Albany TV anchor Heather Kovar has been suspended after slurring throughout the broadcast. Viewers were shocked when Kovar “slurred her words and appeared disheveled during an evening broadcast”.
The New York Post got more;
The CBS 6 anchor was jittery and wide-eyed during her Saturday segments and at times incoherent.
At one point while trying to pivot between segments, Kovar said, “And so, moving on tonight, is we have to tell you also, you know, like other news that’s happening in the area, and across the area, in the nation.”
She also began having trouble while discussing an explosion at a natural gas plant in Oklahoma, stumbling on her words. She quickly changed subjects during the report, too, saying bizarrely, “Well, hello! Good afternoon!
“Like, I was telling you this morning, if you watched us this morning starting at 6 a.m., 7 a.m., I told you, you know what? Today, what a beautiful day outside! It is just amazing. And so, a great time for outdoor music.”
She was clearly also having some technical issues during the segment and seen holding a wire at one point during the broadcast. She was ultimately cut off from speaking mid-sentence.
The station said she was suspended pending further investigation.
The station released a statement Sunday evening from Robert Croteau, vice president and general manager of the Sinclair-owned station: “Heather Kovar has been suspended pending our internal investigation. We have no further comment at this time.”
In a statement to the Times Union later Sunday, Kovar noted that she had “returned early from family leave following my dad’s death. On Friday, I notified the station I would not be renewing my contract which expires July 31. Saturday I was scheduled to work the early morning 6 a.m. shift and the evening shift. I was sleep-deprived and exhausted.”
Kovar, who has been the weekend anchor for several years, was slated to helm Saturday’s 11 p.m. newscast as well, but the station brought in the weekday evening anchor, Greg Floyd, who also filled in Sunday evening.
Flip to the next page to watch Heather Kovar slur through broadcast…