New England Cable News is closing its Vermont bureau at the end of the year and laying off two well-known journalists in the state. 

Reporter Jack Thurston and photographer Kika Bronger will both lose their jobs as a result of the closure, they wrote in separate social media posts Wednesday.

In a phone interview, Bronger said the news was “not a complete surprise” because the company had suggested changes were in the works. “We thought it was going to happen next year,” she said. 

In a post on Facebook, Thurston said it had been “a great honor to serve in this role as a voice of Vermont for the rest of New England.” He wrote that he did not know what he would do next or even where he would live. 

“It’s obviously tough to have to leave on someone else’s terms, but as the sun sets on this chapter, I’m optimistic whatever comes next will be as fun and as interesting as this job has been,” Thurston wrote.

NECN did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Massachusetts-based news network is owned by NBCUniversal. According to national news reports, that company has been planning layoffs and other cuts throughout its subsidiaries. 

The cuts come amid a wave of layoffs at other national news organizations, including CNN, the Washington Post and Gannett. 

Bronger said she was informed on November 9 — the day after the midterm elections — that NECN would be closing its Vermont bureau. 

Bronger and Thurston have worked side-by-side in NECN’s Vermont bureau for 11 years, but the two first met each other when Thurston was Bronger’s intern at WCAX-TV. 

“It’s kind of funny. So I taught him everything he knows,” Bronger said. “There’s always a way to make a story interesting in Jack’s world, and I like that. He always cares… I think I improved as a photographer because it’s a collaboration.” 

Bronger said she would miss driving all over Vermont and meeting Vermonters. She said she doesn’t have plans lined up but wants to do something with video — though switching to a completely different field and learning a new trade isn’t out of the question for her.

“I can’t wait for what’s next. You know, it’s the first time in 25 years that my future will be open, you know. It’s a little scary,” Bronger said. “But I’m embracing the change.”

Did you know VTDigger is a nonprofit?

Our journalism is made possible by member donations from readers like you. If you value what we do, please contribute during our annual fund drive and send 10 meals to the Vermont Foodbank when you do.