Award-winning FOX 56 TV anchor in Lexington let go after 31 years with station
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- Marvin Bartlett said his contract will not be renewed when it expires in mid‑June.
- Bartlett joined FOX 56 on Jan. 2, 1995, and served as anchor, managing editor, and producer.
- Since Nexstar announced its TEGNA deal, the company has cut several jobs at stations nationwide.
FOX 56 anchor Marvin Bartlett says his contract will not be renewed this summer after more than 30 years at the TV station.
Bartlett, whose first day with FOX 56 was Jan. 2, 1995, said on Facebook the TV station is letting him go when his contract expires in mid-June. He told the Herald-Leader he wasn’t necssarily surprised to learn the news since veteran anchors are being laid off at other Nexstar-owned TV stations across the country, but still he wasn’t expecting it.
“I was expecting to end my broadcast career at FOX 56,” Bartlett said. “I’ve loved working there, and it’s been very rewarding.”
In August 2025, Nexstar Media Group, Inc. announced it had reached an agreement to buy TEGNA Inc. for $6.2 billion. The deal was finalized in March, but a federal judge in California temporarily blocked the deal on April 10 after eight state attorneys general and DirecTV said the deal would harm local journalism, according to the Associated Press.
The deal required approval from the Federal Communications Commission, as there are limits to how many local stations one company can own, according to the Associated Press. If the deal is approved, it would give the merged company ownership of about 80% of TV stations across the country.
Since the deal was initially announced, Nexstar has cut several jobs across the company, including at TV stations in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York.
Bartlett said the company offered him a lesser position, but he wasn’t interested. A spokesperson for FOX 56 and Nexstar did not immediately respond back to a request for a comment.
“This is not unique. It’s hit the industry coast to coast,” Bartlett said. “I know it’s nothing personal. It’s not anything that was initiated by local managers, and I wouldn’t want any disappointment people have in what’s happened to me reflect on the other employees at FOX 56 and the hard work they do.”
Bartlett has won five regional Emmys for news writing and reporting and several more reporting awards from the AP, according to his FOX 56 biography. In addition to co-anchoring the 10 p.m. newscast, he is also FOX 56’s managing editor and the producer/reporter of “Spirit of the Bluegrass.”
He told the Herald-Leader he is proud to have been a part of the TV station’s first newscasts in 1995, becoming a solo news entity after breaking away from a partnership with WKYT in 2022 and starting “Spirit of the Bluegrass,” a weekly segment that shares stories about what makes Kentucky great.
“I love doing that more than anything,” Bartlett said. “It’s a nice break from covering drug busts and car wrecks.”
Bartlett is interested in continuing his career after his contract expires. He said he has had very vague conversations about his next steps and is open to opportunities.
“I feel I still have some gas in the tank. I’m not ready to retire yet,” Bartlett said. “I love Lexington, I hope to stay in the area. I’m open to hearing what’s out there, doesn’t necessarily have to be in TV.”
Bartlett, originally from Grafton, W.Va., graduated from Marshall University with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism in 1983. He earned a master’s degree in journalism at Ohio University in 1985 and started his career his hometown newspaper and radio station.
Bartlett worked for the public TV station at Ohio University, WCHS-TV in Charleston, W.Va. , and LEX 18 before becoming an anchor with FOX 56.
He also has taught at the University of Kentucky School of Journalism and written three books: “The Joy Cart,” “The Boy Who Delivered Joy” and “Spirit of the Bluegrass,” which compiled more than 60 of the TV stories segments of the same name into book form. He previously told the Herald-Leader he decided to write the book because “TV stories are kind of here today, gone tomorrow. Some of these stories just deserve to be preserved.”
Bartlett said he is thankful for the amount of support he’s received from co-workers and fans.
“I’ve been just overwhelmed by the kind comments people have made,” Bartlett said. “It’s uplifted my spirits just knowing that there’s been people watching me all those 30 something — well, 40 years in the market but 30-some years at FOX 56.”
This is a developing story and may be updated.
