With longtime WKRC-TV traffic reporter Jen Dalton seated at Channel 12's Alert Center, and WLWT-TV not replacing traffic reporter Alenna Martella, half of Cincinnati's TV morning newscasts no longer have dedicated traffic reporters.
TV station managers say traffic information is no less important in these post-COVID, working at home days. But they grapple with how best to inform viewers while maximizing their limited staffing and competing with traffic apps on viewers' mobile devices.
Only WXIX-TV has a full-time traffic reporter on the air now, Stefano DiPietrantonio. WCPO-TV has been using meteorologists for traffic updates during Raven Richard's maternity leave. She was named traffic reporter last year after Sina Gebre-Ab took a job in Baltimore, her hometown.
When Martella left WLWT-TV in August of last year, the station "repurposed the position into a broader news gathering and storytelling role," says Brandon Frantz, WLWT-TV president and general manager.
Dalton, who succeeded Bob Herzog as Channel 12's morning traffic reporter, moved to the Alert Center before the November ratings "sweeps" started Oct. 26. She reads stories that were previously done by Good Morning Cincinnati anchors — such as an East Price Hill drive-by shooting on Wednesday morning — plus some traffic updates like a roll-over crash in Butler County's Wayne Township and a Brent Spence Bridge wreck Wednesday morning.
"This is the current plan for Jen. We will keep evaluating to see how it works," says Tim Geraghty, news director. "Traffic cameras are still shown when the traffic is bad. Jen still reports on major traffic problems."
WKRC-TV periodically broadcasts a screen on Good Morning Cincinnati showing interstate travel times to Downtown. And WKRC-TV has scrolled traffic and travel times at the bottom of the screen for almost two years, he notes.
But instead of Dalton standing at the big screen with traffic camera video and saying that there are no problems on the Brent Spence Bridge, viewers must digest a cumbersome on-screen text reading:
"I-71/I-75 NB FROM 5TH ST/EXIT 192 TO 1-71/US-50/EXIT 1 (BRENT SPENCE BRIDGE) 1 MIN."
WLWT-TV's Frantz, who commutes from the northern part of the viewing area, says traffic seems to be worse than pre-COVID, one reason why "traffic is still an important element in our shows," he says.
"Instead of a dedicated person, we utilize our anchor team to cover this content. Furthermore, when an event-driven need arises (shows, games, etc), we will produce traffic updates in order to give viewers the information they need, regardless what time of day this occurs," Frantz says.
In September, Channel 5 added three new "WLWT Storm Tracker Max" vehicles equipped with multiple cameras and mobile weather technology. Traffic cameras and on-air traffic maps are effective, Frantz says, "but when we can contextualize an event or situation happening in your neighborhood or on your route to work with live video, the impact to viewers is vastly more beneficial — especially when combined with the traditional data."
Jeff Brogan, WCPO-TV's vice president and general manager, says he believes that "the only way" to do traffic effectively for the audience "is by keeping a reporter assigned to the traffic position. It takes an experienced person to consider all this information and turn it into a simple, helpful message."
A full-time traffic reporter can monitor multiple sources all morning from a traffic data service, social media and traffic cameras, Brogan says.
"As someone who drives in rush hour every day, I know from experience that traffic reports are important and valuable. For people who turn to us in the morning, we work to save them time every day and make their commute a little smoother," Brogan says.
At WXIX-TV, traffic coverage remains a top priority, says Steve Hyvonen, news director. In addition to DiPietrantonio, Channel 19 often uses Ken Baker, Jordan Vilines and Jessica Schmidt to cover traffic.
"Based on ratings, research, and viewer feedback here at Fox 19 Now we know traffic is more important to people in Cincinnati than in many other cities around the country," Hyvonen says.
The TV news bosses know that many people also rely on traffic apps to navigate local streets and highways any hour of the day.
"Times have changed, and people can get traffic information from their phones, but we also feel having a reporter dedicated to traffic is in line with one of our goals for Good Morning Tri-State — getting people ready for their day ahead," Brogan says.
