Whether or not Neal Pascal is good at his job, regardless of whether he broke the law, this situation is all wrong. Paul Barys has served the Chattanooga market faithfully at Channel 3 for many years. Now his former competitor is coming into his station. This seems very much like a woman moving her ex-husband into the spare room.
Instead of competing across town for recognition as the best meteorologist, Paul will now compete with the big guy down the hall. It will always seem that Neal is just waiting on deck for Paul to slip up.
Brian Travers is a fine young man who has done an admirable job for Channel 3 as the weekend meteorologist. Where will he be when Neal comes in? Let's hear from the WRCB management concerning this situation.
Neal can stay in meteorology by working in a different market. Why should he even want to remain in Chattanooga after bringing shame to his former employer?
Sorry, Neal, that is one of the consequences of breaking the law. Please do the right thing and move on.
James Dandy
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Excuse me? Neal Pascal should move on?
For his admitted mistake, Neal Pascal has suffered immeasurable consequences. Most of us will never experience such public humiliation, and some of us simply could not survive it.
Mr. Pascal took what the court dished out, and has, in fact, moved on, continuing to work as a productive member of society.
Congratulations to WRCB-TV. Neal Pascal is a gifted meteorologist, and Channel 3 is in the process of hiring such talent. I have a sneaking suspicion Paul Barys was consulted before the deal was struck. Mr. Barys is such a prince of a guy, the whole thing may have been his idea.
The Channel 3 weather team will now be stronger than ever. If I were the GM, I would have signed off on this deal in my sleep.
I see no reason why Mr. Pascal should hide under a rock. Neal has taken his lumps and has stepped back up to the plate to bat. That's what we do in this country. Cheers.
Robert H. Lawson
Chattanooga
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I have had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Pascal and am personally proud of how he handled his legal issues. He and his wife have done a great job with the Jet Stream Grill, and I am glad to see that WRCB has exercised wisdom in hiring him.
I am sure that Mr. Travers is a nice guy and I wish him the best, but I never felt he connected with the audience.
I personally think WTVC could have handled the whole situation better by allowing Mr. Pascal the opportunity to take a leave of absence while his case was being resolved. One would think that 25 years of service ought to have earned Mr. Pascal a bit more loyalty from his employer.
And to his credit, in my presence, Mr. Pascal has never spoken one negative word or exhibited any resentment or bitterness. He can hold his head high and enjoy the success that is coming his way. It has been earned and is well deserved.
Jeff Greer
Ringgold
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I don't see why everyone is so upset about the hiring of Neal Pascal at Channel 3. On the heels of Billy Long's conviction, the future is shaping up nicely. In a few years, they could push David Carroll out the door and hire Billy to do School Patrol and really tap into the 18-49 felon demographic.
I know that David works hard and does a great job covering the schools, and there would be some lingering ethical questions, but think of the ratings. What a ratings grabber that would be.
Because that's what Channel 3 wants more than anything - ratings. And they will throw anyone under the bus to do it, apparently. It is obvious from watching their newscasts on a daily basis that many at Channel 3 have lost the joy they once had working there. It must truly be a miserable place to work these days.
But think of the ratigs. If only they could find a way to hire Michael Vick to do sports, that would really be Coverage You Can Count On.
Ricky Weeks
Ooltewah