In the latest blow to the Los Angeles media landscape, Santa Monica-based NPR affiliate KCRW-FM (89.9) has extended buyout offers to members of its staff, and so far 24 have accepted.
According to a statement shared on social media Monday evening by We Make KCRW, which posts on behalf of the radio station’s SAG-AFTRA-affiliated content creators, “KCRW management has come to the table to present voluntary buyout options to staff as a first step to address a budget shortfall.”
Among those who have accepted buyouts, according to a staff-wide email that KCRW President Jennifer Ferro sent Monday, are DJs Liza Richardson, Mario Cotto and Mathieu Schreyer, as well as “Morning Becomes Eclectic” producer Mary Chellamy. Six members of the programming staff, including longtime producer Frances Anderton, have also taken the offer.
Of the departing 24 staff members, Ferro wrote in the email: “Each one has made an indelible mark here. Some have been here for more than 20 years and I’m sure the decision to do this was as hard for them as it is for us to say goodbye.” She added that a few of those who have accepted buyouts will be leaving as soon as this week. Through a KCRW spokeperson, Ferro declined The Times’ request for further comment.
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