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Subscribe to RSSUpdated at 9 p.m. ET: Anyone who has been fed up with salary, management or other issues that have made a job unbearable has surely dreamed of a "take-this-job-and-shove-it" moment. For most, though, news of the moment likely wouldn't make it outside the workplace walls.
That wasn't the case for a TV news anchor duo in Bangor, Maine, who quit their jobs in front of thousands of viewers at the end of Tuesday evening's newscast.
In what was reportedly inspired by a conflict with upper management, co-anchors Cindy Michaels and Tony Consiglio announced to viewers that it would be their last show, the Bangor Daily News reported.
The news anchors shared more than 12 years of experience working for WVII and sister station WFVX, according to the Daily News.
"Some recent developments have come to our attention ... and departing together is the best alternative we can take," Consiglio told viewers.
"We wanted to be able to say a thoughtful, heartfelt good-bye to our viewers and to the many communities we served over the years," Michaels told NBC News in an email Wednesday. "We scripted something to keep from getting off-course and emotional."
Michaels, 46, and Consiglio, 28, didn't tell anyone of their decision before the newscast, according to the Bangor Daily News. The newspaper reported the journalists were frustrated over the last four years with the way they were told to do their jobs. In her signoff, Michaels claimed the two were "the longest running news team in Bangor," with six years at the desk.
"There was a constant disrespecting and belittling of staff and we both felt there was a lack of knowledge from ownership and upper management in running a newsroom to the extent that I was not allowed to structure and direct them professionally,” Michaels, who also served as the station's news director, told the Bangor Daily News. Her co-anchor, Consiglio, also served as executive producer for the station.
"There was a regular undoing of decisions made by me, the news director," Michaels told NBC News, citing that politically-charged stories were sometimes not treated with an unbiased approach.
Related: Dramatic tales of leaving jobs
Michaels' public LinkedIn profile indicates she has worked at the station since October 2006. Consiglio, who was first a sports anchor and reporter before moving over to the news anchor role, has worked at the station since April 2006, according to his public LinkedIn profile.
Mike Palmer, the station's vice president and general manager, told the Bangor Daily News the incident was "unfortunate, but not unexpected." Palmer denied claims that upper management was involved in daily news production.
But a 2006 New York Times' story indicates that may not be true. Following a broadcast segment about the showing of Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth," Palmer wrote to his staff that they should refrain from reporting on global warming until Bar Harbor is underwater.
He explained: “a) we do local news, b) the issue evolved from hard science into hard politics and c) despite what you may have heard from the mainstream media, this science is far from conclusive.”
According to the Times' report, Palmer likened global to “global warming stories in the same category as ‘the killer African bee scare’ from the 1970s or, more recently, the Y2K scare when everyone’s computer was going to self-destruct.”
As of Wednesday morning, WVII's employment page listed no open job opportunities, but the Bangor Daily News reported Palmer posted online job opening ads Tuesday night.
The anchors are moving on: Michaels told viewers she will pursue freelance writing, while Consiglio said he'll continue his career "in another capacity."
See the video of the co-anchors final sign-off on the Bangor Daily News website.
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Leave a Comment:
WOW
That was a wonderful and classy parting shot.
All those that thought you should be polite and give 2 weeks notice have their heads in the sand. Employers just walk you out the door when they lay you off or fire you. Maybe they give you two weeks pay and maybe they don't. Happened both ways to me.
I had one loser company, when I resigned and then they asked me to leave that day (the 30th), wanted me to pay back the one day (the 31st) since I got paid monthly on the 30th. I didn't.
This is a common problem amongst news stations across the country. A new PD or GM comes in just freshly graduated from business school and this 25 year old kid with a chip on his shoulder thinks he knows news. Therefore veteran achors feels insulted particularly when asked to dumb the news down for commercial and competitive reasons. The business is so cut throat today that it’s a joke. Here in Los Angeles many veterans (Harold Greene, Paul Moyers) have seen themselves kicked to the curb by flash in the pan kids who think they know everything. Lately Dorothy Lucey and Gillian were kicked out for similar reasons.
The Walmart effect has come to news.
@James: ...You are correct. Modern news is more like an entertainment show instead of something serious.
As I don't live in the Maine anymore I don't watch their news program but when I did they were my favorite anchors. I wish them the best of luck in there new endeavors!
their, not there...or they're for that matter
Good for them.
way to go fellow mainers! work is a co-operative arrangement. so many comments here assume it is a master/slave relationship. they are very astute professionals, albeit in a small town, but will certainly not have hampered their careers, and show that journalism is not to be manipulated for profit.
I bet they were not too outraged to cash their checks.
I know I wouldn't hire either one of them after that little episode. To me, it shows a poor lack of judgement and what fool would hire them at risk of being next if they disagree with you?
Oh well, 2 new jobs are open for ANYONE WHO CAN READ THE NEWS OFF A TELEPROMPTER.
..." Anyone who can read a teleprompter" ???? ...OK, don't worry folks; I won't touch it.
And, they wouldn't hire you either.
Oh Villian157,
You are too funny! "I know I wouldn't hire them..."
What t.v. station do you own? I know a fool that can read a teleprompter that should apply for your job offer, he's an up and coming actor working as our president until he gets his big break in Hollywood.
@noneof: ...LOL! ...I hear his first Hollywood role is going to be a real-life horror story with King Obama playing the lead role of a voodoo witchdoctor who commands a legion of brainless, soulless zombies called Obamasites.
I'm sure it made them feel better, but it sure would make any future employers steer clear of them. People have to understand that actions have consequences!
Van Man,
Even though many of you wish we were the USSR, as of right now it is still the USA, so until the day (sometime in 2016) when we are forced to become commies, Americans are still entitled to seek employment elsewhere in the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness.
Of course, it did not occur to you that this may be the consequence of someone else's action (or lack thereof) and that these anchors hold a great value in their ethics, like expecting them to bend over backwards to kiss the corporate butt is less than their subscribers deserve. One needs to accept that some things exist even though they are not immediately apparent.
Typical American corporate "management" blows dead dogs. Glad these people had the fortitude to give them the finger in an acceptable format and manner. I'm sure they have a thousand times the class their bosses do.
Why is this news?
It's a slow day...the media isn't allowed to cover real issues like the war, the economy swirling down the toilet, Agenda 21, the UN, or Libya so this is it. It is a news story however, as they get to talk in code that they have been forced to lie to us for FOUR YEARS, and some of them have had enough.
Better question is, why did you click the link?
Everyone who is taking the side of the reporters is forgetting the golden rule — "He who has the gold rules"
Should we take notes?
you obviously need to if you ever want to get ahead in business
Personal integrity trumps bowing to "he who has the gold," any day.
Good - now she is unemployed and her integrity will run out when her money does.
Bufferilla,
You seem to have an unusually vested interest in this story...your anger towards these two is evident in every single post thus far...what exactly is your angle? And who pissed in your cereal this morning?
Oh, Buffy, believing in money won't get you very far. There's not as much gold in the Ft Knox piggy bank as you think. Congress has been selling it off in exchange for our own worthless currency for a couple generations now. So, you just go on and hang your hat with those who give us nothing more than a parody of the American Dream, sit back and criticize other people.
noneoftheabovein08, maybe now would be a good time to change your user name to "...in16". Clearly, the republicans and democrats are still unwilling to concede their true agenda.
Unca Joe,
Yeah, I should do that, but when the crap hits the fan and they send me to prison for not following their new rules, I want to have the satisfaction of knowing that I wasn't blind to the joint task force (otherwise known as Demo and Repub parties) and their annihilation of the USA.
Bravo, none. Loved the "joint task force" metaphor. May I use that?
Stay classy San Diego
I worked for a company in Mass. that loved to fire people for the h$ll of it. They got a big contract in maine and told us all to be there on Sunday morning at 6. Well the week before I made some calls and landed a job in New Jersey at double the amount . I left and told them nothing. They called me for about six weeks promising raises and threats . They didn't like getting what they handed out. Some companys need that to make them think a little.
Just nothing but more of the corrupt Republican NEWS MEDIA corporate MONARCHY continuing to dictate the news to the 99% American People!
At least these two newsanchors had the guts to walk out! Corruption at its finest! Never ending!
And there was no possibility that the station's views were too liberal for these reporters
...In this dismal age of Obamaganda, it IS highly likely the station's views were too liberal for them to stomach.
The ABC and FOX news stations in Bangor are owned by the same company. The Bangor FOX affiliate and the Bangor ABC affiliate are a joint venture, especially with the news rooms. The ABC affiliate produces the news programs that are aired on the FOX channel; in fact the morning news is simulcast on both channels. My guess, based on previously published comments from the management, is that a conservative slant was being dictated.
Chances are, their futures were already lost having had worked for those bosses, in the first place.
Can you imagine had they left, politiely, and then asked for a reference? Those bosses would've ruined their careers behind their backs, indefinately..., and they wouldn't have even known it. They'd get rejected from job to job, for months, if not more; and not know why.
At least, this way, they've counted their losses and moved on; without wasting any more time.
Most American corporate management can't distinguish its personal psychological problems from management and consider their petty control issues to be good management. Most wouldn't know a good employee if they slapped them with a 2 X 4. It's what's wrong with American business, control and exploitation have become more important than innovation and productivity. Yeah, just continue to follow that negative infinite regression all the way to the bottom of the rabbit hole ...
You will see more and more of this happening at "local" news stations. Upper management add news programs on multiple stations sharing the same facility while reducing employee count. Working conditions at these stations is generally deplorable. Most companies did not think through the transition to digital broadcast and/or create an internet strategy very well so they are losing money.
Most of the people I worked with at a market 115 NBC affiliate are now in marketing or corporate television making better money. I decided to get my electrical engineering degree after directing for 8.5 years making less than $12/hour (I had to fight tooth and nail to get to that wage!).
As a nation, we need s lot more of this sort of thing.
It's time to put ALL the empty suits in their place, and let them know their plans to turn us all into boot-licking wage slaves have come to nought.
Just like we did with Romney.
...What about the "empty chairs"?
getagrip1, do you mean the "empty chairs" broadcast on CSPAN? If you take a good look, you may just get an idea of who's skinnin' us mules.
And you are sure that these employees did not have unreasonable expectations
I don't know Bufferilla, why don't you enlighten us since you obviously know something the rest of us don't.
Too many scared into conformity type comments. I say burn useless bridges and build better ones. Too many people are afraid to be individuals. Smart people understand and like mavericks, only bosses that like brown nosing sycophants would not hire these two.
What does bother me was this.
"Mike Palmer, the station's vice president and general manager, told the Bangor Daily News the incident was "unfortunate, but not unexpected." Palmer denied claims that upper management was involved in daily news production.
How can that make sense? "but not unexpected" but "denied claims that upper management was involved".
If there were not interference in the structure and job performance? If there was not interference in how they reported or in what they reported to the extent that they both felt that they could not do their job to the best of their ability or in the best interest of the public? Why did they feel that "need" to resign? Why were they feeling ? wronged and maybe stifled???
Personally I feel that way more "honest" reporting and true facts are being hidden, buried and denied air and news time. It's been going on for decades.
Very well done. I can appreciate their frustration with someone who does not know the job telling you how to do it.
I wish them nothing but the best.
HMMMM.......A LIBERAL TV station won't negotiate with a woman?? Damn LIBERALS and their "war on women"!!
Bernie - it's not a liberal station. ABC and FOX affiliates are owned jointly in Bangor and share newsrooms. The manager for the two stations is most definitely a conservative and has prevented global warming stories from being broadcast in the past.
It is obvious why unemployment numbers are so high from the idealistic posts expecting employers to tiptoe around their employees so they will not start crying.
Bufferilla apparently you are one of the under my thumb employers.
'The newspaper reported the journalists were frustrated over the last four years with the way they were told to do their jobs.'
Hmmm...let me think what could have happened in the last four years that would make these news anchors so upset? Could it be they were tired of being told what they could and could not report about a certain POTUS? Could it be that there are journalists with honor and integrity still living in our country?
Nah, that would too coincidental and rather hopeful therefore it cannot be remotely true.
@noneof: ...Good point! ...They were probably "old school" and just couldn't stomach the big "change" from unbiased news reporting to Obamaganda.
You Clowns are as Retarded as alot of Mainiacs. You did see where they could report unbiasedly. That's Maine for you. It is a BS place to live. I left the when I was 19 in 1966 and never looked back. I went back long enough for my fathers death and left shortly after. This will T Off a lot of people there but you can keep that Rats Hole. You Clowns are as goofy the mainiacs, you should there as you would fit right in.