The Economy

Possibly but I've been through five recessions/pull backs in this industry and advertising is often the first thing that gets cut.

 

All well-thought out points. In 2020 and 2021, the actual audience was up about 20% for my newscasts compared with 2019. Pandemic. Now we're seeing the numbers fall back under 2019 numbers. I'm trying to hang on 26 more years but I don't think the business will have that much left in it.

 

26 more years? My God man, how many recliners does a man need to defile at once?

 

Damn. Makes my goal of 7 months, 27 days seem doable.

 

One sturdy one over 3 so-so ones...

I'm planning to work until 73 or 74, if my health holds up. It doesn't have to be my current job but I could see myself transitioning into "work from home" news producing in a decade or so. Where I can just... write news. There will always be a need for that.

I have an economic "goal" for my future grandchildren and I want to see me still working until it is time to move to Del Boca Vista.

 

Exmedia, you're infinitely closer to the situation than I, but just as a viewer, I find it hard to believe local TV news will disappear. As long as there's winter weather (I understand you work in a market that has it), grisly late night murders and car crashes, car dealers and discount furniture stores, and most important, a steady supply of old people to watch, it may wax and wane in prosperity, but I sure think it'll be around.

 

I don't know if you work in a market where ABC, NBC and CBS affiliates run there late local news at 10 or 11. But what would be the combined market shares of the late news in your market. Back in the day newspapers would have a reporter assigned to the local media beat but who would report the local news ratings but now they are hard for me to find, But I do look at the national ratings and just shake my head at how much they have fallen.

Another question. I know at one time the networks compensated the local affiliates to carry programming. Contracts between the stations and networks were limited by the FCC to two years. Am I correct that rule has been eliminated?

The reason I ask is I wonder at what point the networks decide to cut out their local affiliates and just stream.

 

I'm kind of over CFA's ownership's politics. You have to be a true political warrior to find some concern not tainted by the Koch Brothers, Hobby Lobby, Big Oil or some pillow-fucker from Minnesota.

 

It is an established fact that restaurateurs, be they the three-star chefs of France or fast food chain owners, skew very conservative. When one's business is 100 percent dependent on discretionary spending by consumers, that's quite understandable. Even hippie-dippy Ben & Jerry's sold out to megaconglomerate Unilever.

 

I struggle to remember people still boycott them in places. Everyone eats CFA here, even my gay friends.

 

As long as there are still shitty soccer leagues and live betting in 2045, you're golden.

 

Seriously, if I'm 71 and writing news from home for my "square job" (IRS job) while I'm working 4 monitors with Europa, Belgian, Bundesliga, MLS Western Conference and Argentina Liga, I'm all good.