update2: more info… another tipster telling us they heard also laid off were CBS4 Broward bureau manager, 2 photogs.
update: getting info… All live truck ops have been fired, two sports producers, weather producer, Liv Davalos’s contract expired and was not renewed. Weekend morning show axed.
Last night we got a tip about an impending layoff at WFOR. This morning we have a ton of tips from people frantically telling us that after the morning at WFOR meeting layoffs will be announced. I haven’t been able to confirm i, but FTVLive.com has it in their update today.
Curiously WFOR’s boss Adrienne Roark has been tweeting the last couple of weeks about being in meetings and that “…the biz is changing”.
Maybe if Adrienne would stop tweeting she could run a better newsroom and not have to lay off 20 people!
Adrienne’s tweeting is a futile effort to help. She is not the problem, it’s the way corporate decided to carry these layoffs out. When the list of 20 comes out later today all will see that quality is no longer a factor at WFOR. The idiots remain and some of the best behind the scenes workers are now gone.
What a joke! I hope management doesn’t believe in Karma. I would hate to see what comes around for them.
Can’t blame local management, cbs is a sinking ship at corporate and its trickling down. Just take a look at all their latest losses. The business itself is dying, better learn as many skills as possible, its the only way to survive.
I’m really sad for all the good people laid off today. The TV business is sinking quick, so get out! Manny G. doesn’t deserve being one of the victims. This guy is a loyal guy who works for the station anytime they needed him. I understand there needs to be cuts but at least cut the lazy ones!
It’s really sad when your loyal to a company for so many years and they give you the boot and not even care. Your just a number to these folks. Learn from this and hopefully this will bring you a better experience.
HANG IN THERE!!!!!
I worked with Manny G. for a long time, and the guy is definitely a good worker. But I guess that doesn’t matter anymore. Not that this is anything new — I still remember the WCIX layoffs of 1981, followed by another round soon after we moved to the new building in Doral. It wasn’t that long ago that Ileana Varela (one of my favorite people) and the others were let go. A tough business just keeps getting tougher.
Were any of the on air personalities laid off besides Liv Davalos? What happens now with Maribel Rodriguez since they have cancelled her weekend AM newscast? Any other scoop.
I feel bad for the behind the scenes that was let go, guess the reporters get to start learning to shoot their own stuff (and editing, and do it all before slot while commuting). They really think that they can cut the people who are not seen, and the viewers will not notice?!?! The news cast is going down fast, the industry is changing, but they need to be proactive about it, fix the leak instead of just bailing out a ship that is taking on water.
3 videographers were laid off today
what do you expect, with the faces of the station sharon the hoe and anthony the moron
To Lola and all those who think like her/him who believe “local” management has nothing to do with it, let me say this: the order for cuts comes down from corporate, but corporate doesn’t know Manny Garcia (broward photog) or Billy Sendelback (feedroom) from Moses. Local management decides “who” gets cut. Manny Garcia had been with the station some 17-18 years, he was a work horse, never said no to an assignment, was a riot to work with, and when he worked alone, and he handed you a tape, it had everything a reporter needed to put a story together. I can think of quite a few employees, including photogs, who DID NOT get cut, who cannot stand up to Manny’s standards. Some of them haven’t even been there very long, some of the are plain lazy, and don’t care… but THEY still have a job… and Manny doesn’t. Manny’s big downfall must have been that he didn’t hide in his car to try to avoid assignments, didn’t shoot blue video, and wasn’t a newsroom stoolie.
The whole newsroom should be up in arms to get Manny his job back, same for Billy. Liv was another long-timer who didn’t deserve to get the boot while others who have been there for less time and have yet to prove themselves get to stay.
The station as a whole is in trouble. The people they let go are the ones that were bringing in the money. Managers as a whole have no talent. They do not put together the stories or even know what is going on in their own shows. Instead of firing good quality people they should ask themselves why their product is struggeling. Is it that they are putting on information no one cares about; a product that looks like crap 50% of the time; reporters who give photographers no time to edit and make a piece look somewhat presentable. Illeana is right, Manny was one of those rare hard workers, and I am glad to have worked with him.(But let us not forget the other ones too) I wonder how the product is going to look know that cbs4 has no live truck ops. I feel sorry for the photogs still around that are going to get a call that says there is a fire in south miami and we need you live at 5.(the photog is now the truck op, and will be getting this call @445) So good luck. I feel for all the otrhers that were fired yesterday and wish you all luck. For the ones still around dont get to comfortable. It seems the rollercoaster has only started, and try to remember Mark S. Fowler words, television is only a ”toaster with pictures.”( a former fcc chairman) If you keep putting on murders and rapes you are performing a usless task to the public.
1) I hate stories like this one. It really hurts to see people lose their jobs. It’s happening all around… and it makes me sick.
2) Is WFOR a union shop? Just curious as to how a union would play into job cutting decisions.
3) I’m in a top 40 market, so not as large as Miami, but do many stations of that size still have live truck ops. I thought most of those went away a long time ago. I haven’t worked at a shop with a truck op since 1999, which was a union shop, hence my above question. Yeah, being a photog and having to run your own truck isn’t ideal, but it happens all the time, in markets large and small. Frankly, I was surprised to see a station still had truck ops.
Again, my thoughts to all out there who are struggling in this biz. Hang on my friends!
Manny G. was one of the most talented photogs I have ever worked with. He always had a good attitude, always made slot, and always worked hard. Hang in there Manny.
To all that are still getting paid by television stations that do business in the “broadcast model”.
Your days are numbered. At large network or group owned stations, this trend of declining numbers (HUT’s, PUT’s, Shares, Ratings, Ad Revenue) has been steady for quite some time. Many have termed it as a sinking ship. Local news won’t be the same tomorrow as it is today. Why? The nets and groups need to make profit. Plain and simple. They don’t care how or who you cut, just make your profit margin. They could give a rat’s ass of your journalistic values or how good your package looked (as long as they don’t get sued). It’s all about the money.
Don’t trust ANYONE in a management position. They are trained to look out for two things: The corporation and their own butt. You need to lookout for yourself. Don’t think that HR is going to do it. That’s actually the WORST place to put your trust. Why do you think Employee Relations turned it’s name to Human Resources? Because instead of a company having a relationship with you, now they just bleed you dry as a resource and dump you when it’s good for them.
As someone said previously, be as diverse as possible. That’s how you will rise from the ashes. Media in one form or another will always remain. It’s how it’s delivered that will constantly be in flux. Don’t be a brainwashed corporate lackey. Be your own corporation. Be prepared.
Now, as far as Manny is concerned. I still can’t believe it. He’s a perfect example of my rant above. He gives and gives and gives. Saw WCIX turn from a last place joke to what WFOR is today. What does he get? A pat on the back with severance and “good luck”. They just sacrificed their “Ultimate Warrior”.
Unfortunately, he won’t be the last.
Hey Jeff, there’s a few of us Managers who do care about producing quality content, working with and as a team and most of all, leading by example. In my experience in this medium I will say this: most senior level people have become “risk averse”. There is no creativity, no intuition, no chance to do something different, entertaining and informative. By the Gods, there aren’t any bloopers anymore!
Let’s face it: it’s not fun anymore. Just listen to the old timers, the guys who put in 40+ hours a week, wrote or edited all night, listened to their guts and if they were good, they’d move up to bigger jobs in bigger markets. That’s all out the door and it ain’t coming back. What you have are the stereotypical clans running the show: the newsroom bitch who is angry all the time, the lackey who sucks up to the boss, the homo who helps him homo friends out, the inept intern who becomes the darling overnight and the airhead who gives head to get ahead.
Not for nothing, but I found that post well-written and funny.
I can tell a lot about you from your terminology. Let me guess: You’re at least in your 40’s based upon your use of the term “homo”. LOL. You capitalize the word “managers” in the middle of the sentence, which tells me you think a lot of yourself. You’re frustrated as hell that the business has dumbed itself down to the lowest common denominator, who, in your scenario would be the “airhead who gives head to get ahead”.
Like you said, “it ain’t going to get any better”. What you don’t acknowledge is the fact that this is happening to every business everywhere. Customer service sucks. Car plants are closing down because not only did they dumb down, they didn’t keep up with superior Asian technology. We have a President who thinks it’s freakin’ hilarious that he scared the shit out of New Yorkers with his dumb-ass plane stunt, AND (check AP on this) he’s going to give financial bail-outs to cities that don’t even have high rates of unemployment. This is a f-ed up economy, and under this leadership, don’t look for us to rise as a nation. We are all being “dumbed” down my friend, and the rest of the world loves this shit.
Incorrect! I was just too lazy that day to write “homosexual” because in my time the word “gay” used to mean “happy”.
The terminology of lowest common denominator you refer to should properly be translated as “average” as in average viewer, as in our bread and butter for the last 50+ years in broadcast.
What frustrates not just me, but Editors, Producers, Managers (and yes, some General Managers) is not “dumbing down” but more the level of MEDIOCRITY that has permeated our culture.
Let the finger pointing begin…
And any station that uses TIMES ROMAN as part of their font package should be purged from the market!
Every month WFOR has a station meeting, what a joke. It starts with the top. Sean McDonald has failed! He’s fired more than 50 people in under a year. Don’t you think something is wrong with that? When Colleran was there the station was on the up and up!
They fired all the truck opts. How can that happen? The photog. has to crank out a pkg at 5 and power-up a live truck. Good luck with that!
What happens if a hurricane hits?
I wonder if the dolphins know they fired two people in sports? Home of the Dolphins, that’s another joke.
They fired good people and I wish them all luck.
OMG! are you people serious? photogs have been running live trucks in about 90 percent of the markets nationwide for years??!! Its perfectly doable. Get over it.
If you cant crank out a “5pm package and run a live truck” you should be fired.
…
Bob doesn’t get the point and must be some type of an IDYOT!! 90% percent is such a bad and misleading number. You obviously don’t even know how far down on the list the majority of “One man banders” markets are. Pretty sure you have never even worked out in the field(GET LOST!). WFOR instilled fear on the remaining employees after this massive and unfair cut. The company has already lost control,the moral on the remaining employees will determine the outcome of WFOR’s future.
Sad to see so many nice and hard working former co-workers get the jobs cut. We were doing more with less when I worked there. Now, they are really a lean operation. However, its the state of the business. Here in Bogota, as a manager, I can put on a show with 2 people. The business is downsizing. I would love to be able to hire some of the people from the Miami market who were let go here in Bogota, but, the reality is all TV news budgets are shrinking. Those who have jobs are lucky to have them.
So the news market is shrinking, well there is one group able to take advantage of this shaky economic time in the news business. Younger workers with little to moderate amounts of experience. These people have no problem trading moderate salaries for choice positions and are replacing the veterans who are heading out the rotating door of television news faster than any other group. Check out TV Jobs, there are good jobs available to workers with almost no experience. That never would have been the case even two years ago. If you are in this group now may be your time. Hop on board and don’t live in fear. You should never stay somewhere out of fear for all it does is breed hatred.
But just keep in mind that as soon as your salary gets too high, you’ll be out the door. Develop other career opportunities so that you have them to fall back on when this happens. There’s no loyalty in business. Get everything in writing and don’t believe any promises that are made to you verbally.
That scenario does not work because they did fire some people who were young and making nothing.
All the more reason to have something else to fall back on.
WFOR FAIL!
Management is shaking their heads. Don’t want to fire their no talent friends and now can’t figure out how to cover the news with what’s left!
The changes are not over for WFOR. More to come. Soon!
I sure wouldn’t want to be someone with their contract coming up for renewal. And there are quite a few of those on the horizon!