Anchors Working More for Less   

High-paid news readers may soon be a relic.

While anchoring local television news is still a lucrative job in some big cities, overall, annual pay for anchors has plunged dramatically. And although many anchors still make more money than corporate CEOs for doing little more than sitting at a desk and reading from a TelePrompTer, at many stations they are being asked to do much more.

Despite the drop in salary, anchors are still far better paid than most of the producers, videographers, assignment managers, directors and engineers who get the newscasts on the air. Sometimes the disparity in pay is obscene, with anchors making 10 to 20 times what the rank-and-file earn. The gap seems especially ironic to some since in many cases anchors are not paid for their journalistic competence, but for their likability and communications skills.

"With rare exceptions," writes critic Howard Rosenberg of the Los Angeles Times, "local anchors are personalities and nothing more, extravagantly paid studio emcees, news readers and chit-chatters who are the human chess pieces that station managers move around in their quest to attract the largest possible audiences."

This traditional caustic characterization may be true at some stations. "It's an age-old question of what is most important for a newscast, journalism or anchors," says Emily Rooney, former news director at Boston's top rated WCVB and now executive producer of ABC's evening news. "But the fact is, many people still select a broadcast on who the anchor is, whether they're good journalists or not."

But many others contend that image is not representative of the industry.

"Maybe that's the environment in L.A. or New York," says Tony Ballew, news director at Cleveland's WKYC. "But you can't get away with that in Cleveland, Dayton or Des Moines. Anchors have to be able to think and to know what they're talking about."

"More and more stations want anchors who are also reporters who can be sent to cover the big story," says Sandra Connell, vice president of talent placement for Audience Research & Development, a news consulting firm. "Our research shows that content is becoming more important to the viewer. Sure, an anchor has to be a good reader and good communicator. But nowadays he or she has to show they know more and can do more."

"Anchors better have a good brain or they won't last," adds agent Pam Pulner, who has dozens of clients in television newsrooms across the country. "Every time an anchor goes live in a tough breaking news situation he or she is putting the station in jeopardy. The responsibilities are enormous. He or she instantly becomes an editor, a conciliator, an attorney, even a psychologist. Viewers watch certain anchors because they've learned to trust them and what they say. Empty-headed anchors don't generate much trust."

But while expectations for anchors are increasing, salaries are plummeting. "Anchor salaries are down by 25 percent in many markets," says Jim Willi, executive vice president of Audience Research & Develop- ment. "If anchors aren't willing to take pay cuts, they're usually replaced by someone willing to work for much, much less. It's not unusual for a station in a top 50 market to replace an anchor making $250,000 to $300,000 with someone making $60,000 or $70,000."

A 1992 survey by Dr. Vernon Stone sponsored by the Radio-Television News Directors Association and the University of Missouri pegged the median salary for the highest paid anchors at network affiliates in the top 25 markets at $264,000. "That was for the star anchors," says Stone. "The folks who anchor the noon and weekend news at those stations averaged a lot less, $150,000. Anchors at independent stations make much, much less, averaging $62,500 for the [top] anchors and $55,000 for the typical."

There are, of course, exceptions, usually in big markets, where popular anchors attract huge audiences – veterans such as WLS' John Drury in Chicago and KNBC's Paul Moyer in Los Angeles earn more than $1 million annually.

Not surprisingly, those still getting the big salaries are mostly men. It's only within the last few years that popular anchors like Natalie Jacobson at Boston's WCVB, Monica Kauffman at WSB in Atlanta and Bree Walker at KCBS in Los Angeles have been paid salaries equal to or better than men's salaries.

But high paid celebrity anchors may disappear. Some speculate that the anchor's role will soon be less important, even unnecessary. Technology is altering how television news is delivered. Rather than watching an anchor "present" the stories in a formal newscast, viewers in the near future may use a computer menu to select the specific news videos they want to see. A reporter would continue to supply the information for each but there would be no need for an anchor to introduce the stories or tie them together.

Until that happens, anchors will continue to be an essential element in the race for ratings, whether they sit and read or take a more active role. l