Colleagues at an Indiana news station choked back tears during their final broadcast together, amid changes that will see weather forecasters across the country fired or reassigned.
Patrece Dayton, news anchor at WTHI in Terre Haute, and Kevin Orpurt, the TV station's chief meteorologist, had a box of tissues ready when they revealed to loyal viewers that they were both losing their jobs.
“Kevin and I have been coming to your house for decades – almost 37 years for me,” Dayton said.
“And more than forty for me,” Orpurt added.
“For those of you who don't know, our positions are being eliminated here at WTHI-TV,” Dayton continued. “The television world in general is changing nationally and cuts are being made everywhere.”
The station's parent company, Allen Media Group, recently announced the sweeping budget cuts that will affect local meteorologists at its nearly two dozen stations across the country.
Dayton kept her cool through most of the heartbreaking broadcast, but near the end she grabbed Orpurt's hand for comfort as she choked.
“For the last time, good night and sleep tight,” she said before the broadcast cut off and the crew walked over to the duo to hug them.
Patrece Dayton (left) cries as former colleague and weatherman Kevin Orpurt holds her hand before their final broadcast. Both were fired during layoffs at Allen Media Group
The WTHI crew is seen embracing Dayton and Orpurt after the show ends
Amber Kulick, a meteorologist at WAAY in Huntsville, Alabama, was also affected by the widespread cuts.
“By now, most of you have probably seen the talk about Allen Media letting local meteorologists go, well, I'm someone who will be affected by this,” she wrote on Facebook.
“I'm still at the station for now, but I'm looking for my next career opportunity,” she added.
At least three meteorologists affected by or familiar with the staff cuts said about 100 people will be laid off as a result of the decision by Allen Media, a company owned by TV mogul Byron Allen.
A source familiar with the process offered CNN a more conservative figure of at least 50 people getting the ax.
Allen has an estimated net worth of $735 million and in 2022 tried to buy the Denver Broncos, an NFL team worth about $3.75 billion at the time. Last year he also made a failed $30 billion bid to grab Paramount Global.
The Weather Channel was acquired by Allen Media in March 2018 for $300 million.
There will be a national “hub,” based in Atlanta, led by Carl Parker, a veteran storm and climate specialist at The Weather Channel.
Instead of having locally produced segments, Parker will oversee a feed broadcast from Atlanta to local TV stations. The feed could be staffed by some of the meteorologists who lost their positions, CNN reported.
Christina Burkhart, a meteorologist who recently left WJRT in Flint, Michigan, explained in a Facebook post how this change will work.
“Weather forecasts are sent from The Weather Channel in Atlanta. These will be pre-recorded by regional meteorologists who will record hits for each Allen station. Live severe weather coverage will also come from them,” Burkhart wrote.
Byron Allen, owner of Allen Media Group, has tried to buy the Denver Broncos and Paramount Global
Carl Parker, storm and climate specialist at The Weather Channel, will lead a new group of Atlanta-based meteorologists
Amber Kulick, a meteorologist at WAAY in Huntsville, Alabama, was affected by the staff cuts and is looking for a new job
Allen Media said the Atlanta-based operation will provide local stations with new technologies, enhanced forecasting tools, additional graphics capabilities and the ability to cover weather stories at all hours of the day and night.
The company also said that weather reporting will remain a “top priority” and shared its belief that the new format will “dramatically improve reporting capabilities, especially in high-stakes weather conditions.”
This comes months after Bloomberg Law reported that Allen Media had significant debt and had entered into confidential discussions with its creditors to reach a deal.
Spencer Denton, a meteorologist at Gray Media-owned WVLT in Knoxville, Tenn., didn't necessarily agree that this will be wise in the long run.
'I don't think this is a good move and I don't see it as a success. It may save money in the short term, but take away value and credibility in the long term,” Denton wrote in a Facebook post. 'I personally know a number of people from this group who have been let go. They are great people, employees and meteorologists.”
He also noted that “AGAIN is the number one reason most people watch a local news broadcast.”
According to a 2019 Pew Research poll, weather was the most important news topic for 70 percent of Americans, with crime (44 percent) and traffic (41 percent) coming in a distant second and third, respectively.
Local news stations in California attracted huge audiences when the Los Angeles wildfires broke out and in the days that followed.
On January 7, when both the Palisades and Eaton fires began, KABC-TV in Los Angeles drew 318,000 viewers for the 6 p.m. news and just under 192,000 at 11 p.m. — up 86 percent and 42 percent from of the ABC affiliate's recent averages, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
