In the wake of the sudden and sweeping changes at WRTV, the new ownership is now offering its first public explanation—and its first set of promises.
DuJuan McCoy, owner of Circle City Broadcasting and WISH-TV, says the transition of WRTV into his company “will take several months to complete.” In a written statement, McCoy says his company plans to expand local news on WRTV, particularly in morning and weekend time slots he says were “underserved” under the previous ownership.
He also points to the scale of WISH-TV’s current operation—more than 90 hours of live local programming each week—and says WRTV will grow from roughly 23 hours of weekly news to more than 30 hours in the months ahead. That programming, he says, will be “distinct and separate” from WISH-TV content.
On paper, that sounds like an expansion of local news.
But what has unfolded over the past 24 hours raises serious questions about how that goal will be achieved.
As first reported by the Indianapolis Business Journal and supported by numerous public statements from former staff, nearly all of WRTV’s newsroom appears to have been dismissed the day the sale closed. At the same time, WRTV newscasts immediately began airing with on-air personnel from WISH-TV.
That is not a gradual transition. That is a hard reset.
Circle City Broadcasting says more local programming is coming. The key question is whether more programming will actually translate into more journalism.
There is a difference.
Local news programming can be expanded in a number of ways—longer shows, more hours, shared content, or simulcasts with slight variations. But local journalism—the kind that requires reporters in the field, cultivating sources, attending public meetings, and holding institutions accountable—depends on people. It depends on staffing.
And by all appearances, WRTV now has far fewer of those people than it did just days ago.
To be fair, McCoy says the transition will take months. It is possible that new hiring will follow, that a new newsroom will be built, and that WRTV will ultimately emerge with a stronger or at least different local news operation.
That is something worth watching.
But it is also fair to note that WISH-TV—now effectively carrying the load for two stations—has historically operated with a smaller newsroom than some of its competitors in the Indianapolis market. Expanding output while maintaining depth of coverage is a significant challenge even under stable conditions.
Right now, the visible reality is this: a legacy newsroom has been largely wiped out, experienced journalists are suddenly out of work, and one newsroom is supplying content for multiple stations.
Whether that leads to more local journalism—or simply more hours of locally branded programming—remains to be seen.
Circle City Broadcasting says it is committed to “delivering high-quality local news programming.” That commitment will be tested not by the number of hours on the schedule, but by the depth, originality, and independence of the reporting that fills those hours.
For now, this is a story still unfolding.
I will be watching.