Jennifer Jordan and Megan Vega are the latest victims of the slumping economy and budget-slashing at WWOR/Ch. 9.
Both correspondents and fill-in anchors have been told their contracts are not being renewed, and they'll be leaving this month.
Jordan and Vega are the latest casualties to emerge as Ch. 9 prepares for major changes in its operations. Word is that a shift is coming as the News Corp.-owned station gets set for the start of the fiscal year on July 1.
"It's an unfortunate situation," said Jordan, who grew up in Peekskill, N.Y. "I was told I was a victim of timing, according to management."
Jordan, who previously worked at WCBS/Ch. 2, said she had a positive experience at Ch. 9, where she's been since 2006.
"Hopefully, there's something bigger and better out there for me," she said.
Jordan and Vega will remain with Ch. 9 for most of the month.
Vega, born in Brooklyn and brought up in New Jersey, has been at Ch. 9 since 2003. The timing of the news couldn't be worse: She's in her 19th week of pregnancy with twins.
One of the scenarios being widely discussed is cutting the station's 10 p.m. news to a half-hour, sharing more news with sister station WNYW/Ch. 5, and moving the broadcast to 11 p.m., while scaling back or eliminating weekend newscasts.
Doing so would cut costs, but it would also keep news on the New Jersey-based station as a way to mollify political leaders who might challenge Ch. 9's broadcasting license should the station cut local coverage.
Elsewhere, weathercaster Melissa Magee is leaving sister station WNYW/Ch. 5 today, having been laid off.
Magee joined Ch. 5 in 2008 from AccuWeather.
"We love you and you're always sunny, despite the rainy weather," Rosanna Scotto told Magee yesterday on the station's 11 a.m. newscast.
'Day' gets longer next month
Ch. 5 will start its planned hour-long expansion of "Good Day New York" July 13, from 9 to 10 a.m., to coincide with the launch of "The Wendy Williams Show."
As previously reported, the program's additional hour - its fifth daily hour - will focus on lighter, more female-oriented topics and give weathercaster Mike Woods a chance to do things away from the weather map.
During the extra hour, anchors Greg Kelly and Rosanna Scotto will move from behind a traditional news desk.
"Wendy Williams" will then air at 10 a.m., followed by "The Morning Show with Mike & Juliet," which has been canceled and will end its run in September.
As a result of the change, the current 11 a.m. newscast will go away, although the new structure gives Ch. 5 a half-hour more news in the morning than before.
