DALLAS, Sept. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Belo Corp. (NYSE: BLC) said today that
David Duitch, vice president/Capital Bureau, delivered testimony today before
the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") at a field hearing on Hurricane
Katrina recovery efforts. Duitch noted that it was pre-planning with a
catastrophe in mind and the dedication of WWL-TV employees that allowed the
station to remain on air continuously -- before, during and after the disaster
-- to provide an important public service to the New Orleans community,
wherever they were located or relocated. As a local, over-the-air television
station, WWL-TV was one of the only ways that many people could get
information and was often the best way for local and other authorities to
communicate with each other and the public. Duitch's complete testimony, as
well as other items delivered to the FCC, is attached.
Duitch was representing WWL-TV, Belo's market-leading CBS affiliate in New
Orleans, whose employees are continuing their comprehensive local coverage of
the New Orleans disaster. Duitch coordinated sending Belo employees to the
New Orleans area to help cover the story and provide much-needed relief for
WWL staff.
About Belo
Belo Corp. is one of the nation's largest media companies with a
diversified group of market-leading television, newspaper, cable and
interactive media assets. A Fortune 1000 company with 7,600 employees and
$1.5 billion in annual revenues, Belo operates in some of America's most
dynamic markets in Texas, the Northwest, the Southwest, Rhode Island, and the
Mid-Atlantic. Belo owns 19 television stations, six of which are in the
15 largest U.S. broadcast markets. The Company also owns or operates seven
cable news channels and manages one television station through a local
marketing agreement. Belo's daily newspapers are The Dallas Morning News, The
Providence Journal, The Press-Enterprise (Riverside, CA) and the Denton
Record-Chronicle (Denton, TX). The Company also publishes specialty
publications targeting young adults, affluent populations and the fast-growing
Hispanic market, including Quick and al dia in Dallas/Fort Worth, and the d,
El D and La Prensa in Riverside. Belo operates more than 30 Web sites
associated with its operating companies. Additional information is available
at http://www.belo.com or by contacting Carey Hendrickson, vice
president/Investor Relations & Corporate Communications, at 214-977-6626.
Testimony of David Duitch, Vice President, Belo Capital Bureau
Before the Federal Communications Commission
Field Hearing on Hurricane Katrina Recovery Efforts
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Good morning. My name is David Duitch. I am the Vice President of Belo
Corp.'s Capital Bureau in Washington, D.C. Belo is the parent company of WWL-
TV, the market-leading CBS affiliate in New Orleans. I am standing in for my
WWL colleagues today as they are continuing their comprehensive local coverage
of one of the most tragic stories in American history. During this disaster,
I coordinated sending Belo employees to the New Orleans area to help cover the
story and to provide much-needed relief for WWL staff. As such, I have been
in constant contact with WWL personnel.
I am pleased to report that WWL-TV has remained on the air continuously --
before, during and after this disaster -- providing critical news and
information to the New Orleans community and those affected by this terrible
tragedy. Our 24-hour-a-day, non-stop hurricane coverage continued for nine
straight days, commercial free for all but the first few hours, from noon on
Saturday, August 27, until 10:35 p.m. on Tuesday, September 6.
The employees of WWL-TV have shown heroic measures of dedication and
fortitude in covering this story despite their own extreme personal losses and
separation from their family and friends. They have worked tireless hours to
provide this public service. And yet, WWL employees do not see themselves as
heroes. In their eyes, they were just doing their job. Serving the local
community is their job.
WWL-TV is a provider of local news and information; and, as such, our
focus was on serving the New Orleans community and all the constituencies of
that community wherever they were located or relocated. Due to strong winds,
floods and lack of electricity throughout the area, cable, satellite, and
other modes of communication were not an option. Over-the-air television and
radio were the only ways that many people could get information, and were
often the best ways for local authorities to communicate with each other and
the public.
WWL-TV and other local television and radio stations were a critical part
of the first alert system. When it became evident that the storm was headed
toward New Orleans, WWL began wall-to-wall hurricane coverage, alerting the
local community about the impending dangers and urging New Orleaneans to
evacuate. We provided critical information about traffic routes, informing
them of the safest and least congested ways to leave the city. Our traffic
reporter was crucial to safe evacuation, and our meteorologist provided
critical, timely updates on the coming storm. Mayor Nagin praised WWL and
other local broadcasters for helping the city achieve an 80 percent evacuation
rate, much higher than the typical 50 percent or less.
It was pre-planning with a catastrophe in mind as well as the dedication
of our employees that kept WWL-TV on the air.
As the severity of the storm and its potential impact became clear, WWL
management asked their 85 news, production and engineering employees who could
stay to cover the storm, and 80 of the 85 employees volunteered to do whatever
was necessary to provide this public service. The five who left were the sole
caregivers for their children. Other non-news employees volunteered to stay
as well to help.
Because of the hurricane, flooding and looting, WWL originated coverage
from four different facilities over the first five days of the disaster. Two
years ago, WWL's management set up an arrangement with LSU to use their
broadcast facilities for such an emergency. And in 1999, when WWL replaced
its transmitter for digital conversion, the site was selected and the
transmitter facility was built with a Category 5 hurricane in mind. The
transmitter site in Gretna, Louisiana is 18 feet above sea level which is one
of the primary reasons we have been able to stay on air throughout this
disaster. The transmitter building includes an emergency broadcast facility
able to withstand hurricane-level winds. We knew WWL needed to be there for
the New Orleans community. For much of the first few days, live coverage
switched between LSU, the transmitter site and our primary facility in the
French Quarter, which was habitable until the flooding began. By Wednesday,
August 31, we had made arrangements to broadcast from the larger facility of
Louisiana Public Broadcasting's KLPB-TV in Baton Rouge.
Many dramatic moments have occurred as we have played out our role of
public service. You may have seen the compelling footage of one of WWL's
technical employees running through the rising water to rescue a man out of
the window of his quickly-submerging car. In another location, a woman handed
her baby to one of our reporters, asking her to take her child to safety.
WWL is still airing hurricane coverage supplemented with network and
syndicated programming. We continue to provide critical local information to
the New Orleans community. Viewers turn to WWL to find out if and when they
can return to their parish to check on their houses and belongings. We tell
them exactly what identification they need, who they need to see, where they
need to go to gain access and how they can safely reach these locations.
Because of their personal connection to WWL, hundreds of New Orleaneans have
stopped by our facilities in Baton Rouge to ask for help and information.
As we've covered this story, WWL's local roots have been very important.
We've received access to places because police and other officials in New
Orleans know who we are and know we're committed to the people of New Orleans.
And our long-term commitment and news leadership in New Orleans has provided
us valuable access to Mayor Nagin of New Orleans and other local and state
officials. We have provided them an open door to our facility, wherever we
are located, to speak directly to the community. We have worked hand-in-hand
with the first responders and all other governmental authorities, providing a
lifeline to the citizens of New Orleans. Also, Mr. Chairman, the FCC stood
ready to help us, and we thank you.
The support of WWL's Belo family has been critical to the success of this
operation. Belo employees in Dallas worked tirelessly to secure adequate
communications, housing, security, fuel for our generators at various
locations, food and clothing, and set up an employee relief fund. The Company
sent in Belo news, production and technical staff from around the nation to
help cover the story. In addition, Belo television stations and newspapers
have raised more than $16 million in their local communities so far for the
Red Cross and other relief organizations.
This has been a long and weary road, but one we have traveled with an
incredible sense of purpose. We were determined to keep WWL on the air for
the good of the New Orleans community. We know of many that accessed WWL from
battery-operated televisions or used generators to view our coverage. Many
scattered evacuees watched WWL's live streaming of its coverage on the
station's Web site (http://wwltv.com ). Importantly, the content provided for
internet streaming was only available because of the infrastructure of our
over-the-air television station. Others listened to radio stations that were
streaming WWL's television coverage, or watched on the local PBS and cable
channels carrying WWL in Louisiana and Mississippi. Thousands of displaced
New Orleaneans watched WWL in evacuation centers in Texas. Policymakers
should specially note that evacuees and others throughout the nation were able
to access WWL's coverage on the digital multicast channels of more than 30
television stations (see attached list). Clearly, the role of free, over-the-
air television cannot be underestimated in times like these. A small sampling
of emails that reinforce this point are attached to our testimony.
This short tape shows the importance the local community places on the
role of local broadcasters like WWL-TV and why we're fiercely committed to
this high level of public service. We're going to show two successive clips
-- one from a New Orleans police superintendent and another from a viewer.
[Play tapes.]
Thank you for the opportunity to share the importance of local, over-the-
air television.
From:
To:
Date: Tuesday - September 6, 2005 9:48 PM
Subject: Just a Note of Thanks
To you and the staff at WWL for doing such a fantastic job of reporting
the stories and events following Katrina. I am a south Louisiana transplant
in Dallas as are many, many of my friends. And without your reporting my New
Orleans relatives (who fled to numerous cities) and I would have been without
critical and valuable information. Indeed, know that even while power was
lost in New Orleans and Baton Rouge untold numbers were able to get important
information about the status of the disaster by streaming your video on the
internet and then talking to our families via the sporadic cell service. The
national news coverage paled in comparison to the detailed information and
meaningful local coverage your team provided around the clock under the most
difficult of circumstances.
So, once again, thanks to you and WWL and WWL.com for broadcasting
tirelessly for New Orleans and her citizens in our time of need.
Regards,
Dallas, Texas 75201
From:
To:
Sent: Thursday, September 01, 2005 4:48 PM
Subject: Thanks to WWL
I would like to commend Belo for their efforts to assist WWL employees and
their families. I must commend the employees of WWL. As a former resident of
New Orleans who still has a tremendous amount of family and friends in the
area I have constantly been monitoring the WWL site. I was only recently able
to reach family who evacuated to Hattiesburg, MS and they too have been
receiving their news from a radio broadcast of WWL.
The dedication of your staff to stay on air even after having to relocate
to Baton Rouge has been a sacrifice. I know many more like me appreciate it.
National news coverage has been focusing primarily on the heart of New
Orleans. But there are millions of others who made their home in the many
towns that surround the city itself and make up Greater New Orleans. It is on
WWL that you can find information about these surrounding areas. As a local
station, they understand the true picture of the city and its wide variety of
residents.
Belo should be extremely proud of the hard working people ... I know many
viewers are as we continue to closely monitor the situation and reach loved
ones!!!
Regards,
From:
To:
Date: Monday - September 5, 2005 10:08 PM
Subject: Thank you all
I cannot adequately express my admiration and respect for you and your
team for the work you have done throughout this disaster. I began watching
your station online before the hurricane even hit. Your team has been nothing
short of superhuman ... and yet so basically human.
So many folks around the world have a deep, soft spot in their hearts for
New Orleans (I among them), and your team's clear love for their city came
shining through, even as they found their own lives and own homes turned
upside down.
Your stories, large and small, your dispensing of RELIABLE information and
insights when none was seemingly available from our federal and even many
state officials, should earn you and your staff the very highest of
journalistic honors.
But even that will never be enough for the work you've done.
I continue to be moved by the stories you uncover. I think of your
cameraman (I cannot recall his name) who simply went out to the levee and shot
footage of survivors, just letting folks speak while barely being able to
contain his own grief.
Thank you, again. You are as much heroes as those who rescue survivors
from rooftops. Communication is critical during such calamities (as proven by
this event), and you and your team have gone above and beyond.
Evanston, IL 60202
From:
To:
Date: Friday - September 9, 2005 8:37 PM
Subject: Your staff, coverage of H. Katrina and observations
Just wanted to say I have watched your program almost since the hurricane
blew through. I have found your coverage uplifting and encouraging on so many
levels, finding good where ever you could find it, even when it was thin
pickings for a while. Your people have shown an awesome amount of restraint,
failing to fall victim to rumor, criticism, and finger pointing. You
reported, updated, and informed all everything you could find that directed
others to hope, to resurrect, to carry on and thanked those who were giving
everything they had to the efforts to save, rebuild and just in general, show
the people of your area how strong you could be. I know most of your staff
has suffered deprivations, houses flooded or non existent, concern for their
families, pets and loved ones. I know more than one worked and trudged on
despite their own personal tragedies. I want to thank you, from the heart of
Tennessee and to let you know, you, your communities and your people are being
prayed for here. Our hearts and donations of food, water, people to assist
and homes for your people displaced have poured out to you in your time of
need. Please know we will make any you send us welcome, till they can return
to their homes. We will comfort them and pray for them until your community
is restored and your people can return! God bless and keep you to fight
another day! Keep on putting one foot in front of the other! You are a
source of comfort, promise, and sanity in a sea of back biting, finger
pointing, depravity and chaos. Hold your heads high, you are making a
difference in your community and to those of us following you from far away!
I pray blessings for all of you and your communities!
Sincerely,
Bristol, Tennessee
"A good place to live!"
From:
To:
Date: Thursday, September 1, 2005 4:25 PM
Subject: KFDM-Beaumont, Channel 21 Coverage
KUDOS to you and your organization for making it possible for WWL TV to
continue to serve their base (and us) on Channel 21 ... we have nearly stopped
watching other channels for hurricane news because WWLTV is so good! Thank
you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Orange, TX
From:
To:
Date: Thursday, September 1, 2005 4:30 PM
Subject: WWL
I would like to thank you for broadcasting WWL TV of New Orleans on
digital 6.2. I have family in my home from New Orleans and they have enjoyed
keeping updated more so than with CNN, MSNBC or FOX News.
Orange, Texas 77630
From:
To:
Date: Sunday - September 4, 2005 9:49 PM
Subject: Storm Coverage
I know the times have been tough for all WWL employees, but thank you for
being so dedicated to your job and keeping us New Orleanians updated on the
storm. What a terrible tragedy.
This extended family of 20 has spent the last week huddled up by the
computer in Texas watching your continuous coverage. We have especially been
moved by the coverage provided by Lee Zurik. He has helped us deal with this
awful event by his honesty, insight and passion for our city. I have cried,
laughed, and been inspired about the future after watching his coverage.
Thank you WWL. You are true New Orleanians!
WWL-TV Carriage on Other Multicast Channels
Market Multicast Channel
Albany, New York WRGB
Austin, Texas KVUE
Beaumont, Texas KFDM
Beckley / Bluefield / Oak Hill, West Virginia WVNS
Birmingham, Alabama WBMA
Boston, Massachusetts WHDH
Chicago, Illinois WCIU
College Station, Texas KAMU
Dallas, Texas WFAA
Detroit, Michigan WDIV
Detroit, Michigan WDWB
Eastern Shore of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia WBOC
Hartford / New Haven, Connecticut WFSB
Houston, Texas KHOU
La Crosse / Eau Claire, Wisconsin WQOW
Lubbock, Texas KJTV
Mankato, Minnesota KEYC
Miami, Florida WPLG
Minneapolis / St. Paul, Minnesota KSTP
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma KFOR
Orlando, Florida WKMG
Paducah / Cape Girardeau / Harrisburg, Illinois WSIL
Panama City, Florida WJHG
Portland, Oregon KGW
Richmond, Virginia WTVR
Rochester, New York WXXI
Salt Lake City, Utah KTVX
San Antonio, Texas KENS
Sarasota, Florida WWSB
Shreveport, Louisiana KTBS
Springfield / Holyoke, Massachusetts WSHM
Springfield / Holyoke, Massachusetts WWLP
Syracuse, New York WTVH
West Palm Beach, Florida WPEC
Internet Carriage cbsnews.com / yahoo.com
SOURCE Belo Corp.
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Related links:
http://www.belo.com
http://wwltv.com
CONTACT:
Carey Hendrickson, vice president-Investor
Relations & Corporate Communications of Belo Corp.,
+1-214-977-6626
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