News Shift Results in Shake-Up at KNBC

A little more than two months after taking over the leadership of KNBC-TV, the station’s President and General Manager Paula Madison is restructuring the operation and focus of the news department in a strategy that will result in the departure or reassignment of several veteran anchors and reporters.

Madison, who arrived at the network-owned and -operated Burbank station in November after serving as news director of WNBC-TV in New York, said the revamping of the news department is in part due to mandatory cutbacks at NBC across the board. But she added she wanted to use the opportunity to streamline the news operation, and, more important, focus more attention on the coverage of issues affecting local communities.

“Our community coverage is going to be our top priority,” said Madison. “We are moving away from murder and crime stories. We will still cover those stories when necessary, but those will not be the stories that set our news agenda. It’s not what our communities should be focusing on in terms of their quality of life.”

Madison said she had watched KNBC news long before taking on oversight of the station and several aspects of its newscasts struck her as unusual, including the fact that there were several teams of anchors who presided over only one newscast.

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By organizing much of the news operation into specific areas of coverage or beats, Madison said there would be more emphasis on quality-of-life issues, such as education, the environment and the elderly among others. While KNBC previously assigned the majority of its reporters to cover daily news and features, now most have been assigned to beats.

Also, several familiar faces will soon be gone from the newscasts or placed in different roles. One key change is the imminent departure of “Today in L.A.” morning anchors Kent Shocknek and Kathy Vara. Madison has informed Shocknek, who has been at the station since 1983, and Vara, a morning anchor since 1994, that their expiring contracts will not be renewed.

Joe Rico, a 21-year-veteran KNBC reporter, has already been let go. Reporter-anchor Tracie Savage and helicopter reporter Bob Petpee will also leave the station.

Starting in March, Kelly Mack and David Cruz will take over the morning “Today in L.A.” newscasts from 5 to 7 a.m. Cruz will continue to anchor the station’s 11 and 11:30 a.m. newscast, where he will also be joined by Mack. Ana Garcia, who currently anchors the midday newscasts, will become a full-time reporter.

“Ana is one of the best reporters we have here,” said Madison. “She’s done an incredible job of covering our energy story.”

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The anchor team of Michele Ruiz and Chuck Henry will continue to anchor the 4 p.m. newscast, and Ruiz will replace Mack on the 6 p.m. anchor desk, joining Henry again. Paul Moyer and Colleen Williams will continue to anchor the 5 and 11 p.m. newscasts.

In addition, Nerissa Witherspoon from WDJT-TV in Milwaukee will replace Savage as co-anchor of the weekend editions of “Today in L.A.” Furnell Chatman and Diane Diaz will continue to anchor the afternoon and evening newscasts on weekends.

To help steer the station’s community coverage, Madison has appointed Rebecca Nieto to the newly created position of senior news producer for community coverage. “She will be responsible for involving the station in the communities surrounding us,” said Madison. “We are truly committed to this.”