Monterey County CBS affiliate KION appears to be the victim of some local TV downsizing, abruptly killing its news department Wednesday morning, and their news will now be called KPIX News on KION, which sounds like just KPIX News.  

What with the whole Jimmy Kimmel dust-up over the last week, some of the public is just learning about the existence of chains of local TV station owners we were not familiar with, like Nexstar and Sinclair. The latest of these to enter the lexicon is a Missouri-based parent company called News-Press & Gazette Company, which owns 13 small-market stations in the western US. And we learn of them as KRON4 reports that the Salinas-Monterey CBS affiliate KION has laid off their entire newsroom staff, and will be sourcing their morning and evening news out to San Francisco’s KPIX, aka CBS5.

The news site Monterey County Now reports that 13 employees have lost their jobs, from news anchors, to reporters, to meteorologists, and producers. That site also adds that employees of the Spanish-language sister station Telemundo 23 are also among those who lost their jobs.

To hear KION brass (what’s left of them) tell it, this is some exciting and bold new development.

“KION is entering a new chapter in local news by partnering with KPIX CBS San Francisco to bring expanded news coverage to viewers across the Central Coast,” the station said in a Wednesday press release. “Starting today at 5 pm, KPIX News on KION will deliver the most significant stories from across Northern and Central California, while continuing to highlight local reporting, weather forecasts and community updates that matter most to residents of Monterey, Salinas, Santa Cruz, and beyond.”

But fired employees tell the website Lookout Santa Cruz a much different story. That outlet notes that the news staff had just had an all-hands retreat this past weekend where they “passed around slices from Pizza Factory and discussed how they could improve their operation.” Staff were not informed of the layoffs until their 10 am editorial meeting Wednesday.

“I couldn’t believe it,” KION assistant news director Victor Guzman told Lookout Santa Cruz. “I still can’t believe it. I ended my morning show by saying, ‘We’ll have more news at 5.’ I had no idea.”

According to KRON4, "KPIX had no involvement with the news department decision,” though it seems KPIX broadcasts will be used for the morning and evening news slots. Lookout Santa Cruz notes the laid-off employees will be paid the remainder of their contracts, and may be offered positions at other News-Press & Gazette Company stations, of which there are two in California.

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Image: KION