Eight months after her final newscast at WNBC, Sue Simmons opens up about being cut from the New York City NBC O&O in an extensive interview with our sister site, FishbowlNY. Simmons discusses the cutbacks at the station and her friendship with former co-anchor Chuck Scarborough, as well as the emotional turmoil of losing her seat at the anchor desk:

“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?”

If it were her choice, Simmons says viewers would still be watching Chuck Scarborough and her each night. Read more

Just three months after her departure from WNBC, Sue Simmons is speaking out about the NBC O&O’s decision not to renew her contract.

“It wasn’t so all of a sudden. I had an inkling,” Simmons said in an interview with Joy Behar that will air Tuesday night on Current TV. “But somewhere along the line there were mixed signals, and I didn’t think it was going to end, and it did.”

Simmons, 70, talked with Behar about her replacement, Shiba Russell, as well as her reported salary and her former co-anchor, Chuck Scarborough.

“They kept him. Why?” Behar asked Simmons. Read more

It’s almost as if WNBC is trying to trick viewers into thinking Sue Simmons never left.

On Tuesday night, as Shiba Russell, Simmons’s replacement, anchored her second 11 p.m. newscast alongside Chuck Scarborough, the station ran a chyron at the top of the show (above) that identified Russell as “Sue Simmons.” Read more

On Friday, WNBC marked the end of an era: after 32 years, Sue Simmons anchored her final newscast at the station. On Monday, as Shiba Russell assumed Simmons’s longtime spot next to Chuck Scarborough, it was business as usual, right down to Scarborough’s tie and pocket square.

WNBC made no mention of the anchor change during Russell’s first 11 p.m. newscast Monday. And, in what was either a wardrobe oversight or a crafty way to smooth the transition from Simmons to Russell, Scarborough appeared to be wearing the exact same outfit, down to the bright pink pocket square, on Monday night as he did Friday. Read more

In a move that many have anticipated since she joined the station last year, Shiba Russell is replacing Sue Simmons on WNBC‘s 11 p.m. newscast.

During a monthly staff meeting that took place this morning, WNBC president and general manager Michael Jack announced that, “effective today, Shiba Russell will be expanding her responsibilities to include the 11 p.m. news.”

Russell has been co-anchoring WNBC’s weekday 5 p.m. newscast alongside Tom Llamas. At 11, she’ll pair with Simmons’s longtime co-anchor Chuck Scarborough, who recently had his contract renewed for another three years. Read more

Throughout her final newscast on WNBC, legendary New York anchor Sue Simmons made it clear that she didn’t want to leave.

Following a day of video tributes to her, the moment finally came Friday night: Simmons would anchor her last newscast at WNBC, ending a 32-year run at NBC’s flagship station. And she did it with the same humor and unpredictability that have endeared her to so many viewers.

At times during the 11 p.m. newscast, Chuck Scarborough, Simmons’s longtime co-anchor, whose dapper outfit for the occasion was punctuated with a bright pink pocket square, looked like a nervous parent teaching his kid to drive–he was ready to grab the wheel when it appeared that Simmons may veer the newscast in a regrettable direction. Read more

WNBC plans to bid farewell to longtime anchor Sue Simmons with a series of tributes running throughout the day on Friday, culminating in her final newscast at 11 p.m.

“Sue has been a part of many memorable moments in New York history, and we’re going to look back at some of those and her contributions to them,” a station spokesperson told TVSpy.

WNBC will run video tributes to Simmons during all of its newscasts Friday that will include the familiar mix of on-air highlights and salutes from former colleagues and local celebrities. Read more

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 has reportedly decided not to renew the contract of longtime anchor Sue Simmons.

Simmons, 68, has been a fixture of the WNBC anchor desk for the past three decades.  New York Post gossip columnist Cindy Adams reports that WNBC declined to renew Simmons’ contract, even though the station decided to give her longtime co-anchor Chuck Scarborough, who is also 68, another three years.

According to Adams, Simmons was informed a year ago about WNBC’s new direction.  Around the same time, WNBC brought on anchor Shiba Russell, who many thought would eventually replace Simmons. Read more

Just a few hours after the conclusion of the Chris Christie press conference, there was more breaking news in New York City — a helicopter crash in the East River, near Manhattan’s 34th Street.

WCBS‘ Maurice DuBois was the first to break the news 3:27 p.m., followed by WABC‘s Bill Ritter at 3:29 p.m. and WNBC‘s Chuck Scarborough at 3:31 p.m. Ernie Anastos on WNYW followed at 3:32 p.m. Anastos was also on the air less than ten minutes earlier reporting on a school lockdown on Long Island.

Cable news stations were using video from local affiliates — MSNBC was taking the WNBC feed, while CNN was using WABC’s chopper camera. Fox News Channel also took the WABC feed for short time after the news broke, switching over to Fox O&O WNYW when their chopper arrived on the scene.