Morgan Murphy Mandates Furloughs or Cuts

Morgan Murphy Media is requiring all employees to either take a week of unpaid leave or receive an equivalent pay cut. Employees have until the end of the year to put in their furlough time.

“From a business standpoint, [it’s] been impacted because of the economy at all of our stations,” says WISC Madison Station Manager Tom Bier.

WISC laid off six, reports the Wisconsin State Journal, including anchor Teri Barr.

Madison-based Morgan Murphy owns five TV stations, including KXLY Spokane and WKBT LaCrosse, and a dozen radio stations in Wisconsin and Spokane.

Michael Malone

Michael Malone is content director at B+C and Multichannel News. He joined B+C in 2005 and has covered network programming, including entertainment, news and sports on broadcast, cable and streaming; and local broadcast television, including writing the "Local News Close-Up" market profiles. He also hosted the podcasts "Busted Pilot" and "Series Business." His journalism has also appeared in The New York Times, The L.A. Times, The Boston Globe and New York magazine.