Director's Cut Blog with Frank Macek

By Frank Macek As newsrooms across the country continue to juggle relentless deadlines, evolving platforms, shrinking margins, and rising expectations, one truth remains constant—strong producers are the backbone of local television news. They are the conductors of the daily symphony, balancing editorial judgment, logistics, storytelling, and leadership, often under extraordinary pressure. That is why TEGNA’s Producer-in-Residence (PIR) program is not just a training initiative, but one of the most important long-term investments the company makes in the future of local journalism. As the Producer-in-Residence program gears up for a new year, WKYC will welcome two Producers-in-Residence. The addition is notable not only for the newsroom as a whole, but particularly for producing teams navigating the demands of a fast-paced, multi-platform environment. The Producer-in-Residence program is designed with one core mission: to identify, develop, and support the next generation of broadcast ...

By Frank Macek WKYC Studios has these job openings available if you are looking for a rewarding career experience with us at TEGNA Media's Cleveland location. We've also now added opportunities for our sister TEGNA stations in Columbus and Toledo as well as other Broadcast Director openings across the country. Current WKYC/Cleveland Job Openings Account Executive   Multiskilled Journalist   Current WBNS/Columbus Job Openings Account Executive   Chief Meteorologist   Freelance Meteorologist (2) Meteorologist Multi-Skilled Journalist  (2) Story Desk Editor Current WTOL/Toledo Job Openings Account Executive Executive Producer  **NEW** Morning Anchor MSJ  *NEW** Multiskilled Journalist New Business Account Executive   Current Broadcast Director Jobs Tegna Openings Broadcast Director  - KMBT/KJAC (Beaumont, TX) Broadcast Director  - KSDK (St. Louis, MO) Broadcast Director  - KWES (Midland-Odessa, TX) Broadcast Director  - WGRZ (Bu...

By Frank Macek UPDATE: 12/25 Due to the weather and breaking news, NBC has canceled Tom's visit to Cleveland today. ------------------------- NBC Nightly News will have a distinctly Cleveland backdrop on Monday, December 15, as anchor Tom Llamas brings the network’s flagship evening newscast to the city for a live broadcast at 6:30 p.m. The visit includes time at WKYC Studios and is part of Llamas’ broader effort to tour the country and connect directly with NBC’s local affiliates. Llamas’ Cleveland stop places Northeast Ohio squarely on the national stage—something the city continues to earn through its relevance to stories shaping the country. From economic reinvention and health care to climate resilience and the evolving media industry itself, Cleveland offers a real-world lens on national issues. Broadcasting live from the city reinforces NBC News’ commitment to grounding its reporting in the communities where those stories live. The visit to WKYC carries particular weight. C...

By Frank Macek The Cleveland Crunch are entering a new chapter in their modern revival, thanks to a new partnership that will bring all of their home games exclusively to WKYC+. Beginning January 10, 2026, every match played at the Wolstein Center will stream live on the platform, giving fans across Northeast Ohio a direct and convenient way to follow the team. It’s a move that reflects both the Crunch’s growing momentum and WKYC Studios’ continued expansion of its digital footprint.  For the Crunch, the agreement is more than a broadcast arrangement. It signals the team’s commitment to reconnecting with longtime fans while introducing indoor soccer to a new audience.  The Crunch hold a nostalgic place in Cleveland sports history, dating back to their championship years in the National Professional Soccer League. Since the franchise relaunched, the organization has focused on rebuilding its identity and reestablishing indoor soccer as a staple of Cleveland’s sports culture. A ...

By Frank Macek Jennifer Lindgren (via LinkedIn) When Jennifer Lindgren walked into the WKYC newsroom in August 2010, she arrived with the energy of a journalist who knew exactly where she wanted to go. She had already put in the mileage—working in Columbia, South Carolina at WLTX and later in Jacksonville at WTLV—but Cleveland became the city where she sharpened her voice, tested her limits, and proved just how versatile a reporter could be. For those of us who remember her time at Channel 3, Jennifer wasn’t just a reporter on the roster. She was a one-woman production house, a journalist who could do it all before “MMJ” became an industry buzzword. Her role at WKYC was, in many ways, ahead of the curve. Jennifer wasn’t simply reporting the news. She was shooting it, editing it, writing it, producing it, and then standing in front of the camera to deliver it. On her official WKYC profile at the time, she described herself as “a wearer of many hats,” and she wasn’t exaggerating. She’d h...

By Frank Macek The great unraveling of the local television broadcasting workforce didn’t happen in one dramatic moment. It didn’t arrive with a corporate memo, a breaking-news ticker, or a major newsroom shakeup. It happened slowly, quietly, and then all at once.  Over the last decade—especially in the last five years—I’ve watched the industry I love lose people at every level and from every corner: producers, directors, photojournalists, anchors, engineering veterans, editors, creative staff, and digital teams who once saw broadcasting as a lifelong career. The exits are no longer surprising. They’re expected. And more than that, they’re telling us something we’ve been reluctant to confront. Why are so many people walking away from an industry once defined by loyalty and longevity? In my view, the answer isn’t simple, but it is unmistakable: local TV no longer looks like the business many of us signed up for. The job changed, the expectations changed, the economics changed, and i...