Legal Battles
Starting today, journalist, Ashley Campbell-White will walk into her new TV home and feel like she’s going from the basement to the penthouse – Gray Television’s approximate $41 million state-of-the-art media complex on the Riverwatch Parkway.
It’s not that her previous digs at WFXG weren’t nice with its remodeled studio, but she’s gone through two months of legal challenges getting released from a non-compete clause in her contract.
White, who made a significant salary as WFXG’s former Executive Producer and 6:30 p.m. anchor wanted to be able to accept ANY role at another TV station in the Augusta market.
Now, she feels wanted. She’ll start in a producer role at News 12/NBC 26 with their 4 p.m. newscast.
“Ashley is homegrown, knows a LOT of people, and is widely held in high regard,” said VP and GM, Mike Oates. “We are very excited about her joining the News12 NBC26 team. We have received a lot of positive feedback from viewers who are thrilled she has landed in such a great position.”
“As with all our former employees, we wish her the best of luck with all her future endeavors,” said Chastity Scott, the new General Manager at WFXG.
Getting this deal done has been delicate – and contentious. When all is said in done the Federal Government may get involved.
Behind the scenes, Scott, a former Gray television employee in another market, spoke with Oates, who she had known prior to her move to Augusta.
Lockwood Broadcasting’s and White’s attorneys also sent letters back and forth and during this period, White also took her concerns to the public on the Austin Rhodes radio show on WGAC.
In some Facebook posts and polls surrounding her appearance, there were more than 500 comments, the majority siding with David (Ashley) vs. Goliath (Lockwood).
This was personal to Rhodes. As a 30-plus-year media veteran, he was familiar with non-compete clauses. He and White also worked together at the Beasley Broadcasting studios on Jimmy Dyess Parkway.
On Friday, July 15, just before 4 p.m., Rhodes became incensed behind the microphone and called an unnamed Lockwood employee an ***hole for not releasing White from her non-compete after terminating her.
ABD learned that a CSRA mental health professional who treats children filed a formal complaint with the FCC asking that the agency investigate Rhodes for violations of their decency standards and profanity rules. According to the FCC website, indecent and profane content are prohibited on TV and radio between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., when there is a reasonable risk that children may be in the audience. Violations can carry a federal prison term and fines. ABD reached out to Rhodes for a comment about his comment, but at press time he had not responded.
In Ashley’s second radio appearance to announce the rift was over, she took stock in her career in advance of today’s new beginnings.
“I can honestly say I have worked with every news station in the local market,” White told Rhodes.
News Battles
Below, ABD is examining some of the changes to the news departments at the area stations, besides White, and providing some rating data from July. It’s from Comscore, a digital rating system that all the stations abide by.
In a general sense, the more viewers they have, the more money local stations can charge. There are other factors like the demographics in age and gender and race.
Here are some highlights from a recent report that looks at total viewers only. The results from July are similar to the way the rating race has been going for some time.
• Most-watched 6 p.m. newscast: WJBF (ABC), 30,000 viewers; WRDW (CBS), 21,000 viewers
• Evening newscasts and network morning show: WJBF (ABC) had more viewers in 8 of 10 newscasts than (CBS)
• Top viewership at other competing station newscasts: WFXG (FOX) averages 9,500 viewers in 10 p.m. newscast; WAGT (NBC) averages 5,100 viewers in 11 p.m. newscast
WJBF also has a “newish” TV studio, visible from the Bobby Jones Expressway on Augusta West Parkway. They have four seasoned journalists that average about 30 years in the market Brad Means, Jennie Montgomery, George Eskola, and Mary Morrison, and several others with 10 to 20 years of experience, including their newest news director, John Hart.
“It was not easy to fill the shoes of our outgoing news manager, Scott Elledge, someone that was passionate about our newsroom and this community,” said WJBF General Manager, Bill Stewart. “But to be able to promote John into this role and know that we have someone with the same dedication to see this newsroom continue its success while preparing and guiding it into the future is something I am thrilled about, and I am glad John is eager to start this new phase of his career.”
Hart began at WJBF in 2000 in their old building on Reynolds Street in Augusta in front of the Augusta Marriott. He was the first-weekend sports anchor, then sports director, before moving to news in 2009, serving as co-anchor of the evening newscasts.
Hart will give up the news anchor chair, but continue broadcasting weekly high school football games, and in April, will be heavily involved on-air and behind the scenes for his 23rd Masters.
“I will miss bringing our viewers the news on a daily basis here at WJBF, but I am excited about having an even bigger voice in our news operation,” Hart said.
Though WJBF might have the highest-rated newscasts in the CSRA, News 12/NBC 26 may be the most decorated station in the market – and the region – in terms of investigative journalism.
The “I-Team,” led by news director Estelle Parsley, producers and videographers, and gritty and talented on-air journalists, Liz Owens, Meredith Anderson, and Laura Warren, have won three Edward R. Murrow awards and three Emmy awards in two years.
“This type of journalism is what sets us apart from other media,” General Manager, Mike Oates said. “It is hard work. It’s tedious, it’s exhausting, it’s intense attention to details, and it’s time-consuming and resource-draining. It’s oftentimes heartbreaking but every time, it’s very satisfying. Not everyone can do this type of journalism, that is as good as any team in the country. Local is what we’re all about. The I Team takes the responsibility seriously and quite honestly, our community is better because of their efforts. I am tremendously proud of them.”
WRDW can also do “soft news.” Their parent company, Gray Television, is moving away from more syndicated talk shows and adding in local lifestyle programming, such as Morning Mix on weekdays at 9 a.m. It goes up against Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest on WJBF.
So far. So good.
“The response has been beyond what we thought would be considered a success,” Oates said.
Zayna Haliburton (morning news anchor) and Cliff Bennett (formerly an on-air veteran at Clear Channel and I-Heart radio) are terrific on-air and developed chemistry from the first rehearsal.
Producer, Nathalia Jacques truly understands that we are trying to emphasize all things local,” Oates said. “Both from ratings and revenue standpoint, Morning Mix is a total success. It is one of the best things we have done at the station, and we are all very proud of the program.”
Award-winning newscaster, Richard Rogers joined News 12 in the early 1990’s and recently celebrated his 40th anniversary in broadcasting and hasn’t missed a beat. Like a fine wine, he keeps getting better with age.
Shortly after GM Chastity Scott replaced General Manager, Denise Vickers at WFXG, she released White and paired the area’s longest-tenured weatherman, Jay Jeffries, with former WJBF seasoned anchors Trent Butler and Kimberely Scott.
Scott said the new parent company Lockwood Broadcasting is moving fast.
“Within a year, we expanded the department and added 10 hours of local news each week, with 6:30 p.m., 10 p.m., and 11 p.m. newscasts.
She added, “While that was a major upgrade, it was never the end goal. We’ve always felt there was an opportunity to better serve the market through news expansion. This summer, we added an hour at 9 a.m., as well as 5 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. newscasts. I’m so pleased to say we now produce, right here in Augusta, 41 hours of local news each week, compared with the 20 hours when we started the growth. That’s a clear indication that we, at WFXG, want to be directly involved with, and in service to, the community we all live and work in.”
It’s paying off in particular in some of their morning newscasts, including the 7 a.m. local broadcast which is basically tied with NBC’s Today Show. Their 10 p.m. newscast garners nearly 10,000 viewers, making it the highest-rated newscast at that time slot.
