Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Say It Ain't Sue

Having opened the New York Post to see that Sue Simmons is being tossed to the side by WNBC, everything else I was going to rant about, fell to the wayside. How can that be?  How can the powers that be at Comcast in Philadelphia not understand the importance of Sue Simmons to the New York scene?  She has been on the air as long as I have lived in New York.  She has been hilarious, bitter, sad, and yet, through thick and thin, solid as a rock.  Sue Simmons and Chuck Scarborough always together.  Their on-air partnership was like none other.  They liked each other, had respect, had each other's backs, and got the news done Monday through Friday. Over the years, their airtime may have shifted to more or less due to ratings, shifts in ownership, management.  Always looking for ways to save money and impact the bottomline.  Sue Simmons is the highest paid female anchor in the country.  I think every penny she earns is worth it.  She is the epitome of a New Yorker. She's been here her whole life and seen and done it all. 

Comcast let Sue go and re-signed Chuck for 3 years.  They are both 68 years old.  Can sexism be the reason?  It can't be ageism.  Wouldn't it have been incredible if Comcast would've let Chuck and Sue ride off together in the sunset?  It would have been such a great ending for the most successful local news team.  Sue is a diehard New Yorker and all things New York.  There will never be another news anchor like Sue.  They are going to continue hiring younger, less experienced non-New Yorkers (which must mean cheaper talent) to fill the openings.  It is quite disconcerting to see all the changes on the local WNBC station.  Most are bland and must have just graduated from college.  I don't like change, but I do appreciate authenticity and there is nothing phony about Sue Simmons.  She's either in a good mood or not. You either like her or hate her. She doesn't "put on" for anyone and losing her will leave a gigantic void in local New York television that will never be filled.

If you want to read Cindy Adams, copy and paste the following link:
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/anchor_away_rx8c9JHJeuKOobii5RKMkI

Sidebars:  Today is my 100th "Diana's Rants and Ruminations."  I am very happy to be writing and very happy that there are people reading.  If you have any ideas about what to write, let me know.  If you know me, I have an opinion on everything.  If you don't know me, know that to be a fact.  Please keep reading, commenting, sharing, forwarding, and re-posting.  I thoroughly appreciate all of you taking the time to read this.  Here's to the next 100 rants!

3 comments:

  1. Whoever follows Sue Simmons will know how Wally Pipp felt following Lou Gehrig. It won't be fun...The people at Comcast who made this decision probably felt there won't be a big ratings slide if they keep Chuck. But they don't realize you should never mess with institutions in New York, and Chuck and Suer certainly are one. Once viewers leave they won't come back, and if they feel Sue got the boot unfairly they'll leave across the board.
    Sidebar: Big congrats to Diana for her 100th rant. We now know who the writer in the family really is!

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  2. Congrats Di on the 100th.
    Even if its sad news about MY SUE

    Glenn Rosenblum

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  3. Congrats on your 100th Di!!!! I'm so proud of you!
    So sad about Sue. No loyalty in this world.

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