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WKTV GM to Oversee WNYF/WVNY

So does WKTV have a backup plan after Worden leaves then? Worden is to WKTV as Don Alhart is to WHAM and Rod Wood is to WSYR, and I wonder what will happen after he leaves and no suitable replacement has been groomed for the position. I can't imagine there are that many TV viewers left in Utica these days if you know what I mean, so I can see the station crumbling along with the rest of the town as the Utica market is very sorry state of affairs. Then again, I'm sure most Utica viewers know all the WKTV news team.

Regarding Vetters, is it the norm for the GM to anchor a newscast? I know news directors will do it in smaller markets, but the GM?
 
Dustintv

You may not be familiar with the history. Vetters was a part time reporter in Utica while attending Law School. Upon finishing Law School, he was brought back to WKTV, after a short stint at WTEN, but brought back as ND. At that time it was customary, under Smith Broadcasting to have the ND anchor the Noon News. Later, when Vic was promoted to GM as Steve Merren became the #2 person under Smith - Vic retained the Noon News anchor chair, it was always a fall back for him.

Time went on - and Smith sold, Merren was let go Vic Promoted and now recently Vic promoted even higher in the group and has be moved to WFFF in Burlington, VT.

To answer your other questions - EVERY VIEWER in CNY (Utica/Rome etc.) knows every face on WKTV - it is all they watch. It can be the most flattering market to work in as an on-air talent.

The other answer to your question is... There is not an Air -apparent to Worden. WKTV would be best suited if and when Worden thinks about retiring - to maintain him as a part time anchor for the 6pm news only... in at 3:30pm and out at 6:30pm. Otherwise, Utica will become a true - small market station with personel changes every two years, at the anchor seat. - That will be a Sad state of affairs for the once great station. - Yes - I know that for most of the on -air talent there - it has already gone small market... but I think you get the drift...
 
I've heard that Jason Powles has expressed interest in being the heir-apparent to Worden... though I guess it's not really an heir-apparent if it's not that apparent to most people. I never would have guessed Powles.

Then again, he is now among the senior talent on the station. I've heard Joleen has been offered anchoring multiple times, but prefers to report. Who else? Steve McMurray hasn't been on-air at WKTV for as long as Powles or Ferris, but he's been the ND for a several years now, and for several years before that, he was on-air at WUTR. It's just a matter of whether he could set aside time to anchor, and still take care of the ND duties. I wouldn't bet on it, but you never know. Don Shipman has a similar background -- he's been at KTV for awhile now, and UTR for awhile before that -- but I assume he likes mornings since that's where he's been at both stations. At least he looks like he likes it.

If none of the above-named becomes Worden's replacement... if I were in charge, my next move would be to try to get a former WKTV'er who would be willing to come back to the area. (If Worden retires completely, there would be plenty of payroll available for such a move.) Not sure who's available out there, but it's something to think about.

At this point, outside of those mentioned above, I don't think anyone at WKTV would be a suitable replacement for Worden. Kristen Copeland would be the closest, but still at least a few more years away from really being there.
 
I think there is something that is being overlooked here. While Bill Worden is really well respected in the market, WKTV's 6pm news isn't the flagship cast it once was. WKTV puts more stake in their 5pm newscast. The 6pm is more of a "sum it all up" half an hour. As for Bill, I don't think he's going anywhere for a while yet. He's like a landmark.
 
BobRoss said:
Looks like longtime WKTV fixture Vic Vetters won't be replacing Bill Worden as primary anchor.
Instead, the Utica Observer-Dispatch reports he'll be staying on the management track by taking two of Smith's Vermont stations under his wing.

http://www.uticaod.com/homepage/x1902436133/WKTV-s-Vetters-will-no-longer-anchor-the-news-at-noon
Click to expand...

Don't tell me they're looking across the lake at WTVH and saying "we can be like them!" (WTVH and WBGH share news directors) With the way Smith Media is today, they probably are though.
 
That would be WTVH and WBNG share news directors. ::) WBGH is operated by WIVT as a basic sattelite, with a terrible logo.
 
Yeah well, cnymike, if you had been paying attention, Vic Vetters hasn't been the ND at WKTV in 3 years.

When Smith Broadcasting owner Bob Smith died in 2005, former WKTV GM Steve Merren became President of the company. With Merren running the entire chain, they moved Vetters up to GM... but most viewers probably didn't really notice since Vic continued to anchor the noon show.

This latest move, as noted in the O-D article I mentioned (and you quoted) says Vetters is basically going to be the GM of both stations. Not the News Director. Repeat, not the News Director -- like at WTVH and WBNG. It's not the same thing. A General Manager, for the most part, is concerned with the overall well-being of the station, mostly the financial side. GM's (the good ones, anyway) don't get obsessed with the finer details of the news department. Both stations still have their own, individual News Directors overseeing the day-to-day management of the news departments. That's the important part. (And that's what Granite is lacking by splitting an ND between Syracuse and Binghamton.)

Ironically, the GM outranks everyone else at a station, but the GM is the one manager who can really be the most "hands-off" from daily operations. It shouldn't hurt WKTV or the 2 Burlington stations to have Vic splitting his time between the two. A lot of things can also be handled through e-mail and teleconferencing... so it's not like he has to be making the trip back and forth every single week. It's kinda like how some larger broadcasting companies have "Regional VPs" who are based in one market, but oversee several.
 
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