They changed their web site. They changed their slogan. But it’s the content that matters.

WWOR-TV, which is located in Secaucus, is still fighting to keep its broadcast license nearly two years after Sen. Frank Lautenberg held a public forum with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to determine whether the station is living up to its mandate to serve the needs of Northern New Jersey.

The FCC has required WWOR-TV Channel 9 to “perform a higher degree of service to its Grade B coverage area than is normally required of a broadcast licensee. At renewal time, WWOR-TV will be judged by how it has met the obligation to serve the greater service needs of Northern New Jersey.”

This requirement was first imposed on the station in 1984 when it made the move from New York City to Secaucus.

Since then, some critics have charged that the station continues to be too-New York-centric in its news coverage, branding, and marketing. When the station’s license came up for renewal in 2007, these critics used the opportunity to flag what they saw as problems with the station’s coverage.
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WWOR has planned a debate between the candidates for New Jersey governor.
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Although the station, which is now owned by FOX Television, disagreed with the criticism, it made several immediate changes. The station’s slogan, which had been “My 9 NY” was changed to “My 9.” And a photo of the New York skyline, which was prominent on the station’s web site home page and on-air backdrop, was changed to a photo of the George Washington Bridge. The station also began adding more New Jersey coverage to its mix of 10 p.m. news stories.

In light of the criticism, the FCC allowed WWOR-TV to continue to operate, even though its license had expired, but postponed making a decision on its renewal. Now that a new presidential administration has been elected and a new FCC chair has been named, many believe the agency will finally act on the WWOR license.

The station would like to be recognized for its improvements in New Jersey programming and wants the license to be renewed without any further restrictions or guidelines. Critics assume the license will be renewed, but would like to see the FCC impose specific percentages on how much New Jersey news must be aired.

Small changes

“Would it be accurate to say that they’ve increased the amount of New Jersey coverage they air? Sure, I suppose so,” said Donna Sandorse of Voice for New Jersey, a nonprofit group that had been highly critical of WWOR two years ago. “You could say they’ve made some small improvements in the coverage. But given the small amount of New Jersey coverage they were doing in the first place, that’s not saying much.”

Voice for New Jersey has monitored WWOR’s content only anecdotally since then, something another critic of the station, school teacher Steve Sacco, said is a problem.

“I think they really dropped the ball on this,” said Sacco, who has been monitoring the station’s coverage on his own.

Sacco agrees the station has made some improvements in its coverage, but he notes another problem that he believes skews the impact of this progress.

“Since 2007, WWOR has decided to cut back the amount of news that it does,” he said. “They used to do a one-hour newscast every night at 10 p.m. That newscast is now only 30 minutes, and it’s the only newscast they do. They don’t have a 5 o’clock or 6 o’clock newscast. So, the overall pie has gotten smaller.”

The station has also eliminated its weekend news broadcasts, a move that leaves New Jersey residents without state specific coverage for more than 24 hours.

“For example, we had a bad storm that hit this summer and it caused a lot of flooding and damage,” Sacco said. “It didn’t hit New York, so the stations there didn’t cover it. How were our residents supposed to know about the flash flooding warnings, the high winds?”

Sacco, who once interned at WWOR as a broadcasting and communications major in college, took his concerns directly to the station. In a two and a half hour meeting with Jim Driscoll, the station’s news director, and Diane Doctor, a vice president, Sacco said the executives outlined plans to cover New Jersey, despite the cutbacks.

Plans for future

Among the plans WWOR has in store this year are a planned televised debate between the candidates for New Jersey governor.

“We really see this as a big coup for us,” said spokeswoman Audrey Pass, “and we’re really excited about it.”

Pass said Driscoll and Doctor, the two executives who met with Sacco, were not available for interviews.

In a filing with the FCC, the station has said the criticisms of its coverage are unfounded and that its license should be renewed.

In 2007, Sen. Launtenberg said, “WWOR’s license depends on how well it meets its obligations to New Jersey. It’s renewal time and the evidence is clear: WWOR has failed in its responsibility to serve the people of New Jersey. If [the FCC] renews the license, the FCC needs to get tough and include specific, measurable steps to ensure coverage of our state.”

An FCC spokesman said there is no specific date by which the decision will be made.

E-mail E. Assata Wright at awright@hudsonreporter.com.