Some sad news to report from a local radio station where many talented broadcasters got their start.
WILI Radio in Willimantic has let go longtime News Director Mike Morrissette. With 30 years in the position he was likely the longest-tenured broadcast news director in Connecticut. Some of the big stories during his career included the battle over the proposed Route 6 expressway between Bolton and Columbia, the 1991 killing of Trooper Russell Bagshaw in North Windham, and the massive mill fire at the former American Thread complex in Willimantic in 1995.
The station, and its parent company, Hall Communications, also laid off reporter and weekend anchor Lincoln Phillips, who started there in 1997.
The newsroom where the likes of Pat Sheehan and Steve Kotchko once worked has been reduced to one person.
