Turmoil at San Francisco’s KRON; ‘Unstable’ Newsroom

By Andrew Gauthier 

Rich Lieberman of the San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that turmoil and low morale have overtaken the newsroom at KRON.

According to his report
Three independent sources said the relationship between staff personnel and news management; notably news director, Aaron Pero and assistant news director, Stacey Baier, couldn’t be more “toxic.” The sources, who have been at the struggling SF TV station for several years, requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the story.

Newsroom staff and vj’s have been badgered and belittled over their stories, according to the sources. They also said that their work is met with consistent negative feedback and consternation from management. More…

Advertisement

KRON is owned by Young Broadcasting and is one of the few stations that Young has maintained control of after an unsuccessful attempt to sell their station holdings in July. Young filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February and has managed to maintain ownership of its station through a deal with its lenders that includes the stipulation that Gray Broadcasting manage day-to-day operations of 7 of Young’s 10 stations nationwide. KRON is by far the company’s biggest station and it has been speculated that the record $823 million that Young paid for the station in 2000 has been a major factor in the company’s recent financial troubles.

Advertisement