B&C’s Marisa Guthrie has an update on the search for David Westin‘s replacement at ABC News. Guthrie reports Disney-ABC Television Group president Anne Sweeney was at ABC News headquarters in New York last week:

According to multiple sources, Sweeney held meetings with a handful of current executives at ABC News, including James Goldston and Jim Murphy, executive producers at Nightline and Good Morning America, respectively. Sweeney also met with Kate O’Brian, senior VP of news coverage. Jon Banner, executive producer of World News with Diane Sawyer, had a meeting with Sweeney at an earlier occasion.

Multiple names from the ABC station group including O&O president Rebecca Campbell and Emily Barr, the president and general manager of WLS-TV, the ABC O&O in Chicago, have been disavowed.

By the way, we still have our poll open on the subject. What do you think?

Read more

First on TVNewser: Dave Davis is leaving his post at ABC News and returning to his old job as general manager of ABC’s flagship station WABC in New York, TVNewser has learned.

Davis joined ABC News as #2 to David Westin in September, 2007. He was tasked with, in Westin’s words, being the “single, senior executive to oversee all of our television broadcasts, replacing the structure in which the programs reported to several different people.”

In reality, Davis was the heavy at ABC News tasked with reorganizing the broadcast news division. The multi-year reorganization culminated in April with employee cuts — through buyouts and layoffs — of up to 400 staffers.

When Davis joined the #2 broadcast news outlet in 2007 some saw him ascending to the top job, taking over for Westin who’s been president of ABC News for 13 years — at that level, an eternity in TV news.

Davis’ old job at WABC, which is the #1 local TV station in the country, became vacant in May when Rebecca Campbell was promoted to president of the ABC Owned Television Stations Group. Davis will now report to Campbell.

> More: WABC staffers are gathering in the “LIVE with Regis & Kelly” studio for the announcement. “LIVE” is produced by WABC out of the 7 Lincoln Square building.

> Update: The announcement from WABC after the jump…

> More: Westin writes, “Effective immediately, the executive producers and others who have been reporting to Dave will return to my direct supervision.” His note after the jump…
First on TVNewser: Dave Davis is leaving his post at ABC News and returning to his old job as general manager of ABC’s flagship station WABC in New York, TVNewser has learned.

Davis joined ABC News as #2 to David Westin in September, 2007. He was tasked with, in Westin’s words, being the “single, senior executive to oversee all of our television broadcasts, replacing the structure in which the programs reported to several different people.”

In reality, Davis was the heavy at ABC News tasked with reorganizing the broadcast news division. The multi-year reorganization culminated in April with employee cuts — through buyouts and layoffs — of up to 400 staffers.

When Davis joined the #2 broadcast news outlet in 2007 some saw him ascending to the top job, taking over for Westin who’s been president of ABC News for 13 years — at that level, an eternity in TV news.

Davis’ old job at WABC, which is the #1 local TV station in the country, became vacant in May when Rebecca Campbell was promoted to president of the ABC Owned Television Stations Group. Davis will now report to Campbell.

> More: WABC staffers are gathering in the “LIVE with Regis & Kelly” studio for the announcement. “LIVE” is produced by WABC out of the 7 Lincoln Square building.

> Update: The announcement from WABC after the jump…

> More: Westin writes, “Effective immediately, the executive producers and others who have been reporting to Dave will return to my direct supervision.” His note after the jump…

Read more