I have to start with some information on the former Bonten Media, since the company was sold after I left. (They were very good to me.)
Then, you’ll see a grid showing a few dozen of the stories I wrote during my time at WCYB-5 NBC, CW4-5.2, and WEMT-39 Fox.
As Digital Media Manager, I was responsible for all three stations’ websites, but most of WCYB.com’s content syndicated to the others. I helped with the switch to a higher-level Lakana CMS just before leaving, in April 2016. Later, Sinclair bought WCYB and changed its look again, leaving the site what it is today.
SIDENOTE: WEMT was actually owned by Esteem Broadcasting, operated by WCYB’s owner and sold to — as Wikipedia puts it — “Sinclair affiliate Cunningham Broadcasting.”
Why Sinclair affiliate?
More than 90 percent of Cunningham’s stock is controlled by trusts owned by the estate of Carolyn Smith, the late wife of Sinclair founder Julian Smith and mother of Sinclair chairman David Smith. So the Smith children own it and Sinclair operates most of its stations. That makes it a shell corporation and raises a lot of questions.
My No. 1 question is why Cunningham got rid of WEMT’s perfectly good website, along with those of the other Esteem stations it took over, and several others? That’s lousy customer service and makes it harder for members of the public in cities around the country — whose interest the Federal Communications Commission says Cunningham is supposed to be serving — to find information about WEMT.
I’ve written all about Cunningham and Sinclair, and a similar situation with Deerfield Media.
But back to my WCYB story.
After all the changes, if you go to the actual webpages, you’ll notice links are gone, graphics have changed, the names of image files are shown, and spacing involving some words and paragraphs got eliminated. This portfolio of some of my work is still available online. I only edited out advertisements.
However, since I first compiled articles, I found six new ones, and was able to format several others better.

You can also click here to see stories from my time as Web Producer at WTXF. I started there just five days after leaving WCYB and unlike the wonderful people in the Tri-Cities, I had mostly a miserable 15 months.
- Federal penitentiary in Lee County on ‘limited operational status’
- Police: TV news car knocked ETSU student to the ground
- New accusation against Pomrenke: Contacting subpoenaed witnesses
- Mark your calendars: BMS announces key dates for 2016
- CFO indicted on 15 counts in BVU corruption scandal
- Blood drives scheduled this week
- Stay safe by watching professional fireworks shows
- 2015 Prep Picks
- Virginia’s first lady to visit next week
- Sunday’s free outdoor concert to be performed inside due to cold
- Halloween
- Santa Pal kicked off Operation Christmas and needs your help
- Former BVU board chair guilty of fraud, conspiracy, taking gifts
- I-81 northbound open again after truck slid off highway
- Dream jobs available at Dollywood
- BVU defends decision to sell OptiNet without multiple bids
- BVU board discussed bill to replace leadership in special session
- Police: Missing couple killed, dismembered over suspect’s drug debt
- Couple’s new home catches fire, 1 of 3 in Russell Co. since Thursday
- 2016-02 We Salute You
- Health system merger announcement expected Thursday
- Haslam launching 15-stop tour of Tenn. on road funding needs
- 2015-05 We Salute You
- Eastman celebrating emergency crew’s big honor
- BVU’s Wes Rosenbalm moved from Bureau of Prisons custody
- Traffic do’s and don’ts around BMS for race weekend
- Stanton’s goal: From ETSU president emeritus to county commissioner
- Prison for all 3 BVU defendants sentenced
- New phase of construction on I-81 in SW Virginia
- $158k in new restitution to BVU from 3 convicted in scandal
- Sentencing Thursday for former BVU CEO Rosenbalm
- Public invited for Saturday full of events celebrating Big Stone Gap
- Pomrenke to appeal 14 corruption convictions
- Big Stone Gap celebrates ‘Big Stone Gap’ with parade
- Accused murderer’s lawyer could be taken off case
- 3 arrests after 2 incidents at same CVS
- Tractor-trailer flips burns on I-81
- Stacey Pomrenke guilty on all but one count
- Local prisoner escapes while being taken to California
- Johnson City police Humvee pulled from creek
- Pomrenke trial enters second week
- ‘Big Stone Gap’ movie opens everywhere Friday
- Rhythm & Roots Reunion: What you need to know
- Grocery store chain Publix growing into Virginia
- Doctors, dentists, drone: Wise RAM clinic has it all
- Bristol to be home of the largest outdoor screen in the world
- Rain, flooding and a sinkhole before Christmas
- Sheriff: Buffalo Mountain plane crash site found
- New lawyer, delayed trial for former school principal
- Man sentenced for crash that killed his fiance
- Getting tickets to the Battle at Bristol
- ETSU: ‘Our first eaglet has landed!!’
- Tests are back, electricity in Cherokee Reservoir considered ‘normal’
- Cleared of murder in son’s dump truck death, 5 days before trial
- Wanted for 2 robberies in 5 minutes, ran when getaway car wouldn’t start
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