My word! Sue Simmons is back on WNBC after grade-F slip
By Richard Huff
NY DAILY NEWS TV EDITOR

Wednesday, May 14th 2008, 8:45 AM

                                                    
                                                                  Sue Simmons

Veteran WNBC/Ch. 4 anchor Sue Simmons was back on the air Tuesday, a day after dropping an F-bomb on live TV.

The decision to keep her on by Ch. 4 management after the gaffe left some industry insiders mulling Simmons' future.

"She should be suspended for some period of time," said one local executive, who declined to be named.

Another called the mishap "inexcusable" for someone of Simmons' experience.

Simmons, seated next to Chuck Scarborough, dropped the offensive word Monday during a live news tease at about 10:30 p.m. Though she was off camera as a video clip appeared, she was heard saying, "What the f- are you doing?"

She apologized on the 11 p.m. news, saying she was "truly sorry."

(SEE the incident & apology HERE!)

Some observers, many of whom regularly use the same word in conversation, speculated that Simmons may have thought the segment was being taped and the word could later be deleted.


Ch. 4 officials would not say whether she was reprimanded for the slip.

News director Vicki Burns canceled a planned trip to the station's New Jersey bureau to deal with the fallout, sources indicated.

"We do not comment on personnel issues," a station spokeswoman said Tuesday.

But Simmons' mistake was the talk at Ch. 4, in newsrooms around town and at the Daily News Web site, where nearly 150 people posted mixed reactions about the incident and what should happen to the anchorwoman.

In 2005, then WCBS/Ch. 2 reporter Arthur Chi'en (now at Ch. 11) was fired after spouting the F-word when a heckler shouted behind him during a live report. Many believed Ch. 2's reaction was too severe, although it came after Janet Jackson's Super Bowl nipple flash, which made everyone fearful of FCC fines.

For Simmons, the on-air flub couldn't come at a worse time.

There is speculation that Ch. 4's new management is considering upending the anchor teams now in place. One trend, both locally and around the country, is to move away from high-priced anchors - Simmons and Scarborough are among the best-paid in the country - as station executives look to cut budgets.

As previously reported, Lynda Baquero is expected to come off the station's 6 p.m. newscast at the end of the month. The New York Chapter of the National Hispanic Media Coalition has sent a letter to Jeff Zucker, chairman of parent company NBC Universal, seeking to keep Baquero on the air.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday Ch. 4's legal eagles were trying to stop the spread of a clip of Simmons' expletive, citing copyright infringement.

The burning question remains:  Who the ____________was she kvetching about and what the ____________was happening?  I'll sleep restlessly tonight....

She was apparently giving her longtime anchor partner Chuck Scarsborough a hard time for making notes & not paying attention while they were supposed to be doing a promo.


After F-bomb, Sue Simmons 'went numb,' viewers say 'ho-hum'
By RICHARD HUFF
NY DAILY NEWS TV EDITOR

Thursday, May 15th 2008

WNBC/Ch. 4 anchor Sue Simmons says she "went numb" Monday night after using the F-word during a live news tease.

"I thought we were taping a promo," Simmons said in an e-mail to The News.

She said she saw co-anchor Chuck Scarborough out of the corner of her eye scribbling on his notes and "playfully and crudely" tried to get his attention.

As viewers heard, she said, "What the f- are you doing?"

She then realized they were live on the air. "I went numb," she said. She later apologized on that night's 11 o'clock news, saying it was a "mistake" and she was truly sorry.

"NBC has been very supportive," she added.

Daily News readers have been supportive, too. In a poll at the Daily News' Web site, 70% of respondents said Simmons should not lose her job or be suspended.

"How many years has she been on TV? Fifty?" wrote mgarcia13 at http://www.nydailynews.com. "And it's the first time she's had a slip of the tongue when she thought she was off-air. What should we do, prosecute her? Ban her from TV? Get a life, people; I've heard worse and no one has ever complained. Leave the woman alone."

The incident started chatter about Simmons' future at WNBC/Ch. 4 and whether she'd be suspended or worse. It also comes at a time when new management is planning on reconfiguring the anchor lineup.

"Breaking up Chuck and Sue would be a huge mistake," wrote pammy61. "I hope the new management are not a bunch of Ivy League yuppies who don't have a clue what the public wants."

Ch. 4 management is limiting comments to a prepared statement.

"Sue Simmons is a highly valued 30-year veteran of WNBC," the station said in the statement. "Sue, along with WNBC, remains deeply sorry for her offensive remark on Monday night for which she quickly apologized. It was an unfortunate mistake that she truly regrets."

And that seems to be okay with readers, who for years have watched Simmons and Scarborough deliver the good news, the bad news, and share a laugh or two along the way.

"I am disappointed Sue Simmons used that word of all the curse words there are. She did apologize and I'm over it. I hope Ch. 4 gets over it and doesn't hold this over her head. She has been around New York TV a long time and it would be lousy for her to leave because of this," wrote Citizenkane.

Simmons and Scarborough are the longest-running anchor team in town, and at one point the most dominant in the Nielsen department. They've often described their on-air partnership as a TV marriage, he being the serious one and she the prankster. Though their ratings have declined in recent years, they're still beloved by many viewers.

"I think her past performance, which has been excellent, should be taken into account. Let it go, already, it's no big deal," wrote treester. "Technically, she was off the air, the screen was blank. I saw it myself. No need for suspension or anything else, they should just drop it. It's done, yesterday's news."

rhuff@nydailynews.com

Well if she does lose her job, perhaps she'll get it back when the new anchor gets pushed into a bear pit all while trying to report on a panda bear birth.

I still think this is funnier..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tJjNVVwRCY

Big diff, of course, is that the Bill O'Reilly gaffe was never on the air.

Funniest part for me is that this supposedly super-in-the-know front man for the "Inside Edition" didn't know what "play us out" meant!?!?

Who F*cking cares about the word F*ck? Is it that much of a big deal?????????

Roll tape.. "Listener discretion is advised."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaM7Bvc1VOA

Quoted from briancanada3

Who F*cking cares about the word F*ck? Is it that much of a big deal?????????

What's with the * if you say "who f*cking cares" ? LOL - no big deal - right?

Quoted from Masterofnothing

What's with the * if you say "who f*cking cares" ? LOL - no big deal - right?

Just in case it offends some of the people on the board. I don't really want my a-hole comments to get me kicked off

Quoted from briancanada3

Just in case it offends some of the people on the board. I don't really want my a-hole comments to get me kicked off

Precisely why it was a "big deal" with WNBC