Major changes are underway at a Vernon radio station. The local news department at Sun FM has been closed, impacting news director Betty Selin and reporter Kate Bouey. “We are modifying our news strategy,” said Don Shafer, Kelowna-based vice-president and regional manager for Astral Media. “These are unfortunate changes but they reflect the times.” Besides the current economic downturn, Shafer says there was a need to look at operations because of new technology. “The way people get news and gather news is changing,” he said. “All news gathering organizations are changing and we’re changing with that.” While there won’t be a dedicated newsroom, Shafer insists Sun FM will continue to follow current events in the North Okanagan. “We will continue to do a morning news run,” he said.
“We will use our announcer staff in Vernon to cover Vernon.” Bouey had been with the station for about two years and was responsible for covering the RCMP and Vernon city hall beats. Selin has been associated with the local station for
about 30 years, and along with being news director, she is co-host of
Sun’s morning show. “We hope Betty will stay with us with the morning show and Betty is considering her options,” said Shafer. Selin could not be reached for comment. Sun FM has also reduced newsroom staff in Kelowna and Terrace.
No comments:
Post a Comment