WCTV Foundation Clears Up Questions Over Loss of Wadsworth High School Grizzly Football Coverage

The WCTV Foundation is hoping to clear up questions surrounding the loss of Wadsworth High School football broadcasts, saying the issue is a staffing shortage, not a lack of community support or interest.

According to the Foundation, WCTV currently has just one full-time employee along with limited part-time help. With such a small staff, the station does not have enough personnel to produce live football games while also keeping up with its other responsibilities.

And putting a game on the air involves much more than simply having someone there on Friday night. Football coverage requires equipment setup, camera operation, audio, directing, technical coordination, troubleshooting and post-production.

The Foundation says WCTV’s staffing problems have developed over time. Employees have retired without being replaced, while other experienced staff members had their hours reduced and eventually left for full-time jobs and other opportunities.

“The issue is not a lack of appreciation for Grizzly football or a lack of desire to continue this important community tradition,” WCTV Foundation President Roger Wright said. “The station simply does not have enough staff to produce the games at the level the community has come to expect.”

The Foundation says residents have recently brought concerns about WCTV’s staffing and future to Wadsworth City Council meetings. Foundation leaders say they have also raised questions with city officials for several years about long-term staffing, station operations and plans for WCTV’s future.

And the concern goes beyond football.

The Foundation says losing Grizzly football coverage is a visible example of a larger staffing problem and warns that additional local programming and community coverage could eventually be affected without a sustainable staffing plan.

The WCTV Foundation is encouraging residents who value the station’s coverage of local government, schools, community events and Grizzly football to respectfully contact city leaders and ask what is being done to restore adequate staffing and create a long-term plan for WCTV.