Sean McLaughlin, VP of news at Graham Media Group, owner of KPRC 2 Houston and KSAT 12 San Antonio, told TVNewsCheck’s Local TV Strategies that to survive, TV news should dump news anchors:
"We have to make tough choices going forward,” McLaughlin said. “There are no more things to trim out of these budgets. We are revenue-challenged, and there is more pressure on the expense base. Getting rid of the anchor is a way to trim the expense base and create something different that doesn’t look like everything else in the market.”
McLaughlin agreed that there are still anchors who are beloved in their markets and if that’s the case, “ride that thing to the finish line,” he said. But otherwise, what he often sees is “the hollow newscast, where you protect all of those institutional things that have always been there. We have the anchors and the set and the graphics and, God, it looks great. And then the stories are in there, and they’re a bunch of garbage, because reporters don’t have time to do them. They’re feed stories. And this is happening. If you don’t see this happening, you’re not watching enough news.”
McLaughlin says TV stations need more multimedia journalists and the use of AI in the newsroom.
Anchorless newscasts? MMJs? Where have I heard this before? Oh yeah, NewsFix on CW39.
I should add that I featured McLaughlin in my post "Why so many TV layoffs?" where he discussed why TV stations' financial outlook isn't looking good.
I wanted to hear what Bill Balleza, a legendary Houston TV anchor who helped build KPRC's legacy, thought of his former company's potential new direction.
"McLaughlin’s dilemma is a sad requiem for local television news," Balleza told mikemcguff.com. "Declining viewership has resulted in rapidly diminishing ad revenue, which has in turn led to draconian budget cuts and employee buyouts to buoy the bottom line.
"Will eliminating anchors and producers staunch the bleeding, even win back viewers? Or is this the final throes of a business model that has outlived its relevance? The harsh reality is that most news is now consumed on digital devices by a demographic that is not, and likely never will be, habituated to watching television news. Spanish-language news broadcasts are thriving in Houston because they serve a demographic that still watches television. There is probably an economy for one successful English language news station in Houston, but no longer for three or four."
Balleza's sobering look has merit. I heard this prediction from my Baylor University professors all the way back in the mid-90s, as the Telecom Act of 1996 was on the horizon.
