Fired in Pittsburgh
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On Tuesday, FTVLive showed you a screenshot from KDKA in Pittsburgh in which the station supered Patriots quarterback Tom Brady as a “Known Cheater.”
Word is the CBS brass saw the story on FTVLIve and made a call to the CBS O&O in the Burgh.
When the dust settled, Producer Michael Telek, who was responsible for the tweet was fired.
Telek claimed that the font was “a joke” and has started a GoFundMe page in which he claims none of the money is going to him.
As for the “joke”, we have some thoughts.
KDKA is storied Pittsburgh station that has a very long history. “Joking” on the newscast in one of the most competitive markets in the country was not a wise move. You are not Barstool Sports or some fringe sports website, you are at a CBS O&O.
Leave the “joke” in the newsroom and be professional on air.
Of course, some of the blame for this can be placed on the station and the industry as a whole.
Years ago, that font would have been seen by at least 4 or 5 people before it ever made its way to the air. Now, with newsroom cuts across the country, stations are doing more news with a lot less people. We work in a time where some guy’s “joke” makes it on the air.
Michael Telek got fired and I can’t say that it was not deserved.
Thanks to a President that calls the media “Fake News” and “The Enemy of the People” the spotlight is very bright on this business. Putting “jokes” on the air in a newscast is wrong and Telek found that out the hard way.
