Mike Murphy, longtime sales manager at WSMV-TV Nashville, Tenn., has left the station only
days after owner Meredith Corp. and NBC entered talks to resolve
accusations that the station compressed programming to allow additional
commercial spots.
Meredith officials have not commented on the talks with NBC, but WSMV-TV general manager Steve Ramsey said Murphy made the decision to leave and that it was in no way related to the compression issue.
Murphy left a voice message that said simply that he was "no longer employed" by
WSMV-TV. Station sources said Murphy did not reveal future plans, but he
told them it was unrelated to the compression issue.
Nashville newspaper The City Paper had provided NBC with tapes of its prime time
schedule aired over WSMV-TV from which the network concluded that the station had
used California-based Prime Image Inc.'s "Time Machine" to squeeze additional ad time.
The current issue of Broadcasting & Cable cited sources who said
Meredith station group president Kevin O'Brien favored compressing programming
as a way to increase revenue despite objections from station management.
