KNWA Drops AP Wire Service
by October 11, 2004 12:00 am 91 views
In another apparent cost-cutting effort, KNWA has cancelled its Associated Press wire service. Instead, the NBC affiliate’s anchors often cite local newspapers as the source for nationwide and local stories.
Blake Russell, general manager of the television station previously known as NBC 24/51, said KNWA receives its wire information from Regional News Service through Newsroom Solutions LLC. Russell wouldn’t say whether KNWA had saved money by dropping AP.
In September, Russell said the station would stop buying Nielsen Media Research’s trade area report for Northwest Arkansas. That could save KNWA as much as $100,000 per year.
This past summer, Russell consolidated his news staff in KNWA’s Fayetteville newsroom, but the station still has an office and sales staff in Fort Smith. Traditionally, the three network television stations have maintained two newsrooms, one in Fort Smith and one in Northwest Arkansas.