More layoffs going down at Sinclair Stations including Flint

[SBaxley]

By the way, just to update things, remember when I asked the question about Sinclair's Toledo NBC station WNWO ending their South Bend, Indiana based Newscast???
It ends on may 12th, thus shutting what's left of WNWOs news department.. Again!
Reason given...yep , Sinclair's Diamond Sports Group bankruptcy
Who's next??? WEYI??

[I75frequenter]

I guarantee WEYI is next. Good write up in the Toledo Blade.

[sinklair]

Channel 24, WNWO-TV to end newscasts in May

STEVE KORNACKI
The Blade
skornacki@theblade.com
APR 27, 2023 6:38 PM

Local newscasts will be eliminated from programming in May at Toledo’s Channel 24, WNWO-TV, its employees were told on Thursday.

“Came out of the blue!” a station employee posted on Facebook. “No clue this was going to happen. Corporate came in this morning and announced that they will be cancelling all newscasts due to money issues.”

WNWO is a distant third in the local newscast ratings to Channel 13, WTVG-TV and Channel 11, WTOL-TV.

The station posted this explanation on its website Thursday afternoon: “NBC 24 is changing the way we produce news in Toledo to ensure our long-term success.

“Beginning May 15, The National Desk, which provides real-time national and regional news from Sinclair's television stations across the U.S. will air during our regularly scheduled news time periods.

“TND, which offers an alternative choice for news and provides an opportunity for local news cut-ins, has grown exponentially over the last year, reaching nearly three million viewers per week across all dayparts.”

Jim Hanning, general manager and vice president of Toledo’s NBC affiliate station since 2017, did not return phone messages left by The Blade requesting comment.

WNWO has studios on South Byrne Road in Toledo, and a small staff in town. However, its actual newscasts have originated since 2017 from its sister TV station in South Bend, Ind., which is a CBS/FOX affiliate.

When that change occurred in 2017, the first new WNWO broadcast debuted on Toledo televisions at 6 p.m. on a Monday with Ryan Cummings and Dayne Marae, co-anchors who didn’t work or live in the market.

The newscast featured a handful of truly local and sometimes live reports by what then remained of WNWO’s on-air reporters, along with several weather segments.

Ken Garland, a now-retired journalism instructor at Bowling Green State University and a former broadcast reporter and anchor for two decades, said in 2017 when the change occurred that while there are no FCC mandates or even network requirements forcing a station such as WNWO to continue producing newscasts, the news product is typically a source of revenue, even for a station struggling in the ratings, Mr. Garland said.

“[Station owners] can do whatever they want,” he said, “so it’s got to be for the money.”

The current WNWO employee also posted on Thursday that: “Sad to see the little station that could go out like this. We tried our damnedest to stay up there with the big boys, and we did give them hell but as they say...it is what it is.”

WNWO was founded in 1966 as WDHO, and took on its current station identification call letters in 1986. It became an NBC affiliate in 1995.

Sinclair Broadcasting Group in Maryland, which owns WNWO, also did not immediately return a phone call requesting comment. It also owns TV stations in Columbus and Cincinnati, and according to WNWO’s website, Sinclair owns and operates 163 TV stations in 77 markets.

It noted that Sinclair reaches 38.7 percent of U.S. households with those broadcasts, but WNWO’s local news viewers will soon be gone from that fold.

[sinklair]

Expect similar moves at 25-66.

If ratings continue to decline following Sinclair’s decision to cut newscasts and lay off staff in Flint (and ratings will continue to decline), Sinclair will take the next step to stop all local broadcasts in Flint like its doing in Toledo.

If Sinclair doesn’t provide local news or weather broadcasts (including severe weather alerts), it shouldn’t be allowed to continue to hold licenses for local broadcasts. That’s probably the only move that might get its attention.

[rugratsonline]

If Sinclair doesn’t provide local news or weather broadcasts (including severe weather alerts), it shouldn’t be allowed to continue to hold licenses for local broadcasts. That’s probably the only move that might get its attention.

In Flint and Toledo, I foresee NBC either becoming a subchannel of the local ABC or CBS affiliate, or Sinclair selling off the stations. The total lack of local news would likely give local viewers even less reason to watch WEYI or WNWO, especially for the Nightly News. Everyone will be watching 5 or 12 in Mid-Michigan and 11 or 13 in Toledo, then staying tuned for the CBS Evening News or ABC World News Tonight, then stick around for prime time on CBS or ABC, if they wanted. The National Desk is just that -- another half hour of national news; no one will be watching it.

[sinklair]

It’s not just the loss of another local news outlet for viewers, but the closure of newsrooms like WNWO also impact local journalists who are now without a job.

Here’s a post from a 30 year veteran photographer that Sinclair tossed to the curb:

https://www.ftvlive.com/sqsp-test/2023/ ... -newscasts

Sinclair truly sucks.

[CurlyHoward]

If Sinclair doesn’t provide local news or weather broadcasts (including severe weather alerts), it shouldn’t be allowed to continue to hold licenses for local broadcasts. That’s probably the only move that might get its attention.

In Flint and Toledo, I foresee NBC either becoming a subchannel of the local ABC or CBS affiliate, or Sinclair selling off the stations. The total lack of local news would likely give local viewers even less reason to watch WEYI or WNWO, especially for the Nightly News. Everyone will be watching 5 or 12 in Mid-Michigan and 11 or 13 in Toledo, then staying tuned for the CBS Evening News or ABC World News Tonight, then stick around for prime time on CBS or ABC, if they wanted. The National Desk is just that -- another half hour of national news; no one will be watching it.

I don't know about Flint but here in Toledo nobody has watched WNWO's news in decades anyway, going back to well before Sinclair owned the station.

[sinklair]

It’s great to see former Sinclair employees show support for the laid off WNWO employees and speak out against Sinclair’s corrupt business practices. I saw a former 25-66 producer and meteorologist slam Sinclair on WNWO’s Facebook page.

It won’t make a damned bit of difference… but at least they are free to say their peace. I’d encourage more of my former colleagues to do the same before the lights are turned off permanently on Pierson Road.

[SBaxley]

And the next victim is....KTVL Sinclair's CBS station in Medford,Oregon and they used the same corporate statement as NWO [ just substitute Medford for Toledo]
And I'm going the chorus and saying that sadly WEYI/WSMH will be next on the hit list with either their newscast farmed out to K-ZOO or totally replaced by TND. the same fate will be hitting WGTU/WGTQ with them doing TND .
But,a question arises, is iit just me, or is Sinclair hitting the small stations [ like WNWO, WGTU/WGTQ ] While keeping the more STRONGER performing stations intact?!

And in somewhat related news, Sportico reports that the Phoenix suns have announced plans to abandon the RSN model and return to free local TV.. Are the Pistons going to follow as will the rest of the NBA,NHL,MLB???

[organman95]

And I'm going the chorus and saying that sadly WEYI/WSMH will be next on the hit list with either their newscast farmed out to K-ZOO or totally replaced by TND. the same fate will be hitting WGTU/WGTQ with them doing TND .
But,a question arises, is iit just me, or is Sinclair hitting the small stations [ like WNWO, WGTU/WGTQ ] While keeping the more STRONGER performing stations intact?!

Are you referring to simply 29&8? I could definitely see TND being aired on that station. I'm not 100% certain WPBN/WTOM (7&4) would be entirely replaced (after a few discussions I've had). That said, there is less staff than before Sinclair bought the station. So who knows.

[ftballfan]

KVAL is in Eugene. KEZI must be dominant there (Eugene was a two-station market into the 1980s)

[sinklair]

All pro sports teams need to abandon the failed RSN model. Have the teams keep the rights and be responsible for the production of the games. That will free them up to negotiate with local broadcast partners to carry the games (likely on secondary channels)

[sinklair]

Not sure how this would work… but hypothetically could WDIV petition to be carried in Flint and Toledo… or could NBC mandate News carriage? Hell, having WDIV in Flint and Toledo would probably get some decent ratings.

[rugratsonline]

...here in Toledo nobody has watched WNWO's news in decades anyway, going back to well before Sinclair owned the station.

It's as if the station has been cursed since its 1966 sign-on as WDHO, as part of Overmyer's plan to create a fourth network. When the United Network came (and went) in 1967, WDHO was the only Overmyer station built and signed on.

[rugratsonline]

KVAL is in Eugene. KEZI must be dominant there (Eugene was a two-station market into the 1980s)

Until 1982 with the sign on of NBC affiliate KMTR, KVAL and KEZI were it for local TV -- KVAL was NBC, KEZI was (and still is) ABC, with the two sharing CBS. After KMTR's arrival, that station took NBC, while KVAL became CBS full-time. Both KVAL and KMTR are owned by Sinclair, with KMTR under an SSA.

Cox Media-owned KLSR, Eugene's Fox affiliate, shows KVAL's newscasts

KEZI is owned by Allen Media, the same folks who own WJRT, and the only one in that market out of Sinclair's reach.

By the way, the CBS affiliate in Medford is KTVL --it's THAT station that will be losing its news and not KVAL. Sinclair has no duopolies in that market -- each affiliate is owned and controlled by a different party. KTVL will be replacing its news with syndicated programming -- it's unknown if "The National Desk" is one of them.