*
SOME OF KTVU's most prominent staff--almost all of its on-air anchors --are "
disgusted" over the plight of the station. This comes at a time when the ratings, the juggernaut that has kept KTVU the leader in Bay Area TV news, has
PLUMMETED. KTVU still remains on top of the ratings but its
audience share has taken a deep hit. And management is concerned. It should be.
Julie Haener, the remaining holdover, is fed up with the turmoil. Haener isn't leaving anytime soon but her demeanor, the "calm and cool" Julie, has suddenly vanished. "She's unhappy about the direction of this place," says a longtime Fox2 contact.
Haener's disgust is centered on the
impending departure of veteran sports anchor,
Mark Ibanez, who is
GONE at the end of March, barring a last-minute change of heart from
The Firm's Oakland top brass. ND,
Amber Eikel and GM/SVP,
Mellynda Hartel, has said
NADA to Ibanez regarding a
contract extension. The 43-year veteran, one of the Bay Area's longest-tenured anchors, has been working without a contract for a year now. The bosses haven't even said a word to Ibanez about his future there, pro or con; not a word, instead letting him twist in the wind. Talk about disrespect.
Publicly, Haener hasn't expressed her anger. Privately, Haener is frustrated and angry over Ibanez's treatment. She's not alone.
*A GROWING FEELING regarding KTVU's TOP SUITS:
The feeling from both Eikel and Hartel: that they could put anyone on the anchor desk and the ratings would remain the same. That feeling made its way to Fox corporate. They seemed to accept the same situation only now that KTVU basically tanked in recent weeks, including Feb. Sweeps, that assessment has been tempered. Even so, KTVU's personnel feels insulted by its newsroom bosses.
*We've not even mentioned
Frank Somerville, who is GONE and done. Somerville's firing is met with relief and overall happiness at Channel 2. His post-anchor life is taking a disturbing turn but KTVU staffers dont seem sympathetic and have turned the corner on Frank. That said, his exit has left a hole in the newscasts, including the all-important 10 PM franchise.
*The look and feel of KTVU will dramatically change in the coming months. 10 PM's buzz will be the biggest hit. It literally won't look the same. Bill Martin has seen his stock drop dramatically with curious on-air performances; the veteran weatherman was planning on retiring but had a change of heart and is staying put, for now. But at the very least, both Ibanez and Somerville are GONERS. Ibanez's 43 years-tenure and Somerville's 31-year run is a collective JOLT to KTVU's dominance at 10 plus a serious altering to a heritage station.
Eikel and Hartel seem to be giving a middle finger to a Bay Area TV News audience accustomed to quality news gathering. And that's just plain sad and disgusting. Will they get away with it? Time will tell.
We need the "NO SYMBOL" over Franks face. Love the finger... HAHAHA!
ReplyDelete*Click*
ReplyDeleteI see J.B. is orchestrating the demise of KTVU along with the country.
ReplyDeleteAmber Eikel has made KTVU unwatchable, and I never tune in anymore. KGO is equally atrocious. The Chronicle is a joke. Ditto KCBS. KTVU going downhill fast, after Keeshan built it back up. Seems like women have made a hash of Bay Area news.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry, they will survive, birds eggs will still hatch, waves will still break at shore, and life will go on.
ReplyDeleteAlso RL, not that I'm blaming JHaener, as I believe she should take as much quality time off for family/friends at this time of her life, but she's off a lot which adds/will add to MIbanez and FSomerville present/coming departures.
ReplyDeleteHere's a thought which could upset viewers and staff even more. Let's make GMikaelian work evenings to ~midnight too, totally upsetting her early morning schedule, maybe her family-life, but making her be a good trooper and team-mate. Of course, make someone who used to/likes evenings start at 0400, instead, too.
Good talent has walked in and OUT of the KTVU doors in the past 2 years. It's such a shame. It's just not what it used to be. Producing staff has reverted to what is sadly normal now, young and inexperienced. This city used to be a good news town people worked for years to get to. No longer. Schlock. Especially KTVU.
ReplyDeleteHeather Holmes and Gassssssssia are the ones trying to kick all male reporters out and show the pride of female reporters, a new look at KTVU. They don't like their male reporters and have an ego to kick out their opposite male anchor.
ReplyDeleteIf Ibanez has been working for one year without a contract and no one has talked to him about a contract extension, he is either a fool or he wants out! After 40-plus years, he knows how to play the game. If Fox doesn't show him the money, someone else will. Move on, nothing to see here.
ReplyDeleteIbanez has a talent agent I would presume. The talent agent that makes about 10% commission on that weekly paycheck.
DeleteWhat does his agent say Rich?
Every single one of these folks has an agent.
Letting all of these people (esp weather guys) continue to work from home for no reason just makes the whole thing worse.
ReplyDeleteAnd the finger is hilarious.
I've been drinking so I'm not going to comment but man I've got a few things to say.
ReplyDelete"The feeling from both Eikel and Hartel: that they could put anyone on the anchor desk and the ratings would remain the same."
ReplyDeleteI hate to say it, but you could replace "Eikel" and "Hartel" with management of any of the stations in the Bay Area, and the statement would be just as true.
The problem is not that they're saying it - the problem is that they're right. And they're right because nobody under the age of 50 cares about local TV news, and that age threshold goes up more than 1 year per year. Try to find somebody under the age of 30 who doesn't work in the business who watches the local evening news and you'll be looking long after Bill Martin is gone.
7:25pm, well said. I’ve taught an upper-level Media Literacy class at a local high school for the past six years, and one of the first things I do each semester is survey my students to find out where they get their information from (e.g., social media apps, news aggregators such as Google News, newspapers, radio, cable tv news, local tv news. In a class of ~34 students there’s usually one student who says that local tv news is one of their sources of information. This past semester there wasn’t a single student who said that local tv news is one of their sources of information, yet ~90% listed social media apps.
DeleteKeep Ibanez and kick Haener to the curb. The era of rich white women reading the news is over. Replace her with someone who looks like they give a damn about the stories they cover. Her social media looks like a reboot of lifestyles of the rich and famous.
ReplyDeleteOh dear me working without a contract… like most of the working world
ReplyDelete