Posted by chicagomedia.org on September 16, 2008 at 10:04:01:
Bumpy road for radio staffers
Radio news and traffic service hit with first round of job cuts
The idiots who've ruined radio are up to their old tricks again.
This time around, the loss of jobs and destruction of localism has hit Metro Networks/Shadow Broadcast Services, thanks to sweeping cutbacks by parent company Westwood One.
In Chicago, at least five on-air staffers were cut in the first wave of layoffs meant to reduce the company's overall work force by 15 percent -- or 300 jobs.
Among Friday's casualties were news bureau chief Perry Williams, reporter/editor Tom Gaines (known on the air as Tom Kelly), and reporters Jill Urchak, Bill Souronis and Dan Levy. Most had been there a decade or more.
Westwood One bosses say they plan to consolidate Metro Networks' 60 operation centers into 13 regional hubs. Even as they plan to slash $30 million from their annual budget, they're claiming service will improve.
"Though we regret the need to reduce staff, these initiatives will help ensure that Westwood One retains its industry leadership position," CEO Tom Beusse said in a statement.
What makes these job losses especially galling is that so many local radio stations rationalized the elimination of their own news operations in the first place by outsourcing those functions to bare bones Metro/Shadow.
Shame on all of them.
(FEDER/st)