This week four News 12 Long Island anchors and reporters have announced their employment with the Altice-owned news station is ending.
Sportscaster Jamie Stuart, reporter Christine Insinga, reporter Shari Einhorn, and reporter/anchor Jackie Lukas each posted on social media announcing their departures from the company and reflected on the long careers spent there – Stuart for 21 years, Insinga and Lukas for about 16, and Einhorn for 28 years.
“I am truly honored to have spent nearly three decades telling stories about Long Islanders, to Long Islanders, for Long Islanders. I’ve laughed with you. I’ve cried with you. I’ve even chased some of you down,” Einhorn wrote in a Facebook post.
Insinga wrote in her post that it was “extremely bittersweet” to leave her position at News 12. “I’m so grateful and blessed to have worked alongside some of the best in the business,” she said.
In a Facebook video, Stuart reminisced on his time covering his favorite sports teams – “memories … that will last forever,” he said.
“It was truly an honor and a privilege to bring you local news for all these years,” Lukas wrote on Facebook. “I loved every second of it.”
Many fans and friends in the business responded to the veteran news reporters’ announcements with shock. All four noted in their goodbye posts that they are unsure what’s next for them. An apparent shakeup in staffing at News 12 resulted in the elimination of their positions, and Altice released the following statement.
“As News 12 continues to expand and strengthen its news organization, we are focusing additional resources to cover more hard-hitting investigative reporting and consumer-driven stories that our viewers want,” the company said. “As a result, we’ve created several full-time journalism positions to align with our programming content as we continue to deliver the best hyperlocal news coverage on Long Island.”
In 2018, Altice was in the news for laying off other employees who filed a lawsuit after their anchor and reporter positions were cut.
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