WHDH - TVSpy

Reid Lamberty Out at Boston’s WHDH

Merrill Knox — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 11:00:07 +0000

Evening co-anchor Reid Lamberty is out at WHDH, the NBC affiliate in Boston, NewsBlues reports.

Lamberty joined WHDH from WSVN in Miami (both stations are owned by Sunbeam Television) in 2011. He has also worked as an anchor at WNYW and WCBS in New York and WFXT in Boston.

Lamberty’s bio has been stripped from the WHDH website. Adam Williams has been anchoring the evening newscasts alongside Amanda Grace since June 6.

WHDH general manager Chris Wayland and news director Linda Miele did not respond to TVSpy’s requests for comment.

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68% of Boston Households Watch Local Coverage of Bombing Suspect’s Capture

Merrill Knox — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:55:48 +0000

Ratings for Boston stations were through the roof Friday night as all stations had wall-to-wall coverage of the manhunt for Boston marathon bombing suspect in Watertown. During the 8pm hour, when Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was taken into custody, 68% of Boston households were watching the four local network affiliates as well as local cable outlet NECN. Hearst-owned WCVB drew the most viewership.

From 7-9p.m., the Boston stations drew a combined 1.764 million viewers in a city that has 2.36 million TV households.

An additional 11% of Boston households were tuned in to coverage on CNN, Fox News and MSNBC from 7-9pm. TVNewser has the breakdown of the cable news ratings in Boston by network.

Here’s the ratings breakdown by station:

7:00-9:00 pm:

WCVB (ABC): 10.4 rating / 23 share with 609,000 total viewers (10.5 / 22 with 259,000 A25-54)
WBZ (CBS): 7.3 / 16 with 427,000 total viewers (7.1 / 15 with 175,000 A25-54)
WHDH (NBC): 6.7 / 15 with 392,000 total viewers (9.1 / 19 with 226,000 A25-54)
WFXT (Fox): 5.0 / 11 with 292,000 total viewers (6.9 / 15 with 171,000 A25-54)
NECN: 0.8 / 2 with 44,000 total viewers (0.7 / 2 with 18,000 A25-54)

8:00-9:00 pm:

WCVB: 11.0 / 23 with 645,000 total viewers (11.7 / 23 with 289,000 A25-54)
WBZ: 7.6 / 16 with 447,000 total viewers (7.6 / 15 with 187,000 A25-54)
WHDH: 7.1 / 15 with 417,000 total viewers (9.8 / 19 with 243,000 A25-54)
WFXT: 5.9 / 12 with 345,000 total viewers (8.4 / 16 with 207,00o A25-54)
NECN: 0.8 / 2 with 46,000 total viewers (0.7 / 1 with 17,000 A25-54)

>More: For reference, an alert TVSpy commenter points out that 2012 Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants was watched by 56.7% of Boston households.

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Boston Reporter Trapped in Gunfight: ‘I’ve Never in my Life Been in a Situation Like This’

Merrill Knox — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 11:44:38 +0000

WHDH reporter Adam Williams provided a dramatic firsthand account of the gunfight between Boston police and the marathon bombing suspects from Watertown last night.

Williams was trapped behind the police barricade during the gunfight, saying he was “so close he could smell the gunpowder.”

“I’m just staying down using the car as shelter,” Williams said. I’ve never in my life been in a situation like this … clearly we’re not in a situation where police would want us, but we can’t get out right now.” Watch:

WHDH-TV 7News Boston

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Boston Stations Deliver Special Coverage of Service For Bombing Victims

Merrill Knox — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 11:58:31 +0000

Boston stations provided special coverage of an interfaith prayer service honoring the victims of the marathon bombings at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross Thursday morning.

All four provided rolling coverage throughout the morning, beginning with the morning newscasts and extending into the 10 a.m. hour. President Obama landed at Logan Airport around 10:15 a.m., about 45 minutes before the scheduled start of the service.

Jonathan Elias and Lisa Hughes anchored on CBS O&O WBZ. Gene Lavanchy and Sorboni Banerjee anchored on WFXT, while Kayna Whitworth and Christa Delcamp anchored on WHDH. Heather Unruh and Ed Harding anchored on ABC affiliate WCVB. All four stations had correspondents spread throughout the city to provide additional reporting from the ground.

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WHDH Takes an Undercover Look at Medical Marijuana Certifications

Merrill Knox — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 13:48:01 +0000

An undercover WHDH producer was certified to grow and posses medical marijuana at two Massachusetts clinics after showing doctors the x-rays of a dog (video above).

Massachusetts law permits doctors to give a marijuana certification to possess and grow a 60 day supply “after a full assessment” of the “patients medical history” they think the “benefits would outweigh the health risks,” according to WHDH. The producer went to three clinics with just the x-rays — which were of a yellow Labrador’s elbow — and no detailed medical records. She was able to obtain a certification at two of the three health clinics.

“He asked me a couple of questions, but he didn’t do even a basic exam. No heart rate, no blood pressure, he didn’t examine my elbow. The whole thing took seven minutes,” the producer said of one clinic.

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Reporter Sean Hennessey Leaving WCBS

Merrill Knox — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 09:38:41 +0000

WCBS reporter Sean Hennessey is saying goodbye to the CBS O&O in New York City, our sister site FishbowlNY reports.

Hennessey, who joined WCBS in 2007, has accepted a new job as a professor at his alma mater, Boston College. Before moving to New York, Hennessey spent 10 years reporting and anchoring at WHDH in Boston.

“The WCBS family wishes Sean the best as he starts his new career as an associate editor of news and public affairs at Boston College,” a station spokesperson told FishbowlNY.

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Strong Growth For WCVB’s Morning Newscast During February Sweeps

Merrill Knox — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 10:36:53 +0000

WNYW‘s “Good Day New York” isn’t the only local morning show that had a successful February sweeps period. Boston ABC affiliate WCVB showed significant growth during the sweeps period on its early-morning newscasts.

WCVB’s early morning newscast, which runs from 4:30 to 7 a.m. and leads into “Good Morning America,” was up double digits in both Total Viewers and A25-54 viewers compared to the same sweeps period last year, according to WCVB. The station’s 4:30 a.m. newscast had a 34% Total Viewer advantage over the second-place newscast, and beat all the competition combined in A24-54 viewers.

Additionally, ABC’s “Good Morning America” on WCVB widened its lead over NBC’s “Today” on WHDH. “GMA” on WCVB won the sweeps period, including the day when “Today” on WHDH was broadcast live from Boston.

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Victoria Block Retiring from WHDH

Kevin Eck — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 16:04:07 +0000

Victoria Block, reporter for Boston NBC affiliate WHDH has announced she is retiring.

She spread the news on her Twitter feed along with a picture of her peeping over the top of a folder with the word, “Retiring!!” written by hand. She tweeted, “Retiring! Because I can . So happy!!” You can see a screen grab of the tweet after the jump.

Block confirmed the news with TVSpy saying, “I am retiring because I can and because life is short. I have had a fantastic run, 35 years in the business, 32 of them in Boston, 27 at 7 News. I’m trading in snow storms, chaos and disasters for sunshine and flip flops and time with my family. Life is good ” continued…

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Jonathan Choe Joins KMSP in Minneapolis

Merrill Knox — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 16:35:33 +0000

Jonathan Choe is joining KMSP, the Fox O&O in Minneapolis-St. Paul, as a general assignment reporter.

Choe begins on February 24 as a reporter for the 5, 9 and 10 p.m. newscasts. He is a former general assignment reporter at WCIA in Champaign, Ill., and has also worked as a news writer at WFLD in Chicago and WHDH in Boston. Most recently, he was an adjunct professor for Columbia College Chicago’s journalism department.

“I am eager to get started and continue my growth as a journalist. I am looking forward to building new relationships in the Twin Cities and serving the community by telling stories that matter,” Choe said in a statement.

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Boston Stations Remember Blizzard of ’78

Kevin Eck — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 17:59:12 +0000

Wednesday marked the thirty five year anniversary of the Blizzard of ’78 when New England was hit hard by foul winter weather killing 100 people and injuring thousands.

This week, Boston TV stations have been taking a looking back at the snowstorm by which they say all snowstorms are measured while they keep an eye on another blizzard expected to hit the area Friday.

WHDH, the Boston NBC affiliate, FOX owned WFXT and CBS owned WBZ all focused on the differences between then and now, making the point that technology has advanced far enough to help residents avoid the problems presented in 1978. You can watch the report from WHDH after the jump.

In his report, WFXT’s Kevin Lemanowicz said New Englanders blew off warnings about the blizzard because a snowstorm earlier in the month had been poorly forecast. Lemanowicz points out the computer models of today are a far cry from the paper maps of 1978. Weather forecasters thought the snow would begin falling at dawn on February 5, 1978, instead it came mid-morning. “And when we turn back the clock thirty five years and look how they predicted it,” Lemanowicz pointed out. “It’s amazing the forecast was even this close.” continued…

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Mike Oliveira Promoted to News Director at WPXI

Merrill Knox — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 12:37:38 +0000

Mike Oliveira has been promoted to news director at Pittsburgh NBC affiliate WPXI, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Oliveira, the station’s managing editor, joined WPXI seven years ago as an executive producer. He has previously worked at WHDH in Boston and WTVH in Syracuse.

“Mike has been with us since 2005 and has had a dramatic impact on our product and people,” WPXI vice president and general manager Ray Cater said in a statement.

Oliveira replaces Michael Goldrick, who was recently named news director at WRC in Washington, DC.

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WHDH’s Anne Allred Leaving Boston for St. Louis

Merrill Knox — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 16:01:46 +0000

After six years at WHDH, morning anchor Anne Allred is saying goodbye to the Boston NBC affiliate.

“The last five and a half years working with Anne have been wonderful,” Adam Williams said as he introduced a tribute to Allred Friday (video above). “Anne’s going to be heading back to St Louis to work for the NBC station out there, to be closer to family and loved ones.” continued…

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East Coast Stations Deliver Extended Hurricane Coverage as Sandy Marches On

Merrill Knox — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 10:49:01 +0000

Stations in major markets across the East Coast chose to preempt, or partially preempt, network morning shows Monday to remain in extended local coverage of Hurricane Sandy.

In New York City, where the subways and buses have been shut down since Sunday night, the local stations all began live storm coverage at 4amET. NBC O&O WNBC went to “Today” at 7 a.m. and returned to local programming at 7:30 a.m. WCBS aired only the first hour of “CBS This Morning,” and WABC aired “Good Morning America” in its entirety.

Related, TVNewser: 50 Million in Sandy’s Path, a ‘Worst Case Scenario’ Monster Storm

Related, FishbowlNY: WCBS Brings in ‘A’ Team for Hurricane Sandy Coverage

In Philadelphia, KYW joined “CBS This Morning” a few minutes after 7 a.m. and continued its local newscast on CW affiliate WPSG. WCAU aired the first half hour of “Today” and returned to local coverage at 7:30 a.m., and WPVI aired “Good Morning America.” continued…

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It’s Official: Dreyer Named to NBC’s “Weekend Today”

Kevin Eck — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 16:39:33 +0000

NBC has officially announced Dylan Dreyer will be joining NBC News as their “Weekend Today” weather anchor.

TVSpy reported last month Dreyer, who was the weekday morning anchor for WHDH, would be leaving the Boston NBC affiliate for the Today show gig.

Dreyer, whose first day on-air will be this Saturday, September 15th, will also provide weekend weather reports for MSNBC.

continued…

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Cynthia Vega Says Goodbye to Television

Merrill Knox — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 16:45:08 +0000

Cynthia Vega, who signed off last month from WFAA in Dallas, is making a career change.

Vega has joined the public affairs department at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, where she will work as manager of media relations. In a statement announcing the hire, DFW Airport vice president of public affairs Mary Jo Polidore said Vega “brings a wealth of outstanding and relevant experience to the Airport.”

Vega spent 12 years as a reporter for WFAA, the ABC affiliate in Dallas. Prior to that, she worked at WHDH in Boston, WFTV in Orlando and KTSM in El Paso.

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