'Happy Talk' Not So Happy at KTVU; Fox Plays Hard Ball With Unions; Reporters on Edge; 'Nobody is Safe'; Number One No Longer Priority; 415 Media Exclusive

 Despite all the happy talk --on and off the air--KTVU and its staff are embroiled in a standoff between new owner, FOX, and a working rank and file that are threatened by management's increasingly hostile tactics, according to my KTVU sources.

"All reporters are at risk now", said one source close to the situation in Jack London Square.

And that situation has never been more tense--why?

"The SAG-AFTRA contract has expired. Fox took over and immediately granted a year contract, why? They didn't want to mess with the talent, the pulse and amp; faces of KTVU--now, all bets are off, "said the source.

It's apparent FOX wants to destroy the unions at Channel 2.

"They cut the photographers by $10,000 and cut overtime. How do you live in the Bay Area with that type of cut? One photographer is about to lose his home and others are looking for a second job."

The current siege taking place with photographers is ongoing and now has shifted over to talent. Most notable, the senior reporters are all on high anxiety because FOX wants to cut salary and benefits --and nobody is safe, nobody. This siege mentality, mind you, is coming from the most watched, most successful TV News station in the Bay Area.

From another source:

"David Stevenson, John Fowler, Ken Pritchett, Eric Rasmussen, and Melanie Woodrow have left KTVU. Only Melanie was a technical cut by Fox. All others could not come to their cookie cutter terms and conditions. Melanie was ousted because Fox had an option in her contract to release her after a year. Why'd they cut her? Money. She was being paid too much money that was promised to her by {Lee} Rosenthal." {Former News Director}

In the case of Rasmussen and Pritchett, FOX simply low-balled contract offers. Both reporters told management to essentially go stuff it and left. As I've reported before, the reporters are not the only air talent walking on egg shells.

So, the bottom line at KTVU is the relative unease inside the building. Don't be fooled by the sappy chit-chat and the un-genuine, {mostly} back and forth between anchor and reporter--it's all business at Jack London Square and even past goals are now on the back burner.

Fox does not care about being number one in the ratings. They want to make a profit. Cheap, cheap, cheap is what they want. They don't care about the news; it's chit-chat-central with an emphasis on entertainment and sports. News be damned. And who cares about morale.

A source: "If they can get a photo from the outside circle off of Facebook or Twitter then they don't have to pay cameramen to do it--it's that simple."

Next on the agenda with SAG-AFTRA, Fox wants MMJs, {multi-media journalists who report, film their stories} This practice is becoming more common place around town (and nationally too)--will veterans like Vacar and Roth do it? Will the unions cave? Stay tuned.

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Amid KGO Radio Down-In-The-Dumps Tude, Cumulus Plans 'Secret Meeting'; Dickey Brothers SF Summit

Sometime in the next few weeks; probably the middle of July in a downtown hotel near the Embarcadero, two senior executives from Cumulus will meet and go over, in detail, a model they see as a "last-ditch" business plan to keep KGO Radio afloat and relevant. Or at least, what in their mind, is relevant. If the two execs have it their way, theoretically, the idea is to clear the air, maintain some degree of civility at the besieged AM 810 outpost, and finally, allow current staff people to breath a little and not have to worry about what lies ahead in the immediate future and down the road. Perhaps Cumulus, YOU should look in the mirror.


The two execs, believed to be both John and Lew Dickey, who effectively run the company, have made it clear that they're both unhappy with KGO's performance and that the constant uncertainty that the station has been operating under, will have to cease immediately.


John Dickey himself was in the Bay Area recently meeting with KGO management --staff too, saying in no vague terms that "if you can't make this go in the next few months, we're done!" Maybe he was referring to Cumulus stock, whatever the case, and however dubious and ridiculous it may have come across, it was direct and left no vagaries.


The upcoming meeting later in July, (which I was tipped to) will involve both Dickey brothers taking inventory on KGO and its weak performance. The latest ratings have KGO in a most precipitous ratings free fall; a mother of all dire-straits that shows no signs of improvement; a situation that has the station's staff on emotional egg shells --and all of this at a time when KGO is in the middle of union negotiations with Cumulus.


"We haven't had a decent raise in years, " said a longtime news reporter. "And they (management) offered up a package that was frankly, embarrassing and unbecoming." From Cumulus? Gees, and here I thought they were just like Levi Strauss!


The next month or two could be, as Arte Johnson says, veeeery interesting.


*415 Media Exclusive


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KNBR And SAG-AFTRA Union Issues; 'We're Frustrated'

KNBR staff recently voted to organize a union at the all-sports station. Negotiations haven't been all that fluid but they continue nonetheless, albeit in no such of a frenetic pace. That's not surprising.

One of the many people behind the scenes that has been outspoken about the need of an AFTRA-SAG association has been Ted Ramey. Ramey hosts his own show on KNBR's little sister, 1050 AM.


Ramey used to do a lot of the fill-in updates on the "Gary and Larry Show"--since the union move was publicized, Ramey has been conspicuously absent from that show. More pointedly, Ramey has all but disappeared from KNBR's notable Monday-Friday programming. Coincidence? Perhaps, you be the judge.


A KNBR staffer, who asked for anonymity, said that the "union situation" has been met with a great deal of anxiety inside the building. Even those staffers who voted for representation are "concerned" and quite sullen about the ongoing negotiations for a contract. Those negotiations have progressed but not to a point, not nearly at all, to where a contract is anywhere near serious let alone completion.


"It's frustrating," said the staffer.


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Two Of Cumulus' Biggest SF Players, Gary Radnich and Ronn Owens Anti-Union; KNBR Recent Vote To Join SAG-AFTRA Dynamic; Thursday First Hit

Gary Radnich and Ronn Owens--both morning air talent for Cumulus stations, KNBR and KGO are notorious anti-union guys. Interesting coincidence given KNBR's recent vote to join the SAG-AFTRA Union.

We're not necessarily trumping up the idea of being pro or anti-union. That's for the membership to decide but given San Francisco's strong identity as a labor town it merits conversation.

It's just interesting that both Owens and Radnich, (and most other prominent air talent), have pooh-poohed the union --until they got to their status where benefits, health coverage and the like was a given and which they take for granted. The underlings at KNBR, fed up with Cumulus' work demand, its demeaning and destructive abuse toward its employees had enough, apparently. The hard part comes now but their heart is in the right place.

Owens has decried the union many times on the air; he's said repeatedly, paraphrasing, "Hey, I have to be in a union to work." Yeah, Ronn, it's a tough life.

Radnich hasn't been as vocal but once the KNBR-union story got out he made an off-hand remark like be careful what you wish for. Yeah, until they tell you they're cutting your pension and asking you to make more contributions to your health care.

Poor babies.

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KNBR And The Union; Respect For The Little People; Saturday Column

I don't want to delve into the inside dynamics as to why KNBR personnel chose to join the union. I'll leave that to the members themselves, but I have a few theories.


Most of the KNBR on-air staff make decent money, not by everyday standards but good enough. There were inside-the-house grumblings that made the rounds that the few people who voted no on joining the union were largely on-air talent. They're right.


Most of the pro-union block are the board ops, producers, and editors; the people who do a lot of the grunt work. You hear those people on the air who double as both producers and contributors --they do a lot of the behind-scenes material that is a bulk of KNBR's on-air presence when there's no Giants, 49ers and Warriors games. Much as KNBR's sports clients are the most valuable assets of the station, it's the hard work of the lesser-known broadcasters, (like a Ted Ramey, for instance), that keep the station running, (producer, Brian Smith too), and the background players that make sure the spots play, the guests coordinate --all things that need to get done. Things like this are taken for granted but in essence, without them, the station wouldn't be able to run. It's that simple.


For all my criticisms about KNBR, I congratulate the hard-working, (for the most part), and dedicated staff who don't get a lot of recognition for working their butts off for very little compensation and acknowledgement from staff; they may find that organizing a union brings with it future angst but much-needed benefits and improvements-- it's a step in the right direction.


Most of all, it shows KNBR's less visible but just as important workers have a backbone and won't continue to act like a bunch of lemmings getting minimal pay while their cross-building counterparts are making much more money and receiving better and more benefits.


Yeah, down the road negotiating an actual contract will be difficult and tough, especially with a company that is as doggedly anti-union as Cumulus is, but it's a good start. More importantly, it's KNBR staffers showing some self-respect. A cheers and huzzah for the real "leader."


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Exclusive: Rampant Fear Inside KTVU As Fox TV Officially Takes Over Station; Top Anchors Expect Pay Cuts; Non-AFTRA Staff In Anxiety Mode; 'No One In the Building Is Safe'; Personnel Meetings For Everyone At Oakland Studios Wednesday

RAMPANT FEAR INSIDE KTVU JACK LONDON SQUARE BUILDING...

*Fox Network Execs conduct staff-wide meetings at 10 AM and 3 PM --benefits altered; health care coverage changed; prediction from senior staffers that pay cuts are "inevitable."

*Prominent staffer: "No One is safe."

*Top-tiered anchors no different than other personnel --"even Somerville is concerned."

*Senior air talent resigned to major pay cuts. Source: "They know they can hire anybody and pay them a flat salary and not have to worry."

*Reporters salary down the road: Capped at $120G--not bad but in the nation's #-6 market, hardly enough to afford to live here.

*Non-AFTRA staff said to be "extremely worried."
*22 News vans--delayed maintenance means dumping news-gathering vehicles.

*Rich Lieberman 415 Media Exclusive

*Developing...

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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.

Fox Begins To Play Hardball With KTVU And IBEW Union; Things Could Get Ugly At 2 Jack London Square

 Fox plays hardball with KTVU IBEW/Local 45...this is the union representing the technical workers who work behind the scenes at Channel 2, (where it takes over ownership in the fall)--as you could imagine, there's considerable angst and a lot of nervous people.


A longtime tech staffer just sent me this memo:


Our union rep at Local IBEW 45, tells us that Fox Network has let the union know that while they recognize the union, they do not recognize the contract that IBEW has negotiated on behalf of the current staff. Not sure what this brings down the road, but it is not going to be a rosy transition if this is the first shot fired across the deck.


This is going to get ugly, folks.


*Developing...


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Chronicle Fires Longtime Sportswriter, John Crumpacker; Financial Issues at Fifth and Mission

 The Chronicle is having many issues we're told, once again, with some longtime staffers, mainly reporters, feeling the effects of continued financial problems facing the Hearst-owned SF daily.


To say there's a lot of angst in the newsroom would be an understatement.


One significant transaction has a whole lot of rank and file both fuming and worrying en masse.


John Crumpacker, a sports reporter who covered Cal football and basketball was fired last week, that's fired, like with cause, only a source close to Crumpacker, who'd been at the paper for 37 years, told me the real reason he was 86ed with cause was because by doing so the Chronicle wouldn't have to pay him a normal severance package, you know, like money?


The Crumpacker imbroglio has been met with reverberations around the entire newsroom; the feeling being, if they do that to him what might they do with me?


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Breaking: Cumulus Layoffs at KGO Radio/KSFO; Fowkes and Rockwell Out; APD and Owens Producer Jared Hart Quits; Angst at 55 Hawthorne

 CUMULUS LOWERS THE BOOM ON KGO


Layoffs galore at the 55 Hawthorne Cluster housing KGO Radio which has seen a number of layoffs in the last few days and more coming as Cumulus cuts ties at its "all-news" outlet.

GONE:

*News and Traffic anchor/reporter, Dave Fowkes, (who also subbed at sister-station KSFO.

*Traffic anchor, Steve Rockwell.

*RONN OWENS/APD--KGO/KSFO PRODUCER QUITS:

Jared Hart, KGO's "Doogie Howser" producer for Ronn Owens and the Assistant PD at KGO and KSFO has left the station and has taken a new job. Good thing since it was widely rumored Hart was on his way out the door anyway.

Sources at the station expect a new round of layoffs--not if but when. Union reps were to meet later today and in the coming week.

*Developing...

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Your Top 10 BART/Strike Observations Day One From the Car Pool Lane On The Maze

 1. Ah, what do you know, people are inconvenienced. Stunning. (zzzz).

2. The buses are crowded at "busy" Walnut Creek, (destination of choice by demo-driven news managers--again, just shocking!--at least there were no shots of the fountain).

3. The Bay Bridge is backed up "well past the maze!"--Amazing.

4. The usual assortment of happier-than-hell reporters who sound and look as if they just finished off about 10 cans of Red Bull.

5. The proverbial MOS interview of Connie Pittsburg and Rory Ziggmeister at carpool lane: "How do you like this so far?" "Uh, well, you know, it sucks but, uh..." (What the hell are they supposed to say, dummies?)

6. Way, way, way happy anchors: KCBS' Stan Bunger did a 5: 12 AM phono in his car on the Bay Bridge en route to the city with enough zesto and pesto to fill Candlestick Park. Stan was one happy dude.

7. Yeah, you saw it right: On KGO-TV's otherwise decent 6 PM newscast on Thursday, Larry Beil continuously broadcast only pro-BART Mtg, tweets. Not one union tweet. I have no dog in this fight, (although I tend to lean pro-union), but not reading just one union tweet was conspicuous --Wait, ABC7 is owned by Disney--one of the biggest anti-union companies in USA. Coincidence? Perhaps. You be the judge.

8. Ferry boats: You mean we have a ferry? Yeah, they navigate on water and you can get from Oakland to the city in 20 minutes. I hear they have excellent coffee and pastries too.

9. Kim Wonderly was also just a tad too happy and Tim Ryan spent about 90 hours on how to casually carpool. (Que the editor's desk.)

10. Chris Filippi of KCBS finally left his home after 97 hours hanging out at the BART negotiations building at Caltrans in Oakland.

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BART Coverage Brings Out Best And Worst; KCBS' Filippi Stands Out; KTVU 'Breaking News' Fetish

 In a mostly feast-or-famine environment, reporter Chris Filippi of KCBS has been steady and solid on the possible BART strike story.

Filippi's been on the scene since day one of the back-and-forth negotiations which have taken on a life of their own. But give him credit: unlike a lot of other breathless members of the local glee club, Filippi's methodical approach of providing information without sounding as if he was reporting the second coming was welcome and appreciated.

Granted, this is a difficult story to report because of the gag order both sides have stuck to; there's really been no official information or feel of how the negotiations were going until late Monday when the talks went past yet another BART union deadline--in fact, just plain common sense indicated that there was movement because both sides had much to lose in the event of a strike.

*As a reader pointed out, the "Breaking News"-fetish that permeates KTVU was evident with a "story" that was not a story at all Monday night...2, complete with sounder and graphic galore splashed a "Breaking... across its screen only for the viewer to see in fact that "Breaking" was no-breaking after all but a bank of microphones in front of an empty lectern. There was no breaking news.

*KCBS did a very good job as I pointed out. But their relentless plugging to listeners to send a text to the station to get back a text if the labor situation changed was over the top. I get it that it's important and a community service for commuters, especially, to have access to the latest info but KCBS went above and beyond in promoting its text deal after each and EVERY report.

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SF/Oakland Bay Area TV/Radio Traffic Reporters Having Quiet Orgasm As BART/AC Transit Strike Beckons

 As BART and its unions meet tirelessly in Oakland to avert a strike deadline early Tuesday, this bit of news might have given the rank and file more leverage: AC Transit workers have just issued their own strike threat.

Bay Area commuters have an impending carmageddon.

Traffic reporters won't dare admit this in public but they're having an orgasm right now.

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Cumulus Seeks Major Cost-Cutting at KGO Radio; Up to 30-40% Salary Slashes; Strike Threatened

  STRIKE THREATENED !


Cumulus has been in cost-cutting mode centering on some of its small-market stations with eye-popping staff reductions and salary slashes.

That behavior is nothing new--only now it's hit SF at KGO, still the only union shop left in its Hawthorne cluster. The local AFTRA shop has begun a war of sorts with the Cloud Company.

The reasons are that Cumulus has been demanding KGO news staffers take anywhere from a 30-40% pay cut. Needless to say staffers are outraged and nervous too. Beyond that, one major-name talk host at KSFO is about to see their salary slashed an astounding 50%! The union is more concerned with the news division but their leverage seems to be limited. What can they do? We'll have to wait and see.

Right now everyone is still living and working in the abyss. Just another serene period at 55 Hawthorne Cluster.

*Developing...

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Rancor at the SF Chronicle; Staffers fume over more Wage/Health Care Cuts; Take to Facebook to air Outrage

There is upheaval at the SF Chronicle.

A day after the newspaper announced it has begun a paywall, members of the rank and file took to Facebook to express deep displeasure and frustration over Hearst Corp., (the owner of the paper), and its treatment of the work force over more proposed wage cuts and increased health-care premiums.

Here's a statement from staffers:


"Hearst is insisting that we shoulder huge increases for an inferior health plan. Even offset by a meager proposed raise, this accounts to a pay cut of hundreds or thousands of dollars a years for most of us.

We love the Chronicle, and we love journalism, but we can't keep donating our own livelihoods to increase the profits of our corporate owners."

A columnist, who requested anonymity, told me that morale at the daily is poor and that a good deal of reporters and columnists are further outraged that management's proposed takebacks coincide with the announcement of the paywall.

"It's just very demoralizing and toxic around here,"said the columnist. Reporters posted a petition on the Facebook page asking the public for support.

A call into Hearst Corp. for comment was not immediately answered.

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