Fox O&O WFLD today notified 10 technicians that their positions are being eliminated in the coming weeks.
A Fox spokesperson confirmed the job cuts to TVSpy, saying that it was part of the station group’s move from an engineering-based system to an IT-based system. The transition has been in the works for more than a year now and Fox plans to begin running much of its stations’ technical operations, such as the distribution of programming and insertion of commercials, out of a new hub based in Las Vegas.
Master control operations will continue at the local level however and the spokesperson says that, while jobs associated with the old system are being eliminated, stations will potentially be hiring for positions in master control.
WFLD will be the first O&O to transition to the new hub system but the station group plans for others to follow suit. In the coming months, New York’s WNYW will eliminate a handful of technical positions as it prepares to make the transition.