It’s days like today that I’m really glad to be retired. As a former television station General Manager, I can only imagine the headaches associated with the firing of newscaster Matt Lauer. It was NBC News president, Andrew Lack, who made the announcement, a difficult decision considering Lauer’s popularity with viewers and complaint-free employment record. However, who other than a mafia boss, installs a button under their desk to lock the door? It comes on the heels of a similar situation at CBS News with Charlie Rose, one of Lauer’s rating rivals in the battle for morning news supremacy. George Stephanopoulos of ABC’s Good Morning America is the last man standing, along with his co-host Michael Strahan, but neither of them have the longevity, credibility, and fan support of their network counterparts. I just hope they don’t don’t employ a similar locksmith.

Most people don’t understand that the local affiliates of these major networks do not have much control over content. Each local station pays a hefty fee to their respective network for the exclusive rights to carry their programs. When something happens with the network, the tendency is to blame the local affiliate, and more specifically the local General Manager. I personally witnessed the wrath of viewers following the 2004 Superbowl and the halftime wardrobe malfunction. (See Post #94). Immediately following the incident and during the next several weeks our phone lines were jammed and my e-mail inbox full of complaints, that the majority felt was ALL my fault. Was I on stage with Janet Jackson and in position to prevent her breast from being exposed? No, I was not even invited to the game by CBS. Was I in control of the delay button that might have allowed us to cover the exposure? No, it was in the hands of our Indianapolis affiliate 75 miles away, and apparently was not even on a delay to allow this broadcast safeguard. Were we in control of the Superbowl telecast from Houston and what went out over the air?  Once again, NO. Did any of these viewers understand? NO.  In fact, there were organized efforts to petition our licence renewal and even threats on my life as the General Manager.

I’m sure that hundreds of CBS affiliates worldwide were faced with similar dilemmas a few weeks ago with the Charlie Rose accusations, and concurrently with the NBC affiliates and Matt Lauer’s release this morning. Questions like: how could you possibly hire a guy like that and why wasn’t he fired sooner? will inundate all the communication lines at media outlets associated with NBC. In truth, many of the people who run the local TV and radio affiliates as well as their print and internet partners, have never met either of these two former news superstars, let alone have a conversation or involvement in their employment. However, each does reap the benefit of their impact on the ratings, and therefore must deal with the public relations nightmares that follow in the wake of dismissal. NBC was the ratings leader in morning news nationwide, and Matt Lauer had a lot to do with that success. This also follows the suspension of NBC evening anchor Brian Williams two years ago, as he compromised his credibility with proven lies. As a result, the precious NBC brand has taken at least  two major hits that have seriously comprised the integrity of their most lucrative product – news.

Any kind of controversy creates exposure and can lead to a boost in ratings, depending on how it is handled. The quick resolution of this issue will diffuse extended coverage that a simple suspension might have created. NBC executives and local GM’s will hope for a bigger story tomorrow that will force this one to the background, as they regroup and try to move forward. In my final years of the business, I began to notice a huge swing in favor of women’s leadership in the broadcast business. Women seem to achieve success through forging partnerships, instead of resorting to intimidation and harassment.  From my perspective, it looks like the men are doing a good job of making themselves extinct. Like the millions of buffaloes that used to roam the prairies of the Old West, men in powerful broadcasting positions are declining in numbers. However, unlike the burly bison, their extinction is not the result of a hunter’s bullet, but rather by shooting themselves in the foot.