News Union Waves
posted by on October 9 at 11:13 AM
Unionized employees at KING 5 are calling on TV viewers to change the channel during this year’s November sweeps. In a letter sent out late last week (on KING 5 stationery), KING 5’s IBEW members write:
They [KING 5] are currently trying to eliminate an entire segment of IBEW workers from their jobs by not bargaining in good faith. The company and news director Pat Costello have made it clear they want these union workers out and then have other people double up on their current work responsibilities…We are feeling the only way to get this Texas Company [BELO Corporation] to negotiate like civil Washingtonians, not cowboys, is to boycott KING 5’s news during the upcoming November sweeps.
(“Sweeps” is the time when ad rates are established for TV stations by surveying how many people are watching each channel.)
I’ve got a call into KING 5 management to get a comment on their employees’ call for the mass tune out.
letter
They didn't support my union so they can kiss my ass. Besides, unless you are one of the 5000 Neilsen families in the country, the networks don't care what we watch.
Um, boycotting local TV news is like boycotting shit-eating.
How do I change the channel on something I don't watch in the first place?
Thanks for the heads up. I've never crossed a picket line in my life and I ain't gonna start now. Thank God King 5 doesn't have shit on.
I work at KING-TV and I am a member of the IBEW. I knew nothing about this letter and it does not represent me. This letter was sent by a few disgruntled employees that do not have the right to speak for me or any other union member. It is short sighted to think that we can ask viewers to stop watching the station, decreasing revenues, and still maintain our jobs. The central issue in these negotations is the advancement of technology, not Belo Corp running amok.
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