Statement: WISC-TV Anchor Charlotte Deleste Steps Down, CNN Cancels ‘King Charles’ After Five Months

Charlotte Deleste - WISC-TV

Broadcast: Shuneca Harrington rejoins Sinclair Broadcast Group as VP and general manager of WRLH-TV (branded as Fox Richmond). She started her media career as an account executive at Sinclair’s WLFL CW22 and most recently worked as director of sales at NBC-affiliated WRAL-TV and WRAZ-TV (branded as Fox 50) in Raleigh, NC. 

“We are thrilled Shuneca is returning to Sinclair to oversee WRLH  in Richmond,” said Rob Weisbord, chief operating officer of the corporation and president of broadcast. “She is a data-focused, creative leader with proven success in revenue driving and performance management, and we look forward to building on our momentum in the  market under her leadership.”  

The Talk, CBS’s Emmy-winning daytime talk show, will wrap up its shortened 15th season in December. The long-running series has been developed and produced by actress Sara Gilbert since 2010. In 2021, it added its first male panel co-hosts, Akbar Gbajabiamila and Jerry O’Connell. 

“The Talk broke new ground when it launched 14 years ago by returning daytime talk to CBS with a refreshing and award-winning format. Throughout the years, it has been a key program on CBS’ top-rated daytime line-up as it brought timely, important and entertaining topics and discussions into living rooms around the globe,” president of CBS Entertainment Amy Reisenbach and CBS Studios President David Stapf said in a joint statement. “We truly appreciate the skill, creativity, and dedication everyone involved brought to the show every day. And of course, we thank the numerous guests who appeared and the millions of viewers who tuned in daily. For the final season, we plan to celebrate the show and give it the proper sendoff it deserves when it concludes in December 2024.”

Ike Ejiochi was promoted to New York-based correspondent at ABC news. He joined the station as a reporter in 2021 and previously reported for WTTG (channel 5) as a general assignment reporter and fill-in anchor. 

“Ike was instrumental in covering a number of important stories, including the trial of Derek Chauvin, the police officer convicted of murdering George Floyd, and the deadly tornadoes in Paducah, Kentucky, in 2021,” said ABC News president Kim Godwin. “His reporting also ignited a cultural conversation with Sean Bankhead and Laurieann Gibson, choreographers who have worked with Michael Jackson, Dixie Chicks, Beyoncé and more, about rising through the ranks of dance as Black artists.”

Popular syndicated talk show Tamron Hall was renewed for a sixth season after a kitchen fire on the set. The program will be carried by ABC's WABC/New York, KABC/Los Angeles, WLS/Chicago, WPVI/Philadelphia, KGO/San Francisco, KTRK/Houston, WTVD/Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, and KFSN/Fresno, California as well as leading broadcast groups, such as Hearst, Scripps, Nexstar, Tegna, Gray, and AMG. 

“From the start, I saw the show as a chance to build a community. Now, here we are, preparing for Season 6. Wow,” host Tamron Hall said. “Thank you to my team and my beloved Tam Fam for nurturing my dream and growing this community. We are a daily destination to talk, laugh, learn and be inspired together. From the biggest celebrities in the world to the most incredible people in their own neighborhood, they all come here to talk, and I am grateful.”

According to Deadline, senior BBC news channel presenter Martine Croxall has sued her broadcaster in an employment tribunal against age and sex discrimination, and equal pay. Multiple sources mention the parties of the case involve four other female presenters — Karin Giannone, Geeta Guru-Murthy, Kasia Madera, and Annita McVeigh — most of whom have been off air for more than a year. Back in 2020, Newswatch host Samira Ahmed won a gender pay lawsuit against the corporation.

Veteran anchor Charlotte Deleste announced that she would step down from WISC-TV News 3, looking for “time to breathe.” Her last day is April 24th, ending after 18 years of contributing to the Madison channel. 

"In all this time, I've never interviewed a president or a jaw-dropping celebrity, and I'm fine with that," said Deleste. "The superstars I've had the privilege of interviewing are the people who make this community the special place that I call home."

Experienced journalist and producer Melissa Mahtani was tapped as executive producer of CBS News Confirmed. This unit will identify, combat, and inform viewers of misinformation. Beginning on April 22nd, Mahtani reports to Claudia Milne, senior vice president and head of standards and practices for CBS News and Stations.

“Melissa’s depth and breadth of experience across multiple media platforms makes her the perfect person to lead the audience-facing presentation of the work of CBS News Confirmed,” Milne said. “She knows how to produce stories and shows, tell stories and package information to reach the largest audiences on whatever platforms they’re watching or reading. She will be a huge asset to our team.”

Veteran anchor Edward Moody will co-anchor the 5 p.m., 6 p.m., and 11 p.m. newscasts with Trish Williford for WBTW (also known as News 13). Moody fills the position of Patsy Kelly, who will leave the station on May 3rd. Coming from WSAV-TV (also known as News 3), Moody previously worked for WCCO-TV and WXIN (also known as Fox 59).

“WBTW is lucky to find a journalist who has the experience that Edward has,” news director Paul Caron said. “He and Trish Williford will make a great team.”

WTMO-CD’s (Telemundo 31) vice president of news, Miguelangel Lopez, was promoted to regional VP of news and content for WTMO, WRMD-CD (Telemundo 49), and WWDT-CD (Telemundo 43). All of these Telemundo stations are part of NBCUniversal. Starting as a reporter, Lopez worked for the group and network for more than 18 years, including in correspondent, producer, and leadership roles. 

“Miguelangel’s expanded responsibilities reflect his proven leadership, immense experience in news and original content, and dedication to journalistic excellence,” president and general manager Jose Suarez said. “We are fortunate to have talented and committed newsroom professionals across the stations, and excited to have Miguelangel in position to lead them to continued growth and success to best-serve our diverse communities.”

Senior reporter Jenny Padura was promoted to anchor the 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts on WLTV-DT (Univision 23), where she will partner with Ambrosio Hernandez. Born in Cuba and coming to the U.S. at age 13, Padura started her career as an intern at the channel and has been a general assignment reporter since 2007. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Jenny Padura as the newest member of our esteemed anchor team,” Yolanda Zugasti, VP of news at Univision 23, said. “Jenny’s unwavering commitment to journalistic excellence and her deep connection to the local community make her an invaluable addition to our broadcast. We look forward to the dynamic energy and insightful perspective she will bring to our evening newscasts.”

After the Federal Communications Commission fined the Nexstar Media Group and Mission Broadcasting for ownership violations, Nexstar disputed the FCC’s order of selling WPIX New York or divesting from other stations. Nexstar stated that their operation of the station for Mission Broadcasting was legal and approved by the FCC. 

“Through the NAL (Notice of Apparent Liability), the Commission seeks to wield its enforcement authority in a myriad of improper ways,” said Nexstar. 

According to a spokesperson for conservative news outlet OAN, a defamation lawsuit filed by voting machine company Smartmatic has been settled under a  confidential  agreement. In 2021, OAN and other right-wing news organizations, such as Fox News and Newsmax, openly tolerated guests and contributors who claimed that voting machine companies, including Dominion Voting Systems, interfered with the 2020 presidential election. In addition, OAN faces another ongoing defamation lawsuit filed by Dominion.

NBCUniversal News CEO Cesar Conde hired and fired Ronna McDaniel, former Republican National Committee chairwoman, in March of this year in response to on-air staff revolts. In April, Conde spoke in an in-depth interview with business media company Fast Company about the "harsh lessons" behind this scandal and his role as a servant leader as a Cuban immigrant. 

“I think the best leaders are the ones who understand that they’re there to help, empower, and support their teams so that they can be successful,” said Conde in the interview. 

A graduate of Harvard University and the Wharton business school, Conde completed a White House fellowship where he served under then Secretary of State, Colin Powell. In 2003, he joined Spanish-language Univision Networks as executive vice president and became the president of Univision at age 35. In 2020, Conde was tapped by Comcast for the top news position at NBC, but his limited background in journalism and his new role during the chaotic pandemic were inevitably met with skepticism from industry insiders.

“Our philosophy is that we want to make sure we have something for everyone,” he said, speaking about the news group as a whole.

Deep Bagchee is returning to CNBC from ITV (Channel 3) to lead CNBC International. He was previously the senior vice president of product and technology at CNBC in New York and the supervising digital editor for CNBC.com Asia edition.

Multimedia journalist Sarah Garcia was promoted to anchor the 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. weekend newscasts at KTLM-TV (also known as Telemundo 40). Garcia has been with the station since 2017, starting as an intern and working her way up to production assistant, reporter, and most recently MMJ. 

“Sarah has been an integral part of our news team for almost seven years, and we are happy to expand her role to acknowledge her contributions and skill as a journalist,” said Iris Rodriguez, KTLM Telemundo 40’s news director. “We are confident her experience and connection with our audiences will continue to enhance our news coverage to best-serve our communities."

In an interview for ElectionLine's “A View From Abroad” series, Richard Madan, CBC News’ Washington, D.C.-based correspondent, talked about the multifaceted challenges of fairly covering the upcoming U.S. election campaign.

“There really is an anger out there, there’s a resentment. All the polls indicate no one’s excited about this rematch between Biden and Trump. Then you pour in disinformation, divided media ecosystems, and AI — it’s just a toxic mix. It will be a very unpredictable and high-stakes election,” Madan said.

However, Madan emphasized American voters’ favorable view of Canadians. He believes this is a good sign for the Canadian media to have easy access to American voters and politicians in campaign interviews. He said, “I just try to be pleasant. We’re Canadians, right?”

Galye king and charles barkley - king charles/cnn

Cable: Weekly talker King Charles was canceled by CNN after five months of running. Featuring CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King and former NBA iconic player Charles Barkley, the series failed to build strong primetime ratings for the cable.

Streaming: On April 25th, former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan returned with his new media company Zeteo and a featured podcast named We 're Not Kidding. The show, hosted by Hasan himself and Egyptian comedian Bassem Youssef, features notable guests in each episode and is available on YouTube, Apple and Spotify.

Former ESPN anchor Sage Steele will fill Candance Owens’ position in the voice cast of the upcoming animated sitcom Mr Birchum. This occurs after Owens left Ben Shapiro’s The Daily Wire last month amid the clashes with the co-founder over the Israel-Hamas war. The show is set to premiere on May 12th on DailyWire+. 

“When I got the call from Adam and the Daily Wire team to be part of Mr. Birchum, it was a no-brainer for me!” said Steele. “I’m a huge fan of everyone involved and am honored to be included in such a powerhouse lineup of comedians. In this insane cultural moment, it’s more important than ever to speak the truth, even when it’s unpopular. Mr. Birchum does this in such a hilarious fashion, and I’m thrilled to be part of such a fun, unapologetic project.”