Sad day in Syracuse. WTVH 5 News is no more (Albany: 2009, house)

[bellafinzi]

I guess it's a sign of the times.

Syracuse's Channel 5 cuts at least 40 workers, guts news division

I'll miss Kevin Maher, John Gerard, John DiPasquale, Angelique Piccolo, Joe Roetz and Tom Hauf the most.

Kevin Maher and John Gerard were two of my favorites in the Syracuse market.

Lately, Channel 5 hasn't annoyed me as much as it once did. Actually the news on channel 5 has been the most sincere out of all three stations in the last year IMO.

The main reason I abandoned most local news for a time was the news turned into non-stop Syracuse bashing....mostly about the weather. It was never like that growing up in the early 90s and late 80s. When I find a reporter putting down Syracuse weather constantly, I just stop watching that channel. For a while all three stations were doing it. Then all of a sudden channel 5 cleaned house and rid itself of a bunch of anchors that were there forever. And started hiring new younger talent like John Gerard who actually respect the Syracuse area enough not bad mouth it everyday. That's when I started watching local news more often.

Hopefully, the most talented and sincere people who lost their jobs at WTVH today will find positions in the Syracuse market elsewhere.

[bellafinzi]

Like someone said, when tourists or potential newcomers come to the area, what is the first thing they do? They turn on the television to get a sense of the area, by the local news. The local news should be a good reflection on the community. I think Syracuse's local news have done more harm to CNY's reputation than good in the last decade. Let's hope that this channel 5 shake up will knock some sense into all the media outlets in the Syracuse market.

The bottom line is this. If you don't like it here, please leave.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by bellafinzi

Like someone said, when tourists or potential newcomers come to the area, what is the first thing they do? They turn on the television to get a sense of the area, by the local news. The local news should be a good reflection on the community. I think Syracuse's local news have done more harm to CNY's reputation than good in the last decade. Let's hope that this channel 5 shake up will knock some sense into all the media outlets in the Syracuse market.

The bottom line is this. If you don't like it here, please leave.

Yeah, I hope this will change some things as far as how the news is presented to the public. I know Channel 9 is #1, but I think a lot of that had to do with their signal. It is very strong locally and clear even if you don't have cable.

I wonder about the people that had jobs in the Channel 5 news department too. Where will they go? Will some go to other stations like 3, 9 or even News 10 Now? Maybe radio?

[Jeromeville]

I guess I'm part of the reason for Channel 5's news demise because I never wanted to watch them. Weren't they the station that had problems with lying about canned news reports, or something?

[bellafinzi]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

Yeah, I hope this will change some things as far as how the news is presented to the public. I know Channel 9 is #1, but I think a lot of that had to do with their signal. It is very strong locally and clear even if you don't have cable.

I wonder about the people that had jobs in the Channel 5 news department too. Where will they go? Will some go to other stations like 3, 9 or even News 10 Now? Maybe radio?

News 10 Now was once my favorite local news channel when it first started out. Professional attitude and professional looking anchors and reporters. Now, ever since they moved the whole news operation to Albany, it's a different story. I refuse to watch local news out of another market. Those folks over in Albany could care less about the Syracuse community.

Jeromeville, I'm not sure, but I do know that all three stations 3, 5 and 9 have problems with their facts quite often. A weatherman on Channel 3 just stated last week that the average high for that dated in Syracuse was 32 degrees, when in fact it was 37 degrees.

[l.a.fork]

Does anyone remember when channel 5 "lost"Maureen Green? and what about all the news time lately saying We have hired more reporters to bring you up to date news, what I want to know is did the staff know ahead that they were canned??

[Jeromeville]

News 10 Now was once my favorite local news channel when it first started out. Professional attitude and professional looking anchors and reporters.

I dunno... all their female anchors were blonde. I used to call them "The Fembots."

[SteveMax58]

Originally Posted by bellafinzi

Like someone said, when tourists or potential newcomers come to the area, what is the first thing they do? They turn on the television to get a sense of the area, by the local news. The local news should be a good reflection on the community. I think Syracuse's local news have done more harm to CNY's reputation than good in the last decade. Let's hope that this channel 5 shake up will knock some sense into all the media outlets in the Syracuse market.

The bottom line is this. If you don't like it here, please leave.

Agree with this completely. If you hate living somewhere that much, why torture yourself and everybody else by staying? I think some people need an excuse for why they aren't very happy...so just blame it on the weather, or the area, etc.

As a newcomer to the Syracuse area, I'm often baffled by (some, not all) people who (1) Ask me why I would move here & (2) Tell me they want out.

Now I understand, being from Florida, many people believe it to be the ideal place to move to. And for many, it is, especially if you can't handle the cold very well. But when I ask why they don't just move, they always say "my family is here". Well...if having family close by is that important to you, why aren't you more content? Do you think the rest of the country is dancing in the streets and rich beyond belief? What exactly does this area do (or not do) to force unhappiness upon you?

I suspect most of these people have just never been anywhere else really. I have lived in a handful of places, and I can safely say the grass is not always greener.

So far, my experience has been very positive in the Syracuse area. Most people I've met have been very nice, down-to-earth, and helpful people. I get a sense of community from most people that you just don't find everywhere. I guess maybe some have to experience what it's like to live someplace that does not have good people at every turn to appreciate.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by SteveMax58

Agree with this completely. If you hate living somewhere that much, why torture yourself and everybody else by staying? I think some people need an excuse for why they aren't very happy...so just blame it on the weather, or the area, etc.

As a newcomer to the Syracuse area, I'm often baffled by (some, not all) people who (1) Ask me why I would move here & (2) Tell me they want out.

Now I understand, being from Florida, many people believe it to be the ideal place to move to. And for many, it is, especially if you can't handle the cold very well. But when I ask why they don't just move, they always say "my family is here". Well...if having family close by is that important to you, why aren't you more content? Do you think the rest of the country is dancing in the streets and rich beyond belief? What exactly does this area do (or not do) to force unhappiness upon you?

I suspect most of these people have just never been anywhere else really. I have lived in a handful of places, and I can safely say the grass is not always greener.

So far, my experience has been very positive in the Syracuse area. Most people I've met have been very nice, down-to-earth, and helpful people. I get a sense of community from most people that you just don't find everywhere. I guess maybe some have to experience what it's like to live someplace that does not have good people at every turn to appreciate.

Very true. If you went to the syracuse.com website and saw the responses to many of the things there, you would be baffled by that as well. People around have no clue about things they complain about. Go to some places around the country and you would see that things could be much worse.

[bellafinzi]

Originally Posted by Jeromeville

I dunno... all their female anchors were blonde. I used to call them "The Fembots."

Well, that’s not very nice.

I really liked watching Janelle Reichert and Amber Wakefield. Too bad most of the cutest girls in television left town. Andrea Bullard is probably the cutest one left on local news. She's good IMO. And no, I don't admire them just for their physical beauty. They're classy and professional too.