Clear Channel Lays Off Five Local Engineers

As part of a nationwide cut of 590 employees, nearly half of the local Clear Channel IT and broadcast engineers were let go Tuesday, April 28.

While local management couldn’t name names, SDRadio.net wasn’t as discreet. The website lists sports remote engineer Rick Hill, IT specialists Steve Smith and Alex Fajerman, and veteran engineer Ron Foo, and facilities-utility tech Rich Tschiegg. A number of employees from all departments took the hit in San Diego. Ron Foo had been through several mergers, having worked as engineer for the original KGB-FM/KPQP (now KLSD) in the 1990s. At that time, he was very active with SBE, including publishing the chapter newsletter. Layoffs are not unique to Clear Channel Communications in San Diego, but the proportion cut from Engineering, nearly half of the total employed, is significant for the team.

All major broadcast TV and radio stations have reported some cuts in technical personnel during this recession, and many are down to lower levels than ever before. Some crews say they can now only respond to the "crisis of the day."