Nine people, including chief meteorologist Jim Byrne (pictured) and weekend sports anchor Kevin Roose, have been laid off at Santa Maria CBS-affiliate KCOY, TVSpy has learned.
A KCOY station source says the layoffs, which all came from the news division, were part of a “re-structuring.” The layoffs — which included photographers, directors and producers as well as Byrne and Roose — were announced yesterday.
Byrne has worked at KCOY since 1999 and has been chief meteorologist since 2002. Roose, who began as a video editor at the station, joined in 2005.
Cowles California Media Company, the owner of KCOY, recently consolidated KCOY with KION-KCBA in Salinas to “lower capital and operating costs and improve our on-air product.”
“The television markets have lost millions of dollars over the last several years,” KCOY general manager Kevin Harlan told the Tribune News of the layoffs. “We are a business and we have to address this.”
KCOY news director Traciann Zeravica did not immediately respond to TVSpy’s request for comment.