Think of it as the nice guys finish last syndrome…
By most accounts former KMBC TV “weatherman” Joel Nichols truly is a really nice guy. Yet after a quarter century at Channel 9 doing the weather and oddball, odd hour celebrity interviews, the baby-faced newsie is o-u-t.
As for a rumor started New Year’s Day by former KC media blogger John Landsberg that Nichols may rejoin his old boss at Channel 41… mere speculation. Landsberg confessed as much in the comments section following his scoop that caught the rest of Kansas City media (me included) snoozing.
The concept of Nichols doing weather at KSHB seems a reach.
For starters, “He doesn’t really know weather,” says one television news source. “And he owned that – he said that he didn’t.”
Nichols comes from the era of smiling, chatty weathermen and women who were ubiquitous in the 1970s and 1980s. However those days have mostly faded to gray. Today’s ultra competitive TV weather-scape all but requires a degree in meteorology.
The bottom line: don’t expect Nichols to resurface doing the weather on Channel 41.
“But he could join the morning show or do news on the station,” says the source.
There’s no shortage of rumors as to the reasons behind Nichols departure from KMBC.
For starters the station is on record as having offered him a deal to stay. Unfortunately they are lead by talk that he may have been offered far less money and forced to move from mornings to evenings, requiring Nichols to put in a full, daylight hours workday.
Scanning the local media landscape, it should be noted that while KMBC has scrubbed Nichols from its website, his Facebook page for the station was still alive and kicking today.
I guess you could call it alive.
However the last entry was last summer, indicating that Nichols may have had a window into his departure from the station for some time. The last post on June 5th by fellow Channel 9 newsie Kris Ketz said:
“Today is the 25th anniversary for Joel Nichols at KMBC….and he never whispered a word to any of us about this day. He is the cornerstone of First News…and he’s one of the biggest reasons why KMBC 9 News is what it is today. Congratulations Joel Nichols.”
Too bad that’s not how the brass at KMBC appears to have viewed Nichols.
In any case, now he’s gone and the betting money is Nichols is looking for a morning gig or whatever he can get at another local television station.
He also appears to have gone down periscope.
A message on Nichols blog site says it was taken down by its owner. And with only 300-or so likes on his Facebook page for the station, it’s little wonder that either Nichols or the station forgot to kill it off.
The sad reality: Even TV news baby faces grow old and attracting younger viewers is still the name of the game.
Maybe Nichols should have accepted Channel 9’s offer.
We’ll see.
Local commercial TV is following the lead of local commercial radio lowering the average age of on-air personal, or as radio did voice tracked DJ’s from out of market and in market. The internets is the big bear in the room, feared by all broadcasters, so they are retrenching with younger prettier faces hoping the under 30’s will come back. Facebook has lost 25% of 13-17 year olds, they don’t want to be anywhere where their parents are hanging out. So the thinking in the corner office is get rid of the old folks and cater to the youts, but they won’t be there, they are gone until the kids show up forcing structure to their life.
Some things never change. One, if someone dies Hearne Christopher will go to town trying to dig up some dirt on the person and do multiple stories since they are virtually impossible to verify (see Crosby Kemper, Paul Walker, et al).
Second, just like when he was at the Star, someone else would do a story and then a week or two later Hearne would attempt to discredit it. In this case it took 16 days.
Yes, I speculated that Nichols could possibly go to KSHB (not necessarily as a weather guy) and be reunited with his former news director. You dismissed my speculation, but then covered yourself by saying he might go to another local station. By the way, no pay cut was involved with KMBC.
Keep reading my site. I fully expect to see future revelations here about Lisa Teachman leaving KMBC and Karen Dillon joining KSHB. Take a few weeks to come up with a new angle…
Indeed, some things never do change…
For one, Johnny Boy is as thin skinned as ever. Two, he’s still a fierce reader of KCC. And three, he kinda missed my point again.
Which was to give him a clap on the back for kicking everybody’s ass and scooping the Joel Nichols story before any other local media had it…me included.
All the way from South Carolina or wherever he’s holed up now.
Welcome back, Holmes.
Hugs from your pals at KC Confidential!
I am going to file this under “tough but fair”.
Flatterer
“As for a rumor started New Year’s Day by former KC media blogger John Landsberg that Nichols may rejoin his old boss at Channel 41… mere speculation, Landsberg confessed in the comments section following his scoop that caught the rest of Kansas City media (me included) snoozing.”
I am SHOCKED that Leawood John Landsberg would completely make up a story.
Hot carl…resurrecting kcforum.net for just a second. That was LJ’s favorite “blog”
why don’t this landsberg guy with the wrong statements and hearne (who’s
always trying to beat fellow reporters down) meet in front of the
Beaumont.
get glaze there with the daily paper…have his buddies watch out for
any extra guys coming with landsberg like old timer larry moore or the
very active brian .
My monies on hearne~!
AND HOW CAN YOU BE A ‘former media blogger” if you’re still
blogging b.s. about the media.
but as always…who really cares?
“Former KC media blogger” is what I wrote…emphasis on the “KC”
Landsberg moved to South Carolina last year and has mostly quit writing about KC media. But every once in a while he saddles up with a local story…
Like the Joel Nichols scoop
The biggest loss is Charly Arnault moving back to Indy. She was the hottest girl on local news here.
And don’t forget Tess Koppleman is now gone, along with her big ole titties. Had a baby and never came back from maternity leave and made it official recently.
Come on boyz, keep it clean…
All these KC media people are leaving en masse. Gee, I wonder why? *cough* pay sucks *cough* Or they’re becoming PR people; the antithesis to journalism.
Nichols was a horrible weatherman — bitched about it being 2 degrees above normal while loving it when it was 20 degrees below normal.
Very happy he’s gone.
People want weather — not teases. He was master of the tease and rarely gave the weather.
A side note: The Weather Channel if off Directv for the same reason — they don’t do weather anymore — they have a political agenda. Welcome WeatherNation 24/7 weather — what a great idea.
What does a weatherdude in KC make anyway? It couldnt possibly be 6 figures unless you are Sleazak or Da Buzz…
Or probably Mike Thompson.
Nichols was around for a long time though and was involved in things like the morning show, so he well could have been taking down low six-figure. Plus whatever they paid him to do the radio weather.
KCMO paid me a grand a month just to blab with Chris Stigall for 5 or 15 minutes three times a week.
busby was getting 250K/year about 12 years ago….
I vaguely recall that being the rumor as well.
But remember when he tried to free agent out to the Today show or whichever of those big network morning shows and didn’t even get a second look?
my statement was a fact!!!! point blank!
So what? The national jobs he wanted would have paid 7 figures. Point is/was, they weren’t interested. Only in this sheeple town could he gather a following, and that’s despite the fact he is a terrible forecaster and, well there’s a lot more there. Being an Al Roker clone is not a good thing.
Joel Nichols seems happy & to be doing just fine. We cross paths usually weekly.