Last night at around 4PM, the news broke that Lane Michaelsen has been named the new news director at WTVJ, NBC6. The fact that we didn’t find out about this weeks ago just goes to show you that it was sealed pretty tightly. Michaelsen comes from WUSA in DC. This article appeared in here TV NewsCheck:
“Lane Michaelsen is joining local NBC O&O WTVJ Miami (DMA 16) as its vice president news and content. Lane fills the role left vacant when Yvette Miley was promoted to MSNBC in New York earlier this year.
Michaelsen joins the station from his position as vice president of the information center at Gannett’s WUSA Washington. While at WUSA, and during his tenure with Gannett Broadcasting, he had oversight of multiple stations’ news operations, co-created and executed the company’s journalists in the United States and England, and implemented change in the focus of all news platforms.”
Shocking fact here: he has an inside connection at WTVJ. Ardyth Diercks, the current WTVJ general manager, apparently had worked with Michaelson at Gannett earlier (almost 10 years ago) in her career.
If WTVJ was such a sinking ship why would they be hiring someone with an impressive background why not someone to get them by until they get rid of the station if that is what they wanted to do. Just doesn’t make sense.
He “executed the company’s journalists” ? Sounds like a tough boss!
WUSA was one man band. Are we going to see this at WTVJ?
Is he good for WTVJ? And will he demote Jackie Nespral and hire a male anchor with Julia? or bring back Joel Connable with Julia?
I don’t think One Man Bands actually work in the South Florida News Market. WTVJ and WFOR both had an OMB in their ranks & both were let go in the past few months. However, I wouldn’t rule out the OMB idea completely. Have you noticed that WTVJ seems to be doing a lot more live reports from in house and looklives? Maybe reporters have already been told to expect this & get used to editing in house.
Get ready for one many bands, er, sorry, backpack journalists to take hold at that sinking ship of a station WTVJ.
Washington D.C. is full of stories about the joke one man bands he brought in up there. It’s a last gasp effort from a company that long ago forgot how to do news. Those who have already been laid off at WTVJ should count their blessings they don’t have to suffer what’s ahead for everyone else there.
One man band?……What is that?
One Band Band is when u have a Kazoo in your mouth, your playing a keyboard or guitar and cymbols attached to each knee. If you want to actually see it, watch the Andy Griffith episode where Jerry Van Dyke demonsrated the one man band. Class dismissed
Thank you so very much……….douche
BACK TO THE TOPIC! IS THIS MAN GOOD FOR WTVJ?
he won’t be able to do much. The budget is being ct at NBC6, there is no helicopter, barely any reporters or live trucks. NBC has no resources. How can they even cover the day’s news? They are no equipped to cover the news for Miami and they really shouldn’t be allowed to have a station in their present state.
I’m very much aware that Ardy used to be GM at Gannett’s WUSA… the same station where Lane Michaelsen previously served as ND, before moving to Miami.
The way I see it… WTVJ and WUSA have a lot in common. Both stations have been mismanaged in recent years. Both stations no longer offering weekend morning newscasts. Both stations dumping good on-air talents (WUSA dropping Gordon Peterson, Maureen Bunyan, Mike “Buck” Buchanan, and many others… WTVJ dropping Joel Connable, Kelly Craig, Tony Segreto, etc.). Both stations going from ratings power-house to ratings bottom-dweller.
With Ardy’s connection to Michaelsen, it remains to be seen if his appointment as ND will help or hurt WTVJ in the long-term.
Michaelsen is leaving one sinking ship to join another.
He is grasping at career straws. Leaving D.C. before it implodes from it’s budget cutting staff decisions that cement it’s future as a loser.
WTVJ is in for more of the same. No good news here except another example of managers taking care of each other at the expense of the employees who really produce the product and draw and audience.
This is not a decision to improve quality. It’s a decision made to bring in another drone who will fall in lock-step with the other bean counters at NBC. Just when you thought things could not get any worse at WTVJ…