MediaMaven

Matt Calkins, who resigned from the Seattle Times today because a column on transgender athletes was spiked by his bosses.  He is getting good support from Seattle media obserurnesdvers.  More from Matt: https://mattycee.substack.com/p/agreeing-with-sophie-cunninghams https://x.com/i/trending/2090496802487201837 From Aaron Levine of Fox 13: Matt has never shied away from tackling some of the hottest-button issues and I give him tons of credit for that. Wishing you nothing but the best going forward, Matt, and truly appreciate and admire the full explanation in your Substack. From Ian Furness of KJR: "When a columnist is muted by a newspaper, the paper of record for the region, we have reached a dangerous place. The fact that it has happened multiple times to Matt is even worse."⁸

Some of you may have heard or read that Scripps has completely removed anchors from the 7 and 11 newscasts at its station WMAR in Baltimore, still a top 30 market.  It runs only sequenced local taped reports along with hubbed national stories from its 24/7 streaming service.     For me, it touches a nerve.  That's me in the middle. I worked there from 74-87 and, even though WMAR was a pioneer and legacy station and the first station in Maryland (1947), it ended up with four different owners from 86-91, suffered thru an ill-fated talent strike in 83 and just two years earlier in 81, lost its CBS affiliation because of low ratings and too many pre-emptions for Orioles telecasts and specials.  The decline put a bullseye on the station for a long time and Scripps has made zero progress managing it since 91, culminating in this decision to try something totally different there and in about a dozen smaller markets.  They just laid off about 20 WMAR staffers ...

  Kelly Franson was a meteorologist for KIRO from 2014-2017.  Now she's in a totally different field!  This is from her social media post: 🌦️Broadcast Meteorology ✍🏼Public Relations 🩻 Radiologic Technology  This change may be a surprise, but it's been in the works for a while!  I didn't know medical imaging was a career choice until I was already immersed in meteorology. I remember thinking that if I had to do it all over again, I'd probably choose x-ray or ultrasound, but didn't think much about it at the time.  Fast-forward to when I began to think about getting out of TV. I checked into Rad Tech programs in several places, at several different times, but could never make it work until now. Thanks to family, friends, and supportive coworkers, I finished up prerequisites last semester and officially started a two year radiologic technology program today!

Fox 13's plan to move its Washington Sports Wrap show to 11 a.m. weekdays as an added play started with it being nothing more than a throwaway placeholder in its Monday debut (which it is anyway).   It was listed on screen as an encore presentation and was it ever!   It was a show produced late last week before the Seahawks pre-season game Saturday and that game was promoted in a first block graphic as you see above!  Fox 13 couldn't have fixed a graphic to add Saturday's score and have anchor Lauren Helmbrecht just fix the voice over?   Guess that was too much trouble.   Nothing on the Mariners winning the Houston series either.   Couldn't add one home run highlight and fix the audio.  The bosses obviously didn't care about a debut show being fresh  and current.  Waste of time.   Lazy and sloppy.   PS.  The show airs at 6:30 pm weeknights.  I realize there was no Sunday WSW show to time ...

Reporter Mo Haider, who left KOMO in 2024 to go to KTRK, the ABC O&O in Houston, is returning afte two years there to join the KGW Portland Sunrise Team, per his soical media post.   Why anyone would rejoin Tegna right now is puzzling to me, but there it is.  Mo spent three years at KOMO.

The Radio Television DIgital News Association announces its winners: KIRO-FM takes the Breaking News Award for "Seattle ICE Protests Turn Violent" in the Large Market Radio Category.   Former KIRO7 reporter Gwen Baumgardner and ex-KCPQ reporter James Lynch were part of the live field coverage and Tom Hutyler anchoring. In small market radio, congrats to KLCC Eugene, OR, for Best Newscast. Cory Howard of KHQ, Spokane, takes Excellence In Writing. Not TV winners this year in our region. https://www.rtdna.org/2026-regional-edward-r-murrow-award-winners