The Scripps Center in Cincinnati, Ohio is seen in this photograph from July 21, 2017. On Tuesday, August 4, 2026, Scripps CEO Adam Symson announced the company was laying off 268 employees as part of a shift toward an AI-powered automated television newsroom model.
Raymond Boyd/Getty Images
Reaction is pouring in after the E.W. Scripps Company confirmed reports that it was laying off hundreds of employees at a dozen television news stations across the country, including Corpus Christi’s NBC affiliate, KRIS 6 News.
The layoffs come as the 150-year-old news media company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, shifts to a 24-hour streaming news model powered largely by AI automation systems developed by Scripps employees over the last three years. The AI-powered newsroom model will eventually be expanded “to all local stations,” according to Scripps President and CEO Adam Symson.
Article continues below this ad
MySA learned more than a dozen employees at KRIS 6 received layoff notices. That includes behind-the-scenes employees, such as technical directors, producers, digital producers, support staff, and photographers, as well as on-air talent, like anchors.
The KRIS 6 TV station in Corpus Christi is seen in this Google Street View image from 2023.
Courtesy Google Street View
KRIS 6 reporter Drew Bishop assures viewers he wasn’t laid off
While word of the layoffs began to spread on social media Tuesday morning, KRIS 6 multimedia journalist Andrew “Drew” Bishop was attending a news conference with Corpus Christi city officials as they announced the easing of water restrictions following a years-long, historic drought. Bishop took to Facebook late Tuesday to respond to viewers.
Article continues below this ad
“Anyone who reached out to me personally, I appreciate it. Just to be clear, as of Tuesday, I will remain at KRIS 6,” Bishop said.
Bishop went on to praise his colleagues, many of whom he described as Coastal Bend natives deeply dedicated to serving their community, but added that shifting media consumption habits have put “more pressure” on the industry. Bishop also assured viewers that he remains committed to original newsgathering and to showing up in person for the stories that matter to the Coastal Bend, like the recent water crisis.
“I will continue to show up to meetings. I will continue to ask the hard questions… I want to make it very clear: AI plays ZERO role in my reporting!!” Bishop said.
“I write my own scripts, I write my own posts, and I interview people for my stories personally. I don’t put those responsibilities in the hands of automation,” he added.
Article continues below this ad
Scripps layoffs condemned on social media
While Symson said the company’s mission remains unchanged—to “create connection through trusted news and information”—some questioned what the layoffs could mean for Scripps’ future and the communities its stations serve.
“Scripps sucks. Plain and simple,” Tulsa, Oklahoma-based meteorologist Mike Collier said on X.
Collier, who launched his own media brand, MCWX, that covers weather in eastern Oklahoma, previously worked at Scripps-owned KJRH Channel 2, Tulsa’s NBC affiliate. On Facebook, Collier confirmed the layoffs will impact KJRH.
Article continues below this ad
“Praying for my friends at KJRH. Just awful to see local television being torn apart,” Collier said.
Meanwhile, a viewer in Tucson, Arizona, reacted to layoffs happening at the ABC affiliate there.
“Saddened and upset that Scripps has decided to do massive layoffs and go more to an AI model with little to no live broadcasting,” Javier Morales, a former print sports journalist, said on X. Morales now operates the independent sports-reporting website AllSportsTucson.
“This will seriously affect KGUN Channel 9. This will greatly diminish the station’s ability to report on the community. That station has suffered significant layoffs. Very, very unfortunate,” Morales said.
Article continues below this ad
But others see Scripps’ decision to embrace AI as a bellwether for the local news industry as media consumption habits have changed.
“They’re absolutely correct (in my opinion) to pivot toward streaming and to the ways that more people… find and consume and engage with journalism content. It’s no longer the newscast,” a Redditor named chipcinnati said on a post in the r/Broadcasting community.
“Nobody has the magic serum to solve revenue, but anyone hanging on to what little is left of the legacy business is done for sure,” chipcinnati said.