I got a message from a loyal reader, which you can see in the comments about KIRO ND Laura Evans, that claimed KIRO actually locked out news photographers last week in a union dispute that the company wants to win. My inside sources tell me this: The photogs were NOT locked out per se, but the news cars they take home to make them available for fast reaction to breaking news, WERE taken away from them. They were restored at some point, but it reportedly caused some internal problems.
The overarching issue is that corporate may be seeking to reduce the number of photographers on staff.
Draw your own conclusions, but it's something else Laura Evans, the news director, must contend with in her already tenuous tenure.
I feel awful for the photographers who may be about to lose their jobs. They add so much to the quality of newscasts that reporters acting as one-person-bands just won't be able to match (not for a lack of trying...the reporters will no doubt be doing their best with the tools they have).
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