Diane Macedo Joins CBS 2

As we reported last month, Fox Business anchor Diane Macedo joined CBS 2 this week as a reporter and weekend morning anchor.  Macedo joins anchor/reporter Andrea Grymes at the desk.  Cindy Hsu, who had been doing weekend mornings and evenings, remains at weekend evening anchor and weekday reporter.

Meteorologist Vanessa Murdock also returned from maternity leave after giving birth to a girl in January.  She filled in for John Elliott during the week before taking back her weekend morning weather duties, which freelancer John Marshall had returned to fill.

Officially started at WCBS! If you have any ideas for news stories in the tri-state area please send them my way (and wish me luck)!
— Diane Macedo (@dianermacedo) March 11, 2014

Making my anchoring debut on CBS 2 in New York today. Tune in at at 6 am if you're unlucky enough to be awake that early on a Sat.
— Diane Macedo (@dianermacedo) March 15, 2014

Welcoming @VMurdockTV back from mat. leave & @dianermacedo to our wknd AM team! @HsuTV still on at night! @CBSNewYork Live 6-7am!
— Andrea Grymes (@AndreaGrymesTV) March 15, 2014

CBSNewYork.com Launches

Web surfers who type cbsnewyork.com into their browser are now redirected to newyork.cbslocal.com, the website that combines the resources of CBS 2 News with CBS Radio stations WCBS, WINS and WFAN. The same also happens when you type in wcbs880.com and 1010wins.com while wfan.com redirects to the sports page.

Until this morning, cbsnewyork.com redirected to wcbstv.com despite the new (well, old) web address being promoted on television since last week.

It is interesting to note that Kate Sullivan's bio is no longer on the website. It had been reported that Sullivan's last day at CBS 2 News would be last Friday but no indication was made on the morning or noon newscasts of her leaving. Cindy Hsu has been anchoring alongside Maurice DuBois this week with no mention of her being "in for" Sullivan. Promos for the morning newscast featuring the entire team have also stopped airing.

CBS 2 at JDRF Walk

CBS 2 sponsored today's JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes in Battery Park and over the Brooklyn Bridge. NewsByte 2 was there and took these pictures:

Meteorologist Megan Glaros did the weather all morning from 6:00 to 9:00 from Battery Park.

CBS 2's live truck with its microwave mast up.

Anchors Dana Tyler and Cindy Hsu hosting the kick-off program before the walk began.

Cindy's daughter Rosie taking pictures of the crowd with her mom's phone.

Rob Morrison To Join CBS 2 News

NewsByte2 has learned that Rob Morrison, formerly of WNBC, will join CBS 2 News. His first day is scheduled to be Monday, according to an e-mail sent out this afternoon to staffers. Morrison will be anchoring Saturday and Sunday mornings with Mary Calvi and report three days a week. He previously anchored WNBC's "Today in New York" until May of 2008. Late last year, Morrison authored this blog post on The Huffington Post about suddenly being a stay-at-home dad.

Cindy Hsu, who had been co-anchoring with Calvi since Steve Bartelstein abruptly resigned March 17th, will return to weekday reporting with a focus on families.

Hsu's 15th Anniversary at CBS 2

Today is Cindy Hsu's 15th anniversary at WCBS-TV.

She joined the station on this date in 1993 as a reporter before becoming a weekend anchor the following year. In the summer of 1996, Hsu was promoted to mornings, she outlasted several co-anchors and format changes. She was also anchoring the noon newscast until August 2000, which was typically the station's only #1 broadcast. Hsu left mornings in 2001 when Channel 2 started out a 4:00 show, becoming its news anchor and regular fill-in while also returning to the noon. In March 2002, she became co-anchor of the 4:30 and 5:30 newscasts, until September 2003 when she moved to 5:00, staying there until the following April. She remained on as noon co-anchor until April 2006, when the station once again shuffled lineups, and moved to weekend mornings for the next 12 months. Hsu began doing parenting reports in October 2004, then branded as "Parent 2 Parent" and now called "Family First."

According to her bio, Hus has won many awards, including Emmy Awards, the New York AP Broadcasters Award, the American Women in Radio and Television Golden Apple Award and the Friends of Adoption Award from the Adoptive Parents Committee. She is also very involved in the community and the Daily News reports today that Hsu will be at Shea Stadium with Lonnie Quinn tomorrow to kick off the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's "Walk to Cure Diabetes."

More of Those New Promos

The third batch of those still photos promos hit the air on Wednesday. One features the noon and 6:00 anchor team of Dana Tyler and Don Dahler, meaning that all three of the weekday teams are now been highlighted in these spots. The other shows Cindy Hsu and talks about her parenting reports.

"A Team You Can Trust"


"Your Family, Your News"


These spots began airing on April 29th and the second group debuted on May 21st.

In other promo news, as the heat wave gripped the tri-state area over the weekend and the early part of this week, CBS 2 debuted a few more summer-related weather factoid promos. Here are two: Summer Solstice and Hottest Day.

And in recent weeks, the station has been doing promos for the next day's 6:00 newscast, as is regularly done with the 5:00 and 11:00 newscasts.

Update: We hear that a promo for John Slattery has also been spotted.

Heat Wave Weekend NewsBytes

Here are a bunch of quick headlines for you as you try to keep cool in the tri-state this weekend... Feel free to weigh in in the comments section:

> For the first time since Christmas, Cindy Hsu anchored a newscast. The nearly 15-year veteran of the station filled in alongside Chris Wragge on CBS 2 News at 5:00 and at 11:00, and next to Steve Bartelstein this morning.

> A day after two climbers scaled The New York Times building in Times Square, Don Dahler tried to give viewers a sense of what the two publicity-seeking men were feeling. The anchor climbed a 25-foot wall in Chelsea Piers three times and said that, by the end of the climbs, his arms and fingers were cramping, even though he does rock climbing and has done 200-foot cliffs. "The physical feats these men accomplished are nothing short of astounding," Dahler said, adding that they were "very dangerous, illegal, foolish and they could have easily ended in death." Watch the video on wcbstv.com here.

> Megan Glaros filled in for Lonnie Quinn at 11:00 last night even though Quinn was on hand for the 5:00 and 6:00 newscasts. Quinn had to be in Newport, RI to do the weather live from the "Great Chowder Cook-Off" on this morning's The Early Show.

> And speaking of CBS 2 News at 11:00 last night, there were no commercial breaks until 11:32. Hsu and Wragge did a ten-second tease just after "NUMB3RS" and this is usually followed by a 60-second commercial break. Instead, there were a few seconds of black and then the newscast started up. After the one break at the end, Glaros was called on to give another look at the forecast and Hsu and Wragge chatted about it for a few seconds. In the close, Wragge mentioned that it was a "commercial-free edition of CBS 2 News." Was this intentional?

CBS 2 Sponsors Two Charity Events This Weekend

It's going to be a busy morning for CBS 2 as the station is sponsoring a couple of walks/runs tomorrow.

Cindy Hsu and Jim Rosenfield will be at Battery Park for the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes while Lonnie Quinn will take part in the walk at the Bronx Zoo.

Beginning at 10:00 tomorrow morning, Chris Wragge and Kristine Johnson will anchor live from the Tunnel to Towers Run. The press release says that Brendan Keefe and Lou Young will contribute reports while Dana Tyler has an interview with the widow of Stephen Siller, the heroic firefighter who inspired the walk. The hour-long broadcast will also be streamed live at wcbstv.com.

Both events will be covered during CBS 2 News Sunday Morning from 6:00 to 9:00. Elise Finch will provide weather reports from the site of the Tunnel to Towers Run, which begins at the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel.

Cindy Hsu Anchors From "Race For The Cure"

From 6:oo to 9:00 this morning, Cindy Hsu provided live reports from the Susan G. Komen Race For The Cure. Brendan Keefe anchored the rest of CBS 2 News Sunday Morning from the studio. Hsu was joined by breast cancer survivors and their families, some of whom were featured on last night's special.




At the end of the newscast, Hsu was joined by the rest of CBS 2's team participating in the event: Maurice DuBois, Kate Sullivan, Dana Tyler, Chris Wragge, Kristine Johnson, Lonnie Quinn, Tamsen Fadal and Dr. Holly Phillips.

CBS 2 Presents "Race For The Cure"

On the eve of this weekend's Susan G. Komen New York City Race for the Cure, CBS 2 News will air an hour-long special on breast cancer. "Race For The Cure" is hosted by morning anchors Maurice DuBois and Kate Sullivan and airs Saturday night at 7:00. According to the press release, the "inspirational hour" "highlights the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in New York City and takes a positive and encouraging look at breast cancer survivors and new advances in fighting the disease." Dr. Holly Phillips, Dr. Max Gomez, Dana Tyler, Cindy Hsu, Kristine Johnson, Tamsen Fadal and Katie McGee will also provide reports.

For the third year in a row, CBS 2 is the media sponsor of the 5K race, which takes place Sunday morning at 9:00. Check out two of the spots the station has been running for the cause here.

Anchor NewsBytes

NewsByte2 is catching up with the latest on the latest apparent round of anchor changes:

- It looks like Chris Wragge is now the solo anchor of CBS 2 News at Noon. He's been anchoring it solo since shortly before Kristine Johnson took her maternity leave. The move was said to be giving her extra rest as she was in her ninth month. She returned to the 5:00 newscast on Monday but hasn't returned at noon. (Maurice DuBois mentioned that he was filling in for Wragge today.)

- Cindy Hsu and Kirstin Cole are no longer the anchors of the weekend morning newscasts. Sean Hennessey and Deborah Garcia anchored the broadcasts the last two weekends. Both Hsu and Cole seem to have added general assignment reporting to their respective parenting and consumer beats.

- John Discepolo is now the morning sports anchor. Kate Sullivan and Maurice DuBois welcomed him to the newscast earlier this week.

Cindy Hsu Wins Golden Apple Award

Brian sends in this from Broadcasting & Cable: Cindy Hsu has won a Golden Apple Award in the broadcast category from the NYC chapter of American Women in Radio and Television. The award will be presented May 17 at the Sheraton Hotel.

Hsu Stays, Lyon Leaves and Lamberty to FOX 5

Richard Huff in the Daily News breaks a lot of CBS 2 News today:

Cindy Hsu was given a new contract and will remain on CBS 2. She was originally told that her contract would not be renewed and this was to be her last month with the station.

Kerri Lyon, whose assignment was generally the education beat, is leaving CBS 2 News to "pursuing other opportunities." She joined CBS 2 on Halloween 2002 after being at NY1.

Reid Lamberty, who left CBS 2 last week, will join FOX 5 as a reporter and weekend anchor on Wednesday.

Berardelli Leaves CBS 2 For Miami

Jeff Berardelli, CBS 2's weekend morning meteorologist since 2003, announced just moments ago that he is leaving the station. He said that this would be his last week at CBS 2 before he heads down to Miami to join WFOR-TV.

He first appeared on the weekend morning newscasts in May of 2003, filling in for Janine D'Adamo, working alongside Lisa Daniels and Mario Bosquez. He replaced D'Adamo when she left in July of that year but wasn't announced as a permament member of the CBS 2 Weather Team until August when David Rogers was fired. He had previously worked at WTSP in Tampa.

"It has been such an honor being here in New York City, in my hometown, born and raised in New York," Berardelli told viewers at the end of this morning's broadcast. "I've been here for four years at WCBS, a fantastic station with fantastic people. Some of the most talented people in the business, honestly, work here."

He also called WFOR a "fantastic station" and said, "They have the best hurricane coverage in the United States." But he's not just trading in snow storms for hurricanes: "I just want to get in touch with the outdoors again." He said that he loves fishing, boating, scuba diving and kayaking.

"I'm really excited about the opportunity but I will really miss being here with you," he said to anchors Cindy Hsu and Kirstin Cole. "You guys are the best." Hsu and Cole made him a cake that said "Good bye and Good luck Jeff!"

He mentioned that he'll be back to help broadcast the "Tunnel to Towers" run because that cause is very important to him. The event is held every September. Berardelli's bio says that he "is active in the Tunnel To Towers Organization, designed to remember the victims of 9-11." He ran in it last year.

Berardelli is the third meteorologist to leave the station in recent months under the changes being instituted by News Director David Friend. Craig Allen and Audrey Puente are the others. A replacement has yet to be named publicly, though it's been rumored for months that Lonnie Quinn would be joining CBS 2.

Post: "Slow-Motion Massacre"

"ONE BY ONE, CH. 2 SQUEEZING OUT OLD FACES" is the sub-headline for this lead story in the Post's TV section by Michael Starr.

Not a whole lot is advanced in this story -- it's mostly what has already been reported here and other places around the 'net. The layoffs are attributed to the need to trim the station's budget, which is due to lower than expected political advertising last year. Hillary Clinton and Eliot Spitzer, the Post says, spent "much less" in New York than projected, probably because they had no close competition.

Starr notes that Roz Abrams is off the air (since November) and is owed nearly $6 million for the remainder of her contract. Audrey Puente is also said to be gone (though her bio is still up, leaving me to think that she could be called upon to fill-in before her contract expires).

Cindy Hsu, who's described as "popular anchor-turned-reporter," has a contract expiring in March that won't be renewed.

The Post also speculates that Lonnie Quinn, "Sam Champion-look-a-like from South Florida," will likely mean that John Bolaris is on the way out.

This line sums it all up: "Industry types say Ch. 2 is cutting costs by chopping higher-priced, locally known talent, including Mario Bosquez and Lynda Lopez, and replacing them with cheaper anchors and reporters from outside New York."

The article also points out that "Judge Judy," which returned to CBS 2's 4 p.m. hour in September, hasn't helped CBS 2 News at 5:00. "The numbers have moved a little bit with 'Judge Judy,' " an anonymous insider said, "but they're concerned they haven't capitalized on 'Judy's' good numbers."

I wonder if it could be related to the fact that there are two unknowns at the desk at 5 p.m. that replaced Roz Abrams and Mary Calvi after just half a year. It's these constant changes and removal of familiar faces for cheaper, weaker talent that will continue to hurt CBS 2 News. Every new management team thinks it has the solutions, and that includes changing everything. The viewers have responded.

The Peter Dunn/David Friend team is very different from the one of Lew Leone/Dianne Doctor, which worked to acquire big names from other local stations. Dunn and Friend don't need them.

I also wonder how they expect to save money by paying Abrams $6 million to watch the news from her den for a few more years and not at least have her anchor until her contract runs out.

What do you think about these changes? Will they help CBS 2 or hurt them? Do you think more people will be let go in the near future?

CBS 2 Dumps, Reassigns and Renegotiates with Talent

The Daily News' Richard Huff says "It's getting uncomfortable inside WCBS/Ch. 2." Here's some more of what he reports:

Cindy Hsu's contract expires in March and will not be renewed.

Audrey Puente's status is still unclear. (John Elliott's first day on the air, Tuesday, was the same day that Puente filled in for Dave Price on "The Early Show," despite appearing to have a cold. She was introduced as being from New York's WCBS-TV.)

Veteran reporters like Lou Young are renegotiating their contracts to take pay cuts.

Political reporter Andrew Kirtzman has been reassigned to general assignment reporting.

Producers for CBS 2 News This Morning and at 11:00 have also been shuffled.

As for what Huff did not report, tech editor Brett Larson's bio was recently removed from wcbstv.com. He most often appeared on the morning newscasts (weekdays and weekends). A video search shows his last day as possibly being December 21st when he showed off the new Nintendo Wii system with Kate Sullivan. However, Larson appeared on Monday's taped edition of CBS's "The Early Show" and was introduced by Dave Price as being from WCBS-TV in New York.

And the same TVSpy poster who broke the news about Hsu and Larson mentioned that Long Island reporter Reid Lamberty is also on the way out.

CBS 2 "Storm Watch" Coverage

CBS 2 Weekend News had special storm coverage last night, beginning at 6:06 (delayed a few minutes by NCAA Basketball). Vince DeMentri and Alexis Christoforous (who was filling in for Kirstin Cole) anchored. Meteorologist Craig Allen was in the studio with the forecast, and Chief Meteorologist David Rogers was outside on the roof on the CBS Broadcast Center. Whitney Casey reported on driving safety from New Brunswick, New Jersey, and Scott Rapoport was in Chelsea following the city's preparedness. Craig Allen also appeared on the CBS Evening News, talking about the area's first major snowstorm of the season. Coverage continued this morning with a special hour of news at 7:00, and then again with a half-hour edition of CBS 2 News at 11:30, with Michael Pomeranz and Cindy Hsu. Aimee Nuzzo was in New Jersey, Paul Fleuranges was on Long Island, and Marcella Palmer was in the City. Ira Joe Fisher was in the studio with the forecast, and Meteorologist Janine D'Adamo was on their West Side roof reporting on the melting snow. Debbie DuHaine had the CBS 2 Road Watch report. More CBS 2 News coverage tonight at 6:30.

"Storm Watch" Coverage

As the first major snow storm of the season hit the tri-state area, CBS 2 News had special team coverage throughout the day. Cindy Hsu (filling-in for Michael Pomeranz) and Lisa Hill anchored this morning, with Meteorologist Janine D'Adamo tracking the storm. Chris Silveri, normally an off-camera meteorologist, was in the CBS 2 Weather Center updating the snowfall accumulation totals. Don Piccin (in for Rachel Lutzker) had the latest on the traffic. Marcella Palmer was live in Denville, and Rose Walia reported from Westchester. Manager J.R. Whalen explains what the Information Center did:

This morning, the CBS 2 Information Center reported on school closings and delayed openings in the viewing area throughout "CBS 2 News This Morning." Viewers and callers quickly realized that the Information Center, an exclusive service of CBS 2, was the best source of up to date information about the status of their local school district. Additionally, we fielded several calls from New York City residents who had trouble with heat and hot water service. They were advised of city regulations and were advised of hotline phone numbers to call to report problems with service.

Later this afternoon and evening, Chief Meteorologist David Rogers had the forecast for the entire area, and Scott Sumner (who is also usually an off-camera meteorologist) was in the Weather Center with storm totals. He also debuted "Zone Weather", temperatures and conditions for specific areas in the tri-state (including the Interior and Northwest regions). Morry Alter was in Denville, and Whitney Casey was in Mt. Kisco.

CBS 2 News's Coverage of Mayor Giuliani's Farewell Speech

Today, CBS 2 News at Noon began half an hour earlier, interrupting the Price is Right, for a "CBS 2 News Special Report." Cindy Hsu and Michael Pomeranz gave a brief introduction and explanation of Mayor Giuliani's farewell speech today and then went live to St. Paul's Church just blocks from Ground Zero for the speech. After airing the 53-minute speech in its entirety, Marcia Kramer, CBS 2 News political correspondant, provided highlights of a one-on-one interview with the mayor's friend, Judith Nathan. CBS 2 News at Noon then ended at 12:30 after a check of the top stories with Mike and Cindy and the weather forecast.

-Michael

CBS 2 News Coverage Of Crash Of Flight 587

Unbelievably, New York has suffered another tragedy just one day after the two month anniversary of the attacks on America. This time an American Airlines Airbus A300, Flight 587, crashed at 9:17am, just three minutes after takeoff, into the residential neighborhood of Belle Harbor, Queens. The flight took off from John F. Kennedy International Airport and was bound for Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. It is not believed to be terrorism-related, but rather an engine problem is likely the cause of the crash. 260 people were onboard the airplane, and there are at least six people reported missing on the ground.

Minutes after the crash, CBS 2 News broke into regular programming with a special report. Michael Pomeranz and Cindy Hsu anchored the coverage all morning long, and a Metro camera shot of the smoke filled the screen. David Diaz provided constant updates from the newsroom. Jennifer McLogan, the first CBS 2 News reporter near the scene, reported via telephone. Then at 10:15, CBS 2 provided the first live camera shot from Belle Harbor, which was picked up by cable news networks CNN and Fox News Channel. CBS 2's full team of reporters were soon reporting from the scene, the area airports, and in the Broadcast Center. By 11:15, CBS 2 began using special graphics created for the tragedy. Just after 1:00, Todd McDermott took to the anchor desk along with Cindy Hsu. Angela soon joined him at around 2:00. Two minutes after 3:00, the anchor team was Dana Tyler and Ernie Anastos. An hour later, CBS 2 began to use a special opening animation, soon accompanied by a theme and the announcer. The regular 5:00 anchor team of Todd McDermott and Angela Rae came on at 4:59, and Dana Tyler and Ernie Anastos returned to the desk at 5:58. A special one-hour edition of the CBS Evening News with Dan Rather started at 6:30. By 7:30, CBS 2 was back on with another special report updating viewers on the ongoing situation.