WVEC, the ABC affiliate for Hampton Roads, VA, will air a one-hour special devoted to explaining the impact of Sequestration on the area.
“This is a complicated and important issue,” Doug Wieder, WVEC executive news director told TVNewsCheck. “Our award-winning military reporter Mike Gooding has been at the forefront of this story for weeks, and we see this as a natural extension of our commitment to our viewers.”
The “sequester” is the name of the mandatory federal budget cuts scheduled to go into effect March 1. The cuts will be triggered if Congress and President Obama cannot agree on a plan to reduce the nation’s deficit by $1.2 trillion over the next ten years. The economy in the Hampton Roads market relies heavily on the defense industry, one of the targets of the mandated cuts.
In addition to the special, and daily reports during its newscasts, WVEC has set up a “Sequestration: Finding Our Future” section on its website where viewers can find information and news about the looming cuts to the defense industry. The station has set up a partnership with Popvox allowing viewers to tell their congressional representatives what they think.
“We want our viewers to be informed, but we also want them to be involved in the conversation and to take part in the process,” said WVEC president and general manager Brad Ramsey. “While thousands of military families in our area stand to be impacted, this topic is critical to the future of our entire region.”
For those in the Hampton Roads viewing area, “Sequestration: Finding Our Future” will air Friday, March 1 at 7:00 p.m. on WVEC.
To read the White House Office of Management and Budget Report on Sequestration click here. CBS News.com also has a Sequestration FAQ.
[CBSnews.com]