February 04, 2005

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Publication Date: Friday, February 04, 2005

Wholesale firings at CTV30

The Tri-Valley's award-winning community television system - CTV30 - is in trouble and officials who manage the station's $650,000 annual budget don't want to talk about it. At least not on the record.

In early January, CTV's board of directors and the four cities that support the system - Pleasanton, Dublin, Livermore and San Ramon - placed their Executive Director Bruce Goddard, hired last April, on "administrative leave" with full pay. The action came after charges were filed against Goddard by former employees at the station, with accusations ranging from bad management to verbal, physical and sexual harassment.

In the meantime, Jeff Eorio, Parks and Community Services Director for the city of San Ramon, and his deputies have taken over day-to-day management of CTV30, the first time that a city government has been in direct control of the community television station.

In a franchise agreement with Comcast and earlier cable operators that set up the publicly managed station, which includes Channels 29 and 28, the four cities rotate their financial oversight of CTV, a nonprofit public benefit corporation authorized by the Internal Revenue Service. Direct management is supposed to be handled by an independent board of directors of 11 volunteers - two appointed by the mayors of each of the four cities and three selected at large by the board members, themselves. The structure was intended to keep local governments "at arm's length" from directly controlling local programming, including local news broadcasts.

Neither Eorio nor Pleasanton City Manager Nelson Fialho, who had responsibility for CTV last year, would comment on Goddard's situation. They said it is a personnel matter that is still being investigated.

"I'm there every day making sure the staff is doing its job, that the bills are paid and that production is continuing on schedule," Eorio said. "It's all working, and everything is going on air as scheduled."

The cities' and viewers' problems, however, are that many of CTV's top talent and familiar faces either quit or were fired by Goddard before he left. Gone are: ¥ Darla Stevens, a founder and longtime director, who was asked to retire early. ¥ Dawn Gordner, a producer and on-air interviewer for "Media Roundtable" and the "Mayor's Forum," fired by Goddard with almost no notice. ¥ Sheila Tole, station manager who was asked by CTV board members to apply for Stevens' director's position then snubbed without so much as an interview or notice after it hired Goddard. She quit immediately. ¥ On-air reporters Mari-Ela David, Anser Hassen, Katie Harland. ¥ Michelle Loupe, for 13 years head of the station's popular Regional Occupational training program that trained scores of aspiring TV production and videotape candidates. Goddard fired her when she missed one of his station meetings. ¥ News Director Susan Dhillon, fired Christmas week just four months after Goddard recruited her from a Fresno television station. ¥ Longtime studio engineer and producer Ray Garcia, fired on the Friday before Christmas after Goddard told him he could no longer "be trusted."

In their complaint, filed with Joan Zehnder, CTV board chairwoman, and the four cities, employees complained of harassment and abuse by Goddard ever since he took over as executive director. At times, they stated, Goddard turned "beet-red in anger," tossed pencils at reporters and pounded his fists and his head on his desk.

Although cordial and responsive to the media and city officials, employees said his personality changed when outsiders left the station, which is housed behind the Pleasanton school district headquarters at 4665 Bernal Ave.

One of the ousted employees, graphics manager Liz Dwyer, took her complaint to Zehnder, detailing the deteriorating conditions and asking for help. But instead, Zehnder took the e-mail to Goddard to resolve.

The next day, Dec. 16, Goddard fired others, accusing them of collaborating with Dwyer. That included Dhillon and Garcia, although Goddard was said to have praised their work only hours earlier. None of those fired had ever been given performance reviews nor did Goddard provide them with written statements as to why they were being discharged.

In an investigation by the Weekly, employees said their concerns over Goddard's management style grew shortly after he was hired. Several, at the advice of a local attorney they consulted, began documenting abuses and emotional outbursts. Some in the Pleasanton City Hall said they had been surprised by Goddard's occasional "bluntness" with both them and the CTV board, observing that he often seemed to be on a warpath contending that station policies would be "my way or no way." Though he was credited with production and news coverage improvements, employees said "a growing hostile work environment" discouraged them from suggesting even better changes.

Faced with the large number of employee dismissals and one worker's plan to file employment discrimination charges with the state, the CTV board abruptly canceled its scheduled meeting Jan. 27 and turned control over to the four cities. All agreed that any public statements would have to come only from San Ramon's Eorio. He said a special board meeting could be called before the next regular meeting that is scheduled for Feb. 24.

CTV insiders believe production quality and news assignments already are suffering because of the lack of professional direction at the station. One reporter found that her camera didn't work when she started to tape a press conference about the Foothill High School fire two weeks ago. Another had only one microphone and an old videocamera for a city-paid taping of a recent forum involving five Pleasanton city managers, resulting in poor quality video and nearly inaudible sound in the Channel 30 broadcasts. Visits to the CTV studio often find nobody home except in a small production room.

Although CTV regulars, like Robin Fahr on the news report and sports commentators Ian Bartholomew and George "Dr. B" Baljevich continue, some believe CTV is near collapse with few professionals to do the work and no experienced management in place.

Eorio said that won't happen, that the four cities are addressing the problem, and that plans to purchase new camera and production equipment and to build a new studio on school district property near Abbie Street also are continuing. The estimated $1.5 million in improvements will be paid from city grants and a $1 million bonus that Comcast agreed to pay to CTV at the time it signed franchise agreements as the cable provider to the four cities.

Approximately 66 percent of CTV30's $650,000 annual budget is appropriated by those four cities from revenue generated by a 50-cent charge on Comcast cable bills to subscribers. The balance comes from grants and underwriters, whose "commercials" are aired in return for their contributions to the system, including fees paid by ValleyCare Health System, UNCLE Credit Union and the Pleasanton Police Department for its "COPPS" talk show.

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