Oregon Media Insiders

is still producing news and weathercasts from Portland for KFXO's 10pm show, but that is over in a couple weeks.

Even though the sale has been in negotiations since last fall... no one had made any decisions as to what it all means for employees at KFXO. "The sale went through quicker than expected" so no decisions had been made, and NPG is being incredibly secretive about which employees will keep their jobs... and if the 10 o'clock news will even stay on the air. So far the news director has decided it's another outlet for his reporters to get more face time.

All staff members at KFXO were offered positions with KTVZ in Bend. Rumor is that 3 from KFXO will not be making the move for whatever reasons.
Time will tell what happens!

Hey Josh....Oops I mean Seattle Tv Guy!
Hope NWCN is working out for you.
Have fun celebrating your little boy's 1st Birthday

True... everyone was offered a job at the Z... nevermind it would have meant demotions and pay cuts from current positions. They are also cutting vacation time/PTO, many are realizing how good Meredith was to its employees.

Atleast it is not Chambers :)

Given the implosion that seems to be going on at Chambers the last poster makes a very good point.
Will be interesting to see what happens in a few months at KOHD

Seems a lot of the KFXO folks were under the impression that they (KFXO) were going to be a seperate enity under NPG...not in the same buildings and mangement as KTVZ

Funny how impressions are different, depending on where you are. From almost the start, I couldn't see them staying separate. My viewpoint as a 'Bend Media Insider'...
____

Formerly BendTVGuy

"impressions" and "desires" (or hope) can sometimes get confused... some people came to KFXO to escape the other, only to find themselves back under the same mgmt., a little over a year later.

High expections were had by all when the Fox Central Oregon News launched.. People sacrificed allot to make it such a wonderfull newscast and place to work. Time will only tell what the future holds for the select few who stayed and patiently waited through the sale. I hope the viewers will speak their minds in this matter and demand diversity in this small television market.
No one knows for sure what the Corporate mucky mucks will do whith the fabulous crew at Fox. But one thing is certin, It was sure fun while it lasted.
I would expect to see the crew of Newschannel 21 broadcasting their product at 10 'o clock on FOX probably sometime in early July. (less overhead costs ie: fewer employees = more money for the mucky mucks) That is just one persons observation..

similar to when Jack Nicholson emphatically stated, "you can't handle the truth", the owners of NPG are just beginning to realize how bad Z really is. the real losers here are twofold, the current employees at KFXO and more importantly the TV viewers of Central Oregon who soon will have no choice but to watch the absolute tripe put on the air by Z. there are clearly a few professional individuals at KFXO who deserve better than this, but unfortunately this is what happens in a takeover, good people get the shaft. Peter Murphy is rolling over in his proverbial journalistic grave.

Maybe the FCC should have listened to BendBroadband on this one...this is exactly what they said would happen.

Yesterday, after 11 years, including helping to launch the station in Bend, John Edwards gave his two weeks notice (after which he was summarily escorted out of the building). He had been acting as GM for KFXO during the upheavel of the sale. He proved, once again, what a classy guy he is and thanked everyone for a great run. And, NPG proved, yet again, that they can't handle grace in a bucket:
"As you know, John Edwards has chosen to decline NPG’s offer of employment and as of today is no longer an employee. It is policy that once an employee is no longer with the company, free access to the building is denied. If you are contacted for access by any former employee, please contact..."
The lack of tact was offensive to everyone who received the above "memo". John is off to bigger and better persuits, and will be missed.
Question: what will NPG do if everyone quits before NPG is ready to fire them?

newscast end this Thursday? That's the rumor I hear

Horsewoman was not on tonight, will anyone care, probably not....

Started the KFXO newscast with a bang, it will go out with a whimper. Lot's of folks worked through the first few weeks of VERY difficult times, but kept at it and made very good things happen. Thanks to all, past and present, for the hard work. Nothing is guaranteed in life, and sure as hell not in tv news.

did such an excellent job forecasting from 120 miles away didn't he?

Mark Nelsen

New locks on the doors at KFXO on Friday. Must be the last day for the FOX crew.

The higher ups call a meeting, but with the usual lack of tact have the locks changed and computers shut down before hand, giving everyone a clear sense of what was to come. No last show, or any closure for anyone, except a final check and a "thanks for your hard work". Nevermind they knew this was coming for at least the last few days (probably longer) and didn't give anyone the courtesy they deserved to provide a little notice.
So, it's pink slips for all... oh sorry, they did offer us jobs in CO, AZ, TX, and MO... none of them in news, of course.
Thanks guys, for creating such a great place to work where people actually care about their co-workers... we stuck it out to the end, and I suppose that's a sense of accomplishment?!

Just found this when googling "KFXO"... it's the statement from the FCC when it approved the sale of KFXO to NPG (the parent company of KTVZ):
"Bend Cable’s statements concerning competition are speculative and unsupported by extrinsic evidence. "
Hmmm... wonder if the viewers of Bend, suddenly left without any choice as to where they get their TV news, would agree that the concerns over a monopoly are still "speculative" and "unsupported". Wow... do I want to watch Barbie read the news at 10pm or 11pm? I think I'll just go to bed, instead.

It must be very hard being "Central Oregon's News Leader" being the only choice for viewers in the area....Hope it it is a very proud feeling taking over your 'competition' to air time.
YOU SUCK.

I believe there are still positions to be filled there.

full of old information, fired staffer's pictures, and old weather forecasts.

Does NPG even know KFXO has a website? They didn't seem to know anything else about the station when they bought it... or their own staff at 'Z': From KTVZ's GM during his speech to the fired KFXO'ers, when someone asked about Jeff, Z's news director, "Who's Jeff?"

It sounds like OPB is adding a Bend reporter at just the right time.

Associate Director of Membership
On-air, on-line and Event
Oregon Public Broadcasting

Station take-overs and sales happen all the time, all over the country..this is nothing new people. You guys need to stop crying about it and move on, sometimes a sale is not-so-nice sometimes it goes ok. Also, duopolies are all over the country as well...KTVZ owning two stations is nothing new, but when it happens in small town Bend, oh watch out for the criticism. Meredith, now the former owner of KFXO sold the station so they can "pursue larger market stations and duopolies in bigger cities." So they're doing the same thing that you're so upset about in other markets! Big freakin' deal, now make your resume tape and get another job in a larger market, it's probably better for your future that KFXO ended, now you can move on and move up! And by the way, I do not work for the "evil" NPG or the "duopoly-seeking" Meredith.

Once again... it's not that the entire newsroom was laid off... that was long foreseen. It was how they chose to do it. Changing locks before the staff is even told? A bit on the tacky side.
By the way, from a viewers perspective, it's not the "duopoly" that's a problem. It's the monopoly of our local news that viewers are angry over. We now only have one choice for local TV news. In this case "duopoly" and "monopoly" are one in the same... at least for now... no pressure KOHD!

Let's hope KOHD starts up their newscasts sooner rather than later, if only to have a little more competition over here. A look at their Web site shows a lot of hiring going on, assuming the listing is current: .

While I'm on it, if anyone at TVZ is reading, will you please put a tripod in your live truck? I saw a couple liveshots recently that were just painful to watch.

Having formerly been in the TV industry, I have been watching this whole transition with much curiosity. I was amused when I found this site today. I agree with "Get Over It"...this happens all the time. It is unfortunate for people to lose their jobs, but they should have seen it coming months ago when THEIR company decided to sell the KFXO property. (Shouldn't the KFXO employees be angry about THAT?) It sounds to me that NPG did what any smart company would do - given the opportunity. KFXO gave it their best shot(?), but to be honest....people I know (including myself) watched their news for comic relief more than anything. I will not name call, but come on....it just never got much better than their opening week (and THAT was very funny!!). When I moved here 25 years ago from a large market, I watched KTVZ for the same comic relief. They were a new company in a small town and their news reflected it. Over the years, I have come to admire the professional look and feel of their news. They have launched many familiar faces in the Oregon TV industry and it is fun to watch the careers of those that started out here in Central Oregon. It never seemed to me that I would every garner the same respect for KFXO news. It just didn't work.

I'd just like to take this opportunity to thank everyone I worked with, interviewed, or interacted with during my brief seven month stay in Bend. As the hours tick down and I get ready to move on (literally and figuratively) I think it's important to acknowledge what a terrific ride it has been. I can't put into words how much I've enjoyed serving this community and I wouldn't trade it for anything else. I can only hope that I'll be so fortunate as I continue my career elsewhere.

All the best,

Daniel Chanin