The Disappearing World of Local Television Engineering

The landscape of local television has undergone a seismic shift over the past few decades, transforming from a vibrant ecosystem of independent stations into corporate-owned networks with centralized operations. For viewers, this change might be subtle; perhaps a new logo or a slightly different news format. But behind the scenes, this consolidation has fundamentally altered the nature of broadcast engineering and the very essence of what makes television “local.”

The golden era of local television featured stations that were truly embedded in their communities. Each facility had dedicated engineering teams who knew every piece of equipment intimately, from the quirky studio microphones to the idiosyncrasies of their transmitters. These engineers weren’t just technical specialists; they were the backbone of local broadcasting, ensuring that communities received reliable information about their immediate world. The connection between engineers and their stations was personal; they took pride in maintaining systems they could physically touch and adjust with their own hands, often using nothing more sophisticated than a screwdriver or multimeter.

Corporate consolidation dramatically disrupted this ecosystem starting in the late 1990s and accelerating through the 2000s. Major broadcast groups like Sinclair, Gray, and Nexstar began acquiring independent stations at an unprecedented rate. According to industry data highlighted in the podcast, ownership concentration has resulted in over 40% fewer companies owning local TV stations since 1995. Today’s reality is staggering: Nexstar alone owns more than 300 stations, while Sinclair controls nearly 200. This consolidation hasn’t just changed ownership structures; it has completely transformed the operational model of television broadcasting.

The technological implications of this shift have been profound for broadcast engineers. Once responsible for maintaining physical equipment on-site, engineers now find themselves managing remote playout servers, VPN connections, and cloud-based automation systems. The professional identity of broadcast engineers has evolved from hands-on technical specialists to what Fred Baumgartner, a renowned engineering consultant, describes as “IT administrators with a broadcast badge.” This transition represents not just a change in job responsibilities but a fundamental shift in how engineers relate to their work and the communities they serve.

Perhaps the most concerning aspect of this transformation is the human cost. NAB reports indicate that technical staff at consolidated stations have been cut by approximately 30% over the past decade, while the workload for remaining engineers has doubled. This means fewer skilled professionals maintaining more systems across multiple markets, often without the ability to physically access the equipment they’re responsible for. When technical issues arise, as they inevitably do in broadcasting, resolving them becomes exponentially more complicated when the engineer is managing systems across multiple states via remote connections.

The consequences extend beyond engineering departments. Nearly one in five television markets has lost locally produced news entirely over the past decade, according to Pew Research. This represents a significant loss not only for journalism but also for the technical expertise that once supported local news production. When stations centralize operations and reduce staff, they sacrifice the institutional knowledge and community connections that made local television truly local. The anonymous Reddit user quoted in the podcast captured this reality perfectly: “The only thing local about our station is the ads. Everything else is streamed in, piped out, and troubleshot over VPN.”

Despite these challenges, broadcast engineers continue to adapt and evolve. Today’s engineers must master new skills including IP system communications, virtual machine playout, and remote workflows. They have become the “Swiss army knives of broadcast engineering,” maintaining the infrastructure that keeps information flowing to communities even as the resources available to them diminish. The resilience of these professionals deserves recognition; they are maintaining the technical foundation of local media even as the industry transforms around them.