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KOMO New meterologist

Knowing nat'l media companies e.g. Sinclair and TEGNA, local talents are bypassed once again. IMO, Parella Lewis, Lisa Van Cise or Mark Coleman would've been a good pick for KOMO weekends.
 
Abby Acone started at KEPR/KIMA as the weekend meteorologist, then moved to KRDO. Good for her! Jordan Wilkerson AND Abby Acone - ex-KEPR talent, both in Seattle. And Annie Andrews, reporter also ex-KEPR at Q13. There's several other examples of Yakima/Tri-Cities people moving to Seattle - Michelle Millman on KIRO started as Michelle 'Bingle' on KIMA in the mid '90s for example.
 
Good to have young personalities joining the ranks, and sure, local as in WA born and raised; however, I was pertaining to local, established Seattle on-air talents who are known and experienced with their duties. Sure, we need to learn to accept new personalities, but at the expense of talented & deserving media experts? Just my two cents..
 
SEAnewsjunkie said:
Good to have young personalities joining the ranks, and sure, local as in WA born and raised; however, I was pertaining to local, established Seattle on-air talents who are known and experienced with their duties. Sure, we need to learn to accept new personalities, but at the expense of talented & deserving media experts? Just my two cents..
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I'm a big believer in long-time anchors (whether it be news or weather), as these are the personalities that can gain the trust of longtime viewers, which is where local news is today. Yes, the upper demos drive local news ratings today, that is where the viewers are.

That said, does anyone actually remember when Jeff Renner and Steve Poole were young reporters/anchors? When Dan Lewis was a 30-something up and coming newbie at KOMO? Or going way back, Jean Enerson as a 20-something anchor on KING? I do. But then again, I started becoming interested in this stuff at age 10!

The point is new folks have always been introduced into local news over the decades, and while many don't succeed, Seattle has seen many who have. So I don't mind young reporters and anchors in major markets like Seattle, as there is historical precedent.

However, there is one big problem. Local TV news is not as influential or prominent as it once was, despite the good-intentioned marketing that goes hand in hand with today's local product. There is indeed a new media universe and local tv news, atleast by what we knew of it, is becoming less relevant. I think it will be in place for another couple of decades, but like AM radio, this product is in some trouble. The only savior is concentrating on "local" and nothing else. I cringe when my smaller market newscast spends 5 minutes covering national news, as if the average viewer can't get this info anywhere else.

Part of my interest in threads like this is indeed nostalgic, but also a current look, and a definite look to the future. For the most part, Seattle stations have done a decent job adapting to new trends in local news. A bigger question is how long will local stations commit to using most of their resources to this medium. The personalities are still important, the coverage is still important, but I wonder for how long.
 
seatownmedia said:
I'm a big believer in long-time anchors (whether it be news or weather), as these are the personalities that can gain the trust of longtime viewers, which is where local news is today. Yes, the upper demos drive local news ratings today, that is where the viewers are.

That said, does anyone actually remember when Jeff Renner and Steve Poole were young reporters/anchors? When Dan Lewis was a 30-something up and coming newbie at KOMO? Or going way back, Jean Enerson as a 20-something anchor on KING? I do. But then again, I started becoming interested in this stuff at age 10!
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And, perhaps, it's time to realize that a younger generation is taking over. The older people have retired, left because of health reasons, or died. I personally started waching the news in Seattle at age 4.
 
FYI, I'm part of what most would call "millennials", so the up & coming target audience and the newbies joining the ranks of personalities delivering the news. I may be young but I still fondly remember the state of Seattle TV some time ago, with its on-air and BTS personalities representing their stations well. Here's to hoping for many more decades of innovative & award-winning broadcasting in the Seattle and the PacNW.
 
formeraa said:
And, perhaps, it's time to realize that a younger generation is taking over. The older people have retired, left because of health reasons, or died. I personally started waching the news in Seattle at age 4.
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Age 4? Wow, that beats me by six years!

But you are agreeing with my point. The Seattle vets that I mentioned were relatively young when they started in the market. Of course, any big market needs to stay young and bring along new talent, (if they are good, obviously). In the previous demographic cycle, these young reporters/anchors from the 70's/80's grew old with the audience and that is key in gaining familiarity and loyalty. Whether this cycle will continue with today's tech is anyone's guess.
 
seatownmedia said:
Age 4? Wow, that beats me by six years!

But you are agreeing with my point. The Seattle vets that I mentioned were relatively young when they started in the market. Of course, any big market needs to stay young and bring along new talent, (if they are good, obviously). In the previous demographic cycle, these young reporters/anchors from the 70's/80's grew old with the audience and that is key in gaining familiarity and loyalty. Whether this cycle will continue with today's tech is anyone's guess.
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I've mentioned this before, as well.

I'm not opposed to bringing in new, young talent to the market. Many of our established vets were quite young when they first arrived in Seattle. Elisa Hahn has been at KING for 20 years, Susannah Frame for nearly 30, for instance. They don't look middle aged today, even though they are, so they must have been very young when they first arrived.

My objection is that much of the new talent being picked up just isn't very good. Look at the newish meteorologists at some of the competing stations. Neither Claire Anderson on KIRO weekends, nor Jordan Wilkerson on KING weekends are the kind of talent that makes you go, this person is going to go far.

I'm waiting for someone where you go "wow, what a hire."
 
KMan said:
I've mentioned this before, as well.

I'm not opposed to bringing in new, young talent to the market. Many of our established vets were quite young when they first arrived in Seattle. Elisa Hahn has been at KING for 20 years, Susannah Frame for nearly 30, for instance. They don't look middle aged today, even though they are, so they must have been very young when they first arrived.

My objection is that much of the new talent being picked up just isn't very good. Look at the newish meteorologists at some of the competing stations. Neither Claire Anderson on KIRO weekends, nor Jordan Wilkerson on KING weekends are the kind of talent that makes you go, this person is going to go far.

I'm waiting for someone where you go "wow, what a hire."
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100% agree- welcome young talents but station managers, have them wow you first during hiring process in order to wow the viewing audience. Hopefully the new generation will continue award-winning coverage in the SeaTac area for the benefit and enjoyment of the viewers.
 
KMan said:
... nor Jordan Wilkerson on KING weekends are the kind of talent that makes you go, this person is going to go far.
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Actually...I already said that …. about JordanW. I think she has serious long-term potential. Personable without being annoying (or know-it-all like many of the guys) and never drifts too far from dispensing weather information -- and yet I find myself smiling when watching her forecasts (unlike many other wx anchors).
 
It used to be that the 'nerdiest' established meteorologist in the market, became the go-to weather station. That, and their accuracy with forecasts. Most groups have kicked their long-standing nerds to the curb due to the concern of appearing too old, replacing them with beautiful WX Presenters (aka Weather Bunnies).

Stations pay a lot of money for their WX graphics, and many stations in the market now use the same systems as the competition. Considering that cost, stations believe the computer modeling can now replace someone familiar with actual forecasting and understanding the science behind it. That, and if one station gets the forecast wrong, everyone else does too so there is less risk of being embarrassed by your nerd getting it wrong. Instead, hire a WX Bunny for a quarter the salary of an actual meteorologist, then concentrate on their presentation. Next, have your news consultants market focus group the various presenters. If they don't test well, no problem, there are dozens of hungry street reporters all over the country looking for a in-studio gig who would be happy to stand in front of a green screen.
 
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