Layoffs Hit Midwest Family Broadcasting's WTDY Madison

WTDY website screenshot

News, traffic and on-air staff of radio station 1670 WTDY-AM and 106.7 WTDY-FM (Midwest Family Broadcasting) were laid off Wednesday, including talk show host John "Sly" Sylvester, according to channel3000.com.

The layoffs included all news, traffic and on-air staff, with the exception of one employee, according to a company memo.

The WTDY website was replaced by a holiday message and the station began airing Christmas music Wednesday afternoon.

Randy Hawke, WTDY's operations manager, said the radio station will run a Christmas music format until after the holidays. He said managers will announce the new format then.

"It's a crowded market," said Hawke, referring to the three news-talk stations in the Madison market.  He said WTDY consistently came in third in the ratings.

John Sly

He would not comment on the number of employees laid off.

Personality John "Sly" Sylvester told WISC-TV that seven or eight people were laid off.

He said the news surprised him, because his show had good ratings recently and had plenty of sponsors.

"After 15 years, it's very disappointing and a difficult day for me, because I really love doing what I do," Sylvester said. "Especially during the protests, I really feel like we hit our stride. We covered something in a way that really nobody else does."

Sylvester said he would like to stay in radio if another station wanted to hire him.

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The lay-offs come after five  positions were eliminated at Midwest in Springfield, MO during the summer.

Tom's Take: After the holidays, could CBS Radio Sports be next for WTDY?