Industry sources report to "New Mexico Politics with Joe Monahan" that longtime Channel 7 investigative reporter Larry Barker will start this week at CBS affiliate KRQE-TV Channel 13, concluding a quarter century career at 7, where he ruffled the feathers of the high and mighty throughout the New Mexico political world. Just why Barker is leaving is the subject of widespread scuttlebutt. Most observers think it's over money. Here's how one industry veteran put it: "Joe, I think 7 is trying to free up its budget to bring back Nelson Martinez as anchor. The team at 7 has not been the same since his absence and the ratings have been weaker. Martinez though will cost and that means they have to look for extra bucks."

Interesting speculation. But it could be that Barker simply wanted more money or 7 thought he was no longer the ratings pull he once was.

Martinez left 7 a year ago to pursue music and acting. But if the price is right he probably could be lured back. Meanwhile, the ratings race for the 10 p.m news shows in Albuquerque is a dead heat night after night. A veteran of the news wars told me: "It's a night-to night thing on whose going to be number one." KOAT-TV wins at 6 p.m., but their dominance at 10 is a distant memory. KOB-TV and 13 have made this a three way race for the top late-night news spot.

Barker is not a well-liked figure in political circles, and he doesn't want to be. His reports over the years have uncovered a variety of misdeeds, and one time he had a high-ranking government official crawl out of his office and onto a windowsill to avoid the Barker cameras!

So called non-compete clauses, where a reporter cannot go on the air of a competing station in the same TV market for at least a year are still standard industry practice, but sources tell me "that's not a problem" in the Barker case.

So go the TV news wars. Much like our beloved field of politics it is a never ending quest for viewers and votes.

(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2003
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