Fired In Champaign
/The Matthew White that was cited lived in Champaign, IL, which is also where WCIA Anchor Matthew White lives and works.
Matthew White that was cited for drug possession also has the same birthday as WCIA’s Matthew White.
When FTVLive reached out to the WCIA Anchor to ask him if it was him that was cited, he told FTVLive it was not him.
Many that read the FTVLive story told us they think that the Anchor lied to FTVLive.
Since FTVLive posted that story, White has not posted to either his Facebook or Twitter account.
Well, yesterday we got an email from an insider at WCIA and they said that News Director Andy Miller fired an employee on the morning show.
But, if you are thinking that it was Matthew White, you would be wrong.
According to the insider, the person was let go by Miller because the WCIA News Director believed that he was the one that leaked the story to FTVLive.
Miller sent an email to the staff, informing them that all the station’s social media passwords had been changed, just after the employee was sacked.
While FTVLive would never confirm who are our sources on any story, we will confirm with 100% certainty, that the employee that was let go from WCIA played no part in leaking information to FTVLive.
As for Matthew White, if the station wants to keep him, that is completely their call. But, don’t they owe the viewers some transparency? As we noted in the first story, it appears that part of White’s “community service” was carried out on WCIA’s newscast. The viewer was not informed about that.
If the Mayor of Champaign is cited for drug possession in the state of Indiana, don’t you think WCIA would cover the story?
Just like the Mayor, TV anchors are public figures and should be treated the same.
I’m not sure firing the person you thought was the whistleblower is the answer here.
This is one very strange station with a very checkered history.