Plagiarism Charges
It appears Glenn Austin got totally reamed when he was fired last year by WKRG. Now the station has had to settle his lawsuit with them and issue a retraction.
No word on whether the station or its ownership will discipline News Director Dan Cates, but it seems to me the buck’s got to stop somewhere and Austin isn’t the first former WKRGer who has felt abused.
Tags: cates, glenn austin, plagiarism, retraction, wkrg
March 13th, 2008 at 8:18 am
Dan Cates also got rid of Randy Wood and has lied throughout his career
in management. How strange Cates says Media General has a zero
tolerance towards plagiarism but not against lying with impugnity.
Cates has no credibility, has no leadership skills and has a
mediocre intellect at best. WKRG needs a new person at the helm
in the newsroom to restore its image in the community and morale
in the building. Dan Cates can become a fulltime Pastor now. Another
profession full of sanctimonious hypocrites.
March 13th, 2008 at 8:28 am
“WKRG needs a new person at the helm
in the newsroom to restore its image in the community and morale
in the building.”
Two words:
MELVIN SHOWERS
March 13th, 2008 at 8:28 am
Or better yet:
SCOTT HUNTER
Gawd, I miss him
March 18th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
I interned at WKRG in the summer 2002, and did ride-alongs with several reporters. Some things I learned in my time there:
1. The photojournalists (don’t call them ‘cameramen’!) are often smarter than the reporter who gets the face time
2. The sales offices, while several halls away from the physical news room, are very, very connected
3. Jason Wheeler, Meris Norman, Chad Alexander (sp?) and Angela(Poe)Russell knew to get out while the getting was good
4. John Nodar is just as goofy (in a good way) and Alan Sealls is just as nice as they seem–both on-camera and off
5. Steve Alexander likes the ladies
6. Pat Peterson is a Southern Miss homer
You’ll notice I never mention learning much about journalism, because I didn’t. Whatever quality there was amongst local TV news in Mobile has been reduced over the past few years. It’s more of a show than a news program.
March 20th, 2008 at 8:01 am
Rumor has it Media General has already decided to let Dan Cates go but may take 6 months
to do it. Senior management doesn’t want to compound their embarrassment by making a quick
move and finding anyone with experience and a brain who wants that job isn’t easy. But come
Christmas time, Mr. Cates will be cashing unemployment checks, not paychecks. And Media General
has no intention of transferring Cates to another station they own. As for his part time gig
as a Pastor, who would want to listen to a sermon by this sociopath? And if he gets another
job as a news director, only a rookie would be naive enough to work for him. He can sit at home,
ask God for forgiveness while watching Glenn Austin give press conferences for the Escambia County
Sheriff’s Department. Justice, indeed.