Three months after buying WJLP for $62.5 million, the new owners rocked the station’s New Jersey news operations.
Chicago-based Weigel Broadcasting Co., which runs MeTV, has refused to feature its weekly 30-minute public affairs program “Jersey Matters,” instead launching “New Jersey Politics,” with a new host. .
Steve Farber, senior vice president of operations at Weigel Broadcasting, said:
Weigel purchased the Fairfield-based station from Wall-based Press Communications LLC last October as part of its move to the New York City market.
Its decision not to include the station’s reporting operations was voted on by the national broadcaster, who saw Garden State as just a suburb of New York City and Philadelphia and cut back on local news coverage. It rekindled long-standing concerns among officials.
But the company has assured lawmakers, including Senators Bob Menendez and Cory Booker, that it takes its duties as a charitable trust seriously.
Last weekend, Weigel launched New Jersey Politics, a weekly 30-minute show hosted by veteran New Jersey journalist Laura Jones. And on Monday, she launched updatenewjersey.com, a website featuring daily news updates from state and local government agencies and her Twitter feed.
Weigel was launched in 2014 after PMCM TV, a division of press communications, purchased a license for WJLP from KVNV Channel 3 in Ely, Nevada and moved it to New Jersey, granting it access to the New York market. will take over the broadcasting station Reach south to Mercer and Ocean counties.
It became an affiliate of Weigel-owned MeTV and features a line-up of TV shows that baby boomers and their children grew up on. and launched “Jersey Matters” with Philadelphia’s veteran television news anchor Larry Mente.
The station also partnered with Gannett Newspapers in New Jersey, including the Asbury Park Press, to share content, and partnered with Monmouth College to produce programming.
Press Communications president and chief executive Robert McAllan did not respond to a request for comment.
An employee at WJLP’s newsroom said the last day was January 7 and they were saying goodbye on social media.
Among them is reporter Kimberly Kravitz, who joined WJLP eight years ago shortly after graduating from Monmouth College in West Long Branch, covering everything from political conventions to being inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame. was
“Working in my hometown was a gift from God and they became my family,” Kravitz said in an interview. is.”
The change of ownership curtailed news coverage and sold its Secaucus studio.
The Federal Communications Commission requires broadcasters to serve the public interest.
The trio introduced legislation to clarify FCC rules, require license holders to broadcast local news programs, consult with local leaders, and facilitate public participation in the license renewal process. did.
They wrote to Weigel chairman Norman Shapiro in early November urging him to continue the local news programme.
“At a time when New Jersey residents are starving for local news, and as more and more newspapers and other news outlets are scaled back or shut down entirely, stations like WJLP need to provide local coverage of important issues. It is imperative that we continue to serve the Garden State,” they wrote.
Shapiro assured lawmakers that he takes seriously his obligations to serve as a public trust. He said the family-owned company is “the main-street company of the Wall Street world” with a culture that includes offering free public relations programs in its markets.
“We are committed to providing at least the same level of local New Jersey news and public affairs coverage that WJLP does today, and we believe there are opportunities to do more,” Shapiro said. said.
Michael L. Diamond is a business reporter who has written on the New Jersey economy and healthcare industry for over 20 years. You can contact him at his [email protected].