIX has a great idea: "Join The PIX Weather Watchers"... Tracking The Bay Area’s Micro Climates. Wow, sounds groovy. Your chance to get on TV!

Translation: KPIX gets FREE content. FREE pictures. FREE video. We don't have to pay you, dumbass!

Checkmate.

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Notarangelo Leaving KPIX; Last Show Sunday; Veteran Anchor Says 'It's Time To Go'; Source: Goodrich To Handle Weekends For May Book

Ann Notarangelo/CBS

 Been a rough few days for Bay Area women TV anchors and reporters.

First, KTVU's Melanie Woodrow is sent packing and now comes word that Ann Notarangelo is leaving KPIX. Her last show is Sunday per her Facebook goodbye.

Notarangelo has been anchoring weekend duty on PIX for the past 14 years. She's occasionally anchored during the week but her mainstay has been Saturday and Sunday Night.

According to my PIX spy, word has it that Juliette Goodrich, the station's "Go-to fill-in" for all shifts will be called in to handle weekends for the May book.

By all indications from inside 855 Battery, the decision to split was Notarangelo's alone but another source told me she (Notarangelo) wanted more presence during the week and that wasn't imminent. Plus, with the hiring of Veronica De La Cruz, Notarangelo saw the handwriting on the wall and was tired of weekend anchoring. In other words, yes, it was the right time to go.

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Juliette Goodrich/CBS

 

Girl Power at KPIX Rears Ugly Catfights; De La Cruz Diva at TV; Wahl-Taylor War at KCBS; Radio Hates TV; Drama at 855 Battery

 The continued CATFIGHTS at KPIX...astonishingly-- !! have begun to break out between PIX and radio sister, downstairs! at KCBS too! We already told you that Allen Martin still can't stand Elizabeth Cook and that weatherman Paul Deanno won't even look at Veronica De La Cruz! Real drama, ladies and gents! Girls Rule upstairs and downstairs --at least some do.

 

Veronica De La Cruz

Now we learn there's considerable tension between PIX and their CBS-owned radio relatives upstairs at 855 Battery--an uber-catfight supreme between the likes of Jan Wahl, Susan Leigh Taylor and other radio vets. The gals are aghast at the "royal treatment" by management toward some--but not others.

De La Cruz is at the center of the heat--PIX staffers are steamed that the "beauty anchor" and "hair goddess" (as she's been called) gets "star" treatment while less other glamorous women staffers are ignored.

"She's always touching her hair!--She never stops!", offered one disgruntled PIX source. "And she's always tweeting and going to her Facebook page--It's disgusting!"

Leigh Taylor in radio is supposedly irritated at movie critic Wahl's VIP status from management. Wahl does her movie reviews on Friday and barely pays attention to Taylor. All the while, Stan Bunger just gazes ahead-- It's a hodgepodge of "Girls Rule"--at Wahl's direction. Wahl has extreme power at KCBS and nobody seems to know why. Talk about mystery, this one could rival a Nancy Drew classic.

Meanwhile radio is also pissed at TV. Seems the TV divas and their dollar superiority has all of the radio folks quite unimpressed and disinterested --enough to the point of one staffer's suggestion: "Let's just kick their ass!" We assume this was a joke, but it isn't.

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Jan Wahl

855 Battery

Veronica De La Cruz 'GAME ONNNN' Nightmare Infects Bay Area TV Airwaves; Caution: May Cause Temporary Insanity, (Video)

 HELP ME! --HELP!!!--HELP!




It's reached epic proportions of mass destruction --I'd assume KPIX thinks this is cool and has a sort of Bay Area en fuego. Not really-- more like a bad case of cholera littered with audio vomit like the following.


Do enjoy and afterwards, get some pepto and seven-up, drink lots of water and eat some sourdough bread. That might diffuse the long-term nausea.


Happy Friday: GAMMMMMMMME ONNNNNNN (Barf bag).


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KPIX Night Beat Is Still 'Turrible'

 NIGHT BEAT:

*Take cutesy selfies that draw attention away from shitty newscast.

*Sing 'GAAAAAME ON!" and mock your own shitty newscast.

*Concede to 415 Media rant about the shameless "Facebook" and "Twitter" references by 86ing them , (sorry, but the show still sucks).

*Veronica De La Cruz: I respected the hell out of you considering your pithy news background but what the hell are you doing on a POS show like this?

*Tie Update: So, the weather guy is tie-less but the sports guy is wearing a tie. So much for sticking to the script. (It looks weird, make up your mind).

Ken Bastida: Serious newsmen do NOT take selfies. Be careful.

Dennis O'Donnell: Keep your eyes off VDLC.

RATINGS: As Charles Barkley would say, "turrible!"

GAME OFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!

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GAME ON! The Most Influential Anchor At KPIX; VDLC And Power At 855 Battery; New Kid On The Block Rules; TRENDING



 "GAAAAAME ON!"

Veronica De La Cruz has built up quite a bit of cachet over at KPIX.

She's apparently taken over the newsroom and dare cross her, she'll handle it, maybe you too. Power is a bitch at 855 Battery.

TRENDING!

This much is certain: she's undeniably thee most influential anchor in the building. They didn't invest over a million dollars to bring her out, (salary, expenses, plus generous chit list), to rearrange the furniture.

They expect numbers and ratings. Everything else is pure coincidental, right? TRENDING!

PIX staffer: "She acts sorta like a dominatrix!" Well isn't that special!

Rich Lieberman and 415 Media are not responsible for comments made by others on this website.

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Breaking: Layoffs at KPIX; Update

 KPIX layoffs ...

I'm hearing from a source it just broke late Wednesday and there's several Pixers who received pink slips. Must be quite a scene at Hunan.

It's across the board too, apparently concentrated to mostly off-air personnel.

Nevertheless something major has gone down at 855 Battery. We're on it.

***Developing...

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UPDATE: 9/11 --10:01 AM

I'm hearing it's editors --tape/online video editors who received pink slips from KPIX on Wednesday.

I'll update if I hear anything else.

Meanwhile, On The KBCW 'NightBeat': GAME ON! --Not Really

 GAME ON!? Not Really.

Still dreadful.

Still deeply crappy.

Still woefully executed and produced.

Still silly and totally out of the loop.

TRENDING:

*Major staff upheaval

*EP complains show has no direction

*Already management thinking of complete re-structure

*In-house jokes, chatter leads to speculation about future.

*Sports segment take from staffer: "This is a joke!"

 *VDLC: Image/rep takes a beating.

*Developing...

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KPIX Does a Good Job on 49ers First Game at Levi's Stadium; Bastida-Cook Shine, (Although Game Not So Much); Robinson and Ryan Effective; Not So Much Vern Glenn; Monday First Take

 MONDAY FIRST TAKE

KPIX milked the first official, (albeit exhibition), 49ers game at Levi's Stadium, devoting a pre and post-game special news show. Which is good because the game was sort of a sideshow and the final score confirmed it.

Ken Bastida and Elizabeth Cook took part in the news event with various reporters, Mike Sugerman and Len Ramirez,  providing Levi's sidebars. Sugerman's live shots from a CalTrain  was both unique and informative. Ramirez' report on the traffic situation after the game was especially effective featuring a dash top camera in the PIX news car. Nice work.

Christin Ayers had a nice report featuring a young fan's first game at the new digs and got an exclusive telling viewers police made arrests at the game of some over-eager fans. Maybe they watched the entire game.

All in all, good work from the PIXers.

QUICK HEADERS--

*Ted Robinson and Tim Ryan were in mid-season form--clearly the 49ers have the a quality broadcast team. Ryan's no-nonsense style is a welcome relief from his giddy predecessor and Robinson's usual understated approach is both appreciated and respected.

*Vern Glenn, I like you and most of your studio sports work, but your over-glee interviews with 49ers players was a tad too cheesy. You kept reminding everyone that "hey, it's only pre-season" every two minutes and the cackling was way over the top.

*Dennis O'Donnell and Jeremy Newberry post-game show was both first-rate and enjoyable. Newberry's critical analysis was a welcome relief from the usual homerish ex-player take and O'Donnell's crisp commentary was also effective.

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KPIX High Profile Anchor De La Cruz Missing From Airwaves; Still 'Settling In'; Misses Important May Sweeps; Attends 'Cultural Event' at Station

 Veronica De La Cruz, the mucho-pubbed new 6 and 10 PM anchor KPIX hired to vamp up its content and probably lessen this anchor's 'face-of-station' status, is still absent from the Channel 5 news desk.

She was to have begun her reading-the-news duties back on May 5th.

More importantly, PIX had hired her well in advance of the May sweeps period which has now ended and presumably during that all-important time, to introduce her to the Bay Area and amp up their new acquisition.

Wrongo.

De La Cruz, who most recently was a MSNBC anchor, is not AWOL nor has been kidnapped by strange aliens in spaceships from another planet. In fact, she attended a recent "cultural arts" event at the station. Then why is it she's been missing from Channel 5's newsroom?

A PIX staffer tells me it's still family stuff: "I really think it has to do with settling in and being ready to take on the job." So, she has the wherewithal to attend a station function but is unable to go to work and be ready for sweeps? Sounds suspicious to me.

"They wanted to revamp the 10 PM 'big time' and she's, (De La Cruz), is anchoring it, but no sight of her.  Still settling in with her mom and nanny."

I find it utterly incomprehensible that a CBS O and O in the 6th market that makes a splashy hire to enhance its presence on the local news scene is OK with De La Cruz's mysterious absence. Furthermore, and all the more irritating, KPIX hasn't said a word. Not to its staffers nor to its viewers. A little nod every now and then is most helpful and doesn't rev up the rumor mill. How simple is that? Apparently KPIX is OK with the present status of people in their own building who don't know what's going on and a key news hire mysteriously "settling in" after sweeps. Or not, in this case.

Whatever.

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KPIX5's Da Lin: Reporter of the Day

Da Lin/CBS photo

 Da Lin: KPIX

 

Feared. Relentless and ruthless. He's a walking embodiment of the mantra: never give in. Never.

 

"I don't mess with the guy and neither will anyone else. He's not the person you want to give the impression you're screwing with.", offered a local industry wag.

 

Other notes: Lin knows the ropes around town. He had a stint at KRON too.

 

We here at 415 Media appreciate the presence of Da Lin. Always have--always will.

 

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