Nexstar Media Group, the owner of numerous local TV stations including KTLA in Los Angeles, carried out significant on-air layoffs Wednesday, affecting veteran personalities at KTLA and other major market outlets as part of cost-cutting efforts tied to its proposed merger with Tegna.
At KTLA, longtime morning meteorologist Mark Kriski (a fixture since 1991 and an eight-time Emmy winner), midday anchors Glen Walker (since 2010) and Lu Parker (since 2015), weathercaster Kacey Montoya, and reporter Ellina Abovian were among those laid off.
- WGN-TV in Chicago saw around 10 layoffs, including on-air talent, with eight SAG-AFTRA members affected.
- WPIX in New York also lost about a dozen on-air workers.
These reductions follow Nexstar's pattern of trimming staff across its portfolio of local stations (which include affiliates of major networks like ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC) amid debt pressures and preparations for the Tegna merger.
Union SAG-AFTRA condemned the moves as eroding local news resources and failing to prioritize public interest, highlighting broader concerns about media consolidation's impact on journalism.
Nexstar has not detailed the full scope or commented specifically on individual personnel decisions, but the layoffs represent one of the latest waves in ongoing challenges facing local broadcast TV.