Journalism

Talk about hitting a nerve! Last week’s report on the “Local Newsroom Recruitment Crisis” is already on track to become the Knight-Cronkite News Lab’s most-read article ever. The rupturing pipeline for young TV journalists is a major pain point for news directors, and the worsening shortage of new recruits is touching off a snowball or domino effect — pick your metaphor — of stress, burnout and resignations among those who already work in the newsroom. So, what can we do about it? There’s no single or simple answer, but here are six ideas for station leaders to consider.

Leaders from NBCUniversal Local, Fox Soul, Tegna, Newsy and Hearst Television will mine the art of attracting younger audiences to news content and the technology that can help in a panel at TVNewsCheck’s NewsTECHForum, a hybrid in-person and streamed conference on Dec. 14. Register here.

TVNewsCheck‘s Michael Depp talks with Sheila Oliver, SVP and GM of Fox Owned Stations’ Seattle duopoly, about rebooting and rebranding during the challenging conditions of pandemic remote work.

Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wy.) is one of several Republicans blasting Fox News Media for a promotional video teasing an upcoming episode of leading host Tucker Carlson‘s miniseries Tucker Carlson Originals. The episode, which will only be broadcast on Fox Nation, the company’s paid streaming service, is set to be published in three parts next month and examines the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and purports to tell “the true story behind 1/6.”

Evans, who has been serving as the interim news director at KING Seattle, will start in her new role at Cox Media Group’s CBS affiliate on Nov. 8.

NBCUniversal appears to be doing everything in its power to keep the most popular personalities on its cable news network. According to Insider, while Morning Joe co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski are under contract for another year, they’re reportedly eyeing Rachel Maddow’s recent reported $30 million deal (she was making roughly $8 million per year), and according to Insider, they met with NBC News Group Chairman Cesar Conde last week to discuss next steps.

FNC will present special live coverage of the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial races as well as the New York City mayoral race on Tuesday, Nov. 2.

David Corn, Washington bureau chief at Mother Jones magazine, is aghast at the omissions in the recently released ABC News documentary on former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, who authored the famous dossier on Russia and Donald Trump. “Steele and his dossier have always been a sideshow to the main event: the Kremlin’s clandestine assault that helped Trump win,” writes Corn.

Kyle Pleva has been named vice president of corporate communications for the U.S. at Vice Media Group. Pleva succeeds Van Scott, who departed last month to take to top communications spot at ABC News after a brief tenure at Vice Media.

The network is planning a monthlong series, Climate Crisis: Saving Tomorrow, which will kick off with coverage of the conference, and continue throughout November, spanning all 7 continents. The series will examine the causes and risks of climate change, and what steps would need to be taken to limit further damage. In addition, ABC News is creating a new unit focused on climate change, led by Chief Meteorologist Ginger Zee, joined by coordinating producer Tracy Wholf and producer Stephanie Ebbs.

Wendy McMahon, president, co-head of CBS News and Stations at ViacomCBS, announced that the CBS station group will be hiring to fill a number of newly created positions as executive producers impacting communities (EPIC).

On Nov. 2, voters won’t decide who wins the White House or whether Republicans or Democrats gain control of Congress, but NBC’s Kristen Welker and Chuck Todd will lead coverage that evening that could prove to be a harbinger for programming to come: a two-hour streaming show, Meet The Press: Election Night Special, on NBC News Now that will examine the ins and outs of important gubernatorial, state-level and local mayoral elections.