According to the latest RTDNA/Hofstra University study, 2010 was a good year for local news. Stations across the country added 750 jobs last year, an increase of 2.9 percent from 2009. Nationwide, 26,522 people are employed at 745 local stations.
Local news employment has not fully recovered from 2008, when a flailing U.S. economy led to the loss of 1,200 jobs, but RTDNA/Hofstra finds that anticipated hiring in 2011 could bring the industry back to its pre-recession peak of 27,817 total employees.
Station profitability was also up — 57.4 percent of local stations turned a profit last year, up nearly 10 percent from 2009. View the full results of the survey here.
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