After her "What the fuck are you doing?" incident, Sue Simmons wasn't fired. In fact, she's getting what some might term a promotion. Betting on a ratings surge thanks to increased interest in Simmons and co-anchor Chuck Scarborough, WNBC/Channel 4 is increasing their on-air presence. CONTINUED »
The Sue Simmons and Bill O'Reilly scandals have reached the cable nets! Well, O'Reilly already responded to his Inside Edition flap, but last night Dan Abrams was on Verdict rehashing this exciting new trend.
Colleague Contessa Brewer joined him to relive some of her infamous, YouTube worthy moments. She also shared one piece of advice: You know how when you're jumping from one bed to the next, you should assume everyone has AIDS? Well when you're wearing a mic pack, you should always assume it's turned on. Especially when you go to the crapper.
Last night on Late Night, Conan O'Brien asked the Big Daddy of television news, Brian Williams, about the Sue Simmons, um, "incident." Who else can give this whole fiasco in some fiasco?
Simmons, who Williams says is a friend, made a "mistake" while "joking" with co-anchor Chuck Scarborough. Hey, that's what she said.
Williams himself acknowledged using "salty language" sometimes. And then he made an Eliot Spitzer joke!
And then he tried to explain the enigma that is Chris Matthews', a task only worthy a theatre critic.
Regarding the Post's scathing report that WNBC Sue Simmons enjoys a little sauce between news broadcasts: "Not one word of it is true. I haven't had an alcoholic drink between shows for at least 15 years or more. [...] I understand more now why many people don't trust the media." [NYP]
Journalism schools are $35,000-a-year lessons on writing in the reverse pyramid format and practicing reading from a teleprompter. We should know: We went to one! It was the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, where the walls are lined with photos of people like Ted Koppel and Bob Costas, glaring at you with a message of, "We made it, so can you!"
Heh. Not exactly.
"J-schools should downplay anchor careers," argues blogger Corey Bergman. "If you work in local TV news, what percentage of your interns in the last couple years have said they want to become anchors? In my experience, the number is 50 percent or greater. But let’s look at the trends. News consumption is shifting fast to the 'anchorless' internet. Stations are negotiating anchor salaries down and even moving some shows to a single news anchor format. Layoffs are growing increasingly common, and some TV stations are dropping news altogether. While I don’t like to shatter an intern’s anchor dreams, it’s time for a dose of reality. Journalism schools, as a public service, should strongly discourage students from pursuing an anchoring career." [LR]
For all those reasons, yes. And also.
It's open season on WNBC anchor Sue Simmons, though it's not like she didn't bring it upon herself.
The Times goes pretty easy on her, rounding up New Yorkers' reactions to her "What the fuck are you doing?" line, while ducking around what she actually said. (Family paper and all.) [NYT] There's also the official excuse, which was that Simmons was talking to co-anchor Chuck Scarborough in "mock derision," since he was looking at his computer screen and not paying attention during the live promo spot.
And then there's the Post's take, which involves alcohol. CONTINUED »
So this is sort of interesting. The first Google News result for "Sue Simmons," the WNBC anchor who let it fly during a live promo, is her apology: "I have to acknowledge an unfortunate incident : I used a word that many people find offensive. It was a mistake I made and I'm truly sorry." [Google News]
Ohmigod we love WNBC's Sue Simmons. She's everything we want in a local news anchor: Personable, but not too friendly. Wise, but not condescending. Tastefully dressed, but not too frumpy.
And she drops the F-bomb on air. During one of those annoying promo spots that TV stations insist on airing before returning from, or entering into, a commercial break, Simmons ends the spot by asking, "What the fuck are you doing?" Yes, she's already apologized for it, and she probably won't lose her job over it, because thankfully her on-air misstep did not include a racial, sexist, or homophobic slur.
But Simmons does join Bill O'Reilly in the "angry behind the scenes" type of way. Because while watching TV talent like Simmons might make you feel like you're a more informed citizen, this outburst shows what makes up at least part of her character: The raging, short-tempered woman who's furious she's still doing local news. We're guessing. CONTINUED »
Daily News local TV industry scribe Richard Huff, a member of a dying breed, sees good fortune in the exit of WNBC Channel 4's news SVP Dan Forman. Might his replacement have Sue Simmons and Chuck Scarborough start anchoring a broadcast filled with breaking news instead of mere investigative reporting? Audiences, argues Huff, want to see a reporter stationed outside of a house fire; stand outside a courthouse, even if it's bitterly cold and raining, because the shot looks stronger. But viewers also want their talent to be passionate about the news, which leads to Huff's most immediate suggestion: Steal a network star, or even make an offer to Alycia Lane, the down-on-her-luck "dyke bitch"-screaming former Philly news anchor who would certainly deliver ratings, or at least a publicity push.
Editorial Director
