This was becoming a landslide win for Chris Wragge. Readers were in agreement with this reporter’s assessment that the evening anchor should set his alarm clock for pre-dawn. At the time of this writing, Wragge secured 28 percent of the vote. However, that’s down from more than 40 percent.

• Related: FishbowlNY, Lining Up the Possible WCBS Morning Candidates

Former WPIX anchor Jim Watkins has caught fire as a write-in, putting him second on viewers’ wish list. Watkins, now at RNN’s FiOS1, previously worked for PIX GM Betty Ellen Barlamino, who runs WCBS sister site WLNY.

Also getting some write-in support, the legendary WNBC anchor Sue Simmons, and current Channel 4 anchor David Ushery.

Alice Gainer, who made her WCBS anchoring debut yesterday, got someone’s write-in vote. Gainer did weekend anchoring at News 12 New Jersey. She joined Channel 2 as a reporter in January.

Don Dahler picked up 17 percent of the vote. Cindy Hsu settled for less than 9 percent of the vote.

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Pope Benedict

With the even the slightest hint that New York’s own Cardinal Dolan, dare we say it, could become the next pope, starions are flocking to wait for the puff of smoke.

Among the stations sending correspondents is WCBS/Channel 2 as reporter Tony Aiello spends the rest of week Rome.

WNBC/Channel 4 will send anchor David Ushery, who previously covered the pope, returns to the Vatican for the Conclave of Cardinals that is expected to start next week.

WABC/Channel 7 weekend anchor Joe Torres will be in Rome. The station could not confirm, though, when he will begin to file reports.

On radio, veteran reporter Rich Lamb will make his way to Rome early next week for the Conclave.

WINS is sending Juliet Papa to cover the events at the Sistine Chapel. News director Ben Mevorach tells FishbowlNY, “She has traveled to Rome to cover the Pope on several other occasions for us, so she is well prepared and will bring listeners a very experienced perspective.”

Update: WPIX is sending to reporters Dan Mannarino and Mary Murphy, according to a tweet by Mannarino.

NY1 reporter Vivian Lee is headed to Rome. She’ll cover the papal resignation Thursday. Lee will resume daily updates Sunday as the cardinals hold their Conclave to select the next pope.

Photo credit: biography.com

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Simmons left WNBC in June after more than three decades at the anchor desk. Three months earlier, word broke on what many considered an unthinkable story—Simmons would not get a contract extension.

Related: FishbowlNY, Sue Simmons Ends Historic Run at WNBC

“I already knew my contract was up and I got threatened with suspension,” Simmons says. “I didn’t say a word until after I left.”

Once Simmons’ future status was published it caused her nothing but angst.

“The last several months from March to June was pretty much a nightmare for me,” Simmons admits. “Because after you’ve worked with your teams and your friends for that long it’s very difficult to come to terms with the fact that it’s not going to be anymore.”

Simmons adds that there was no bitterness as she began the “farewell tour” at WNBC.

“How would you complain about 32 years at one job, in television, in New York City, and being part of the longest running anchor team in New York’s history?”

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Now, those creative folks are at it again!

WABC/Channel 7 was first to expand its late weekend newscasts at the beginning of 2012. Now as the calendar changed to 2013, it’s WNBC’s turn to add 30 minutes. Channel 4 has only increased the Sunday night broadcast, thanks to the Saturday Night Live commitment.

•       Related: TVSpy/WNBC Expands Sunday Evening Newscast

David Ushery and Erika Tarantal remain the anchors.

Despite two parts of the city’s 11 p.m. newscasts making some inroads into expansion, WCBS is not ready to join its competition and give a longer day to Don Dahler.

A Channel 2 spokesperson tells FishbowlNY that the station has “no plans at this time.”

Dahler, who co-anchors the morning news block with Cindy Hsu, returns to hold down the fort alone at 11 p.m. One other note about WCBS avoiding expansion: With the busy CBS Sports schedule (NFL, NCAA Tournament, golf), it’s hard to find a weekend that WCBS actually starts on time.

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You probably woke up this morning to stations locked in ”wall-to-wall” mode, but that was not the case last night. Unlike last year’s Hurricane Irene (when I was holed up in a hotel), Sandy did not lead to an all-nighter by the area stations.

Here is how they took to the air this time.

Kaity Tong was a calming presence, anchoring a two-hour edition of the News at Ten on WPIX.  As was the case with Irene, WPIX’s coverage did not include Jodi Applegate.

Tong, as a solo anchor, was given an assist by reporter Dan Mannarino, who handled some phone interviews and other information for viewers. WPIX double-teamed the audience with veteran experience from Mr. G and Craig Allen.  WPIX was the only game in town until 11 p.m., as WNYW/Channel 5 was televising the final game of the World Series.

While the storm moved closer to New York, the other channels opted for prime-time network scheduling. At 11 p.m., WCBS/Channel 2 anchors Maurice DuBois and Kristine Johnson, first appearing at halftime of the New York Jets game, led the station’s one-hour special Sandy newscast. Thereafter, WCBS kept a crawl on the screen until the morning team resumed coverage at 4 a.m.

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Channel 4, the New York home of NBC’s extensive Olympic coverage, is enhancing the Games by sending two reporters to London.

Sports anchor Bruce Beck and reporter Katy Tur will provide updates and features for WNBC newscasts. Their reports will be seen each day of the fortnight starting Thursday and air on Today in New York, along with broadcasts at 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. The noon will be pre-empted by the Olympics.

In addition, David Ushery, who hosts The Debrief, anchors a nightly show from Studio 3C, The Olympics Zone. The 30-minute-program runs at 7:30 Monday through Saturday nights during the Games. The program will feature local Olympian profiles and interviews from London, competition recaps, and other stories of interest to viewers.

“We are proud to offer our viewers local coverage of the London 2012 Olympic Games,” said Michael Jack, president and general manager of NBC 4 New York. “With live reporting from our talent in London, to special programming such as The Olympic Zone, and extensive social media outreach, we will keep our viewers updated on the latest and most exciting Olympic news.”

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A rare sighting

If it seems like WNBC’s 11 p.m. anchor team of Chuck Scarborough and new partner Shiba Russell are barely together on the air, you’re not dreaming!

FishbowlNY examined how often the anchors sat side-by-side since Russell’s official debut at 11 p.m. one month ago last night. The number is incredibly low–try four. Just four times for Chuck and Shiba.

There were those first three days, including the infamous “Sue Simmons” identifying graphic for Russell at the start of the second newscast. Night-three was only a slight improvement, with no anchor names shown on the screen, although everyone else’s was displayed correctly.

The duo had one more night together, but not until July 11.

But if you are looking for some insidious, gossipy reason for the pair being conspicuous by its absence on a nightly basis, think again. A WNBC spokeswoman says this is simply the talent, especially Scarborough from his 38 years with the company, taking summer vacation.

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Last month, Dolan was chosen by the Vatican to become a Cardinal. His elevation is scheduled for Saturday, February 18 in Rome.

Dolan won’t be making the trip alone. A contingent of TV and radio reporters is headed to Italy to cover the elevation.

• WCBS/Channel 2: Anchor Maurice DuBois and reporter Tony Aiello will be in Rome starting at mid-week. Aiello files reports on Wednesday, while DuBois begins on Thurs. Channel 2 covers the elevation ceremony live at 4:30 a.m.
• WNBC/Channel 4: Weekend anchor David Ushery leaves for Rome on Sunday to take part in the station’s coverage next week.

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In January, Scott Clark closes out a brilliant career at WABC, retiring after nearly a quarter-century at Channel 7.

Maurice DuBois makes his debut as WCBS/Channel 2 lead anchor when he is promoted to nights opposite Kristine Johnson. Chris Wragge shifts his energy to The Early Show, but that wasn’t the last we would hear from him.

Also as 2011 began, veteran radio talk host Curtis Sliwa adds an afternoon shift to his Apple/WNYM duties.

In February, among the notable events, WNBC/Channel 4 welcomes home Shiba Russell from Boston. She was named weekend anchor with David Ushery. Russell fueled speculation that she was Sue Simmons’ “heir apparent,” as the main (if not exclusive) fill-in for the legendary anchor, who started at Channel 4 in 1980.

On the radio, Craig Allen, a veteran in his own right, agrees to a three-year extension as WCBS 880’s chief meteorologist. Two months later, Allen marked 30 years at the station.

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Shiba Russell (right), a weekend co-anchor with David Ushery, joins Tom Llamas for the new one-hour newscast, beginning September 12th.

“A new, one hour newscast at 5 p.m. will offer viewers a compelling choice for local news,” said Susan Sullivan, WNBC, Vice President of News. ”The selection as anchors of Shiba Russell and Tom Llamas, two award-winning journalists, is essential to ensuring the effective delivery of the critical local news and information that is so vital to our viewers.”

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The city stations were there to carry the breaking news just after 11:35 a.m. WCBS-TV, WNBC, WNYW, and WABC broke into regular coverage. WPIX was noticably absent from the proceedings.

WNYW, led by Good Day anchors Greg Kelly and Rosanna Scotto, did a very short recap (with no correspondents or guests) and left the air by noon.

WNBC, with David Ushery, stayed on for an additional 12 minutes, using their reporters (Melissa Russo and John Noel on the phone) and in-studio guest Elinor Tatum, publisher and editor in chief of New York Amsterdam News.

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Among the other regional sports networks, the YES Network notched 46 nominations, while MSG Varsity picked up 32 nods.

SNY was recognized 23 times.

Breaking it down further, in the category Sports Coverage: Series, MSG was bookended by News 12 Westchester (twice), News 12 New Jersey, and News 12 Connecticut.  

The odds may be against MSG in that category, but not so for Sports Programming: Regularly Scheduled Program. MSG took five nominations (MLB Productions for the YES Network with the other – Yankeeography: George Steinbrenner ).  

YES’ other signature original program CenterStage, hosted by Michael Kay, is nominated for Best Interview/Discussion for the edition with Mike Tyson.

The show goes against two WNBC/NYNonstop shows–The Debrief with David Ushery and Talk Stoop with Cat Greenleaf.

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“Family and friends are very important to me, especially when you have a child,” Russell says. “Moving to a market where you don’t know anyone doesn’t sound like a happy life to me.”

Some people may remember Russell, who cut her TV news chops in New York, at Cablevision’s Neighborhood News 12 in 1998. Staying in the company, she moved to News 12 The Bronx, where she worked from 1999 to 2002. During that time, she gained invaluable experience reporting on one of the nation’s most devastating days—September 11, 2001.

“The cops just let us go through; we were amazed we got so far. We were right there, just a few blocks down,” Russell recalls. “The city was just so quiet…It was such a long day. By the time the day was over, I drove home and I cried.”

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Russell will co-anchor the weekend newscasts at 6 and 11 p.m. with David Ushery. Viewers will also see Russell put on her reporting hat Monday-Wednesday. 

“I am thrilled to be back home and feeling the pulse of NYC once again,” says Russell.  “I have missed the people of New York because they tell you like it is.  Since I landed my first paid gig in New York and grew up in New Jersey, this is really like a homecoming.”

That “first paid gig” was at Cablevision’s Neighborhoood News 12. Early on, she also worked for News 12 The Bronx. 

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The program is a high-energy, no-script combination week-in-review and look-ahead with the reporters locked in on those specific stories.

But, what makes the show work best is its host—David Ushery.

He is tailored perfectly for the “no time to waste” mentality that the show offers. It is easy to see that Ushery enjoys “winging it” without a teleprompter. 

“Timing is so important with this, because the whole idea behind The Debrief is actually the pacing of it,” Ushery tells FishbowlNY. “…Our reporter who covered [a particular story] is just going to give you the nuts and bolts—here’s what you need to know,” Ushery says, snapping his fingers. “And then we’re going to move on.”

To that end, on one recent episode, Ushery guided viewers through seven different short bursts of interviews with colleagues or guests in the first 14-minute segment.

“I think it’s new for us in local news. If you look at some of the other national shows they’ve done movement around the newsroom and a different way of storytelling.” Ushery says. “But I think in local it’s kind of a new arena for the market.” (In October, WPIX started doing nightly newscasts without a desk in the newsroom.) 

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