Layoffs at KCET: Facing the possibility of...

Layoffs at KCET: Facing the possibility of a budget shortfall when its fiscal year ends June 30, KCET-TV Channel 28 laid off 11 employees and eliminated nine other positions Thursday, reducing the staff at the public television station to 224. In late April, only two months after starting the job, KCET President Al Jerome said the station was $500,000 in the red and, in an unusual personal appeal to viewers, went on the air in a 2 1/2-minute spot to spearhead a campaign to raise $5.5 million by the end of June to accommodate the deficit and projected costs. Barbara Goen, vice president for public information, said Thursday that KCET still needs to raise $2.6 million but noted there will be a new on-air pledge drive shortly. No dollar figure was given as to how much the layoffs will save annually. The eliminated positions are spread across the station system, including community relations, legal, marketing, educational enterprise, production, production finance and promotion.