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Buffalo News Article About WECK Owner Antics.

Heck, I didn't even know Cichon left. I figured he was on vacation. Good for him.

"Ostrander said that because of his experience with his last two news directors he doesn’t plan on hiring another one and that morning co-host Gail Ann Huber will continue to read the news."

How about the truth - that no competent news person would lower themselves to work at WECK after what happened to the last two NDs.
 
This is why you don't air dirty laundry and I why rarely post anything about what we're doing. I've watched Buddy post a lot of things in this forum (and I'm definitely rooting for him) but I've wanted to encourage him not to engage in the back-and-forth and just keep working at being a success.
 
Think twice before pressing "send" or "enter." Facebook throw-downs never end well, but at least there are ways to delete old posts, block users and un-friend people. This forum doesn't offer such amenities; few message boards do. Trefzger's observations are worth noting. Too much time wasted on diversions. That duly noted, it's beyond unusual for two successive, experienced morning news professionals to literally pick up and walk out. What's left unsaid and unwritten seems to speak more than what was said or written. Huber is a good choice to take the reins. Something in the water at 2900 Genesee street?
 
Is this petty drama all part of WECK's "Empire Building"? When people leave in this manner, it usually means the job and/or owner aren't worth the aggravation...
 
tbolt909 said:
Is this petty drama all part of WECK's "Empire Building"? When people leave in this manner, it usually means the job and/or owner aren't worth the aggravation...
Click to expand...

LOL. No doubt. The owner certainly sounds like a piece of work. The piece I referenced above ran in the print edition of the paper on Sunday (10/28).

Seems that in the relatively compact, functionally incestuous, and gossipy industry that local/WNY+/- radio appears to be, the rather arrogant, so-called "passionate" (rant-like?), and overtly public personally derogatory comments of an employer would hardly make the business an "employer of choice." Is that, maybe, why there is no new News Director?
 
four4rock said:
Is that, maybe, why there is no new News Director?
Click to expand...

Maybe it's a realization that no one News Director on WECK is going to be competitive with actual news departments from other sources. Creating a really competitive news department is costly and won't pay for itself as part of the current format. The more cost-effective solution is to have Gail Ann Huber do what most of the other morning shows do - rewrite the stories from other local sources. It saves a salary and avoids any conflicts between news and entertainment programming. WECK was never going to be anybody's primary news source anyway.
 
SirRoxalot said:


Maybe it's a realization that no one News Director on WECK is going to be competitive with actual news departments from other sources. Creating a really competitive news department is costly and won't pay for itself as part of the current format. The more cost-effective solution is to have Gail Ann Huber do what most of the other morning shows do - rewrite the stories from other local sources. It saves a salary and avoids any conflicts between news and entertainment programming. WECK was never going to be anybody's primary news source anyway.
Click to expand...

Or, as I noted above no "real" news person would want to work there after what happened to Z & C. But I agree with your assessment on the station's news needs.
 
In a previous existence I did radio news exclusively and served as News Director of three stations. Over a period of time I reached the conclusion that there are two dead giveaways that a station's management knows/cares nothing about news:
1) The News Director shows up at about 6 a.m. and is rarely seen after the noon hour.
2) The News Director's immediate superior is someone who specializes in music programming.
A well run news operation recognizes that very few news events take place during morning drive time. Morning drive is a good place to put a news announcer but the best journalist should work much later in the day. At a couple well run stations I worked late afternoons and evenings and did valuable phone interviews with public officials and even got through to crime victims. Made excellent actualities to leave for the morning drive anchor. If you are going to do news properly don't try to do it on a shoestring budget.
 
CAVEMANager said:
In a previous existence I did radio news exclusively and served as News Director of three stations. Over a period of time I reached the conclusion that there are two dead giveaways that a station's management knows/cares nothing about news:
1) The News Director shows up at about 6 a.m. and is rarely seen after the noon hour.
2) The News Director's immediate superior is someone who specializes in music programming.
A well run news operation recognizes that very few news events take place during morning drive time. Morning drive is a good place to put a news announcer but the best journalist should work much later in the day. At a couple well run stations I worked late afternoons and evenings and did valuable phone interviews with public officials and even got through to crime victims. Made excellent actualities to leave for the morning drive anchor. If you are going to do news properly don't try to do it on a shoestring budget.
Click to expand...

That's a romantic notion how to do news on a music station but totally unrealistic today.
 
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