New York

In honor of Memorial Day weekend, News Corp.-owned WWOR, headquartered in Secaucus, NJ, is kicking off a yearlong series honoring marines, soldiers and other military personnel in the Tri-State area (video above).

The “Hometown Heroes” series will air on the MyNetworkTV-affiliate’s 10 p.m. newscast, anchored by Brenda Blackmon and Harry Martin. Beginning this weekend and continuing through Memorial Day of 2013, the station will spotlight a different local person in the military each night.

Launch a social media campaign that will build your brand and deliver results in our online Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting June 7. Speakers include Abigail Cusick (Bravo Digital), Gregory Galant (Sawhorse Media), Alex Leo (Thomson Reuters Digital), Jim Tobin (Ignite Social Media), and many more. Read the reviews.

John Schriffen is joining ABC News as a New York-based correspondent, president Ben Sherwood announced today.

Schriffen most recently was a freelance reporter for WCBS, the CBS O&O in New York City. Prior to that, he was a general assignment reporter at WRC, the NBC O&O in Washington, DC, for three years. He started his television career in New York City as a reporter for News 12 The Bronx.

“John brings great energy, creativity and competitiveness to his journalism and will report for all of our platforms,” Sherwood wrote in a memo to ABC News staffers this morning. “Please join me in welcoming him aboard.”

The Barry Diller-backed streaming TV service Aereo recently scored a victory in federal court when a judge dismissed one of the legal complaints filed by broadcasters against the company, The Wall Street Journal reports.

According to court documents, the judge dismissed the broadcasters’ unfair competition complaint, leaving Aereo to only face claims of copyright infringement in the case.

Although the decision was a decided victory for Aereo, the dismissed complaint represents the least significant of the claims brought against the company by broadcasters. Read more

WCBS reporter Derricke Dennis was reporting live Thursday night at the top of the station’s 11 p.m. newscast when a man jumped out of a window behind him.

Dennis was reporting from the New Jersey neighborhood where a young boy had been struck by a falling metal pole and he was unaware at the time that a shirtless man had tumbled to the cement in the background of his shot. Video after the jump… Read more

WPIX, the CW-affiliate in New York City, launching a content partnership with Patch, AOL’s online local news platform.

The “Patch on PIX” segments, shot daily, will spotlight popular stories from Patch sites throughout the tri-state area. The segments will air beginning this week on the 5 p.m. newscast and are expected to eventually expand to the morning newscast.

“In our continuing goal to better serve our local communities, PIX11′s partnership with Patch will deliver valuable content to our viewers, creating a richer and deeper news experience,” WPIX news director Bill Carey said in a statement.

In a series of court filings this week, broadcasters argued that the streaming TV service Aereo, currently available only in New York, would cause an end to the TV industry as we know it.

In a declaration filed in a New York federal court, Matt Bond, EVP of content distribution at NBCUniversal, said, according to The Hollywood Reporter, that if Aereo is successful in fending off lawsuits from broadcasters and is able to proceed with its service, the economics of TV distribution would be changed forever. Read more

Dick Brenann, who was ousted from WNYW in March after 11 years at the Fox O&O, is back on the air in the New York market.

Brennan has been reporting on a per diem basis for WCBS, a station spokesperson tells our sister site FishbowlNY. His reports have aired on the New York CBS O&O beginning in mid-April.

At WNYW, Brennan was a political reporter. He has reported on a variety of subjects, from severe weather to the campaign finance trial of former Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwards.

Crotchety local news reporter Herb Welch was back on “Saturday Night Live” this past weekend. Welch, played by Bill Hader, was out covering the Occupy movement for fictional New York station WXPD and Eli Manning, the show’s host, fell victim to his microphone (video above).

Welch is a dead-ringer for former WNYW reporter Dick Oliver.

One thing you can’t say about Sue Simmons‘ 30+ years at WNBC is that it’s been dull.

The veteran anchor was caught telling a private story involving her breast at the start of the station’s 11 p.m. newscast on Monday, before her co-anchor Chuck Scarborough realized that they were on the air (video above). Read more

WNBC chief meteorologist Janice Huff bid farewell to the “Today” show on Sunday, after 16 years of forecasting the weather on the show’s weekend broadcasts (video above).

She will continue to deliver the weather on WNBC’s 5, 6, and 11 p.m. weekday newscasts (she’ll just be a little more well-rested).