UPDATED: Bob Longo, news director at WTAE since 1999, will leave the station next month to take over as news director at WESH in Orlando, a sister station that, like WTAE, is owned by Hearst-Argyle.
General Manager Rick Henry said Longo was hired by WESH general manager Jim Carter, a former sales director at WTAE whose tenure at Channel 4 briefly overlapped with Longo's.
"Bob has done a terrific job here and I think that's being recognized," Henry said. "He'll be able to meet whatever challenges they have in Orlando."
A search for Longo's replacement has begun.
During Longo's tenure he oversaw a transition in the weather center with the retirement of Joe DeNardo and a rotating roster of chief meteorologists -- Cropper, Schwenneker, Cropper, ? -- and the debut of a new set designed for the HD era.
Longo also championed the promotion of news anchor Wendy Bell, a polarizing figure, and oversaw the dismissal of 5 p.m anchor Scott Baker and the transition of Andrew Stockey from sportscaster to the station's primary 6 and 11 p.m. male anchor. During his tenure, Sally Wiggin's air time was reduced and Michelle Wright, once Wiggin's heir apparent, lost air time, too.
Cheesy contests during sweeps, once a regular part of the local media landscape, ended on WTAE while Longo was news director. Ratings-wise, it's more difficult to measure Longo's impact. Ratings bounce up and down every few years. In general, rival KDKA has strengthend its leadership role during Longo's tenure after the heritage station had begun to falter. Longo leaves WTAE as the No. 1 morning station, but it's lost ground at 5 p.m.
"It's something I looked at as a golden professional opportunity," Longo said of his new job at the NBC affiliate in Orlando. "Like Pittsburgh, it's a very competitive market. ... I'm flattered and thrilled that I can be the next news director there and at the same time it's bittersweet leaving here. I thoroughly enjoy the people and the product we put out at WTAE. I've never been anywhere this long. I've really grown to love the station, the people, the product and the community."
Longo said the most memorable news stories during his tenure include the coverage of the Ronald Taylor killing spree in Wilkinsburg ("As tragic a story as that was, it was the day the staff really came together and excelled at covering breaking news," Longo said), the Quecreek mine story, 9-11 and the Steelers Super Bowl victory.
"The most enjoyment I ever had here was probably being in the control room during the last minutes of the Steelers Super Bowl win, which was on our air, and cutting to all our local people and going live for two hours that Sunday night," he said. "It was a blur, but it was an amazing blur."
Posted
Dec 10 2008, 04:07 PM
by
Rob Owen