April 21, 2024 @ 11:20 AM
Mark Mester, who was fired from L.A. local news station KTLA after paying tribute to his weekend co-anchor on-air after her abrupt exit, has a new gig. Mester has left L.A. for an anchor role at KMIR NBC Palm Springs.
Mester was initially suspended and then fired in 2022 from local CW affiliate KTLA for a four-minute unscripted tribute that Mester gave to his former co-anchor, Lynette Romero. The tribute to Romero, who’d left after 24 years with the station for a role with rival KNBC, infuriated the station’s general manager, insiders told TheWrap at the time.
“I also want to say sorry to Lynette Romero, because Lynette I love you so much. You really are my best friend. You did not deserve what happened to you on Wednesday,” Mester said at the time. He also specifically named the station’s general manager, Janene Drafs, in the segment.
In the segment, Mester called the handling of Romero’s exit “cruel” and said, “It was inappropriate and we’re sorry.” Mester had also hired a plane to fly a banner over the station reading, “We love you Lynette.”
David Reese, former KNBC news director who now serves at Palm Springs’ KMIR, shared the news of Mester’s hire on Facebook.
Romero’s exit came after she’d sought a weekday anchor role in order to be able to spend more time with her family, but KTLA had declined to find her a spot. She wasn’t allowed to clean out her desk or issue her own on-air goodbye when she left, which is normally a standard courtesy for longtime anchors.
Viewers had been infuriated about the way Romero’s exit was handled, and that anger grew after Mester was fired.
The newsroom learned about Romero’s exit at the same time as viewers after anchor Sam Rubin read a scripted farewell, with the rest of the team being told not to discuss Romero and her exit, an individual with knowledge of the situation told TheWrap at the time.
The move follows another L.A. newsperson, former KNBC sports anchor Fred Roggin, starting at the Palm Springs station in January.
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