Chicago TV: Layoffs Hit On-Air WGN-TV Talent

WGN-TV (Channel 9) laid off eight veteran reporters and anchors on Monday in a major cost-cutting move by owner Nexstar Media Group, shocking the newsroom and raising concerns about the future of local news coverage at “Chicago’s Very Own.”

Among those let go was Sean Lewis, a nearly 20-year veteran who has anchored weekend morning broadcasts since 2010. “This afternoon, I filed my last report for WGN on the noon show,” the 50-year-old Lewis said. “A lot of really good people lost their jobs today, and it’s a shame.”

Lewis, a union steward, was initially in a meeting supporting a colleague being laid off when management asked him to stay and informed him he was also being terminated. 

By evening, the total reached eight on-air staffers. Some reporters were sent home mid-shift, sources said.

The cuts follow months of reductions at the station, including six newswriters and three technical directors eliminated last month, and four floor director positions cut in October. Insiders describe a demoralized newsroom, with one source saying the day left staff “speechless” and calling it “a pretty rough day.” They fear the ongoing downsizing under Nexstar is turning the station into “a shell of its former self,” potentially diminishing the quality and depth of Chicago-centric reporting due to lost institutional knowledge.

Nexstar spokesperson Gary Weitman declined to comment on personnel matters but stated: “The company is taking steps necessary to compete effectively in this period of unprecedented change.”

New news director Akemi Harrison, appointed in August, is scheduled to hold staff meetings Tuesday to discuss reorganization, according to sources.

The layoffs come amid Nexstar’s broader business moves, including its 2019 acquisition of Tribune Media (which brought WGN under its umbrella) and a pending $6.8 billion merger with Tegna that awaits FCC approval. The company has also shifted resources toward its cable news network NewsNation.