The Revolving Door in Cincy

It appears that a number of TV news people are just saying “no’ to the Natty.

In Cincinnati, a mid-sized market ranked as number 36 in the country, the TV news industry has always experienced turnover, but 2022 saw an unusual amount of churn. Out of the 24 departures from TV newsrooms in the city, a shocking nine were young reporters who left the industry altogether.

One such reporter, Brandon Saho, who worked as a sports reporter and weekend sports anchor for WLWT-TV before leaving in August to start a mental health podcast, cited the demanding and low-paying nature of the job as a major factor in his decision to leave. Many young reporters have found that the pandemic, which allowed them to work from home and reevaluate their careers, provided the perfect opportunity to switch to a different industry or pursue other job opportunities, such as social media or corporate storytelling.

Other young reporters have decided to move into day-shift communications jobs, a common career path for journalists in the past. For example, Lauren Artino joined Game Day Communications and Mollie Lair became the City of Cincinnati's communications director. Some reporters have even found success on YouTube, with Clancy Burke leaving WKRC-TV in June to focus on her channel, which has over 400,000 subscribers.

Unfortunately, the high turnover rate is not limited to young reporters. WCPO-TV's newsroom has lost a total of nine on-air staffers, with four reporters moving on to bigger markets and veteran anchors Julie O'Neill and Kristyn Hartman leaving the station. WLWT-TV has also seen the departure of several experienced reporters, including Dan Griffin and Colin Mayfield.

Overall, it seems that the TV news industry in Cincinnati is facing a crisis, with high turnover rates and many young reporters choosing to leave the field. As Steve Hyvonen, news director for WXIX, points out, "reporter turnover is worse now in this business than it’s ever been." It will be interesting to see how the industry in Cincinnati adapts to these challenges and works to retain talented young reporters in the future.

H/T WVXU