Weather Anchor Claims Boyfriend Threatened to Kill Her when He Found Out She was Pregnant

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Roxanna Haynes works as a freelance Weather Anchor for FIOS 1 in New York.

She says her millionaire ex-boyfriend forced her to abort their baby — and choked her while she was recovering from the procedure, Manhattan court papers show.

“I will kill you and our unborn child if you don’t have an abortion. I will run away to China after I kill you,” Stephen Jones, 48, told Haynes, 30, this month, according to prosecutors.

Jones, the $6 million-a-year head of the KPMG auditing firm’s Global Strategy Group, then marched Haynes  to a doctor’s office to abort their fetus even though she wanted to have the baby, authorities said.

About a week later, Jones wrapped his hands around Haynes’ neck during an argument “and forcefully squeezed it, causing her to have trouble breathing and redness to her neck,” a criminal complaint says.

Jones told police he didn’t do anything wrong, saying Haynes “was just hysterical. I was trying to push her off of me,” the papers state.

Jones was arrested on April 19 for alleged harassment, coercion and choking.

Jones’ lawyer said that the exec wanted to break up with Haynes but that she didn’t take it well.

Haynes is a former Reporter at WKRN, WGHP and KCCI.

H/T NY Post

Out the Door in Birmingham

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Longtime WVTM (Birmingham) Anchor Mike Royer says he is leaving the station in June.

While Ryer doesn't say, it appears that he is not exactly leaving the station on his own terms. 

June also will mark Royer's 40th year in television -- the last 36 of which have been here in Birmingham, where he started at WBRC before moving to NBC 13.

"Forty years in television is a long time for anyone, and I've been blessed to have been in it this long," Royer said in a prepared statement that he shared with AL.com. "Ten of those spent doing the weather at WBRC television allowed me to work with Joe Langston, Tom York and General Manager Nick Bolton. While I might not have realized it at the time, those years were some of the best.

"It's time to move on from WVTM and on to the next chapter of my life and career," Royer's statement continued. "After months of personal reflation, I've decided I will leave WVTM-TV this summer after honoring my current contract, ready for whatever is next."

The 63-year-old Royer's contract runs through June 14.

In a follow-up interview with AL.com this evening, Royer said he has a standard six-month non-compete clause in his contract with NBC 13, but he won't rule out the opportunity to come back at another station in the Birmingham market after those six months expire in mid-December. 

Sounds like someone that was not quite ready to retire from TV news.

Getting Out While He Still Can

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As the newspaper industry continues in its death spiral, another ink stained Reporter is making the jump to the dark side.

Longtime Denver Post Sports Writer Mike Klis has left the paper to join KUSA in the Mile High City. 

In an email to Post staffers, they were told that Klis', ""departure is effective immediately."

Seems the newsppaer doesn't like when some defects to the dark side of TV news. 

Katie Couric is Not Driving Traffic to Yahoo

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Yahoo has pretty much become a non-entiney on the Internet these days and their desperate move of hiring Katie Couric, does not seem to be working.

Yahoo hired Couric as their "Global News Anchor" in an effort to get people to log onto the site. The Wall Street Journal says it isn't working.

WSJ says that Couric is generating between $15 to $25 per 1,000 views, revenue about equal to half of her reported $5 million salary.

That means that since she joined almost one year ago — as the first major television news personality to leap full-time to the Internet — Couric has generated about 118 million views.

Yahoo executives were quick to discount the calculations as back-of-the-envelope math.

“We believe Katie’s tenure at Yahoo has been accretive to our business, accretive to our users, and accretive to the overall Yahoo brand,” said Kathy Savitt, Yahoo’s chief marketing officer, who also oversees Yahoo’s content.

H/T NY Daily News 

CNN Goes Wall to Wall with Riots (Updated X2)

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CNN has been covering unrest in Baltimore.

The coverage is being anchored by Jake Tapper and while the pictures (from local TV stations) are powerful, the coverage is terrible.

Tapper can't shut up for more than a few seconds and whomever is Producing the coverage is jumping around so much that no story is really being told. 

Cameras show a police car on fire, you can see it's on fire and yet Tapper will interrupt an interview to say that a police car is on fire.

No shit Sherlock.

Reporters are talking all over each other and it is more frustrating to try and understand what any of them are saying. Tapper continued to interrupt them to send the coverage a different direction which he then interrupted again.

At 5PM, Tapper handed off to Wolf Blitzer.

But as bad as the coverage has been, it is likely to get worse, judging by this tweet: 

Send in the clown.

Update: CNN's coverage has got much better with Blitzer anchoring the show. 

Update X2: If the news could not get any worse for Baltimore, Rev. Al Sharpton, said Monday he plans to visit Baltimore this week to help push police for answers in the death of Freddie Gray. 

This is CNN's Breaking News?

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CNN has been catching flack for not going to Baltimore when protests turned ugly and sticking with their coverage of the White House Correspondents Dinner. 

It was not the used to be cable news channel's brightest moment.

It also carried over to CNN's website. While the death toll in the Nepal earthquake continues to climb, CNN's "breaking news" on their website is Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown is in South Korea.

How is this "breaking news"?

Then again, the earthquake obviously wasn't breaking news, because CNN says they knew it was coming.

Well, we knew Bourdain's show was coming as well and that was breaking news.

Just saying..... 

Imus Leaving Fox Business Network (Update)

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Tipsters tell FTVLive that Don Imus said during the 6M hour of his show that May 29th would be his last show on Fx Business Network.

Imus has been on FBN since 2009 and no word why he is leaving, or if this is a contract negotiating ploy?

FTVLive has a message into FBN, when we hear back, we'll update this story. 

Update: Mediate found the clip of Imus saying he's leaving FBN this morning. 

NY Station Hires Trapeze Artist as News Director

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Back on February 20th, FTVLive wrote,"Sources say that WPIX is this/close to naming Senior Executive Producer Amy Waldman as the new ND. Waldman has been steering the WPIX ship since Effron left and is now likely to get bumped up the food chain."

The station finally did what we said they were going to do months ago.

After pocketing huge savings of the News Director salary, the Tribune station finally named Waldman the ND. 

Interestingly, as we pointed out back in February,  according to Waldman's Twitter page, her bio read, "TV producer by day, trapeze artist by night." It included a picture of her grabbing a trapeze swing in a bikini.

After FTVLive posted the story, Walderman took the picture down, changed her last lame on the account and locked the page as private.

We're guessing the Tribune bosses might have had something to do with that, before bumping her up to the ND job. 

But come on, is there a better second job for a News Director than trapeze artist? It's almost like the two jobs belong together. 

ABC News Goes All Missing Plane on Bruce Jenner

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ABC News knew they had a ratings hit when Bruce Jenner agreed to speak to Diane Sawyer about his transitioning to a women.

Now, it appears that ABC has gone missing plane with Jenner.

You can't go to the ABC News website without being bombarded with Jenner stories.

Good Morning America was Jenner, Jenner, Jenner, Nepal Earthquake, Jenner, Jenner with their coverage.

Just take a look at the last tweets from ABC's George Stephanopoulos to see that 4,000 dead in a quake is still second fiddle to Bruce Jenner.

Did Jeff Zucker suddenly start running ABC News?

It sure seems that way. 

ABC and Diane Sawyer might have gotten high marks as to how they handled the Jenner interview, but right now it sure looks like they are milking it for every ratings point they can. 

Just saying..... 

Is NBC Trying to Make Brian Williams Unemployable?

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Over the last week, stories have been leaking out of NBC News that are not making Brian Williams future at the Peacock look very good.

First reports came out that BriLie had embellished more stories.

Then it was leaked that many staffers inside NBC's DC Bureau do not want Williams to return to the network. 

The NY Times then came out with a story, saying that NBC's internal investigation includes at least one episode that was previously unreported, these people said, involving statements by Williams about events from Tahrir Square in Cairo during the Arab Spring.

although, NBC says they are still investigating BriWi's stories, it seems clear that the network is leaking information that is detrimental to the suspended Anchor. 

It's as if NBC does not want Williams back, but is trying to poison him enough, that he won't be hired by the competition either.

Insiders think that NBC has no problem cutting ties with Williams, they just don't want him to pop up on a rival network.

One insider thinks that NBC is trying to leak enough information that Williams will be toxic to all the other networks.

Well, expect CNN.

It is believed that Zucker will hire just about anyone (i.e. Don Lemon), but NBC isn't worried if BriWi lands at CNN.

They just don't want him to join "a real network" says our insider.

Stay tuned.... 

Staffers Look to Sue Al Jazeera America

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When Al Jazeera America launched, many thought (not FTVLive mind you) that it was going to be the holy grail of journalism.

The network made a big push into American living rooms with a seemingly unlimited budget, high-profile journalism hires and a mandate to play the news straight.

All of that seems to have fallen by the wayside.

The NY Post says that a host of staffers are upset that the cable news outfit with is funded by the government of Qatar. AJA is laying off staffers and watering down its US editorial voice while programming from sibling Al Jazeera English occupies more air time.

In addition, insiders said CEO Ehab Al Shihabi has become a more forceful presence at the network, reshuffling senior news positions and laying off seven staffers last week. The recent moves on top of an earlier round of belt-tightening have led to rising newsroom tensions.

“People are considering legal counsel,” said one insider, adding that “good people came here and were lied to.”

Sources tell FTVLive that NY Post story is just the tip of the iceberg.  

Word is that Al Jazeera America CEO Ehab Al-Shihabi was just "summoned" to Doha headquarters amidst rumors he will be fired.  

Many in the Newsroom are hoping for his dismissal, with one VP openly wishing for the CEO's death.  Expectation/hope his top deputy, President Kate O'Brian will also get the axe.  

She is being named in two lawsuits filed by employees she fired, soon after they complained about hostile work environment.  

FTVLive is hearing of lies and broken promises throughout the U-S channel.... The lawsuit complaints will be explicit and explosive, as Doha execs considering Shihabi and O'Brian's fate have been warned.

 Ironically, the Americans working in Qatar for AJ English are happy and respected.  But AJ America channel is a disaster.

Stay tuned.... 

ABC Got the Ratings they Wanted with Bruce Jenner Interview

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Although Diane Sawyer had interviewed Bruce Jenner months ago, ABC decided to hold the story until the May book.

They knew it would drive ratings and it did. 16.9 million people tuned in to hear that the former Olympic star now considers himself a woman.

FTVLive was not one of the 16.9 million to tune in and while the interview is getting high reviews, it still seemed like the two sides were using each other.

ABC scheduled the interview to run in ratings and while it was airing, E! confirmed that Jenner has a new reality show coming to the network.

Looks like a win, win for all sides. 

One of the Most Important Media Reporters in America

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The list included the usual suspects, Eric Wemple of the Washington Post, Emily Smith of the NY Post, Jim Romenesko, Dylan Byers and others.

But, also on the list of the Top 14 Most Important Media Reporters was Scott Jones of FTVLive.

WAIT!

WHAT!

Yes, folks.... FTVLive made the list. Not sure how, but we did.

It should be pointed out, that while I am the Editor of FTVLive, I'm also a contributor to Newsblues, TV Spy and others The difference being, I'm not paid, or rarely credited for all the work I do for those sites. 

The other thing, all the others on the list either focus on the networks, or just a single market, FTVLive is in every network and every market in the country. 

Sure, we break stories about what is going down at CNN, NBC and Fox News, but we also break stories about what's happening in Boston, DC, Atlanta, Waterloo, and all the other markets as well. 

FTVLive is the only one that covers TV news from coast to coast, market to market.

Hell, when you think about it....damn right we're on the list.

Hell we are the list!

Just saying..... 

Check out the Mediaite list here

General Manager Bans Food From the Newsroom

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Anyone that works in TV news knows that many times your lunch or dinner break is something quick from the e=vending machine, because you are crashing deadline.

Well, expect for News Anchors that get to take a two hour dinner break.

Sources at WICS in Spring Springfield, Illinois tell FTVLive that General Manager Rick Lipps held a news staff meeting on Friday.

Word is that Lipps basically told the newsroom that they are "lazy, slobs and unprofessional."

Word is that Lipps has now told news staffers that they are no longer allowed to bring any food, snacks or beverages into the newsroom.

"He thinks it's SOOOO rude that sometimes reporters eat at their desk," said one staffer to FTVLive. 

This is the same station where Vince DeMentri was fired after he got into a brawl with a Reporter at a local Hooters.

Maybe Lipps should allow food in the newsroom and let let the staff go to Hooters.

Just saying.... 

Out the Door in Miami

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It looks like more people are headed out the door at WFOR in Miami.

Sources tell FTVLive that Jilda Unruh (pictured), the Senior Investigative Producer, handed in her resignation on Friday. Word is she's gone effective immediately, taking a job outside of TV news.  

We hear a Morning Producer gave her notice and is headed to Atlanta and Photographer   Kyle Hall is leaving for a station in Philly.  

Another Photographer who had just started a few months ago was shown the door under mysterious circumstances.

The revolving door continues at the CBS O&O.