TV news anchors resign on air (VIDEO)
A pair of local TV news anchors
had a surprise for viewers at the end of their 6 p.m. newscast on Tuesday:
They're quitting.
Cindy Michaels and Tony
Consiglio, anchors for ABC's WVII affiliate in Bangor, Maine, announced their
joint resignations, citing a dispute with management over journalistic
practices.
"And finally tonight, this
will be Tony and my final show together right here on ABC 7," Michaels
told viewers. "The last six years have been an interesting and enjoyable
time for us as we have been the longest-running news team in Bangor."
"On behalf of Cindy and
me, we have loved every moment bringing the news to you," Consiglio said. "Some recent developments have come to our attention, though, and
departing together is the best alternative."
The duo did not
elaborate for viewers, but they did for the local newspaper.
"There was a constant
disrespecting and belittling of staff," Michaels told
the Bangor Daily News. "We both felt there was a lack of
knowledge from ownership and upper management in running a newsroom to the extent
that I was not allowed to structure and direct them professionally. I couldn't
do everything I wanted to as a news director. There was a regular undoing of
decisions."
"It's a culmination of
ongoing occurrences that took place the last several years and basically
involved upper-management practices that we both strongly disagreed with,"
she continued. "It's a little complicated, but we were expected to do
somewhat unbalanced news, politically, in general."
The station's
management dismissed Michaels' claims.
"Upper
management is not involved in the daily production of the news, period," Mike
Palmer, WVII vice president and general manager, told the paper. "We've
made great changes over the last few months and are not slowing down. Over the
last 15 to 18 months, we've been a raging locomotive of change."
Palmer also told the Associated
Press that the pair "were on their way out, anyway," and that
"some times people leave their jobs before they're asked to leave."
Michaels, 46, said she will
remain in Bangor to pursue a writing career and work on a novel, while
Consiglio, 28, will continue his career "in another capacity."
1 comment:
Yeah we know ...They were required to spin and lye to their viewership. Good for the reporters because they were the watchdog of the government. Maybe we should require as a part of the reporters educational process, a class on the constitution and an oath of office for them too. That way we can hold them legally to their oath. I would love to see Orielly arrested for his spin and lyes.
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