Consolidations Planned in News Operations
“Struggling under weak ad sales and profits, NBC Universal set a structuring plan to slash annual expenses by $750 million in part by cutting 700 jobs. The moves, which have been in the works for more than a year, were announced today by GE Vice Chairman and NBCU Chairman/CEO Bob Wright,” Anne Becker and John M. Higgins reported Thursday for Broadcasting & Cable.
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“NBC’s cost-saving plan involves laying off people from the company’s 11 news divisions, including on-air talent, but no details were immediately available,” David Bauder reported for the Associated Press.
In Advertising Age, Claire Atkinson reported, “NBC’s cost-saving plan centers on the news division. MSNBC’s headquarters in Secaucus, N.J., will be shuttered and employees will move to NBC headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Center and to CNBC’s offices in Englewood, N.J. The company is also beginning reviews at NBC News bureaus in the U.S. and overseas. Part of NBC Universal’s plan is to reinvest savings in other areas. For instance, CNBC.com brings visitors to a dull-looking msn.money.com website, so there are plans to convert CNBC.com to a paid subscription service, which could be unveiled by the end of the year.”
Asked how the cutbacks might affect diversity at the network, NBC spokeswoman Liz Fischer told Journal-isms, “NBC Universal, as always, remains committed to diversity and attracting, hiring and developing the best talent in the industry.”
Becker and Higgins continued in Broadcasting & Cable: “The plan, which the company is calling ‘NBCU 2.0,’ will streamline NBC U’s news operations and drop pricey scripted dramas from the 8 p.m. hour on the network as NBCU redirects resources from analog to evolving digital businesses, according to the company and published reports.
” . . . Affecting the TV Group, cable network MSNBC will shutter its Secaucus, New Jersey operations and the channel will move to production facilities at NBC’s 30 Rockefeller Plaza New York headquarters, and New Jersey–a move that has been talked about for years. The company is also consolidating news operations in California, creating a central facility in Burbank to house news ventures from NBC and Telemundo KNBC, KVEA and KWHY.
” . . . Changes elsewhere include a increased focus on Hispanic network Telemundo, consolidation of marketing departments within movie studio Universal Pictures, and cost cuts at the NBCU’s theme parks in L.A. and Orlando, Fla.
Michele Greppi of TV Week, who interviewed NBC News President Steve Capus, reported earlier Thursday, “NBC News will collaborate more closely with a number of operations, including business-news cable channel CNBC, which does not report to news, and the news operations of NBC-owned TV stations, along with the Telemundo network and local news teams.
â??’Why should each of them have a booking unit?’ Mr. Capus asked, explaining how the plan will eliminate redundancies.
“Mr. Capus, said the control room for ‘NBC Nightly News’ will move across the street from 30 Rock into the space that houses the ‘Today’ morning show, which this summer got a high-definition studio and control room.
“The question of where to put the ‘Nightly News’ studio is among the questions still to be answered, Mr. Capus said.
“‘I met with [radio and MSNBC morning personality] Don Imus this morning about his show,’ Mr. Capus said. ‘We literally are working out how we are going to do this. We have looked at so many options.'”
