Trimming the Roster   

Staff size falls but ratings inch up at Dallas' KTVT-TV.

Staff size falls but ratings inch up at Dallas' KTVT-TV, the latest acquisition by CBS Television Stations Division. Following the completion of the station¹s sale from Gaylord Entertainment Co., between 30 and 40 employees leave‹including morning anchor Ginger Gadsden and reporter Mark Annick. Longtime meteorologist Bob Goosmann, whose contract expired at year¹s end, is the only other on-air personality to go. General Manager Brian Jones won't confirm the numbers of departures or remaining staff but says the reduction, achieved through layoffs and attrition, "generally...was an effort to get the station's staffing levels in line" with other CBS-owned-and-operated stations. KTVT is the 16th station to be bought by CBS and is in the nation's seventh largest market. KTVT, independent until becoming a CBS affiliate in 1995, has been climbing in the ratings, Jones says. In November, its 10 p.m. newscast moved up a notch to become the third most-watched out of four, and, Jones says, "we showed a 26 percent increase in audience year-to-year."