They worried that, like Vesey, they would also become public targets of vitriol and, potentially, violence. This week four News 12 Long Island anchors and reporters have announced their employment with the Altice-owned news station is ending. They want stories that matter to them.. But the micromanaging and constant criticism directed toward these workers said otherwise, they assert. 12NEWS.com is the official website for KPNX-TV, your trusted source for breaking news, weather and sports in Phoenix, AZ . In June, TVNewsCheck reported that toxic working conditions inside News 12 New Jersey, one of seven Tri-State area cable news channels in Altice USAs News 12 network, compelled the bulk of the stations editorial team to resign in close succession. When then-President Donald Trump tweeted support for the protesters harassment of Vesey, even more attention was directed to the reporter, dragging the story out further for News 12. In his story, Vesey first describes the scene at the rally and the protesters motivations for being there. And I say, whatever you do in life, as long as you have a passion for that, youre going to be great at it. What I would say to people like yourself who are looking to be journalists. The company said. Elliot, who has been a CBS daytime anchor for about a year, had first shocked . 673,057 people like this. Colleen was the original morning show anchor. It's one destination for everything you need to know to start your day. The New Tax Bill: Pouring SALT in Our Wounds, or Not So Bad? Video consumption of the network is growing by more than 800% year over year, the company says. Emmy-winning anchor and political correspondent Janine Rose is back doing what she does best this time on WVOX 1460 radio. Network veterans paint a far more idyllic picture of work life at News 12 under the leadership of Patrick Dolan, who co-founded News 12 and served as its president for 30 years. We were the flagship, says one former Long Island newsroom employee, and they definitely wanted to make sure that we knew that we were no longer the flagship, that we were just another cog in the machine that was Altice.. In addition to the notes about ratings increases and a boost in distribution channels, the spokesperson says Altice has invested millions in the News 12 brand, with an updated logo, modern graphics, as well as studio and set upgrades. Part of the companys weather branding, sources say, is another Altice-initiated gimmick: the News 12 forecasting vehicle, Thunderbolt. Please select a region to stay informed on the latest local news via news12.com. Thank you so much. There needs to be journalists out there. Events like these have made personnel looking to leave the organization with any grace or at least intact bridges fearful of a prospective exit from the company. She was also part of the CBS affiliate team that received the coveted National Association of Broadcasters Education Foundation (NABEF) Service to America Television Award, among the highest public-service honors in broadcasting, that honors exceptional public and community service. ABOUT THE SHOW. It promoted two brands in a single spot, and one source says content like that was corny and it delegitimized us. The source thought to themself at the time, Are we journalists or shills?. By Kevin Eck on Feb. 15, 2023 - 12:59 PM. . She announced her termination from the station on July 27, 2021. Sources say Altices sole focus on profits has been to the detriment of both its workforce and its brand. After the takeover we couldnt imagine it get worse. Former employees whove moved on from News 12 to other jobs in the industry also say they were gaslit on their way out by Natz, as well as Gruber. He remained a senior network advisor for some months afterward, but was forced to move out of his office in the Long Island newsroom into a tiny corner space located in an administrative wing of the grounds. By Verne Gay verne . Im hoping to do more radio and/or television. . Vesey did not answer interview requests from TVNewsCheck.). The Syracuse native has called the island home for 35 years where she and her husband Tony raised their three children Matt, Greg, and Maggie. Brenda Teele is an Emmy Award-winning journalist, news-anchor, host, and media coach, who officially joined the . We have to know how to tell people stories that mean something to them. In the bluntest dismissal of a South Florida anchor team in recent memory, WPEC-Ch. All of these changes eroded morale throughout the companys newsrooms, sources say. A News 12 Connecticut anchor was "released" after the news organization learned he acted "inappropriately" on social media, according to a statement from the network. "After reviewing . Police responded just after 9 p.m. on Feb. 25 to . Bill O'Reilly was ousted from his long-running, top-rated primetime show on Fox News in April 2017 after being accused of sexual harassment. Reports of Holmes and Robach's relationship surfaced . But you dont care.. The Kevin Vesey situation was scary, says a former staffer. Reporters were hit especially hard. But after a few months, employees began to see what they call the writing on the wall.. 1 market, but as a result youre getting less experienced folks who arent ready for that type of market, the recruiter says. Download our app or go to news12.com for more. JR: Well, I find it works. Lukas. The recruiter observes that workplace issues like these emanating from the News 12 group exist to some extent across much of the industry, and News 12 isnt entirely an outlier. It was just people tearing [us] apart.. Ana Orsini. Join Elizabeth Hashagen, Erin Colton, Doug Geed, Elisa DiStefano, Rich Hoffman, and Caroline Flynn for the latest headlines, business news, traffic and weather . Sources say reporters were taken off their beats and relegated to latenight traffic accident coverage. They dont exist, and sources say this fact underscores the station groups forced efforts to air branded content and overhype weather events. Though Dolan remained on the Altice payroll for a time, he never returned to a News 12 newsroom. Popular, long-running series such as the tech-focused The Download and the Long Island high school sports show The Sports Rush, among others were canceled because of a lack of sponsorship opportunities, sources say they were told. It was ruining my entire life and my health, one source, who was closely managed by Waldman, says. A spate of new series drummed up by former GM Natz, covering local attractions and businesses, consumer tips, do gooders and other subjects, were nearly devoid of news value, sources say. She was all alone, without help, when she needed it most for her staff.. The days of news coverage of local stories, studio interviews of politicians and celebrities on morning show couches are long dead. Theyre doing a lot of local news. The sponsorship of stories. Management from the guy at the top to the janitor all say hi to each other and its friendly and helpful., The source says recently, at their new job, theyd worked 10 consecutive days, but enjoyed a full weekend off because colleagues of theirs volunteered to take over their shifts. Generally, middle managers at the company like Stellato are concerned about worker safety and well-being, sources say. Ratings for the stations have risen, a company spokesperson told TVNewsCheck, including record highs during the pandemic and even more recently as coverage has normalized. While aggregate ratings of comparable broadcast affiliates and 24-hour news channels fell by double digits, the last three years, the rep adds, News 12 ratings have climbed by 8%. A number of angry viewers lashed out at the network. JR: Ill be honest with you, I think they have a larger responsibility, because there are so many facts and figures coming in every day that they have to sift through, and I also think there is its unfair, but so many deadlines are imposed on people, and theres this belief that you have to be the first one to report something, and I think journalists have gotten into trouble rushing to get a story to air or rushing to get a story on their website or rushing to get on Facebook. As a result, the news product suffers and it just skews everything. He required multiple stitches in his face. We need to tell the stories that people need for information, for education, in some cases, for entertainment as well. When the micromanaging took hold, everything from on-air performance to edits to employee social media posts and beyond were dramatically scrutinized. Other employees detail events that felt like personal attacks on co-workers considering a departure from News 12. Malibu, CA. Veteran anchor Jackie Lukas, sports anchor . So stupid," one viewer said. Sportscaster Jamie Stuart, reporter Christine Insinga . This past year, the number hit 470,000. Some say that there was indeed an uptick in threats against News 12 journalists in the aftermath of the Vesey protest report. Altice also says that News 12 remains home to a number of long-time anchors and reporters who are mainstays of our local communities while also bringing in new talent who are quickly becoming familiar faces to viewers. Around 40% of News 12s full-time employees have been with the network for more than 10 years, the company adds. Altice made good on its promise, hiring a third-party neutral investigator, as described by Bowen in another email obtained by TVNewsCheck. Former Wxii 12 News Anchor Denise Franklin Dies At Age 59 .. Oct 24, 2019 Long Time Board Director & News Director Dies. A news anchor at WJTV in Jackson, Mississippi said she was fired because of her choice to wear her natural hair instead of straightening it. Very bad move KSAT. Isis Romero was one of the most recognizable faces on KSAT 12 San Antonio for over a decade. Then, one weekend in 2018, sources say Dolan and his secretary cleaned out his office of personal belongings, fearing Altice would soon permanently lock him out of the Long Island headquarters. Singleton, hired from a Lexington TV station in 2015, had his disagreements with WCPO-TV management. The 10 p.m. anchor said the ABC affiliate opted not renew her contract, adding that her last day on air was July 12. Accompanying web copy and station tweets spotlighted the threat against Vesey, not the protest. For more than a decade Colleen served as the "kick-off" host for Lustgarten Foundation Walk. February 13, 2017. Employees pulled lengthy shifts and reporting crews braved what multiple sources say were unpredictable, violent and horrifying weather conditions. But I do try to keep a balance and have some national, some, perhaps, state information on, and I do always try to get to some issue thats local, because I do think thats important to people. This is particularly the case when it comes to weather forecasting. Fox 5 Las Vegas morning weekday anchor and reporter Feven Kiflegiorgis was busted nude and . If that were the case, they say, departed staffers would have left the trade altogether. The question, like with everything else, is always in the implementation, the source says. They were focusing on New York City. One particular piece of sponsored content from 2019 that staffers found in poor taste revolved around Jon Steinberg, CEO of Cheddar, a News 12 sister news brand, delivering Dunkin Donuts to a News 12 set. If you watched News 12, as you did, we always, every weekend, did a show about whatever was going on politically. Nielsen ratings data obtained by TVNewsCheck reveals that overall viewership of the News 12+ streaming channel collective, which includes five markets, has grown between 2020 and 2022. And of course we started with the news of the day, which was the terror attack in New York City. News 12 Network News Anchors and Reporters Coverage: NY/NJ/CT/LI/The Bronx Affiliation: Annalisa Klebers News 12 - Connecticut: Shosh Bedrosian News 12 Reporter - Connecticut: Lauren Fabrizi News 12 Reporter - Connecticut: Michele Powers News 12 Meteorologist - New Jersey & Connecticut: Tina Redwine News anchor Natasha Exelby was caught off guard while doing a live news report in Australia. So I just want to make that clear. Ed Henry has had a long career in television news. When the news segment ended she was caught spacing out whi. It does, and there will always be times in the country when theres political unrest. Brand exposure had become paramount. In addition, she currently coaches a young ladies' childhood b-ball group. The same veteran media executive who posits that staffers micromanagement concerns may be misplaced is also skeptical of criticisms that sponsored content is being overused at the group. But departed personnel say they had to eat maskless in that space because staff cuts enacted by Natz forced them to work through meal breaks. We had said [to management] multiple times that we want differentiated branding, says one former News 12 Long Island employee, because there was a day or two where we had legitimate tornadoes in Suffolk County and were using the same branding that we would be if it was raining hard., Weather, in any news station, thats kind of your bread and butter, says another former News 12 staffer. But, I'm guessing a news anchor has to do what they do for a living. KSAT audiences took to Twitter to express their thoughts on Romero's departure from the network. The Emmy-award winning journalist was there for some of Long Island's most historic and memorable events including the crash of Avianca Flight 52 in Cove Neck, the LIRR shooting massacre, the TWA Flight 800 tragedy, the September 11th terror attacks and Superstorm Sandy. Sources say the low marks were supported by falsehoods and exaggerated tales of what were, at worst, minor infractions. And he was very insightful about taking on this new role. In response, according to sources, Natz said he would not consider the perspective of a spineless coward who refused to show their face on the Zoom call. However, the email also told personnel to share our News 12 links covering the situation Kevin [Vesey] endured to show facts and what actually happened.. "When I came into the station, our general manager John Seabers told me they were exercising the termination clause in my . TV, News, Fox News, Celebrities, Media. Robert Hadlock, Weekday Evening Anchor/Reporter. TV32. When your ass is on the line because youre in charge of these multi-, multi-million-dollar assets, you sometimes have to get down in the weeds, especially if youre trying to move a ship thats been going one way for years, the source says, noting they are also in touch with a few News 12 employees who are having the times of their lives working for the network. "What even is KSAT without Isis Romero?!?" Sources also believe the companys upper management purposely includes trumped up charges of poor performance in employee reviews to make cases for their firings, keeping Altice in compliance with the Dolan sales agreement. Topics you care about, straight to your inbox. One former Long Island employee says, We were told [by upper-level managers] several times, Look, were the only product on Long Island; people are gonna watch us no matter what.. Ive known Bill OShaughnessy, the owner of this station, since the very beginning of my career, since I started working for Cablevision early on. Last week we reported about News 12 The Bronx anchor Matt Pieper and reporter Amy Yensi's on-the-air snafu while they thought they were on commercial break. "As you can imagine, the past two weeks have been filled with tremendous sadness, and words cannot fully express my emotions," Romero wrote. Resources were pulled and staffers were increasingly worn thin, taking on additional roles producers picked up cameras and started shooting, for example. They surmise that Altice wishes to see such workers leave the company permanently so they can be replaced by inexperienced, inexpensive personnel. And history repeats itself. If you have that love, you have to pursue it. Initially, some in the company retained an open mind toward Natzs ideas, observing that anytime theres management turnover, change is a certainty. She was also inducted into the Kappa Tau Alpha National Honor Society in journalism and mass communication. WM: Let me expand on that question. Having to do a minimum mandated amount of approved social media postings a day. Whether its sponsored or not, its supposed to be generic enough that it can air network-wide, a source says. Reporters and meteorologists have been told to report from the vehicle even when the weather is not particularly notable. It wasnt about us, one former News 12 newsroom employee says. Ed Henry dropped his defamation suit. Yearly raises and employee bonuses dependent upon these review scores were not dispensed to those who, according to sources, unjustifiably scored ones and twos. A year later that half-hour newscast morphed into the nation's first 24-hour local news channel, News 12 Long Island. But radio is a wonderful way to reach people. Ive never seen it like this, says the source, commenting on the industrys labor problems. I kind of act as the catalyst, asking questions and getting feedback. Current KSAT Vice President and General ManagerPhil Lane thanked Romerofor her service to the station in an email. LONG ISLAND, NY Viewers are saying goodbye to familiar faces at News 12 Long Island after a shift in staffing leaves longtime employees without jobs. Even minor chances of rain have fallen under the purview of the channels Storm Watchers, network weather forecasts whose branding on air and across digital channels include what sources say are hyperbolic graphics and animations intended to flag severe weather even when there is none. The 10 p.m. anchor said the . a user exclaimed. However, across News 12 platforms emerged the Storm Watcher logo with a lightning bolt piercing through the middle of the team branding, suggesting a major weather event was on the horizon. These sources also say employee safety has been compromised across News 12, and they liken their work experience at the company to that of a traumatic event. Kathy Hochul had closed many state thruways that News 12 Westchester workers relied on to get home. [Natz] said in several meetings that if we couldnt monetize a story, it wasnt worth doing.. Local News and Information for Phoenix, Arizona and surrounding areas. Several follow-up segments on the Vesey episode were ordered up by management and, later, more stories about Veseys personal experiences turned up on newscasts, too. The source says treatment like that was the polar opposite of what they and their former colleagues endured at News 12 before they left, and what current employees are dealing with today under Altice ownership. . According to a member of staff, management hadn't yet discussed Romero's departure with fellow employees. ", Dances with Wolves actor pleads not guilty in 'sex cult' case, Star singer La Tigresa dies from a heart attack at 89 after storied career, TikTok star, 28, is charged with child abuse after 'attack on boyfriend', Rape survivor slams Gabby Petito Utah cop over handling of her case, 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP. A Las Vegas news anchor was arrested after being found naked and passed out in her car, police said. . Its really true. Like in New Jersey, staffers in other News 12 newsrooms have also been disheartened by an increased amount of sponsored content at their channels, as well as anodyne, non-market-specific stories. When is news 12 finally going to be taken off the air., When a group of on-air talent left News 12 Long Island in January, multiple Facebook users criticized the channel and its parent company for a decline in quality, and after News 12 Long Island recently posted an image on Instagram promoting a story about energy reducing tips, one user commented with a tip of their own: dont believe anything #new12 spews [sic]., Last month, News 12 Long Island produced a story about two dresses that were returned to their owner after she lost them on a local train. Leaving was "my call," says Singleton, the glib sportscaster probably best known for filming . Like the individuals who spoke to TVNewsCheck about the News 12 New Jersey newsroom, these sources have opted to remain anonymous, some on background, partly out of fear that Altice, Natz and/or Gruber will retaliate with lawsuits or other actions that could threaten future career opportunities. In 1995 they decided to take what we were doing on a daily basis, one show, two shows a day, and put it into a 24-hour news format that could really serve the neighborhoods with news thats important to most people. Out of concerns theyd be targeted, workers removed branding decals from News 12 vehicles or covered them up while on assignment, against station wishes. fired the station groups general manager, Kevin Vesey covered a Long Island protest, delivering Dunkin Donuts to a News 12 set, searching for a woman who stole from a supermarket, Spot TV Forecast: After Political Bonanza In 22, Flat Will Suffice For 23, Top 30 Station Groups: Standard General Leaps Into Second Place With Tegna Acquisition, 13th Annual Women In Technology Awards Reception, Revenue Strategies: Advanced Targeting for Local TV. "Mornings with News 12" is the only place to get the local news that matters to your community. She went on to thank her audience for supporting her work with KSAT. But multiple sources for this story say that News 12 newsrooms have become the most toxic environments in which they have ever worked, since the Altice takeover almost indisputably so, says one former staffer. Leadership instead wanted stories rife with shock value that would garner web clicks, and they inadvertently got one on May 14, 2020. The station's parent company, Nexstar Media Inc., confirmed Mester was no longer with the company when reached by PEOPLE on Thursday. Hill had a reputation for defending controversial figures and was fired by Fox. The furore at KTLA-TV began last week when the . I enjoyed anchoring San Antonio's #1 newscast for the past decade, and I especially took pride in representing my culture and community as the city's most tenured Latina news anchor currently on English-language TV.". According to Altice, consumers are responding positively to the new News 12. The Amy Waldman hire was very unsettling for staffers, says one News 12 source. Multiple sources claim so much emotional distress over the workplace toxicity Waldman has fueled that theyve become physically ill as a result. They say the station group has clearly deprioritized local stories in favor of sponsored content and generic, general interest segments produced for all seven News 12 markets in the Tri-State area.

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