The Dysfunction that is KPIX; Watts' Leaving Further Muddies 855 Battery; Sweeps Makes It Worse; KCBS Yappers Mary Lee and Hodousek Torture Chamber; Schulman/Chronicle Steal From Me; KTVU's Gomez Non-Street Savvy; Katsuyama Screams at SF Fire Scene; Gonzales and King Factoid; Thursday 415 Media

"THE ONLY FUNCTION HERE IS DYSFUNCTION." That from one of the growing dissatisfied staffers at KPIX --where incoherence and incompetence rules the day.

To emphasize the current disarray, PIX just lost Julie Watts to their CBS counterpart in Sacramento. There are more moves from Pixies on the way, just in time for February Sweeps. How timely.

Watts wasn't one of KPIX's star players but she was big enough to warrant a lot of chatter last (Wednesday) night amongst some of the local CBS' most influential people, both on and off the air. One management figure tried to spin the Watts' move as simply a colleague "not leaving; instead just 'staying in the CBS family in Sacramento'". Yeah right, what a completely, utter sense of bullshit. And that's exactly how it was received by the rank and file.

As I've stated countless times, KPIX has NO IDENTITY. Very little leadership too. Constant conflict is not a help, particularly in the morning. Growing dissatisfaction and lack of morale is PIX's only consistent virtue.  It's a good thing the station is owned by deep pockets CBS but that's hardly a booster inside the building at 855 Battery.

Watts herself was mostly disliked by a majority of the staff --this incident especially but she was high profile enough to garner industry respect and seven Emmys too. Leaving the Bay Area for Sacramento is not that uncommon these days with the locals eyeing its relative affordability especially real estate. That said, Watts decision to leave SF and go up north primarily because she hated PIX' direction and wanted more investigative reporting makes Channel 5 look bad. Looks can be deceiving only in this case it is absolutely true and for PIX, a bad omen. Trust me.

Mary Lee

*This would be real torture: Put KCBS reporter, Carrie Hodousek and morning weather anchor, Mary Lee, in the same room together. The endless shrieking would be unbearable. Lee sounds exactly like Hodousek or is it the other way around? Either way, the shrieking violets cause eternal ear damage.

*Please, I could care less that some nobody on the night shift on KNBR was given a pink slip. I don't listen to that garbage unless there's some CBS Sports Radio content on the air but that too can be painful.

*Memo to Hank Schulman of the Chronicle: It was 415 Media that reported first, this news.

Schulman stealing from me, imagine that. Damn bloggers!

Alyana Gomez

*It was a pleasant sight viewing Alyana Gomez reporting live from the scene of that big fire in SF on Wednesday --too bad Gomez mispronounced several city street names and kept referring to "Geary Street" --locals know it as "Geary Boulevard." Trivial? No, because it's called knowing your geography and city. How damn irritating but that's just me. I would hope and prefer as gorgeous and infinitely watchable Gomez is, it would help if her street savvy were genuine.

*Then there's  Jana Katsuyama on the scene who appeared to think literally screaming and yelling would heighten the story when it was stated from the beginning that no one was hurt or injured or killed, thank god, only buildings were destroyed.

Jana Katsuyama

Katsuyama's loud outbursts did nothing to inform the viewers on KTVU but only reinforces how bad a reporter she is and why KTVU management thinks she's talented is beyond me. Maybe mediocrity rules the day and this is the best they got which apparently it is and gosh does that nauseate me.

*Between the "flipping houses" moron and "Petersen Dean" jerkoff, my has AM Radio become such a mess.

*If Roberta Gonzales truly wanted to come back to KPIX, she could. Her problem, sorta like Dana King, is that both left wanting to pursue their own independence, in King's case, a desire to become an artist; in Roberta's case to become her own broadcast boss. Problem is, both are not earning anywhere near what they got at PIX; not that the money was great but it was far more then they're making now. Yeah, money isn't everything but it's damn near close.

Dana King

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.

A High-Pressure 'Wattage' at KPIX; Staffers Unease with High-Profile Consumer Reporter; 'She Treats Us Like Shit!'

 Julie Watts is the Consumer Reporter at KPIX and a good one at that although there seems to be a ton of friction between Watts and staffers at PIX, just enough to warrant some significant heat from those who insist Watts is a "control freak", and that's just the beginning.

Says one veteran station source: "There's been a lot of tension between her and others, especially camera people--she's real tough--it's an ongoing issue."

My spies tell me the issues with Watts and Channel 5 is that she simply doesn't get along with what she considers underlings. "She treats us like shit, offered a source.


"It's reached a point where she's impossible to deal with and they, (presumably management), won't touch her. It's bad."


Attempts to reach Watts were unsuccessful.


Wonder if this issue will be TRENDING at 855 Battery Wednesday night.


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