Acceptable registrations in the queue through March 16 at 11:00a ET have now been activated. Enjoy! -M.W.

Terms of Use have been amended effective October 6, 2019. Make sure you are aware of the new rules! Please visit this thread for details: https://www.mibuzzboard.com/phpBB3/view ... 16&t=48619

Another leaving WXYZ

Discussion pertaining to Detroit, Ann Arbor, Port Huron, and SW Ontario
Newsman123
Posts: 66
Joined: Wed Feb 23, 2022 8:06 pm

Another leaving WXYZ

Post by Newsman123 » Sat Mar 23, 2024 11:14 am

Brian Abel leaving in May, next stop not yet announced. Memo went out to staff.

Abel aside, its another example of how salaries have dropped so much, stations can’t keep talent for more than a few cycles.

A 5/10pm anchor in this market used to make around 175-250K. You didnt need to “leave” to Chicago or where else to make more etc.
This isnt unique to 7… just sayin.

Of course Abel may have just been ready to move on.. but if you are making bank and happy, you dont.

That turnover is one of the biggest issues in TV News today.



km1125
Posts: 3570
Joined: Thu Mar 14, 2019 3:09 pm

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by km1125 » Sat Mar 23, 2024 11:38 am

Newsman123 wrote:
Sat Mar 23, 2024 11:14 am
Brian Abel leaving in May, next stop not yet announced. Memo went out to staff.

Abel aside, its another example of how salaries have dropped so much, stations can’t keep talent for more than a few cycles.

A 5/10pm anchor in this market used to make around 175-250K. You didnt need to “leave” to Chicago or where else to make more etc.
This isnt unique to 7… just sayin.

Of course Abel may have just been ready to move on.. but if you are making bank and happy, you dont.

That turnover is one of the biggest issues in TV News today.
Most are certainly NOT worth that. Maybe a seasoned professional who has (and displays or actually utilizes) an incredible amount of local knowledge. They'd also have to be very vocal about raising the quality of the local news broadcasts.



User avatar
MWmetalhead
Site Admin
Posts: 11870
Joined: Sun Oct 31, 2004 11:23 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by MWmetalhead » Sat Mar 23, 2024 12:02 pm

Scripps is slashing newsroom budgets.

The so-called "newscast" that airs at 4PM on WXYZ is mostly filler. Aside from the weather updates, little if any of it is live. It is mostly dry segues from one Scripps national story to the next, mostly non-time sensitive reports.

That style newscast actually airs in multiple day parts on many of their smaller market stations.



edj
Posts: 1963
Joined: Sun Feb 13, 2022 8:54 pm

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by edj » Sat Mar 23, 2024 3:14 pm

The days of Bill Bonds level salaries have long since passed. Add to that Detroit hasn't been a Top 10 market in years.



Round Six
Posts: 1019
Joined: Tue Dec 06, 2022 11:02 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by Round Six » Sun Mar 24, 2024 12:34 pm

edj wrote:
Sat Mar 23, 2024 3:14 pm
The days of Bill Bonds level salaries have long since passed. Add to that Detroit hasn't been a Top 10 market in years.
I think this is a fair question. Do salaries need to be that high anymore? Back in the day, Bonds and LeGoff and the Kelly's were a draw. Folks changed channels just to see them.

Can the same be said today?
As an example, is someone that's watching Judge Judy changing channels because they prefer an anchor on another channel? Or just staying put thinking "I'll just keep it here. The news is the news, no matter what bobblehead is reading it"?

Maybe corporate bean counters realize that more than y'all do. And figure why dole out those Back In The Day wages when more and more viewers don't care who's reading the teleprompter.


Women spend more time wondering what men are thinking about than men spend actually thinking.

sinklair
Posts: 2209
Joined: Sun Dec 08, 2019 11:59 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by sinklair » Tue Mar 26, 2024 6:35 am

Bonds was a million dollar anchor.

Abel isn’t making anywhere near that amount.

I thought he did a nice job. If you want journalists who know the area and provide real news, you have to provide them a wage that encourages them to stay.

Abel is no Bill Bonds. But if WXYZ is trying to reverse years of underperforming ratings, his departure is not helpful.



User avatar
TC Talks
Posts: 10100
Joined: Wed Oct 26, 2005 2:41 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by TC Talks » Tue Mar 26, 2024 7:00 am

edj wrote:
Sat Mar 23, 2024 3:14 pm
The days of Bill Bonds level salaries have long since passed. Add to that Detroit hasn't been a Top 10 market in years.
Revenue also wasn't split across 350 marketing options. You had 3, then 4 channels.


“The more you can increase fear of drugs, crime, welfare mothers, immigrants and aliens, the more you control all of the people.”
― Noam Chomsky

Posting Content © 2024 TC Talks Holdings LP.

User avatar
TC Talks
Posts: 10100
Joined: Wed Oct 26, 2005 2:41 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by TC Talks » Tue Mar 26, 2024 7:07 am

sinklair wrote:
Tue Mar 26, 2024 6:35 am
Bonds was a million dollar anchor.

Abel isn’t making anywhere near that amount.

I thought he did a nice job. If you want journalists who know the area and provide real news, you have to provide them a wage that encourages them to stay.

Abel is no Bill Bonds. But if WXYZ is trying to reverse years of underperforming ratings, his departure is not helpful.
In your vast experience when you were employed in Flint, explain what it was like working with Bond vs Abel.

Here's mine;

Bill was a raging drunk. I saw him be carried into a Denny's late at night unable to walk numerous times in the 80's. He had his own section. But also, I once saw him rip a crew up and down over a busted teleprompter seconds before a statewide Governor debate was to start only to switch on his magic and carry the evening perfectly with only a paper script. The whole lore created in Anchorman is true. Bonds once challenged the Mayor of Detroit to a boxing match on live tv.

Today, if an anchor did was Bonds did back then, it would be splashed on social media and he would likely be fired.

Those were different times.


“The more you can increase fear of drugs, crime, welfare mothers, immigrants and aliens, the more you control all of the people.”
― Noam Chomsky

Posting Content © 2024 TC Talks Holdings LP.

User avatar
MWmetalhead
Site Admin
Posts: 11870
Joined: Sun Oct 31, 2004 11:23 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by MWmetalhead » Wed Mar 27, 2024 9:54 am

According to FTV Live, coverage of the Baltimore bridge collapse by Scripps' WMAR in Baltimore was absolutely pathetic. They provided minimal coverage during the scheduled morning newscast (other stations were wall-to-wall with coverage, and some even did away with commercial breaks) and ran GMA as normal.

Heads should roll.



User avatar
Rate This
Posts: 13961
Joined: Wed Jan 08, 2020 12:17 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by Rate This » Wed Mar 27, 2024 10:03 am

TC Talks wrote:
Tue Mar 26, 2024 7:07 am
sinklair wrote:
Tue Mar 26, 2024 6:35 am
Bonds was a million dollar anchor.

Abel isn’t making anywhere near that amount.

I thought he did a nice job. If you want journalists who know the area and provide real news, you have to provide them a wage that encourages them to stay.

Abel is no Bill Bonds. But if WXYZ is trying to reverse years of underperforming ratings, his departure is not helpful.
In your vast experience when you were employed in Flint, explain what it was like working with Bond vs Abel.

Here's mine;

Bill was a raging drunk. I saw him be carried into a Denny's late at night unable to walk numerous times in the 80's. He had his own section. But also, I once saw him rip a crew up and down over a busted teleprompter seconds before a statewide Governor debate was to start only to switch on his magic and carry the evening perfectly with only a paper script. The whole lore created in Anchorman is true. Bonds once challenged the Mayor of Detroit to a boxing match on live tv.

Today, if an anchor did was Bonds did back then, it would be splashed on social media and he would likely be fired.

Those were different times.
On the contrary… what it is now is why they’ve bled people and continue to… there is little in the way of draw and that didn’t HAVE to happen. It was a conscious choice by management. It’s not like they couldn’t put up somebody who would rabble rouse a little bit and not be afraid to hit all comers if they deserved it. It’s that they either don’t want to or are afraid to. It’s become reading press releases translated into 30 second blurbs rather than asking tough questions consequences be damned. Their job isn’t to make friends… it’s to inform people of things they may not know about otherwise unsuspecting things that are going on. If they piss off GM or the Mayor… oh well. Some source will still talk.



User avatar
MWmetalhead
Site Admin
Posts: 11870
Joined: Sun Oct 31, 2004 11:23 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by MWmetalhead » Wed Mar 27, 2024 10:08 am

I would've loved to have seen a Bill Bonds vs. Coleman Young boxing match!



Newsman123
Posts: 66
Joined: Wed Feb 23, 2022 8:06 pm

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by Newsman123 » Wed Mar 27, 2024 11:44 am

MWmetalhead wrote:
Wed Mar 27, 2024 9:54 am
According to FTV Live, coverage of the Baltimore bridge collapse by Scripps' WMAR in Baltimore was absolutely pathetic. They provided minimal coverage during the scheduled morning newscast (other stations were wall-to-wall with coverage, and some even did away with commercial breaks) and ran GMA as normal.

Heads should roll.
WMAR has long been one of the worst TV stations in America. No idea why Scripps hasn't done more to improve the product there. I agree, heads should roll. To cut to GMA is unforgivable.



User avatar
TC Talks
Posts: 10100
Joined: Wed Oct 26, 2005 2:41 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by TC Talks » Wed Mar 27, 2024 11:58 am

MWmetalhead wrote:
Wed Mar 27, 2024 10:08 am
I would've loved to have seen a Bill Bonds vs. Coleman Young boxing match!
Bonds went away for a 6 week vacation immediately after that newscast.

He had one more fit within a year later and he was gone for good.

Google the Bonds "Editorial" some time.

Image


“The more you can increase fear of drugs, crime, welfare mothers, immigrants and aliens, the more you control all of the people.”
― Noam Chomsky

Posting Content © 2024 TC Talks Holdings LP.

User avatar
Rate This
Posts: 13961
Joined: Wed Jan 08, 2020 12:17 am

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by Rate This » Wed Mar 27, 2024 12:49 pm

TC Talks wrote:
Wed Mar 27, 2024 11:58 am
MWmetalhead wrote:
Wed Mar 27, 2024 10:08 am
I would've loved to have seen a Bill Bonds vs. Coleman Young boxing match!
Bonds went away for a 6 week vacation immediately after that newscast.

He had one more fit within a year later and he was gone for good.

Google the Bonds "Editorial" some time.

Image
I think it’s brilliant actually.



edj
Posts: 1963
Joined: Sun Feb 13, 2022 8:54 pm

Re: Another leaving WXYZ

Post by edj » Wed Mar 27, 2024 1:00 pm

WMAR has been a joke for decades, possibly as far back as the 60s. Scripps is just running it like previous owners.

I think too many DUIs is what did Bonds in. He was at channel 2 for a bit for about a quarter of the salary (but did gain a regular interview show).



Post Reply Previous topicNext topic